Alaska
Little fish, big tradition: Alaskans embrace the culinary and cultural tradition of hooligan
On the last day of May, Ratdawan Haywood tried her luck at the mouth of Twentymile River near Portage. She dipped her net into the grayish brown river, where it disappeared for a few moments before it emerged empty. Her blue Lowe’s bucket sat on the shoreside near her, empty as well.
“It’s slow this year,” she said. “People say last year was pretty good and this year is not as good. I heard people are catching them in Seward, but I don’t know where to go.”
Haywood had better luck the week prior, and was able to fill her bucket a couple of times.
Every year, dozens of Anchorage residents like Haywood venture to the southernmost edge of Anchorage’s municipal boundary to the mouth of Twentymile River, in hopes of filling their freezers and fryers with the slender, small silvery fish. For a brief season — the beginning of April to the end of May in salt water and June 15 in freshwater — they can scoop hooligan fish out of the water with long nets. The hooligans’ arrival is the kick off to the long-awaited summer season for many families who turn the fishing trip and the subsequent fresh fish fry into celebratory events that center on family, friends and the sharing of food.
“I think the move is to take what you think you can eat, and then share with everyone else, because it seems like everyone has a use for it,” said Randy Guintu who grew up in Anchorage and fished often with his family.
and going to Seward, Willow or Twentymile and hooligan being one of the first fish that
young children are able to catch for themselves. (Young Kim)
Haywood also spent a lot of time fishing with her family. She said she took her children to catch hooligan every year, and would fry and bake the little fish for her family to eat. But then her children grew up, and her recent trip to the river was her first in about a decade. She wanted to get out of the house, she said, and still likes to fry the hooligan, but she’s been more experimental with the fish she caught the week before – trying them in Thai soups like tom yum.
“It was last week, I actually told my mom I wanted to make tom yum soup,” she said. “Sometimes people think the fish is small and the meat is squishy so some people don’t like them because it’s a lot of oil.”
Hooligan, also known as ooligan, smelt, candlefish and eulachon, are extremely oily – up to 20% of the fish is fat. The small fish is considered to be a keystone species for the West Coast. A multitude of marine and land animals rely on hooligan for food in the spring months, and the fish is prized by Indigenous people in the Northwest for its oil, medicinal and food values. Before the gold rush, trails like the famous Chilkoot Trail were used by Indigenous people to trade ooligan oil. These trails were sometimes called “grease trails.”
Ooligan oil is a staple in Ruthie Constantine’s home. She moved to Anchorage in 2009 from Metlakatla, a Tsimshian community near Ketchikan in Southeast Alaska. She grew up eating hooligan and its oil – which is made by fermenting large batches of the fish before rendering the oil into different grades. Constantine said they get ooligan grease from Canada, where her tribe is originally from.
Despite growing up eating hooligan, Constantine only tried fishing for it when she first moved to Anchorage.
“It was a different experience to see and try,” she said. “My husband’s aunt took us out and wanted us to try. After that we were hooked.”
Constantine and her family often fish for friends and family who live back home in Metlakatla. When they visit, they bring two 50-pound freezer boxes on the plane with them. Then, starting with her grandma’s house, they go around the community with gallon bags full of fish for whoever wants or needs them.
“To bring them home feels – I don’t know how to describe it – it’s like a piece of joy just being able to share something that everyone loves to have at home,” she said. “It’s nice to provide for them and be able to give, and to be able to share with everybody.”
Constantine, as well as her friend’s and family back home, like to fry the fish whole with flour and seasoning or smoke them using traditional methods her grandmother taught them.
“Depending on who we’re having our Native food dinners with, sometimes the older people like a small bit added to their berries,” she said.
Guintu and his family also grew up frying the hooligan fish whole. Guintu works in the survey field and has commercial fished in Cook Inlet.
“I feel like hooligan is one of the first fishes young children are able to fish for,” he said. “I kind of remember growing up and being dragged down to Seward, and we would go to Willow or Twentymile. It’s kind of something that I’ve done for my family, being like one of the only adult children from my generation that actually likes to go out and fish.”
He tries to go annually with his family and friends, but hasn’t been able to go the last few years. But, family friends have made sure he doesn’t go without hooligan to eat – which they all typically like floured, seasoned and fried fresh and whole.
When he does fish, Guintu said, he likes to share his catch with his aunts or grandma. Their method is to take the biggest sized hooligan, butterfly and marinate it in garlic, soy sauce, brown sugar, vinegar, MSG, Sprite or Coke and liquid smoke, before baking them at a low temperature to create a smoked effect. Then, they’d fry the fish.
“It’s like a potato chip,” he said. “You just eat everything, it’s crunchy. But that takes a lot of time. The move was to bring them to grandma’s house because she made them the best. I think that’s probably pretty typical with most Filipino families. There’s a party, just fry and go really.”
He said the flesh of the fish is white, delicate and oily and not “super fishy” in taste. Most recipes from any culture calling for milkfish or mackerel could easily translate to using hooligan, he said.
“I feel like there’s a lot of cultures that have really made it popular, and really have a good way of preparing them,” he said. “Usually it’s a lot of ethnic cultures like the Hmong or the Hawaiians or the Koreans. I’m really intrigued to see what the Greeks or some of the other Europeans are doing with them. I think it’s a pretty cool resource to have.”
Like Haywood, whose bucket was empty Wednesday afternoon, Guintu said he’s been “kind of concerned about some of the returns” he’s seen.
“It just used to be – when we were kids, we went down to Nash Road and we’d be like five years old, you’d bring a spaghetti strainer and you can scoop them out of the creek,” he said, referencing Seward.
Whether it’s fishing or hunting, Guintu said, he likes providing for his family and others.
“I felt like it was something we did traditionally and I wanted to keep that tradition strong with the next generation,” he said. “I think it’s a pretty important personal use and subsistence fishery for all Alaskan residents.”
Catching the fish has become a tradition for many. For Haywood, who came to the river to try her luck after a decade hiatus from the fishery, it’s a tradition she’s picking back up.
“From now on, I’m going to try and come out every year and catch it for the season,” she said.
This reporting is supported in part by a grant from the Alaska Humanities Forum and the National Endowment for the Humanities, a federal agency. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this report do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.”
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – Gusty winds and heavy snow has begun to spread into Western and Southwest Alaska, with a surge of warmer air. Temperatures in Southwest Alaska is already 10 to 35 degrees warmer than yesterday morning. This warmth will spread across the rest of the state through the weekend, with some of the most pronounced warmth along the Slope. We’ll see many areas this weekend into next week remaining well-above average.
SOUTHCENTRAL:
Temperatures are slowly warming across Southcentral, with many areas seeing cloud coverage increasing. While we could see some peeks of sunshine today, most locations will see mostly cloudy conditions. While we can’t rule out light flurries for inland locations, most of the precipitation today will occur near the coast. Snow looks to be the primary precipitation type, although later this evening a transition to rain or wintry mix will occur. This comes as temperatures quickly warm across Southcentral.
We’ll see highs today in the upper 20s and lower 30s for inland areas, while coastal regions warm into the 30s and 40s. The southerly flow aloft will remain with us for several days, pumping in the warmth and moisture. As a result, Kodiak could see over an inch of rain today, with gusty winds.
While most of the precipitation this weekend remains near the coast, inland areas will see the best chance for wintry mix Sunday into Monday. Little to no accumulation is expected.
The key takeaways for this weekend, is snow transitioning to rain, with some gusty winds likely for parts of Southcentral this weekend.
SOUTHEAST:
Another fairly quiet day is expected across Southeast today, outside of some light snow near Yakutat. We’ll see a mix of sun and clouds with temperatures remaining on the cooler side. Parts of the Northern Panhandle may stay in the upper 20s today. The stretch of quiet weather will stay with us through the first half of Saturday, followed by an increase in precipitation and winds. This upcoming system may bring some heavy snowfall to Southeast, so be prepared for that potential this weekend. Temperatures warm into next week, back into the upper 30s and lower 40s for many areas.
INTERIOR:
While temperatures this morning have bottomed out as low as -30 near Fort Yukon, temperatures will warm into the weekend. A wind advisory for the Alaska Range goes into effect at 9 Friday morning, where winds up to 60 mph will warm the Interior. Temperatures today for many locations will warm into the single digits, with some of the greatest warming arriving Saturday through next week. It’s likely we’ll spend most of next week with temperatures in the 20s and 30s, with the warmest locations near the Alaska Range. While we will largely stay dry, there is a chance for some light snow arriving Sunday night into Monday.
SLOPE/WESTERN ALASKA:
Temperatures will remain slightly above average for parts of the Slope today, with warming winds to build into the Slope this weekend. This comes as our area of low pressure in the Bering Sea continues to move farther north. Be prepared for gusty easterly winds along the Slope, leading to blowing snow and reduced visibility. We’ll see temperatures quickly warm well above average, with highs climbing into the 20s and 30s along the Slope into next week. While some snow is possible through the weekend, the heaviest activity will occur for the Brooks Range. We’ll see the potential for 4 to 12 inches of snowfall, with the highest amounts occurring along the southern slopes of the Brooks Range near Kobuk Valley. Winds could gusts as high as 45 mph, leading to greatly reduced visibility.
Heavy snow is impacting Western and Southwest Alaska this morning, with winds gusting up to 50 mph. Numerous winter weather alerts, as well as a coastal flood advisory is in effect. The heaviest snow will fall for the Seward Peninsula and east of Norton Sound, where up to a foot or more of snow is to be expected. The heaviest amounts will fall today, with the activity set to lighten up through Sunday. In addition to the snow, gusty winds will lead to areas of blowing snow. Visibility could be reduced down to less than half a mile at times. As southerly flow continues to pump in warmth, we’ll see a transition from snow to rain later today into Saturday for parts of Southwest Alaska.
ALEUTIANS:
Gusty winds and heavy rain will fall through the Aleutians today, where up to .75″ of rain is possible. As the area of low pressure moves north, we’ll see a new low form just south of the Eastern Aleutians. This will lead to additional rain and winds into the weekend. Winds could gusts upwards of 50 mph through the Eastern Aleutians and through the Alaska Peninsula. With ridging to our east, more rain and winds remain with us into early next week. There is the potential that the Pribilof Islands see a return to snow Sunday, as colder air moves into the Bering Sea.
OUTLOOK AHEAD:
Well above average warmth will stay with us as we close out January. While one more short-lived cold snap is possible, we may have to wait until February before we tap into warmer conditions. Temperatures through the close of January will keep average monthly temperatures 5 to 12 degrees above average for much of the state. The overall trend still favors a wetter pattern, although with warmer weather the southern parts of the state will favor more rain or a mixed bag of precipitation.
Have a wonderful and safe holiday weekend.
See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com
Copyright 2025 KTUU. All rights reserved.
Alaska
Alaska governor, ally of Trump, will keep flags at full-staff for Inauguration Day • Alaska Beacon
Alaska will join several other Republican-led states by keeping flags at full-staff on Inauguration Day despite the national period of mourning following President Jimmy Carter’s death last month.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy announced his decision, which breaks prior precedent, in a statement on Thursday. It applies only to flags on state property. Flags on federal property are expected to remain at half-staff.
Flags on state property will be returned to half-staff after Inauguration Day for the remainder of the mourning period.
The governors of Indiana, Idaho, Iowa, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Oklahoma, North Dakota, Nebraska, Montana and Alabama, among others, have announced similar moves.
U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Republican from Louisiana, said on Tuesday that flags at the U.S. Capitol would remain at full-staff on Inauguration Day.
Their actions follow a statement from President-elect Donald Trump, who said in a Jan. 3 social media post that Democrats would be “giddy” to have flags lowered during his inauguration, adding, “Nobody wants to see this, and no American can be happy about it. Let’s see how it plays out.”
Dunleavy is seen as a friend of the incoming president and has met with him multiple times over the past year. Dunleavy and 21 other Republican governors visited Trump last week in Florida at an event that Trump described as “a love fest.”
Since 1954, flags have been lowered to half-staff during a federally prescribed 30-day mourning period following presidential deaths. In 1973, the second inauguration of President Richard Nixon took place during the mourning period that followed the death of President Harry Truman.
Then-Gov. Bill Egan made no exceptions for Alaska, contemporary news accounts show, and no exception was made for Nixon’s inauguration in Washington, D.C., either.
A spokesperson for Dunleavy’s office said the new precedent is designed to be a balance between honoring the ongoing mourning period for former President Jimmy Carter and recognizing the importance of the peaceful transition of power during the presidential inauguration.
“Temporarily raising the flags to full-staff for the inauguration underscores the significance of this democratic tradition, while returning them to half-staff afterward ensures continued respect for President Carter’s legacy,” the spokesperson said.
GET THE MORNING HEADLINES.
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU) – President Joe Biden announced the approval of federal disaster assistance on Thursday for recovery efforts in areas that sustained damage from flooding and storms in October 2024.
Those areas include the Bering Strait Regional Educational Attendance Area (REAA) and the Northwest Arctic Borough area where many structures were damaged by a severe storm from Oct. 20-23, 2024.
In a press release, FEMA announced that federal funding is available on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work to the state of Alaska, tribal and eligible local governments, and certain private nonprofit organizations.
The announcement comes just a few days after Biden released the major disaster declaration approval for the August Kwigillingok flooding.
See a spelling or grammar error? Report it to web@ktuu.com
Copyright 2025 KTUU. All rights reserved.
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