20 years ago

Since his first day on Alaska waters, Nick Dudiak has taken a hands-on approach to salmon fishing. The retired Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologist caught a 39-pound king on his first cast off the beach at Whiskey Gulch some 28 years ago. On Wednesday, the Homer Spit Fishing Hole — one of many lower Cook Inlet enhancement projects Dudiak pioneered — will be renamed in his honor. Dudiak retired from Fish and Game in May of 1997 after 20 years. During that time, he created several enhancement fisheries for sport and commercial fishermen from Halibut Cove Lagoon to Chenik Lake across Cook Inlet. Today, many of the salmon caught by sport anglers and the commercial fleet in the Homer area owe their lineage to Dudiak’s early work.

— From the issue of July 7, 2005

30 years ago

The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council last month added several Ninilchik-area parcels to the list of small land purchases it would like to make to compensate for damages from Alaska’s biggest oil spill. At their June 15 meeting, the trustees added about 127 acres in three Ninilchik parcels to a list that already includes proposals to buy 187 acres on the shore below the Baycrest turnouts on the Sterling Highway, 220 acres stretching to the shore from the Sterling Highway by Diamond Ridge Road, and 156 acres on Perl Island at the mouth of Cook Inlet. The complete list of 29 proposed purchases also includes land along the Kenai River and other parcels from Valdez to Kodiak.

— From the issue of July 6, 1995