Alaska Family Reunion: Salmon Runs, Grizzlies & Off-Grid Joy with 21 Loved Ones

This Alaska family film revisits a tradition first captured in 2018, when there were “only” eight grandchildren. Now the clan has blossomed—two sons-in-law, a daughter-in-law, and three great-grandchildren—21 loved ones gathering in 2023 to celebrate life off-grid on Lake Clark. From a porch with a sweeping 270-degree panorama—waterfalls, peaks, changing light—the trip blends outdoor adventure with what the narrator calls a deeply spiritual experience: “interfacing with God in the raw.”

Fishing anchors the days. Sockeye surge up the Copper River; grandkids hook rainbows and bright red salmon amid shouts of “Shoot, shoot!” for the camera before careful catch-and-release—“go make some babies.” Between drifts, a grizzly materializes along the bank, a reminder that every float can turn into a wildlife encounter.

The family hikes miles of tundra to Katmai’s confluence of the Moraine River and Funnel Creek, where brown bears charge riffles for hard-won salmon. Contrary to their bulky look, the bears’ bursts of speed and stamina astonish—more agile than they appear, and often forced to dash ashore with a catch to avoid theft by rivals. These moments of raw nature—skill, failure, perseverance—mirror the family’s own rhythms of play, birthdays, and song.

Camp life is simple and intimate: five acres of cabins in a 5.5-million-acre wilderness, no roads or neighbors. Cousins who have never met—Ziggy and Shoshi—bond instantly, while piano lines from Grandma float through the lodge between spirited, affectionate banter. A 25th birthday earns off-key choruses and high-fives; gear checks and rain hats become rituals of care.

The film’s thread is connection: to wild places, to one another, and to the transcendent. In this setting, faith feels tangible—the landscape itself a liturgy. The closing voiceover crystallizes the theme: out here, connection to the universe becomes the substrate for closeness to our fellow humans and to the eternal.