First Annual Alaska Chapter Board Retreat and Crawdad Catch-and-Cook Stewardship Event

October 2024: Event Recap

Board Retreat

Earlier this year, our Chapter Chair, Dave Johnson, shared an idea of hosting a board retreat at his remote property on Kodiak Island, which he shares with a couple of friends. The chatter of this idea throughout the early part of the year soon came to fruition-- the offer was too good to pass up! The board has long wanted to do chapter planning in person, as in Alaska, we are geographically so far apart, many of us have never met.  It is a bit of an understatement to say Alaska is large.  It is 2.5 times the size of Texas and many locations are not connected to our limited road system. 

Flying into Kodiak, AK.

Fast forward to October, the executive board, interior representative, chapter historian, and our chapter coordinator flew to Kodiak on the same Alaska Airlines flight arriving on October 15^th.  Katie DeLorenzo, the fearless Western Leader (Field Director, to be exact) packed plenty of New Mexico blue-bird weather, so the pilot did not announce for folks to tighten their seatbelt for a “sporty landing” which has been called out by the captain on previous flights to Kodiak Island.

Kodiak is an island about 250 miles southwest the Anchorage and is the second largest island in the U.S. It’s a gorgeous mountainous and coastal area, home to some of the largest brown bears in the world, mountain goats, Sitka black-tailed deer, and red fox.

Lone brown bear at Buskin Lake

Shortly after landing, many of us met each other face-to-face for the first time.  While waiting for Mary, our Chapter Coordinator and wrangler of cats, to get the Turo rental and pick us all up, Kevin Fraley decided he should hike to the top of the mountain to stay in shape for his mountain goat hunt on Kodiak that was planned for just after the board retreat, so up to Barometer Peak he disappeared for a while. (Don’t worry we picked him up later that afternoon!)

Later on, our group spent the evening sharing ciders at Double Shovel Cidery and connecting over conversations before crashing at our BnB.  The next day was spent learning about the history of Kodiak before heading out to Buskin River outflow at the lake, where we were hosted by staff from the Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak, Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District, and others to help remove crayfish (crawdads) which are non-native, and invasive! Although the crawdad hunting looked to be challenging due to high water, the group enthusiastically waded in and began turning over rocks to find the elusive crustaceans. Kevin Fraley led the way in the derby with a respectable 15 crayfish caught and Matt Van Daele took runner-up honors in the derby, both receiving plush crawdad prizes. Sun’aq Tribe staff pulled in a stash of crayfish caught in a large hoop trap, and Dave, our chapter chair, boiled up the “mud bugs” for the group with some seasoning, corn and potatoes to create a fantastic meal! The scent was so appealing that a brown bear worked its way up the river, but thankfully it forged a path along the far bank for safe wildlife viewing enjoyment.

Kevin Fraley & Matt Van Daele, Derby Winners

The next day, our group headed to the dock before loading all the gear and supplies onto a landing craft that ferried them out to the remote location on the northern half of Kodiak Island.  While underway, the group saw numerous sea ducks, sea otters, whales, and Sitka black-tailed deer along the beach.

After getting settled, our group explored the area with some folks looking for waterfowl and others looking for deer.  With all the traveling involved with getting to this location, most of us packed light.  Thankfully, the waterfowl hunters located a single, weathered duck decoy among the washed ashore items at the property!  This decoy was put to use and seemed to be irresistible to any duck that might be flying by.  Soon the sound of shotgun blasts filled the air.

Kevin Fraley with his drake Harlequin duck.

For the folk’s deer hunting, they found mossy ground underneath mature spruce trees with the occasional brown bear scat thick with deer hair.  They also found open areas filled with alder and thorny devil’s club and salmonberry.  A few deer were observed and routes that allowed for more easy passage were discovered that first day.  This knowledge of the area resulted in harvesting two black-tailed deer in the following days.

Katie Delorzenzo (Western Field Director), Mary Glaves (AK Chapter Coordinator), Jeff Knisley (Treasurer) deer hunting Kodiak.

At each meal, we were all treated to Dave’s specially prepared meals which consisted of freshly harvested harlequin ducks and black scoters, and muskox roast donated by Alaska Chapter Coordinator Mary Glaves. During meals and around the campfire afterwards, the board discussed the issues and threats to Alaska’s public lands, likely projects to be tackled, and events to be had in 2025.

Dave Johnson, Chapter Chair prepping Mary's donated muskox roast for dinner

We all bonded over this incredible opportunity to share in deliciously cooked wild game, time spent getting warm in the Banya and then cooling off with a cold plunge in the creek, getting our feet wet retrieving ducks or crossing frosted-over muskegs, and topped off with clear skies and northern lights putting on a show.

Northern lights show over the bay.

Our first annual board retreat was successfully fun and productive, igniting a fire for planning a retreat every year, hoping to bring more board members into the fold and take our fire for BHA to more corners of Alaska.

Alaska Chapter Board on the beach before packing up to head back to mainland Kodiak.

Retrospective note: Some of us did have an issue with a gremlin that absconded with a cell phone, a set of keys to padlocks on a gun case, one wool glove, and a shell case bag…but that is what gremlins are known to do! Gremlins may be yet another introduced species to the tantalizing island of Kodiak. Perhaps we’ll have to go back and locate them for removal.

More About Kodiak Invasive Crawdads

Crawdads en mass at Buskin Lake on October 16th, 2024.

Non-native species that spread quickly once introduced and outcompete or prey upon native biota are considered “invasive.” Alaska’s harsh climate, geographic isolation, and strict laws prohibiting transport of live fish have historically kept the state relatively safe from aquatic invasive species that are commonly a problem in other U.S. states.

However, milder winters, warmer water temperatures, and the increased ease of shipping live fish and aquarium plants to Alaska has resulted in several invasions in the past few decades. Some of the commonly known introductions include Elodea pond weed in Southcentral and Interior Alaska water bodies that boaters and float planes visit, and northern pike moved from their native range in northern Alaska to rivers and lakes in southcentral Alaska. Some surprising but short-lived introductions included goldfish and bass in ponds near Anchorage.

A lesser-known introduction of a non-native aquatic animal occurred on Kodiak Island and was first noticed in the early 2000s. Signal crayfish, native to western U.S. and British Columbia, were dumped in Buskin Lake near the city of Kodiak. It is thought that they originated from the liberation of someone’s aquarium pets. After the discovery of the non-native crawdads, it became apparent that the crayfish population in Buskin Lake was growing, and had detrimental effects on native fish such as salmon and trout. Particularly, the crayfish preyed upon sockeye salmon eggs and juveniles, potentially threatening a species that is commercially, culturally, and recreationally important for Alaskans.

Local conservation authorities including the Sun’aq Tribe of Kodiak and the Kodiak Soil and Water Conservation District, with involvement from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, led the way in studying and working to remove the non-native crustaceans before they could significantly impact salmon populations, or spread/be transported to other nearby water bodies. They continue to study the population dynamics of the crayfish, their effect on native wildlife, and they work hard to catch and remove these pesky “mud bugs.”

These local groups organize public harvest events for the crawdads, which are popular because of the challenge and competition of the derbies, where contestants can don waders, wetsuits, or even scuba gear to capture the invertebrates, and also because crayfish are considered excellent table fare. Crawdad “boils” are popular events in other parts of the U.S., and dishes such as crawdad etouffée are cultural staples in the southeastern states. Additionally, crayfish are culturally important wild food animals for many North American (and international) Indigenous cultures.

Besides the derbies, the local groups also use mesh trap nets to remove crayfish and encourage members of the public to harvest in this manner as well. Studies are ongoing to assess the movements and food web dynamics of the crayfish in Buskin Lake. Currently, the local groups monitoring the issue believe that the crayfish population is being successfully reduced by removal efforts, which is a positive sign for the salmon and trout populations that depend on the lake for spawning and rearing. Because the crayfish of Buskin Lake reside in water temperatures colder than that of their native range, they grow and reproduce very slowly, allowing control efforts to make a noticeable positive impact.

Kevin Fraley, Vice Chair, diving for crawdads at the removal and boil event.

BHA was excited and honored to be a part of the Buskin Lake conservation effort by conducting our own derby in partnership with Sun’aq Tribe, the Soil and Water Conservation District, and other local agencies. While we did not catch large numbers of crayfish in the derby, this can be taken as a positive sign that efforts to control this invasive species are taking effect.

Examining the crawdad and helping sort them by sex.

For more information, please visit:

https://sunaq.org/signal-crayfish/

https://medium.com/usfws/bad-dads-crawdads-of-kodiak-43246a24bff4