Here’s a short video of pink salmon, also called humpies, moving up the Indian River in Sitka to spawn–the same river they were born in two years earlier. What you see is just a few feet of the river.
Imagine miles of Indian River just as crowded with fish…then imagine thousands of waterways along the coast of Alaska also packed with salmon.
Salmon are incredibly important for our communities, our economies, and our ecosystems.
Encounters is a weekly natural history adventure that takes listeners deep into the northern wilds (and occasionally the Australian outback). The program airs on Public Radio stations around Alaska and the Lower 48. It’s hosted by writer-naturalist Richard Nelson and longtime NPR reporter Elizabeth Arnold.
Each episode evokes the sounds and feelings of the natural world, as we explore the tundra and forest, drift near calving glaciers, trek remote ridges, and watch animals ranging from brown bears and humpback whales to bald eagles and hummingbirds. Along the way, we delve into the insights of science, the wisdom of native traditions, and the richness of our wild heritage.
