Podcasts about Southeast Alaska

EPISODE 114: STORIES FROM ITALY, JUNEAU, AND GHOSTS, OH MY!  Catch up on Kat, Jen, and Christina's Spring travels and the ghosts of Juneau! Sources: https://www.nps.gov/articles/khns-princess-sophia.htm https://www.juneauempire.com/news/spirits-from-shipwreck-still-spooking-downtown-business/ Haunted Inside Passage: Ghosts, Legends, and Mysteries of Southeast Alaska  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SS_Princess_Sophia#cite_note-Forgotten_voyage-17 https://newsinteractives.cbc.ca/longform/forgotten-voyage/ News: Follow Kat Klockow: https://www.patreon.com/redcatcomics/posts RedCatComics.com Follow Christina Wald: https://www.instagram.com/christinawald_art/  Christina's Sketchy Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/christinawald Join Christina's SKETCHING AND PAINTING WORKSHOP in Morocco September 2026! https://christinawald.blogspot.com/2025/09/join-me-in-morocco.html Follow Jen Koehler : https://society6.com/jenkoehlerart?fb

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Hurricane-force winds made landfall in the coastal areas of southern Southeast Alaska this afternoon... Community gardens are being funded in Sitka...And a possible new gambling hall on Douglas Island.Stay with us.

In this newscast:  Hurricane-force winds are expected to hit central and southern Southeast Alaska late tonight and into Friday; Construction to get Eaglecrest Ski Area's controversial gondola up and running is finally underway; Juneau School Board President Deedie Sorensen was set to finish her term this year, but she is adding her name to this year's school board race; Renters living on Juneau's historic Telephone Hill have a week to pack up their belongings and vacate their homes before the city's Oct. 1 eviction date

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Hurricane-force winds are expected to hit Southeast Alaska late tonight into Friday...The Ketchikan school board met for the last time before the upcoming municipal election... And people around the world are voting in Fat Bear Week!

On tonight's KRBD Evening Report: kelp is starting to take center-stage in Southeast Alaska; researchers are looking into whale behavior surrounding the historic Five Finger Lighthouse; state prosecutors retry a sexual assault case against a Juneau chiropractor.

In this newscast: One of the sessions at Southeast Alaska's annual economic conference in Sitka looked at economic variables, and their future impact on the region; A landslide triggered by heavy rain and wind took down trees next to an apartment building in downtown Juneau late last night; A Lingit master weaver is using viral monster dolls called Labubus to bring attention to Chilkat and Ravenstail weaving; Former Alaska attorney general Treg Taylor filed to join the 2026 race for governor; Alaskans can expect a La Nina climate pattern this winter

On this episode of Garden Talk, host Bostin Christopher talks with Darren Snyder how to help your garden deal with too much rainfall.

In this newscast: A storm moving through Southeast Alaska is causing high winds that will continue into this evening in Juneau, resulting in power outages and fallen trees; A cruise ship passenger died in Juneau Tuesday after falling off a steep mountainside on Mount Roberts near downtown; Juneau might lose its ability to say that its electricity is created entirely by renewable hydropower, if the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority prevails in a lawsuit; An elementary school on Douglas started a school garden in 2022 as a part of a federal watershed and ocean conservation program

House Committee on Natural Resources Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations On Tuesday, September 16, 2025, at 10:15 a.m., in room 1324 Longworth House Office Building, the Committee on Natural Resources, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations will hold an oversight hearing titled “Unleashing Alaska's Extraordinary Resource Potential.” Witnesses Panel I (Outside Experts) • Mr. Nagruk Harcharek, President, Voice of the Arctic Inupiat, Anchorage, AK • Ms. Deantha Skibinski, Executive Director, Alaska Miners Association, Anchorage, AK • Mr. Dutch Kuyper, Vice President, Lands and Development, Cook Inlet Region, Inc., Anchorage, AK • Mr. John Christensen Jr., Tribal President, Native Village of Port Heiden, Port Heiden, AK (Minority witness) Panel II (Outside Experts) • Mr. Ethan Tyler, Senior Director, Public Policy and Lands, Aleut, Anchorage, AK • Mr. Clark Penney, President, Penney Capital, Anchorage, AK • Mr. Clarence Clark, Owner, Southeast Alaska Resources, Ketchikan, AK • Mr. Philip Wight, Associate Professor of History and Arctic & Northern Studies, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK (Minority witness) Committee Notice and Documents: https://naturalresources.house.gov/calendar/eventsingle.aspx?EventID=418363 https://docs.house.gov/Committee/Calendar/ByEvent.aspx?EventID=118599

On this episode of Garden Talk, host Bostin Christopher talks with Darren Snyder about maximizing your precious harvest and preparing for successful storage.

Staff writer Richard Simms gives his take of the seven-night Alaska cruise on Holland America Line's ms Koningsdam from Vancouver, BC to Southeast Alaska. 

In this newscast: University of Alaska Fairbanks administrators told the Board of Regents last week that they think UAF is set to become a top-tier research institution in 2030; The man who died on Juneau's Mendenhall Glacier last week has been identified as a planetary  geologist from the University of Padua in Italy; Red king crab fisherman in Southeast Alaska are getting the first competitive commercial fishery since 2017; A U.S. Coast Guard crew rescued a hunter after he broke his leg on a hunting trip northwest of Sitka on Friday; This month's Economic Trends Magazine reported that it's getting harder for Alaskans to afford a place to live.

In this newscast: The Alaska Marine Highway System ferry LeConte will continue to be out of service leading into the weekend; After eight days of deliberation, the jury in a sexual assault trial against a former Juneau chiropractor returned a verdict of not guilty on two counts, and hung jury on 12 others Thursday; Researchers continue to investigate a massive landslide and tsunami that hit a fjord popular among sightseeing cruises in Southeast Alaska last month. A veritable mountainside of rock crashed into the water at the end of Tracy Arm, near the terminus of South Sawyer Glacier, generating a tsunami wave that scoured the shoreline of vegetation in the surrounding area and even disrupted tides in Juneau, about 75 miles away; Alaska's Department of Law is asking a judge to throw out much of a class action lawsuit over the state's failure to process food assistance applications on time. Thousands of Alaskans are caught in backlogs that have plagued the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and other aid programs for years. But the state argues a recent Supreme Court case means they shouldn't be allowed to sue.

Trout Unlimited CEO Chris Wood discusses the history and impact of the Roadless Rule, the Tongass National Forest, and how roads and logging affect salmon habitat in Southeast Alaska. We talk about the rule's origins, lessons learned over 25 years, the need for balanced local economies and recreation, and how collaborative restoration and thoughtful management can protect fish, communities, and sustainable timber uses. Check out the On Step Alaska website or subscribe on Substack for articles, features and all things Alaska. Thanks to the sponsors: Sagebrush Dry (Alaskan-owned business that sells the best dry bags you can buy.) Alpine Fit (Premium outdoor layering from another Alaskan-owned business.) Backcountry Hunters and Anglers

In this newscast: Gov. Mike Dunleavy has named Stephen J. Cox to be Alaska's next attorney general; The Juneau Police Department released the body-worn camera footage today of a violent arrest by an officer in late July. The video was released just a day after the officer involved resigned from his position; After a week of deliberation, the jury will continue to consider the evidence in a sexual assault trial against a former Juneau chiropractor next week; A small number of Alaska Native craftspeople in Southeast Alaska hunt sea otters to use as material for their work, but they say that's become more time consuming and expensive in recent years, as local tanneries have shut down

In this newscast: Juneau's Back Loop Bridge is now open again for traffic two weeks after suffering damage from Juneau's record-breaking glacial outburst flood; Petersburg's school buildings and surrounding area were on lockdown for over an hour yesterday afternoon after police received a false report of a person with an AR-15 gun in a school bathroom; Gov. Mike Dunleavy's 30-day special session ends this weekend, and lawmakers don't plan to meet at the Capitol again; The Juneau School District Board of Education unanimously accepted nearly $120,000 in grant funding for one of its alternative schools; Southeast Alaska's regional tribe is calling for the City and Borough of Sitka to reverse a decision denying the construction of a tall tower in a neighborhood; A new app could alert Nome residents when people go missing

In this newscast:  The U.S. Coast Guard rescued a pilot after his small plane crashed near Haines on Sunday, Southeast Alaska's regional Native corporation has announced its new president; During Juneau's record-breaking glacial outburst flood earlier this morning, the Alaska Department of Transportation completed one of its most complex drone missions to date; The federal government is in the process of rewriting the rules for how it issues federal contracts. And some Alaska Native organizations, which depend on federal contracts to pay out benefits to shareholders, are concerned that it could impact their business; A candidate running for a seat on the Sitka Assembly is suing the city over what he claims were restrictions on his ability to comment on police department Facebook posts

In this episode Jaden and Tyler Bales and I recap our first trip into the mountains for blacktail deer. We discuss the reality for locals who must travel by boat, truck or both to access hunting grounds, how AI is impacting the outdoor space, flooded tents and knowing when it's time to call it and get off the mountain.  Check out the On Step Alaska website or subscribe on Substack for articles, features and all things Alaska. Click here for a 20% discount on an annual subscription to The Westrn, the outdoor community's newest newspaper. Thanks to the sponsors: Sagebrush Dry (Alaskan-owned business that sells the best dry bags you can buy.) Alpine Fit (Premium outdoor layering from another Alaskan-owned business.) Backcountry Hunters and Anglers

In this newscast: The executive council of the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska is reviewing misconduct accusations made against its president, Chalyee Éesh  Richard Peterson; Juneau city and tribal officials announced a preemptive disaster declaration today in anticipation of the glacial outburst flood expected to hit the Mendenhall Valley soon; Juneau's homeless shelter is reducing its services due to what staff say is a deteriorating and unsafe environment in the neighborhood. The shelter has seen an increase in homeless people camping nearby compared to other years. Shelter officials say the closure may cut down on campers – and chaos; The community of Metlakatla sued the state of Alaska five years ago yesterday. Metlakatla Indian Community asserts the way the state manages commercial fishing infringes on the rights guaranteed to it by Congress. The tribe has notched some important wins, and a trial was scheduled for this summer. But that's now on hold as other Southeast tribes are now asking the judge to throw out the case; The U.S. Geological Survey is expanding its landslide monitoring efforts in Southeast Alaska. The goal is to develop an emergency alert system down the line. Data from Juneau's Mount Roberts went online last month.

On this episode of Garden Talk, host Bostin Christopher talks with Darren Snyder about the various ways to gather, process, and apply seaweed to your fertile garden.

793 Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/793 Presented by:  Jackson Hole Fly Company, Pescador on the Fly, Four Wheel Campers,  Smitty's Fly Box When you think of Alaska, you probably picture places like Bristol Bay or the Kenai Peninsula. But tucked away in southeast Alaska is the Tongass National Forest, a wild, untouched rainforest full of remote streams where you could be the only angler for miles around. Sounds pretty awesome, right? Kevin Main from Tongass on the Fly spends his days guiding fly anglers through some of the most untouched rivers of Southeast Alaska. In this episode, find out why fly patterns matter more than just covering ground in certain times of the year, why tides pretty much run the show up there, what it takes to chase steelhead and sea-run cutthroat in spots only reachable by mothership, and why a Stikine River float might be one of the most underrated trips in Alaska.   Show Notes: https://wetflyswing.com/793

Jaden Bales and his bother have never been to Alaska so in this episode Jaden and I talk expectations, logistics, gear and weather as he packs for the trip to hunting blacktail deer in Southeast Alaska.  Check out the On Step Alaska website or subscribe on Substack for articles, features and all things Alaska. Click here for a 20% discount on an annual subscription to The Westrn, the outdoor community's newest newspaper. Thanks to the sponsors: Sagebrush Dry (Alaskan-owned business that sells the best dry bags you can buy.) Alpine Fit (Premium outdoor layering from another Alaskan-owned business.) Backcountry Hunters and Anglers

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Ketchikan's City Council approved seven ballot propositions that will appear on the October 7 municipal election ballot, we'll hear about one of them; and a group of volunteers in central Southeast Alaska combed beaches on Mitkof Island in search of invasive European green crabs.Those stories and more coming up…

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Southeast Alaska's first commercial king salmon opener was so successful there's uncertainty how a second opener will look, Juneau is considering changes making it easier to arrest unhoused people camping in public places, and the village of Klukwan is trying to better understand landslide risk so new housing can be built.Those stories and more coming up…

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Nonresidents can no longer fish for wild king salmon in Southeast Alaska, though there are a few exceptions; we'll hear the second part of a series looking at treatment and prevention of opioid overdoses; and tips on how to use bear spray properly.Those stories and more coming up…

In this newscast: An atmospheric river will saturate Southeast Alaska tomorrow with heavy rain; Looming school funding on a state and federal level could mean future cuts to the Juneau School District; Sitka police spent Friday afternoon searching for a Soldotna man who has been missing in Sitka since December 2023; Tongass Voices: Juneau's mobile crisis responders on meeting patients where they're at

In this episode I go through my gear and approach to hunting deer in the alpine of Southeast Alaska. I discuss boots, socks, gaiters, pants, rain gear, base layer choice for cold, rainy weather, optics, tent location, terrain scouting and being ready before first light. 

Heather gives us a review of Celebrity Solstice on a cruise to Southeast Alaska out of Vancouver, BC. 

A 2021 report from Watershed Watch and SkeenaWild Conservation Trust shows that commercial fishers in Southeast Alaska are harvesting large numbers of B.C.-bound salmon before they reach Canadian waters. Guest: David Mills, Fisheries Advisor at Watershed watch Salmon Society Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of 'The Science of Self,' we welcome Mark Connor from St. Paul, Minnesota, a former competitive boxer turned boxing trainer and writer. Mark introduces his book, 'It's About Time: Millions of Copies Sold for Dad,' an autobiographical saga interwoven with poetry that explores his life, his relationship with his late father, and his spiritual journey. Mark discusses his re-embrace of his Catholic faith, the influence of his Irish heritage, and his deep connection with the Native American community through his work at a youth shelter. He also touches on the discipline and routine required in both writing and boxing, and the importance of taking the first step to achieve one's goals. Join us for a heartfelt conversation on faith, discipline, and the pursuit of personal excellence.00:00 Introduction and Guest Introduction00:17 Mark Connor's Background and Book Overview01:43 Faith and Personal Journey01:58 Involvement with Native American Community06:47 Cultural and Spiritual Reflections15:28 Reading from the Book32:56 Writing and Discipline37:36 Conclusion and Final ThoughtsIt's About Time (Millions of Copies Sold for Dad) is a saga wrapped around a package of poems, guarded by Angels. With a narrative style that reads like a novel, contains a collection of poetry, and shares an autobiography, Mark Connor guides us through a journey of love, family, and life that is ours as much as his own, peaking at the point of merger of difference and unity. Following him from memory to memory, we feel the eyes upon us, defeat the empire of fear, embrace the kingdom of love, and find ten minutes a day to be grateful. All the while, we celebrate the city of Saint Paul (with a friendly nod to Minneapolis), experience Irish influence in neighborhood life, rooted in Catholic cohesion, embraced by indigenous America in the medicine wheel. We box the perfect metaphor with future world champions, love beauty in a moment of ambivalence, work on a fishing boat in Southeast Alaska, comfort a child in an American Indian shelter for kids, and guard American Indian buildings, with guns, in riots. Through it all, we honor Dad, mourning his death and remembering his love, sharing a story written for America, valuing fatherhood, defending family, encouraging marriage, and providing hope.Mark Connor is a Literary Pugilist from Saint Paul, Minnesota. A lifelong boxer and Boxing Trainer, he runs a service called, Fighting Chance/Boxing For Life. His writing about Boxing, as well as his training services, can be found at https: //BoxersAndWritersMagazine.com. He writes fiction, poetry, and journalism. He is the 2022 Boxing inductee to the Mancini's St. Paul Sports Hall of Fame. He attended the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, Regis University in Denver, Colorado, and graduated with a BA in English from the University of Minnesota. He has written and published many articles about Boxing, Irish culture, and people and events related to Irish freedom. He has also published local news and features on business, politics, and current affairs in Minnesota and the U.S. His Substack newsletter, Irish, Catholic, Punchdrunk in Saint Paul, can be found at: https: //markconnoricpunchdrunk.substack.com.

In this newscast: The editor of Juneau Empire is leaving the paper. Mark Sabbatini has edited the paper since 2023 and announced his departure in a Facebook post; The Juneau Police Department cleared a homeless encampment on the side of a Mendenhall Valley road this morning; The National Weather Service issued Juneau's first recorded severe thunderstorm warning yesterday afternoon after conditions escalated and a cruise ship partially broke free from its moorings; The special election to determine whether or not to form the Xunaa Borough will be paused until further notice, after a superior court judge granted a stay of a state commission's approval of the proposed borough in Southeast Alaska; Smoke poured over the Canadian border into eastern Alaska this weekend, impacting communities from Southeast to the Interior

In this newscast: Alaska's public schools likely won't get all the money lawmakers approved in a bipartisan vote last month after Gov. Mike Dunleavy unilaterally reduced education funding with a line-item veto; Juneau's fire department is piloting a paid internship program this year that equips locals with certifications and skills needed to work in the field; A shipping container full of empty industrial-sized fish food bags fell off a barge heading from Baranof Island to the landfill in Petersburg and dozens of the plastic bags have washed up near Juneau over the past week; Residents are advised against harvesting clams, mussels and other shellfish near beaches across Southeast Alaska due to concerns about paralytic shellfish poisoning; Curious Juneau: Why is the state capital Juneau and not Anchorage

In this newscast: The massive budget reconciliation bill the U.S. House delivered to the Senate would block Medicaid patients from receiving care at Planned Parenthood health centers, and health care providers and advocates in Alaska are afraid that would prevent many Alaskans from getting critical health care; The Juneau School District is cracking down on cell phone use in schools; A group of state lawmakers is set to meet this summer and fall to continue working on ways to improve Alaska's public schools; Researchers say it's clear that wolves in parts of Southeast Alaska are increasingly turning to the sea, instead of the land, for food, but now there's evidence that the behavior can have toxic results; Ketchikan's tribal government will soon be under new leadership 

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….Ketchikan Indian Community has a new CEO, timber harvesters in Southeast Alaska are suing the federal government in an effort to harvest more old growth, and Sitka is planning to permit on-site consumption at its two cannabis retailers.Those stories and more coming up…

Jason Hambly of Pro-Cure.com on wet cures for river kings and Brine-n-Bite for herring and anchovies // Northwest Outdoor Report Brought to you by 3riversmarine.com! // Duckworth Wheelhouse Robbo Endsley: The latest word on Southeast Alaska chinook and what’s headed our way! // Poulsbo RV’s Really? Where? With Special Guest Brock Huard

In this newscast:  Juneau is getting a new public-use cabin, this time built by a local trail maintenance nonprofit; The largest timber companies operating in Southeast Alaska want the Tongass National Forest to sell them more old-growth timber, and they're suing the federal government to get it. The Department of Justice asked the court to throw the case out in May; An appeals court has ruled that the board that regulates subsistence hunting on federal lands within Alaska acted legally when it created an emergency hunt for a Southeast Alaska village during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency; Tongass Voices: Conservator Ellen Carlee on preserving the Alaska State Museum's collection

On today's Midday Report with host Terry Haines:The largest timber companies in Southeast Alaska are suing the federal government to get access to more old-growth timber. Senator Murkowski is ambivalent about the "Big Beautiful Bill." And the state school board elicited a firestorm of public comment on a proposal to limit how municipalities can contribute to their school districts.Photo: Tongass trees. (Photo by Katie Anastas/KTOO)

In this newscast: The Alaska State Board of Education is considering a regulation change that would further limit how much money local governments can give to school districts; The Juneau Assembly is mulling over a plan to implement a ranked choice voting system for local elections beginning next year; They also voted to wait on a second extension of Juneau's Mendenhall River levee until after this flood season; Hoonah's police chief submitted his resignation after less than two years in the role. Then, the city fired him for misconduct. He says it was retaliation; May was a record-breaking month for rain in Southeast Alaska; A nine-year old has won the Sitka Salmon Derby, for the second time in three years

In this newscast: Heavy rains and flooding in Southeast Alaska triggered a series of small landslides in Ketchikan yesterday; Cancelled federal funding and grants have stalled the construction of a Juneau affordable housing project for at least a year. The project is aimed specifically at people in recovery from substance misuse and the delay means the dozens of people it could have housed will have to find another option; Many communities along Alaska's southern coast are dependent on state ferries to get around and to fuel their economies. But those ferries move thanks to teams of on-board engineers. And those engine room employees say they are critically understaffed and the only solution is more state funding or fewer sailings; Alaska volcano researchers say seismic activity around Mount Spurr has continued to decline over the last month, but the closest active volcano to the state's population centers could still erupt.

In this newscast: Researchers launched and interactive glacial outburst flood website today to help Juneau's Mendenhall Valley residents plan for annual floods; Many businesses in Southeast Alaska say they're facing uncertainty amid recent actions by the federal government, according to a report released yesterday by the Southeast Alaska Business Climate Survey; The Juneau School District is expanding its support of a local language immersion program; It's been nearly three years since the town of Bar Harbor, Maine voted to limit cruise traffic. KCAW reached out to those involved in the decision to find out how things have been since the town enacted the limit

In this newscast: State officials took another step toward building a new ferry terminal at the end of the road in Juneau; Some Juneau residents are calling for police to crack down on homeless encampments in the Mendenhall Valley, but city officials and police say there isn't an easy fix to growing rates of homelessness and its impacts; The Trump administration is attempting to alter environmental regulations that seek to protect endangered species habitat in order to "unlock" the potential of energy and resource developments. the move is raising alarm among Alaska's environmental researchers; All NOAA Weather Radio sites in Southeast Alaska will be down today through Thursday while broadcast equipment is being upgraded

In this newscast: Tomorrow is the last day of school at the Juneau School District, and high school seniors are graduating on Sunday; A storm is set to hit Southeast Alaska this weekend with strong winds and heavy rain; Property taxes could go up for most Juneau residents if the Juneau Assembly moves forward with a plan to increase the rate it uses to calculate them in the next fiscal year; The Juneau School District is restructuring one of its specialized education programs. While staff and administrators say the change is desperately needed, some parents are concerned about how it will affect some of the district's most vulnerable students; The Chilkoot Indian Association in Haines is launching a new tourism effort

In this newscast: The Juneau School District Board of Education appointed Steve Whitney to the board on Saturday; Senator Lisa Murkowski has introduced a bill that would reauthorize funds for landslide monitoring projects across Southeast Alaska; The Alaska Department of Education and Early Development failed a test that allows it to include millions of federal dollars towards its contributions to education funding; Tribal leaders from across the country spoke out last week at a U.S. Senate hearing against changes within the Department of Health and Human Services; Curious Juneau: What's the story behind the Fiddlehead Cookbook's North Douglas chocolate cake?

In this newscast: Five candidates have applied to fill an empty seat on the Juneau School District Board of Education after Will Muldoon resigned; Alaska regulators have assessed a $49,000 fine against Hilcorp for lapses in Cook Inlet offshore well management, the Alaska Beacon reports; Some Southeast Alaska communities had their earliest harmful algal bloom on record this year, and there is currently a paralytic shellfish toxin advisory across region for recreational and subsistence harvest; Local and state transportation officials are wrapping up a study that hones in on five locations for a potential second bridge; Thousands of new books are landing in the hands of kids across Southeast Alaska this month as the result of a partnership between the region's largest tribal government and a Native-led nonprofit with roots in the Navajo and Hopi nations

Tonight on the KRBD Evening Report….A bill introduced in Congress would reauthorize funds for landslide monitoring projects throughout Southeast Alaska, including Ketchikan; Thorne Bay is looking to fill a city council vacancy; and a documentary on how Filipino nurses were among the unsung heroes of the pandemic comes to Anchorage.Those stories and more coming up…

In this newscast: The filing period to run for an elected position in Southeast Alaska's proposed Xunaa Borough closes this Friday. But, a pending appeal of a state commission's approval of the new borough could halt the special election scheduled this July, when residents will be asked whether to create Alaska's 20th borough; Gov. Mike Dunleavy says he's ordering a freeze on most state hiring, out-of-state travel and new regulations as oil prices tumble. Dunleavy outlined the freeze in an administrative order released Friday afternoon; Learning a language is hard. Learning a language without a teacher regularly checking in is even harder. But this year, Kake City Schools students got the chance to learn Lingít while creating multilingual poems that give people a glimpse of where they come from.

Rep. Jeremy Bynum passes a bill in the state House that creates new exceptions for Alaskans receiving dividend money. Local band Dude Mtn talks Folk Fest in Juneau and the worst parts about touring Southeast Alaska. Concerned Alaskans dial 2-1-1.

In this episode Cory Hansen and I walk around the Alaska Fly Fishing Goods shop and break down everything you need to know about fly fishing gear for  Alaska. From fly rods, shooting heads, reels and waders, to flies, shot, nets and dry bags, we hit it all.  Check out the On Step Alaska website or subscribe on Substack for articles, features and all things Alaska. Click here for a 20% discount on an annual subscription to The Westrn, the outdoor community's newest newspaper. Thanks to the sponsors: Sagebrush Dry (Alaskan-owned business that sells the best dry bags you can buy.) Alpine Fit (Premium outdoor layering from another Alaskan-owned business.) Backcountry Hunters and Anglers

Ben shares his cruise on Norwegian Bliss to Southeast Alaska from Seattle, Alaska. 

In this one, I talk to Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins. Ever since he was a kid he's been interested in politics and sports. Electoral politics and baseball, to be specific. But when it came to politics, he was a prodigy. He could recite groups of politicians — the 50 state attorneys general and all 100 U.S. senators, for example. He was interviewed on NPR at 14, and at 23 he dropped out of Yale, moved back home to Sitka and ran as a Democratic candidate for the state House of Representatives. He would go on to represent Sitka and 21 other rural Southeast Alaska communities in the Alaska House of Representatives, until leaving politics in 2022. His self-proclaimed fanaticism toward sports is what drew him to politics. Like sports, politics is statistical, numeric, and there are winners and there are losers. But with politics, unlike sports, the stakes are higher. They shape the world we live in.  Jonthan credits the Sitka High School Debate Team for giving him the intellectual and ideological versatility that he still relies on today. He says that in debate, it's common to flip a coin and on the basis of the coin flip you have to argue diametrically opposite sides of the same issue. So, you not only have to understand both sides of an argument, you have to be able to clearly communicate it. In 2014, House Bill 216 was signed into law. It made the twenty Native languages in Alaska official languages of the state. Jonathan sponsored that bill and his efforts were, in part, aided by what he had learned in debate. He says that, like all things in politics, it was accomplished through compromise and teamwork.