About Us

I was raised in a family of Alaskan pioneers and commercial fishermen. After years of working long trips at sea off the Alaska coast, I was ready to start a family and stay a little closer to home. So I took up my next great love and started my own tour company sharing my amazing backyard wilderness and pristine waters with adventurous travelers. This was a natural transition for me as I had worked earlier as a guide, fisherman and was pretty comfortable behind the wheel of a boat. Now, 32 years later, I hope that you can still sense my overwhelming passion and excitement for where I live. I also hope that my many years in the Alaska backcountry have made me a wiser guide and better leader, or at the very least I’ve got some really great stories to tell you!

I don’t want this to sound like a resume, but I believe that credentials, training, and experience help qualify characteristics in a well-prepared guide. So, here are just a few of mine.

I hold a 100 ton Masters Coast Guard license and am a State of Alaska certified guide and naturalist also a licensed State of Alaska fishing guide. I am a State Safe boating instructor and Alaska Marine Safety Education Association instructor as well as a State Certified Alaska host, National certified interpretive guide, cultural host. I have a long history of wilderness emergency medical training and have been an EMT 2 and firefighter locally.

More than anything else, I love playing outside… Camping, kayaking, fishing, hunting, climbing, diving, and hiking. If you spend a day with me in the wilderness I hope you will benefit from my extensive training and 32 years as a full-time professional guide, but more than that, I hope you will catch my contagious sense of play and my enthusiasm for nature.

I grew up in a small farming community in Northwest Ohio where I worked in the family grocery store, spending all of my spare time fishing and hunting. My very first boat was a small, 8-foot, flat bottom boat that I pulled on a trailer behind our riding lawn mower. I wasn’t old enough to drive, but that didn’t stop me from getting out on the water! While I was growing up, my Dad, who served in the Coast Guard, shared many exciting stories of his adventures that really inspired my career choice. I joined the Coast Guard after High School wanting to pursue the adrenaline and satisfaction of helping others and being part of a team. My love for the water and being on boats was an everyday occurrence that I continue to this day. The Coast Guard was also able to provide me with some spectacular fishing locations that ranged from the Great Lakes, Florida Keys, and eventually up to Alaska. While in the military my family and I moved nine times when duty called, but my last move was to Alaska in 2002, then I knew I was home. In 2004 after 17 years of honorable service performing search and rescue, port security missions, and training others, I retired and started a new chapter of my life.

With my love for fishing and the outdoors combined with my many years at sea, the transition to becoming a fishing guide was natural. I was fortunate enough to have a family with a vast fishing background and many new friends that were eager to help me learn the ins and outs of fishing in Alaska. In 2005 I began my first season as a full-time guide and captain and now 11 years later, I enjoy fishing and being on the water even more.

I take great pride in my Coast Guard background and where it has gotten me today. My expertise in small boat handling, Search and Rescue, and Maritime Law Enforcement afforded me the opportunity to log thousands of hours behind the wheel. From this experience, I was able to receive my 100 ton Masters license in 2004 and work toward other certifications that would make me a well-rounded naturalist and guide for Alaska Charters and Adventures. Within a short amount of time, I obtained my certification as a naturalist and guide from the State of Alaska, National certified interpretive guide, as well as Alaska host and cultural host certificates.

The benefits of my work are endless and I am told frequently that “I am living the dream”, and I truly believe it. I am so fortunate to have such an incredible family, amazing friends, and to live in a place that many dream about. I love to take people fishing and watch their enthusiasm while sharing this amazing wilderness and its wildlife.

In 1975 I traveled with friends to Alaska on a 3 month holiday, it was a trip of a lifetime. Who knew that 38 years later I would move to Wrangell, Alaska. As soon as I arrived on the ferry, I knew it was the right decision. I was born in New England and have always felt most comfortable in the wilderness. My earliest memory as a child is riding my bike with training wheels around the neighborhood and with the wind in my face, the trainers flew off and there was no stopping me. My first adventure was fresh out of high school, traveling for a month-long trip around the country, I visited national parks from coast to coast.

I have worked in the outdoor industry for 30 years, spattered through that time I have also worked in the hospitality industry. The combination has proved to be perfect for my job at Alaska Charters & Adventures as an administrative and reservation specialist.

“As owners of Alaska Charters and Adventures, we feel like we should be truthful in saying that nothing would happen without Nancy. She is truly a genius with a masterful balance between complex spreadsheets and thoughtfully remembering the most personalized details of our guests. Nancy brings to our team a depth of business and outdoor industry skills combined with genuine care and a great sense of humor.”

I was born and raised in Wrangell, and it is the life of Adventure that I love. Whether it’s on the water or looking down from a mountain peak, I will always be in awe and feel lucky to be surrounded by such beauty. I spent most of my days growing up on the water commercial fishing, and crewing for Alaska Charters. I was literally raised onboard the Alaska Charters and Adventures vessels and any free time I was in my boats on the Stikine River. Being surrounded and involved in a maritime environment led me to become a licensed captain at 18 and then enlist in the United States Coast Guard to enhance my maritime skills. During this time, I completed specialized schools and training for seafarers. I served as a Boatswain’s mate, completing multiple law enforcement, search and rescue, aids to navigation and humanitarian operations. While serving in the military, I learned more about vessels, the sea, and its antics than I could have ever imagined possible. I have been fortunate to be surrounded by role models with centuries of combined maritime experience. My military service has provided me with exceptional experiences and discipline, and I am excited to bring these skills back as I return to my job at Alaska Charters and Adventures. With my time in the Coast Guard coming to an end, I decided it was time to return to Alaska and follow in my family’s footsteps. My wife and I want our children to grow up enjoying the beautiful scenery and heritage we were so privileged to observe. In my work as Captain and guide with Alaska Charters and Adventures, I have the opportunity to share what a special place in the world Alaska is and that it should never be taken for granted and should be protected at all costs.

Brian is our son so it’s a little difficult to not be biased when we say we believe he has all of the skill sets for excellent guide and captain he really literally truly grew up working on our boat he’s been called skipper ever since he could see out of the window of the wheelhouse he has always been a gifted intuitive boat operator Brian is a competent and experienced outdoorsman and loves to explore I think you’ll have some fun going on an adventure with him.

I grew up in Washington state until a trip to Wrangell changed everything. At just 18 years old I knew that I wanted to spend my life up there, I was immediately drawn to the Alaskan lifestyle and beautiful landscapes. From berry picking, canning, and preserving the many bounties Alaska has to offer, subsistence fishing, camping, running the muddy Stikine River, to spending time with friends and family life is great. Through my years in Alaska I’ve spent a lot of time on the back deck of commercial fishing vessels and even 120-foot tugboats. I obtained my 100-ton masters’ license in 2021 thanks to the help of John and Brenda and have been working with Alaska Charters and Adventures for 3 years now and love every possible thing about what I do.

We are so fortunate to have the pleasure of working with Lindsey as one of our captains and guides. She’s one of the most capable people I know always calm and willing to tackle or learn anything. Lindsey is a highly experienced mariner with an excellent sense of common sense is she is a great buddy Naturalist and knows a lot about the traditional use of plants and subsistence harvesting lifestyle we know you’ll enjoy spending the day with Lindsey she has a wonderful sense of adventure.

As a small boy growing up in Prague, former Czechoslovakia, I was always fascinated by boats and books by Jack London. Often, I was daydreaming about the sea and wilderness while watching a few fishing boats on the Moldau river or walking through the city park Stromovka imagining it was Alaska. Little did I know my dreams would become reality much later in my life when a twist of fate brought me to the USA and Wrangell, Alaska. Being a naturalist, photographer, and history buff, I believe that Southeast Alaska is the best place to be. Working for Alaska Charters and Adventures as a deckhand and guide completes the dreams from my childhood and I love to share our beautiful scenery with clients from all over the world.

We so enjoy having Ivan on our Alaska Charters team he brings some big contributions he’s remarkably perceptive to the needs of clients Ivan neglected to mention in his bio but he is a renowned local photographer he’ll be a big asset for you if you have any technical questions about photography at Anan and or our other tour locations he has so much experience in these locations if you’re fortunate enough to have him on your crew you will also be amazed by his depth of historical knowledge and great stories.