Adam Cuthriell, owner and fishing guide at FishHound Expeditions, leads a sport fishing outfit that operates on the Susitna River. Cuthriell has been a guide since he was 20 years old.
To be honest, as cool or cliche as it sounds, doing this business has been my dream since I was 14 years old. My buddies and I, we started fishing in our early teens and we got super into it and would see all the fishing videos about Alaska. And we’d always talk like “Ah, it’d be so cool to go up there and start a guide service and fish in Alaska and fly in planes and helicopters.
He got a degree in outdoor education and leadership from Colorado Mountain College, where he’s originally from.
I had a great job guiding down there, but I’d always still dreamed of Alaska. And when I was 30 years old, I was like “Man, if I don’t do this now, I probably never will.”
He came up here with some friends and never left.
A9I like to joke with my friends it’s like Colorado on steroids. Everything’s bigger, everything’s more wild.
Fishhound operates private single-day trips here in the Mat-Su Valley on the Parks Highway River System. They also lead multi-day expedition trips, which can be as short as two days, one night or as long as ten days and nine nights.
A4: When we started it was me and a boat, and I now have ten guides, 17 boats, and four locations.
Cuthriell is still in awe of the Alaskan wilderness.
A7: Every time, just the deeper appreciation I have for these wild places. I mean these are dream trips for most of our guests. You know, a once in a lifetime opportunity. And I get to do it for my job. And just seeing these wild places and these big fish and wildlife, but experiencing with our guests just that awe in being able to be a part of that and see that experience in folks.
He says he doesn’t get tired of being out where no one else is, surrounded by crystal clear water and abundant fish. His business is centered around showing customers how much FishHound cares about fishing ethically, conserving the rivers and environment.
And the cool thing about fishing—fly fishing—is it is a blood sport. It is what we use to feed ourselves. But with modern technology and proper handling, you can catch these fish and experience them again and again and again and again.
Cuthriell appreciates the dynamism of the rivers in Alaska—how they freeze, thaw and shift with each season. He explains that it’s a nice contrast from the rivers in Colorado, which are mostly tailwaters, or rivers controlled by dam flow.
He has a special appreciation for the Susitna River drainage.
Such a unique river drainage, found few other places in the world, it really needs to be looked after and appreciated.
There’s monetary value to protecting the rivers that we recreate on, too, explains Cuthriell. Fishing tourism generates millions of dollars and hundreds of jobs for the Mat-Su valley.
Cuthriell thinks that if everyone got out and experienced a FishHound expedition, more people would be willing to fight for the river.
For KTNA, I’m Nell Salzman.
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