The sheer volume of salmon that return to Bristol Bay each year is truly astounding. For those who haven't visited Alaska, it's really hard to conceptualize 32 million fish - the average sockeye return in Bristol Bay. This video gives a glimpse of the bio mass that enter the rivers and streams that make up the Bristol Bay watershed. Filmed exclusively in 2015 on the Copper River with Copper River Lodge.

Watch in HD - Enjoy, Comment, Share! 

Jason Ching is at it again. He has put together a new short film showcasing the salmon research done in Bristol Bay. Fantastic Bristol Bay imagery and information about the salmon research programs.

From the filmmaker:

The Alaska Salmon Program is the oldest continuously running salmon research program in the world. Based out of the University of Washington, the program was established to investigate factors influencing salmon production during a declining salmon fishery in Bristol Bay, Alaska in the mid-1940s. The program strives to understand the ecology and behavior of salmon in relation to environmental changes through long-term research and implementation of new ideas and techniques.

This video highlights a small part of the core research conducted by the Alaska Salmon Program, and celebrates the hardworking researchers that have contributed to the program's success.

By Juliet Eilperin, Updated: February 28 at 10:48 am

The Environmental Protection Agency will announce Friday it will examine whether to block a massive gold and copper mine proposed in Alaska, according to people familiar with the issue -- a major win for environmentalists, native tribes and commercial fishing companies that have been seeking to kill the project for more than three years.

While the announcement does not mean the Obama administration has made a final decision to prohibit Northern Dynasty Minerals Ltd., a Canadian-based firm, from starting construction on the Pebble Mine project, it will delay it for months and make it much harder for the controversial project to move ahead at all.

Read More Here

The Bristol Bay River Academy is now planning for its sixth year. The mission of the Academy is to impart to the youth of Bristol Bay - the joy of fly fishing, the practices of a professional fishing guide, the skills needed to work at a fishing lodge, an appreciation of the habitat complexity of the Bristol Bay salmon ecosystem and an understanding of the conservation tools available to protect that ecosystem. The annual Academy accepts 12 to 15 participants.

How You Can help - Sponsor a Participant

There is no charge to the young people accepted into the Academy. There is no charge for the assistance we provide to graduates of the Academy who want to pursue opportunities to work in conservation or the recreational fishing community of Bristol Bay. We can do this because of the the generous support of many individuals, businesses and organizations. A simple way to help is to sponsor an academy participant for $250. That donation helps cover the cost of air transportation for a participant from his or her village to the lodge hosting the academy.

You can donate online directly here --------------> DONATE

If you are an Alaskan resident you can provide a donation to the Academy by designating the Bristol Bay Heritage Land Trust for a portion of your Permanent Fund Dividend under the Pick, Click, Give program.

If you are interested in helping in other ways email us.

Help us create opportunities for the next generation of Bristol Bay residents that are linked to healthy fish habitat.

Former Alaska State Senator, Rick Halford speaks about the conservation movement, the Pebble Mine, and protecting the resource in the last place we have it on this planet. 

The EPA has a chance to protect this fishery hailed as the largest sockeye salmon run left in the world. Please tell the EPA to use its power under the Clean Water Act to protect Bristol Bay.

Scientist Daniel Schindler and his daughter, Luna, watch the "red wave" of sockeye salmon navigate up Sam Creek, home to one of the earliest-spawning populations in Alaska's Bristol Bay ecosystem.
by Jonny Armstrong

Don't take our word for it - Read the article on the world's longest ongoing salmon research from Daniel Schindler and why Bristol Bay deserves our attention and protection. Read the article. 

From the Filmaker: 

This video showcases Iliamna Lake and briefly shows some of the 2013 research of the Alaska Salmon Program's Iliamna Lake research station, one of four main facilities in Southwest Alaska . The program was established by the University of Washington in the 1940's and the majority of it's research is focused on ecology and fisheries management relating primarily to salmon and the environment in Bristol Bay, Alaska. Check out our program at: fish.washington.edu/research/alaska/

I am very grateful to be a part of such a long standing, and prominent program that allows me to work in the field in such an incredible setting with fantastic folks. This video was often shot between, or during field sampling events so thanks to all those who supported me by continuing to work while I fiddled with camera gear.

Filmed and edited by Jason Ching
Additional footage provided by Cyril Michel

Fly Out Ambassador, Camille Egdorf steps it up a notch with a new film showcasing the Alaska bush life on her family's Upper Nushagak Camp - titled Unbroken. This time, her film will be featured on the big screen with the International Fly Fishing Film Festival (IF4). 

From the filmmaker: 

"Unbroken", a Camille Egdorf film, captures the wildlife, fishing and a way of life that has been carried on in Alaska for over thirty years. A story about a fly fishing family who's summers are spent in remote Alaska, sharing and experiencing the wilds of the North. This is their story.

Music: "The Covenant" AJ Hochhalter

See Camille's first fly fishing film - forget me knot