TOGIAK RIVER, Southwest Alaska
Coming of Age on the Togiak River
The Ultimate Father-Son Adventure in Search of the Togiak 5.
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story by mark scarpaci, photos by ken morrish
hen my friend ken morrish called and invited me on a father-son fishing trip to Alaska, I
wanted to jump on it but circumstances were far from perfect. My marriage was in a shambles,
finances were tight, and while I really needed a trip of a lifetime, I had already been on two
trips to Alaska. But, this opportunity was different.
FIRST, THIS WAS A CHANCE to go to
Alaska with my 13-year-old son and some
of his best friends, and it just so happened
that the dads were some of my best buddies.
Furthermore, we all saw it as a potential
“coming of age” trip for our boys. Our world
is lacking in boy-to-manhood rituals and I
hoped this trip to the wild would help fill
that void. To make it more attractive we were
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offered a discounted rate to fish the Togiak
River in Southwest Alaska. It was discount-
ed because it was the “off season” – the
end of July, just after the main rush of king
salmon and before the huge run of silvers.
Next, it was rumored you could catch 10
species of fish, including possibly five dif-
ferent types of salmon. There are very few
places on earth where this is even a possibil-
ity, and the Togiak is one of them. Another
significant factor was this part of Southwest
Alaska might not remain intact if some major
corporations have their way. A huge mining
operation, known as the Pebble Mine, hangs
over the Bristol Bay region like a dark cloud,
and should it ever get the approval the large
corporations are seeking, it will transform
the world’s most salmon-rich region into one