Alaska Sea Grant College Program
Connecting Ocean Research to the Maritime Community
Take some time to browse through the Alaska Sea Grant Bookstore. There are many titles of interest for boaters and maritime enthusiasts.
Alaska Sea Grant is part of the national system of Sea Grant programs located at universities in the coastal regions and Great Lakes. Sea Grant's mission is to support maritime research, and then distribute research results to coastal communities in a format that will benefit them. The School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences at the University of Alaska Fairbanks sponsors the Alaska Sea Grant program. Public outreach is conducted in part by their Marine Advisory Program (MAP) and the Alaska Sea Grant Bookstore. MAP agents are located throughout Alaska's coastal towns and are vital members of their communities.
Boaters and those living on the waterfront would be interested in many of the excellent publications produced by Alaska Sea Grant. Some titles of books and publications of interest to boaters are described below.
Responsible Marine Wildlife Viewing in Alaska - This is an excellent treatment by MAP agent Terry Johnson detailing the legal and practical requirements for viewing marine mammals. It is in the best interest of all wildlife enthusiasts to abide by these recommendations to protect future viewing opportunities.
2007 Alaska Coastal Calendar - One of the best calendars you ever see of coastal Alaska. The Alaska Sea Grant Calendar is very popular throughout the State and makes an great Christmas present.
Water Wise: Safety for the Recreational Boater
- Water Wise was developed in concert with the Alaska Marine Safety Education Association. A very practical and easy to use guidebook for boating safety, it has a special focus on operations in cold water and remote areas. This text was adopted for use by the State of Alaska for their boating safety program.
Beating the Odds on Northern Waters: A Guide to Fishing Safety - Commercial fishing in Alaska is one of the world's most dangerous occupations. While geared to safety concerns in our northern waters, anyone interested in cold-water safety or commercial fishing will enjoy this book.
Family Boating: Preparing for the Emergency - Written by friend of mine, Dr. Dolly Garza is a MAP agent in Ketchikan, Alaska. Dolly has written a guide for dealing with potential boating emergencies while boating with your family. This brochure is available as a free download from the Alaska Sea Grant website.
Guide to Northeast Pacific Rockfishes: Genera Sebastes and Sebastolobus - Alaska Sea Grant is well known for its species identification books. These publications are full color and use a wire comb binding to allow you to flip rapidly through the pages. Along with the guide for rockfishes, there are books available on shorebirds, marine mammals, and Pacific seaweeds to name a few.
Northern Harbors and Small Ports: Operation and Maintenance - I couldn't leave this discussion without a mention of my book that was published by Alaska Sea Grant. If you ever wondered how operate and maintain a small boat harbor, this is your guide.
Take some time to visit the Alaska Sea Grant Bookstore. There are many, many outstanding publications available there of interest to anyone living or playing on the waterfront. Remember, Christmas is coming!
