River guide certification gets support

The Kenai River Working Group voted Friday to recommend establishing a Kenai River Guide Academy certification program through Kenai Peninsula College as part of new regulations for the Kenai River fishing guides and commercial boat operators.

Gary Turner, director of Kenai Peninsula College, showed the group of river guides, state officials and other business leaders a presentation highlighting a week-long academy to train new Kenai River fishing guides.

The Kenai River Working Group represents a variety of business interests, including fishing guides, tasked with making recommendations to the state on Kenai River fishing regulations — including guide regulations. Decisions of the group are only recommendations and must be reviewed by the public before adoption.

If the training course is adopted, guides for the 2006 season would be required to attend the academy before they begin guiding, Turner said.

For the 2007 season, the training would be required for all guides with less than five years of experience. Between 2009 and 2011, Turner said all guides will be required to have successfully completed the course. Turner's proposal required guides to take the course once. If found guilty of a citation on the river while fishing, a retake would be required, he said.

The training would be offered throughout the year but would take place before the fishing season started, he said.

Turner, a board of guides and state park officials spent five months designing the course, he said, adding that now he wants the input of the group for modifications. He said this group tried to develop guidelines acceptable to guides and governing bodies.

Many professionals who deal with the public, such as barbers and skin care professionals, are required to get a license to practice. It is not unreasonable to expect a river guide to have job training as well, he said.

Topics covered throughout the training session would be guide ethics, river etiquette, hydrology of the river and business practices, to name a few, Turner said.

At the end of the course, participants would be required to pass a multiple choice and an oral examination, he said. If failed, he said it can be taken three more times. The cost for the class would be $360 per person.

Turner said the class would be taught on a voluntary basis by existing guides. Prospective instructors would submit an application and be subject to the same hiring standards other new instructors face at the college, he said.

Joe Connors, owner of Big Sky Charter and Fish Camp, said he thought the class was a good idea because it would encourage guides to be committed to the industry and raise the professionalism of those involved.

Kirk Hoessle, president of Alaska Wildland Adventures, expressed concern about requiring guides to make an extra trip to Alaska for the training.

Hoessle said because guiding is a seasonal job, many have other things to do during the year. He said it was going to be difficult for these guides to take a break from their lives for the training.

"Some flexibility is important," he said.

A list of other regulations decided on at the meeting for fishing guides include:

n Mandatory drug testing for all guides.

n Two years of Alaska fishing experience.

n Guides must have a current driver's license or picture identification.

n They must have no felony convictions in the last five years.

n They must have no more than two fishing violations in the last five years.

n A fishing license for guides must be purchased for three years at a time. If the guide chooses to quit before the three years is done, they can receive a refund. The fees for the license would be raised by $250.