LIFE IN WATER

XTRATUFs are the foundation, and with the change of season - from fishing to gear work and spring to winter - the Insulated Legacy Lace Boot and Legacy Clog are the perfect footings to take me from chilly predawn mornings - frosty nets and frozen fingers- to the warm golden midday sun that has you question whether it’s the same day you woke up to.

When the dock ramp is a sheet of ice and it’s pitched at 45* degrees it's reassuring not having to worry about your footing. My go to for the wintertime in Alaska is the Men’s Swingsaw with the Glacier Trek sole. They’re warm boots so they end up being the first thing I grab before going out the door in most months. They’re comfortable to wear standing for long periods of time at the rail longlining and can handle whatever you throw at them off the boat and out in the wilderness.

My favorite way to recuperate after the holiday is to set fitness goals. I start a very strict diet and go into hiding for about 90 days as I get ready for the next season.

One of the many perks of spending the summer harvesting wild salmon in Alaska is the home pack —the fish that we bring home to feed our families. We make sure to smoke a good portion of the salmon that we bring home, creating a sweet and smoky treat that can be shared at family dinners or munched on for a quick healthy snack.

This year XTRATUF is donating 10% of our sales today (Up to $5,000) to the Seattle Fishermen’s Memorial Fund.

Tonje calls her self a professional nomad that adventures around, but the thing is - she’s been able to make a living as a modern adventurer since 2011. In Norway the culture of the outdoors and the traditions they live by, has made it possible to do something entirely different with her life. She quit school as a stubborn 18 year old to chase the impossible job title «full time dirtbag». It turned out it’s quite possible after all!

Andrew Cotton is best known for surfing some the worlds largest and most dangerous waves – swapping 100ft waves for ice cold lakes.

For part-owner of Pike's Place Fish Market, Jaison, fishing has been in his life since his earliest memories spending time with his grandfather fishing for salmon and crab on the Puget Sound.

For many months, we dreamed. We dreamed of a shimmering golden sea stretching across the horizon. We dreamed of dramatic granite faces rising from the depths of infinite blue, of mountains drawing lines of white from the sky to the ocean.

Our favorite holiday tradition is making our family's wild salmon gravlax recipe. We love this simple recipe for curing fish and always have a batch going through December to share with friends and family.

Our small town's take on the Scandinavian tradition. Instead of masked carolers going house to house and getting treats, its community members going business to business and getting food. For us Julebukking takes place the week before Christmas and is a way for the small business community of our town to give a thanks back to their patrons for their business throughout the year.

The events which have unfolded over the past weeks and that are happening as we type this are tragic and disheartening. They have brought to light many sad truths that aren't new, that racial inequality is far from uncommon. So, what do we do about it? What can we do...

Growing up in Maine, Linda developed a love of fishing at an early age, learning the sport from her father who would bring her fishing on their local lakes and rivers for panfish, brook trout, and landlocked salmon. She carried this passion with her when she moved to Alaska after college...

In honor of National Siblings Day, we are celebrating The Salmon Sisters, Claire and Emma. Raised on a homestead in Alaska, they embody the hard work, dedication and commitment to community that we admire.