We have had a long love affair with the Pacific Northwest. One pivotal work experience in Alaska in 1987 and 1988, and it was also Our Home from 1991-2001.

In 1987, the year Peter and I met while we were in college, he went with his best friend Scott Smallwood, to find work on a commercial fishing boat in Kodiak, Alaska. There he worked for the summer on FV Shelly Lee as a “greenhorn” (a newbie) working for 5% of the boat gross, halibut long lining and salmon seining. It was a grueling summer physically and mentally - working in the rain for 16 hours a day, living on a 38’ vessel with salty sea dogs he did not know, who didn’t see a need to ever come into town. It was lonely hard work and they would anchor at sea from place to place, looking for insights on where the salmon would be running, and how to “hit the fish.” He would go without a shower for over six weeks at one point, but they had a successful season and he came home richer for the experience, and not just the $12,000 boost to his bank account, which made for a very hard-earned but comfortable school year.

His second summer, 1988, is known in Alaska still to this day, as a legendary season for Salmon Seining in Alaska. This season, Peter returned to work alongside Scott on FV Fred J, which was captained by a shrewd and educated fisherman who worked his crew sometimes cruelly hard, but was tenacious and clever about “hitting the fish.” Since Peter was then experienced, he could work for a “full share” or 10% of the boat gross. This was good timing since the conditions, the price of fish, and the volume of fish were unsurpassed, a trifecta of a salmon seining jackpot. In the beginning of the season they fished for Halibut. The Department of Fish and Game opened the waters for Halibut fishing for only one season - a 24- hour season in June. The crew set out ten miles of ground line with baited hooks and for 16 hours Peter stood at the rail in his rain gear, gaffing the halibut as the line was brought in and hauling the giant fish over the rail. Over and over and over again. Once this grueling season was over and the gear was cleaned, they set out to spend the rest of the summer salmon seining, and trying to hit the fish - competing with dozens of other similar boats in the area. I received letters from him during this time and I could feel the tension and pressure the entire crew felt as their Captain became ever more obsessed with hitting the fish. But in late July, it finally paid off, and they plugged their fish hold over and over, pitching the fish off to a tender as often as they could in order to go back out again to get the purse seiner in the water again. They lost track of their haul, but when they finally finished the season, Peter was given a check for nearly $60,000. Not bad for three months work in 1988.

I never tire of hearing his and Scott’s stories and I was in awe of his willingness to work so hard at something so uncomfortable, interesting and adventurous. I was incredibly grateful to get to visit him for the fourth of July holiday that summer - and I loved seeing the boat to fully appreciate the challenge he endured and also to explore this beautiful wild island. We rode horses on the beach, and camped with his friends, eating King Crab and Salmon in the twilight of the midnight sun.

Our second chapter of our Love affair of the Northwest came later, after we were married in 1990 and lived for a short time in Boston where Peter started his career in Finance. We loved exploring the Northeast but the west called us home, and we relished the chance to move west again. We moved to Portland in 1991 where I worked for a Magazine Publishing Company as the Photo Editor and later started my Portraiture Business. I could have stayed in Portland forever… I still adore this wonderful city. But we followed Peter’s promotion north to exciting and beautiful Seattle where we decided to build a house on Bainbridge Island with a view of Mount Rainier and Rich Passage. (see “Other Portfolios: Home&Sanctuary: Our Bainbridge Island Home) Peter commuted to Seattle by Ferry each day and we welcomed constant weekend visitors and met amazing interesting friends. It was an incredibly special experience to live there and we stayed for five years - living in the area for a total of ten years. I still often miss it and I wish it would rain a little more often, in Colorado.