A man and woman stand smiling near a docked seaplane. They are dressed in outdoor gear, with the man wearing an orange jacket and the woman holding a water bottle. The background features another seaplane, a lake, and a forest under a cloudy sky.

Beyond the Classroom: Two Teachers in the Field Explore Alaska’s Fishery Frontier

12 Mar, 2025

A serene dock in Little Port Walter, Alaska, shows a U.S. Dept. of Commerce sign on a covered structure surrounded by boats. Tall evergreen trees and a clear blue sky form the backdrop.

In September 2024, Teacher at Sea Alumni Jeff Miller (TAS 2015, Oregon II) and Kate Schafer (TAS 2017, Oregon II) spent time at NOAA’s Little Port Walter Research (LPW) Station in Southeastern Alaska, piloting a “Teacher in the Field” experience. The field station, located on Baranof Island, south of Sitka, is the oldest year-round biological station in Alaska. Researchers stationed there are conducting studies on a wide range of topics including Chinook salmon enhancement, shellfish mariculture, and developing efficient data collection methods for walleye pollock and Pacific cod. Kate and Jeff worked during the Chinook spawning season, one of the busiest times of the year. Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) are sometimes called “king salmon” due to their substantial size.

Map showing Little Port Walter in Southeast Alaska, near Sitka and Juneau. The Gulf of Alaska is to the west. Inset map shows Alaska with major cities Anchorage and Juneau, highlighting Little Port Walter's location.

After traveling several hours to Juneau, Alaska from their respective homes in Arizona and California — Jeff and Kate eagerly awaited a clear weather window to travel to Little Port Walter. The field station is only accessible by float plane or boat, adding a level of difficulty to travel. After a one-day weather delay, Jeff and Kate were able to depart Juneau for a spectacular flight to Little Port Walter before settling into their quarters at the field station.

A serene lakeside scene with a large white building and several smaller structures by the water's edge. Tall evergreen trees surround the area under a partly cloudy sky, and a small dock extends into the calm water reflecting the landscape. — NOAA’s Little Port Walter Research Station was established in 1934 and is the oldest year-round biological field station in Alaska. The station comprises 11 buildings including the White house, two wet laboratories, a warehouse, wood and metal shops, a floating wet-lab and feed shed, several residences for researchers and maintenance staff, and a permanent concrete fish weir on nearby Sashin Creek, which flows into the head of the inner bay at the station.

Research at the NOAA Little Port Walter Research Station

The primary long-term research project conducted at the Little Port Walter Research Station focuses on Chinook salmon and has documented salmon survival, run timing, growth, age composition, genetics, and environmental conditions since 1976. Chinook are the largest Pacific salmon species, growing (on average) to be two to three feet long and approximately 15-25 pounds. They can spend anywhere from one to six years at sea before they reach maturity and return to their natal river to spawn. The Little Port Walter Chinook salmon research program contributes key data for estimating harvest rates by commercial and recreational fisheries in Southeast Alaska and is important for Chinook salmon management under the Pacific Salmon Treaty. These long-term data sets also support efforts to characterize the impacts of environmental change on salmon population productivity and ecology.

A person wearing a cap and sunglasses holds a large fish under a tent. They are smiling and wearing gloves and a waterproof apron. Other people in the background are also handling fish on a table. — Kate Schafer holding an adult Chinook salmon.

The research station also plays an important role in the development of a sub-yearling broodstock of Chinook salmon. Currently, nearly all hatchery-produced Chinook salmon in Southeast Alaska are released as yearlings. Yearlings are incubated and reared in the hatchery for approximately 21 months prior to being released. However, this extended rearing is expensive and requires substantial space and water. As a result, there is considerable interest from industry and stakeholders to develop a broodstock of sub-yearling Chinook salmon, which only require ~9-12 months of rearing prior to their release. The development of such a stock would be much more cost effective and would increase the capacity of the hatchery facilities, as the space and water saved could be dedicated to the production of other fish. Little Port Walter researchers aim to develop a sub-yearling stock of Chinook for broader fisheries enhancement using fish from the Keta River, a unique system that contains a naturally-occurring sub-yearling component, which are released after just one year. If this project is successful, the sub-yearling broodstock would greatly reduce operating costs of Chinook salmon enhancement activities in Alaska.

Image showing four stages of fish growth. From top to bottom: juvenile at 77mm, juvenile at 101mm, juvenile at 140mm, and adult with an average length of 915mm. Each fish is displayed from a side view, illustrating their size progression. — Chinook salmon at different times of their life cycle. Images from: https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/4898 and https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=chinook.printerfriendly

Research at the station relies on identifying Chinook from Little Port Walter that are caught in commercial and recreational fisheries and accurately estimating the number of fish that survive to adulthood. To identify Little Port Walter salmon, young fish are tagged with a tiny, one-millimeter long metal tag called a coded-wire tag, which is inserted into the cartilaginous area of the fish’s nose. The coded-wire tags have six-digit numbers etched into them, and each hatchery has different numbers on their tags. Therefore, the numbers on the tags unambiguously link each fish to their hatchery of origin.

In a typical year, about 200,000 fish will be marked with a coded-wire tag and released from Little Port Walter into the ocean.

At Little Port Walter, returning adult salmon are captured using a fish aggregation device (FAD), gill netting, and a weir. The FAD is a series of nets that facilitates the capture of adult Chinook returning to Little Port Walter. Captured adults are then transferred to saltwater holding pens until they are ready for spawning.

A person stands on a wooden platform above a fish hatchery facility, observing water cascading down multiple channels. The structure is surrounded by lush trees under a clear sky. — In 1939, a permanent concrete weir was constructed in the upper intertidal zone of Sashin Creek. The weir is capable of capturing upstream migrating adult and downstream migrating juvenile salmon.

In 2024, 1574 adult Chinook salmon were caught and processed for length, weight, sex, genetic samples, and fin clip status at Little Port Walter. Coded-wire tags were retrieved from 1153 of those fish and used to identify fish age, stock, and inclusion in the Regional Mark Information System (RMIS), which facilitates the exchange of coded-wire tag data among release agencies, sampling and recovery agencies, and other data users. The large number of untagged adults collected was a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which precluded the tagging of juvenile fish from this cohort prior to release.

Spawning days are busy and require a collaborative and focused effort from all participants. The process is highly choreographed to facilitate quick and efficient collection of male and female gametes and data about each fish.

The spawning process is overseen by NOAA scientists Dr. Heather Fulton-Bennett and Dr. Charlie Waters together with Taylor Scott, the research manager at the Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (NSRAA), which collaborates with NOAA on the Chinook salmon project.

The broodstock for Little Port Walter come from the Keta River and are being reared experimentally in a joint effort between NOAA’s Auke Bay Laboratory and NSRAA. The Keta River stock tends to stay closer to the coast than some other Chinook salmon stocks and are thus available for harvest in the winter commercial salmon troll fisheries. Additionally, the Keta River stock tends to be a larger bodied fish, so fishers receive greater economic value when they harvest those robust fish.

The spawning process starts with the netting and euthanization of ripe fish (males and females ready to produce sperm and eggs). Holding nets are gathered up with an aluminum pole trapping the fish in an ever smaller pen. Once the fish are concentrated, they are netted and euthanized.

Five people in orange life vests and waders work together at a fish farm, adjusting nets in a large, open-topped enclosure surrounded by water and forested hills. The sky is partly cloudy, and various equipment is visible in the background. — Members of the research team net adult Chinook salmon.

Fish are then transferred to the spawning deck where they are scanned to determine if they are marked with a coded-wire tag.

A person in a blue shirt and cap sorts a large haul of fish on a metal platform by the water. The fish, shiny and numerous, are laid out in rows. — Kate Schafer scanning adult Chinook salmon for the presence of a coded-wire tag.

The fish are weighed and measured to document their size. A fin clip, which is used for genetic studies, is also collected.

A person in an orange rain jacket and gloves is preparing a fish on a table under a tent. They are wearing a green and blue cap. The scene appears to be outdoors, near a body of water, with trees and buildings in the background. — Kate Schafer weighing and measuring the length of an adult Chinook salmon.

A chart displaying multiple small, dark shark teeth organized into a numbered grid. The teeth are laid out neatly, each placed in a specific square on the chart. The chart is clipped onto a clipboard placed on a textured surface. — A collection of fin clips used for genetic studies.

The next step in the process is to extract the coded-wire tag from the fish. This step uses a specially designed tool to remove a tissue core from the fish’s snout, that is then waved near a tag detector (essentially a fancy metal detector) to determine whether the coded-wire tag is present in the core. Once the tag is detected in a tissue core, the core is passed on to another member of the team who dissects the coded-wire tag from the core, revealing essential information about the fish. Given the extremely small size of the tag, this takes patience and a keen eye for detail.

A person in a blue beanie and a dark hoodie is sitting at a table examining items under a lamp. They are surrounded by containers with tools and equipment, including a red marker and fish. The setting appears to be a workshop or lab. — Dr. Charlie Waters extracting a coded-wire tag.

Meanwhile, the fish are transferred to Taylor Scott, who is the designated spawner and she retrieves the milt (sperm) from the males and the eggs from the females. The samples are stored in a refrigerator until they are transported up the coast to the NSRAA Hidden Falls hatchery facility. There the eggs and sperm will be mixed to create the next generation of Little Port Walter Chinook salmon. The juvenile fish generated from these spawnings will return to Little Port Walter the following spring to continue growing while they acclimate to an ocean environment.

The image shows two sections: on the left, multiple bags with white powder and labeled numbers. On the right, a Ziploc bag with red liquid labeled "208" on a wooden surface. — Sperm and eggs collected from Chinook salmon.

Each day the young salmon are fed and “morts” (dead fish) are removed from the holding pens using a “mort sucker” designed by NSRAA and built at Little Port Walter.

Left image shows a person in outdoor gear holding a large fish near fenced fish pens on an Alaskan dock surrounded by forest. Right image displays a netted container with water and fish flowing through a hose, illustrating the vibrant essence of Alaska's fisheries. — Kate Schafer using the mort sucker to remove dead fish from the holding pen.

In the fall, after the frenzied spawning work is done and the summer crew has departed, the nets on the pens holding the young salmon are dropped. The following morning, all the young fish are gone. Researchers are experimenting with a fall release time to evaluate their marine survival and compare to survival of Chinook smolts that are usually released in May.

A fish inside a clear rectangular tank filled with water, placed on a gray surface. A ruler is visible behind the tank, showing measurements in centimeters and inches. The fish appears to be about 20 centimeters long. — Chinook salmon smolt.

All of this is hard work, but Kate and Jeff were able to take some time to enjoy the wonders of this remote Alaska location. They saw bears, hiked to waterfalls, visited a local museum, foraged a wide selection of wild mushrooms, and (of course) fished. They were also able to catch a great view of the aurora borealis before returning home to plan how to incorporate this experience into their teaching.

A smiling man and woman in life jackets pose for a selfie on a calm lake surrounded by forested hills under a partly cloudy sky. The woman wears sunglasses and a cap, and the man has a cap and facial hair. — Kate Schafer and Jeff Miller enjoying a boat ride during their time at the NOAA Little Port Walter research station.

Four red and white spotted mushrooms, likely Amanita muscaria, grow in a forest floor surrounded by green leaves and pine needles. Acting like nature's teacher, this scene sets the stage for a field pilot project aimed at studying these fascinating fungi in their natural habitat.

A wire mesh tray displays a variety of foraged mushrooms, including large, bright orange pieces and smaller, beige mushrooms, arranged on a speckled white surface.

A majestic waterfall cascades down a rocky cliff surrounded by lush greenery and trees. The mist rises from the base of the falls, with a view of distant mountains under a clear blue sky in the background.

A mother bear with two cubs stands on a rocky riverbank surrounded by lush greenery. The cubs appear to be exploring near the water’s edge.

Two people stand on logs in a clear lake surrounded by tall evergreen trees and mountains. Sunlight filters through the clouds, creating a serene, natural scene. A vibrant green landscape reflects on the calm water.

A bear stands in a shallow stream surrounded by mossy rocks and foliage.

A serene lakeside scene at sunset, featuring a dock with boats and two small buildings with green roofs. The sky is tinted orange and pink, reflecting on the calm water. Forested hillsides and a mountain are visible in the background.

A green vintage mailbox labeled "USMAIL" is mounted on a wall. It features a small black flag on top and a list of instructions for postal services under "US Post Office" on the front lid.

An island with dense evergreen trees is reflected in a calm body of water. The sky is filled with pink clouds during sunset, creating a serene and picturesque scene.

The image shows the Northern Lights glowing green above a dark silhouette of trees and a building marked "U.S. Dept. of Commerce" at Little Port Walter, Alaska. The sky is filled with vibrant aurora waves against a dark backdrop.

(Photo credits: unless otherwise noted, NOAA Teacher at Sea)