Farewell to a good friend of the outdoors

I usually try to start writing this column on Tuesday. That gives me Wednesday to edit and wordsmith it before sending it in to meet the Thursday deadline for Friday’s edition. I debated a couple of topics for this week and had decided on one when I got the news this past Tuesday afternoon — a good friend had passed away that morning. That changed everything.

I first met Ron Wilson and his wife, Marilyn, in 1993 when I was just getting involved with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game’s Sport Fish Division boating access program. Among other duties, I was project manager for Susitna Landing. Ron and Marilyn were the concession operators at the landing and we were negotiating a new operating contract.

I spent a lot of time at Susitna Landing those first few years working with Ron and Marilyn to improve and operate the facility. I think they taught me as much as I may have passed on to them. I jokingly would tell Ron he could claim me as a tax dependent for all the meals I ate with them while we discussed this operational approach or that needed improvement and how to best accomplish it.

Susitna Landing was a dump back then. The state had purchased the rundown facility and everything needed a serious upgrade, not only to better serve the boating public but to make things safer and more efficient in operating the site. My supervisors would not let me write one project proposal to upgrade the entire facility. I had to piecemeal the housing, water, sewer and electrical, and the concession/office building in separate contracts. All construction work was done during the summer, the busy time of year for Ron and Marilyn, costing them user fees because of the disruption. Just before I retired, I wrote the final proposal to upgrade the campsite areas and launch ramp to finally finish the facility.

Ron and I didn’t always agree on things, but I tried to stay out of the daily management because he was there and knew what needed to be done. To his credit, he never argued and accepted my occasional “no” with a shoulder shrug. I suspect he did whatever it was he had asked about anyway and just never let me find out.

Ron and Marilyn patiently worked through this annual construction disruption and rebuilt the reputation and angler/boating use of the facility as a family friendly place to enjoy fishing and the outdoors. Ron’s sport fishing guide business also had the reputation as client-friendly and Ron was widely recognized as one of the best guides and boat operators in the Susitna Drainage.

Ron and Marilyn kept the facility open year-round and, over time, developed hundreds of miles of snowmachine trails that Ron regularly groomed. He hauled freight in the winter for folks living on the west side of the Susitna River and cabin materials for those hoping to. He pioneered a snowmachine trail into Trapper Lake that cut the length by two-thirds from the main access trail in use at the time.

Ron was always ready to help a boater in need. He was one of only a couple of Susitna River operators who were licensed and bonded to “rescue” stranded boaters and haul parts or tow boats off the river if necessary. I’ve seen him dead tired from guiding all day and when the call came in, he was off in minutes to help a stranded boater. Ron regularly took wildlife troopers out to investigate situations if they needed a ride and more than once was involved in the recovery of a body from some accident.

Ron had a great sense of humor and an incredible memory for jokes. I chartered a trip with him after I retired where he told jokes almost nonstop for eight hours and never repeated the same joke twice. I’m lucky if I can even remember two jokes, period! To tease him after I was mistaken by one of his clients as being him one time (he would tell everyone I was his older brother), I had a large button/pin made up with my picture and the statement: “I’m not Ron; I’m the good looking one!” He laughed every time he saw me wearing that pin around the landing.

Ron saw a need for teaching new boaters about operating on the river, and he and I partnered to teach the state’s boating safety course after we both were certified as instructors. We played well off each other and told stories designed to instruct the students and, if possible, embarrass each other. I’m not sure Ron could be embarrassed, although I certainly tried. Ron was recognized as an innovative and major contributor to the state boating safety program with a special instructor’s award in 2009.

Ron had some heart valve issues and had surgery to replace the defective valves six or seven years ago.

He suffered a major stroke around Christmas 2008. For the past three-plus years, he was in and out of assisted care trying to regain what he could, both mentally and physically. He had strong hopes to be able to recover enough to live on the remote property he and Marilyn had bought near Trapper Lake when they retired. That hope kept him going — until Tuesday.

The Lord called him home and he is in a better, pain-free situation now. If Heaven has a river and salmon and riverboats, I can guarantee Ron is running the boat, guiding the “clients,” and telling jokes: “Say, did you hear about the three preachers fishing?”

Rest well, Ron Wilson, and know that many friends will miss you dearly.

Howard Delo is a retired fisheries biologist with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. You can leave him a message by emailing sports@frontiersman.com.