An Outdoor View: White kings

Author’s note: Readers with little or no taste will be overjoyed to see that I’m still working on my romance novel, featuring a hunky river ranger, Rod, and a hottie Kenai River fishing guide, Jenna. While giving in to your baser instincts, don’t be surprised if you realize that you’re being tricked into learning something about fish. — LP

It was a foggy morning, so foggy that Jenna’s four clients couldn’t see much of the scenery along the lower Kenai River. What she didn’t know was that they considered it worth the 250 bucks they had paid for a fishing trip to ogle her shapely young body for six hours without feeling any guilt.

The scarcity of kings in recent years made Jenna wonder if becoming a fishing guide had been a good idea. She shuddered at the thought of having to move from the area to find another job.

They’d been fishing for two hours and hadn’t had a bite. With every fiber of her being, Jenna yearned to be close to a certain tall, handsome ranger, to be held in his strong arms, to feel his heat. She needed Rod almost as much as she needed a new Yamaha T50 outboard. She hadn’t seen the tall, handsome ranger for days, and the very thought of him made her feel all tingly. But the odds of being with him seemed about as good as the odds of catching one of the salmon that had made the Kenai River famous.

“What’s the deal with these ‘white’ kings we hear about?” asked one of her clients. “What causes their meat to be white instead of red?”

“It’s a genetic thing,” Jenna said. “Some king salmon don’t inherit the ability to metabolize carotenoids, the orange-red pigments found in the things these kings eat — shrimp, krill and crabs, for example. Because of this, these pigments don’t get stored in their muscle cells.”

“You ever catch a white king?”

“I’ve caught a few in saltwater, near Homer,” Jenna said.

“You’ve never caught one in the Kenai?”

“Essentially, all white kings come from rivers and streams, from the Fraser River in British Columbia, north to the Chilkat River in Southeast Alaska. Biologists with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game estimate that, overall, approximately 5 percent of the king population in this region carry the recessive trait that produces the white flesh. However, there are river systems where upwards of 30 percent of their fish have the white flesh trait.”

“Do the white ones taste different from the red ones?”

“I can’t tell the difference,” Jenna said. “If you see one on a restaurant menu, you’ll see a difference in the price because white kings are relatively rare.”

Someone in a nearby boat yelled, “Any luck?”

Jenna recognized Rod’s manly voice, and her heart leaped like a tail-hooked sockeye.

“None yet,” she said, “but we’re hopeful.”

“Me, too,” Rod said. “I’m hopeful that we can get together tonight. I’ll call you.”

As suddenly as he had arrived, he was gone.

Jenna felt as if the fog had lifted and the sun had come out. She was no longer worried about whether her clients would catch a king, or wondering if her old outboard would make it through the day, or anxious about having to look for a real job. None of that mattered.

Les Palmer can be reached at les.palmer@rocketmail.com.

More in Life

The cast of “Annie” rehearse at Kenai Central High School in Kenai, Alaska, on Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Kenai Central hits the big stage with ‘Annie’

The production features actors from Kenai Central and Kenai Middle School

Andrew Garfield and Florence Pugh in “We Live in Time.” (Promotional photo courtesy A24)
On the Screen: Pugh, Garfield bring life to love story

“We Live in Time” explores legacy, connection and grief through the pair’s relationship

Mary Nissen speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974, in Kenai, Alaska. Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh
Remembering the Kenai Peninsula’s 1st history conference — Part 2

The 1974 event inspired the second Kenai Peninsula history conference, held in April, 2017

This slow-simmered ox tail broth makes this otherwise simple borscht recipe quite luxurious. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
Borscht from the source

This homestyle stew recipe draws on experience of Russian cook

In 1954, David Nutter (right) and his younger half-brother Frank Gwartney were ready for their first day of school in Sitka. (Photo courtesy of the Nutter Family Collection)
Finding Mister Nutter — Part 6

Chasing down the facts about Warren Nutter was never going to be simple

Photo provided by Shana Loshbaugh
Dena’ina writer, translator and ethnographer Peter Kalifornsky speaks at the first Kenai Peninsula history conference held at Kenai Central High School on Nov. 7-8, 1974.
Remembering the Kenai Peninsula’s 1st history conference — Part 1

Kenai Peninsula history gathering 50 years ago remains relevant and rousing

File
Minister’s Message: My upstairs or your upstairs?

The question challenges us to consider our own eternal destination and relationship with Jesus

tease
Off the shelf: Memoir ponders life’s un-expectations

‘The Crane Wife’ is part of the Homer Public Library’s 2024 Lit Lineup

tease
Anticipating candy-coated revelry

These popcorn balls, done three ways, are a classic Halloween treat

Most Read