The Bone Collector

No this isn't the murder suspense version, this is the Ben and Mary Ann version of bone collecting.....well, Ben's version, really. Mary Ann is the beach comber and shell finder and doesn't seem to take notice of Ben's bones. Ben has been a fisherman here in the Sand Point area all of his life and his journies have taken him to neighboring islands and lot's of exploring on the beaches. He has every kind of petrified rock, lava, shells, talon, skull and vertebrae known to National Geographic in and around his home and he loves to show off his finds.

Visiting his shop is a sight to behold; from old ball caps to antiques to the most unusual nautical finds. Whale bones surround his home, caribou and moose and reindeer antlers adorn his shop and capture the eyes and lens of tourists and travelers and lucky people like me who get fed fresh fish by these two quite regularly. Today I was fortunate enough to bring home salmon, halibut and cod from these two and my second stop gave me more salmon, OCTOPUS, salmon berries and a Honda Rancher

(I paid for the latter of course). Look out trails here I come!

Ben's latest venture is making salmon jerky and he gave me a package to try later. He catches the salmon here and then ships it to Seattle where it is made and sold through Healthier Deli in Bellvue, Washington. I guess this is a paid advertisement for them because I get free fish even if you don't buy and try their product. But, please do, this is Wild Alaska Salmon and these are my friends behind this product. For you label readers, check out how good it is for you as well as how good it tastes!!

I must have a gaunt hungry look about myself, because I was given a fresh salmon filet Wednesday and then for lunch today I was given this Dungeness crab that got caught in a fishermans herring pot.

I wonder what the poor people are eating these days?