The Ridge Journal

So what are we fishing for? Trout? Char? Coho Salmon?

…Didn’t you read the title? We’re fly fishing for the soul!

It was October 7th, 2024. After 21 consecutive weeks in the bush, it was time to winterize the lodge and board up the windows. Another season at The Ridge had come and gone. Though there remained a 250-mile floatplane flight between us and Anchorage, I braced for the return to civilization. I was going to miss this place badly, but I was thankful this wasn’t a final goodbye, only a “see you next year.”

“What does normal life have to offer?”

It might sound depressing, but as my feet touched the pavement in Anchorage, my wife Macy and I sensed that the next 7 months might be a dull existence compared to what we had experienced out there. 

The truth is, no matter where we are, no matter our circumstance, we shouldn’t have to look far to recognize that our lives are filled with countless blessings that meet our needs and enrich our soul. Family, friendships, community, faith, spirituality, good food, a job we enjoy that pays the bills, good books, hobbies, and so much more.

And yet, for all that we have, it’s easy to lose sight. The blessings remain, but we sometimes drift so far from them that we need to be pulled back—gently, or with force.

Maybe some of us don’t feel like we’re tapping into any of those opportunities—for connection, fulfillment, and peace. Instead, our lives are spent scrolling on a 5″ screen, our mood rising and falling with the headlines, the news cycle, or the stock market ticker… With our necks bent over, heads hung low, we consume endless social media feeds, but we are never satisfied. Our souls are on life-support without us even knowing it.

Can you guess what pulls me back into alignment? Back to the place of gratitude?

Well, it’s just about impossible to scroll on Instagram while a 28-inch rainbow trout is trying to rip a spey rod out of your hand… even tougher if you’re fishing 50 miles from the nearest cell tower… And there’s something that happens in your core when you step off a floatplane into the middle of Katmai National Park, and watch it lift off behind you, knowing it won’t be back until evening. No signal, no roads, just you, your guide, and a river that doesn’t care who you are or where you’re from.

It’s quiet, remote… and good for the soul.

Fly fishing in Southwest Alaska’s Bristol Bay Watershed is not the type of experience that gently wakes you up from your slumber and complacency. Like the aggressive and unapologetic native fish that swim its rivers, this raw and unspoiled landscape shouts to its visitors “Wake up—this is what it means to be alive.”

Back in town, the noise returns. So does the routine — inboxes, errands, stoplights. But after experiencing a place like this, we carry something back with us. Not just a photo or a story, but a reset. A reminder.

I don’t think fly fishing in wild places is the only way to wake up. But for me, it’s one of the clearest reminders—of the blessings in my life, and Where they come from. For you, it might be a trail, a campfire, a cabin, a conversation, or just a quiet morning. The point is—go find it.

Get outside.

Slow down.

Find What reminds you you’re still alive.

Not sure what I mean? This video should help.

See? It’s a whole lot more than just a fishing trip.

If you are a fly fisherman, you might have already found what feeds your soul, but there’s always more. A lot more. Are you making time to go where you need to go, with the people you need to share these experiences with?

At The Ridge, it is our mission to facilitate unforgettable weeks for those that are in need of a break from the mundane. Our guests return to their everyday lives equipped with a lasting perspective shift.

We’ll be heading back to Alaska soon to remove the boards we placed on the windows last October, and another season will begin. What would it take for you to step away for a week?