Senator Dan Sullivan speaks at ComFish 2016. Kayla Desroches/KMXT This year, ComFish had a notable number of political speakers, including Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott and Senators Lisa Murkowski and Dan Sullivan. On Friday, directly after Mallot spoke about Alaska’s fiscal crisis, Sullivan stepped up in front of the audience and gave an overview of some of the legislation he’s most …

Gunnar Knapp speaks at ComFish 2016. Kayla Desroches/KMXT Kayla Desroches/KMXT ComFish brought a host of speakers to Kodiak to address fisheries issues and how current events are influencing the industry. The state’s budget gap was at the forefront of the talks Friday afternoon. Academic speaker Gunnar Knapp, along with political speakers like Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott and Senator Dan Sullivan, …

One of the items up for auction, a framed original watercolor by Gretchen Hancock, a garden and Spruce Cape scene. Courtesy of the Kodiak Arts Council Kayla Desroches/KMXT The Kodiak Arts Council’s annual Arts and Adventure auction has a fitting literary theme this year for the Kodiak Archipelago: Treasure Island. Barbara Russell, chairman of the auction committee, explains a large …

On today’s Talk of the Rock, host Kayla Desroches speaks with the owners of Strawberry Fields nursery, Lorne and Elana White. They talk about what vegetables thrive in Kodiak, how to get rid of slugs, and how the warm winter will affect plant and produce growth this summer.  

Competitors stand at one station during the race and complete knots. Kayla Desroches/KMXT Kayla Desroches/KMXT A competition Saturday pitted fisherman against fisherman in a set of tasks which included knot-tying, hook-throwing, and survival suit-donning. The event created a fun spectacle on the last day of ComFish and demonstrated some of the skills even a greenhorn deckhand needs day to day. …

Kayla Desroches/KMXT The Department of Transportation is looking for public comment on a project that fits into its regular road maintenance. Communications Officer for the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, Jeremy Woodrow, says staff tries to keep on top of problem areas before they get too severe. “This project is to address several different erosion sites along the …

Lt. Governor Byron Mallott. Kayla Desroches/KMXT Kayla Desroches/KMXT Lieutenant Governor Byron Mallott spoke at ComFish Friday and dedicated much of his presentation to talking about the state’s budget gap. He emphasized the urgency of the issue. “The legislature has less than three weeks to finish its work, and if we do not close the fiscal gap this year, if we …

Courtesy of ComFish 2016 and the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce Kayla Desroches/KMXT One new booth at ComFish 2016 wasn’t a vendor at all. The U.S. Navy decided to reserve a spot this year in the Kodiak Harbor Convention Center. It also gave a public presentation Thursday, where Alex Stone, the Navy’s program manager on the environmental impact statement, spoke about …

Kayla Desroches/KMXT One solution to the aging fishing fleet is an up and coming group called the Young Fishermen’s Network. That’s what Alaska Marine Conservation Council organizer and third-generation fisherman, Hannah Heimbuch, spoke about at a ComFish forum called Right to Fish: Challenges and Opportunities in Alaska Fishing Access. Heimbuch says one of her personal inspirations to become involved in …

Kayla Desroches/KMXT Many members of the fishing industry attend the ComFish fishery trade show to network and shop for gear, and on Thursday, one booth in particular drew attendees’ business. It’s a little slow in the first few hours of ComFish, but one type of item soon stands out for the people wandering the aisles. Tom Dooley says he came …