2023 Update

Hello Farm Friends!

Happy Spring. We hope everyone is doing well. Up here in Alaska daylight hours are extending but we continue to be hammered by snowstorms, strong winds and the occasional earthquake. March has been in like a lion…. the lamb so far is a no show! We have had just enough breaks in the weather to continue to harvest oysters every week, and kelp drying season is right around the corner.

We added two new Dried Kelp. products to the Shore Store. Costaria kelp, a brown kelp, one of our favorites, makes the best seaweed salad! The recipe is online with the product information. The second Dried Kelp is Red Ribbon Kelp, or dulse. Dulse packs a powerful punch, the umami flavor is off the charts. It can be used in soups, stews and chowders, bread or pretty much anywhere you would like extra savory flavor.

We are celebrating 15 years of farming in Alaska this year. We wanted to share a couple photos from over the years. One of the most satisfying aspects of our farm has been to watch our children grow up on the farm. We hope our farm leads to a healthier more sustainable future for generations to come.

Please be well and thanks for being part of our journey.

Weatherly, Greg, Rockwell and Vera

2022 Spring Update

Finally getting some spring days up here in Alaska! With daylight hours extending past 9pm. Algae is starting to bloom in Kachemak Bay, feeding our shellfish. We have been harvesting Glacier Point Oysters all winter, trying to keep up with the demand! We have just begun to work the oyster crops gently, as the water has to warm up a bit for tumbling to begin, we are currently at about 41F.

Naturally, kelp is starting to take off with all the daylight, sea otters rafting up and having babies, birds starting to arrive. We have had some interesting creatures around the farm including a juvenile wolf eel (pictured below).

We were honored to be featured in the IAM XTRATUF series on Youtube. If you haven’t seen our short film check it out- .

XTRATUF not only makes the best boots they connect our ocean community- You’re the best! As well as you all of you out there, THANKS SO MUCH FOR YOUR SUPPORT.

We wish you well, Weatherly, Greg, Rockwell, Vera and Lone Wolf

2020 Alaska Farm Family of the Year

2020 Alaska Farm Family of the Year

Halibut Cove shellfish farmers are Alaska’s Farm Family of 2020

(Palmer, AK) – Alaska’s Farm Family of the Year for 2020 is the Bates family of Halibut Cove, whose determined operation of their shellfish farm in Kachemak Bay embodies the innovative, resilient spirt of Alaska agriculture even in the face of a global pandemic.

“Alaska agriculture is a growing, evolving industry, and nothing reflects that more clearly than the selection of oyster farmers as Farm Family of the Year, “ said Dave Schade, director of the Division of Agriculture. “Greg and Weatherly Bates have embraced the opportunities of aquaculture in Alaska, and their success in this new market sector points to a prosperous future for them and other farming families, as well.”

The Bates both grew up the coastal culture of a seashore Rhode Island town, and after successfully managing a growing oyster farm there together they married, then honeymooned in Alaska. Falling in love with the state and its opportunities, they moved north in 2007 and started Alaska Shellfish Farm. With the help of their children, Rockwell and Vera, their growing family operation produces and sells oysters and mussels, and recently expanded into the evolving kelp market.

When the COVID-19 pandemic closed off national markets, they met the challenge by refocusing on local sales, even loading oysters on a small boat tied to shore for sale to locals on honor system, according to those nominating the family, who added that “Weatherly and Greg are the hardest-working, most compassionate young couple we have ever met.”

The “Farm Family of the Year” award was established in 2000 by the Alaska Division of Agriculture and the Alaska State Fair with the intent to honor an Alaska farm family that best epitomizes the spirit of the industry that year, and to show appreciation for hard-working Alaskans committed to agriculture, including Alaska’s growing aquaculture segment.

With the COVID-19 pandemic driving many normal activities online, the division used online resources to increase the accessibility of the award and the visibility of the industry it supports, Schade said. Nominations, including the winning nomination, arrived online.

Farmers of the sea

Our farm forms the structure of a diverse marine ecosystem. Shellfish farms provide habitat to many marine creatures and especially as a nursery ground for marine life.

 
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Working the kelp

Kelp gives back….

Kombu forms the basis in Japanese cooking and is the main ingredient in dashi soup. Kombu can be use in salads, seafood dishes, to make beans more digestible as a well as a salt substitute.

 
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A new friend

This little guy has been hanging out in one of our oyster cages keeping us company.