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Captain Reubin Payne
In 1991 I graduated from
Georgia Southern
University, loaded my back
pack, drove to Seattle,
ditched the car, caught the
ferry, slept on the deck up
the Inside Passage, got off
in Haines and hitch-hiked
all summer with a very
light budget and a fairly
heavy back pack. Most
of our rides came from
local Alaskans that hauled
us around the state sharing
laughs, stories, fishing
tips and on occasion their
“secret fishing
spots". After
hitch-hiking more than two
thousand miles, eating
pounds of wild berries,
freeze dried food and fresh
fish all I wanted to do was
go back to Georgia eat some
of my moms pork chops, pack
up the rest of my hunting
and fishing gear, and move
to Alaska!
That fall I put on a nice
sweater, printed off a
resume and drove to Atlanta
to a local fishing show to
get myself hooked up on a
job in Alaska! I met a
lodge owner that hired me
to do everything from
launching boats to cleaning
fish. The lodge was a very
high end facility right on
the beach of the Cook
Inlet. I worked like a dog
but for a few hours each
day that summer, I would go
fishing for salmon and
halibut. The pay was
crummy, the hours were
long, but the fishing was
fantastic, I was in
heaven.
After the fishing season
ended, I moved to the Kenai
Peninsula town of Sterling
just outside of Soldotna
and guided the following 8
seasons for the lodge. We
fished 7 days a week for
four months straight and
you couldn't slap the smile
off my face. I love
fishing, I mean I love
everything about it. I love
being outside chasing fish!
Even when the weather is
bad, I love fishing, I
figure that a guy has to
have the rainy and windy
days to appreciate the
sunny ones. After 19
years of fishing the Kenai
Peninsula waters, I have
sat in the rain many an
hour, I have caught
thousands of pounds of fish
and I have taken more than
one skunking. And I have
loved every minute of
it!
In 2001 I began Alaskan
Widespread Fishing
Adventures Inc. I treat my
business like a business. I
control what I can control,
the boats are cleaned each
night, the books are kept
straight, and confirmations
are checked and re-checked.
We tie fresh leaders each
evening, keep razor sharp
hooks on each line, we plan
our work and we work our
plan. But I don't do it for
the money, I do it all
because I love fishing and
this business has supported
that passion. Mindy and I
have an incredible
lifestyle and we are truly
grateful to be living our
dream.
We get to share Alaska with
people that are on vacation
and enjoy fishing! What
could be better? We may be
fishing with the repeat
client that comes back
every year and has fished
hundreds of hours with us.
Or perhaps we are fishing
with the angler that has
dreamed their whole life of
coming to Alaska and
fishing. We get to
participate in other
people's dreams and
adventures!
Captain Mindy
Webster-Payne
I started my
fishing career by
working for my
dad's Kenai River
fishing guide
service as a young
teenager. I spent
many days on the
Kenai River during
the summer months
learning from the
best of the best -
my dad (Ultimate
Extreme Super Duper
Master Guide Jeff
Webster)! I was
also a deckhand for
a halibut/salmon
charter boat for
two summers. After
working for others
for a few years, I
saved enough money
to buy my first
drift boat, and
started my own
guide service at 23
years old. I tell
people, everyday,
that I have the
best office ever,
the roof leaks a
little, but I get a
360 degree view of
the amazing Kenai
Peninsula!
I love my job and
the day that
fishing is no
longer exciting to
me, is the day I'll
move on and use my
college education.
I love fishing. For
me, there is no
bigger rush than
seeing one of my
fishing rods
getting flattened
to the rail of the
boat, or getting
bent to the cork by
a King Salmon with
a nasty attitude.
What a great life
to be living; I
couldn't be happier
to share that
experience with
you!
I met Reubin on the
Kasilof River in
2003. We instantly
hit it off as good
fishing buddies,
and business
associates. We
worked together
often, and Reubin
quickly became one
of my closest
friends. We fell in
love, got married
and now have two
healthy, handsome,
rough and rowdy
little boys named
Noah and Anthony.
We are truly
blessed! Since
getting married, we
have combined our
businesses, shared
“super double top
secret" egg curing
recipes, taught
each other many
tricks of the
trade, and taken
the rivers by
storm!
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