Captain Daniel
Captain Daniel Donich came to Homer from Federal Way, Washington in 1988 because, as he put it, the fish to person ratio was right.
While growing up in the Northwest Daniel started his illustrious fishing career with his first boat “the sieve” (a 6 foot wood dingy). At the age of 10 he started fishing the waters of Puget Sound. Daniel has since become a recognized leader in developing (and teaching) new techniques for year round controlled depth fishing. Fishing is definitely Daniel’s passion and there’s no bigger optimist.
Meet the crew of The Optimist
My name is Daniel Donich, I started Daniel’s Personalized Guide Service in 1992.
I moved from Federal Way Washington to Homer Alaska in 1988 where I started my career in the charter industry as a deckhand on a 60’ sport fisher. We did long range trips out of Homer and traveled all over the Great State of Alaska, from Southeast to Prince William Sound, Kodiak Is. and on out to the Aleutian chain, and of course in and around Cook-Inlet and Kachemak Bay. I acquired enough sea time, studied for and got my Captains License in 1990. I have never looked back and still enjoy taking people fishing.
My lovely wife Kim Donich grew up in Anchorage, just semi-retired from the medical field and is my 1st Mate on and off the boat. She helps out with the gear and driving the boat, mostly on Wednesdays which are a no Halibut days, and gives my full-time deckhand, Julie a day off. Kim really loves King Salmon fishing and she is very good with the rod; she can show you some great techniques on how to land those Kings!
Deckhand Julie was hired on as a helper as I was building my new boat and after spending some time with her in the boat yard I saw that she has a great work ethic and showed up every day! I asked her if she wanted to be my full-time deckhand and she said sure. She has over 10 years of experience deck handing out of Homer and is one heck of a good fish filleter. She is crazy about fishing and has been known to crack a few jokes to keep you entertained when you are not reeling in fish.
The Optimist
Out with the old and in with the new
I have had my original 28’ charter boat Optimist since 1993, it has been a wonderful boat and it has carried myself and thousands of customers safely and comfortably over the past 30 years. But it was time for a new fishing platform and so I built The Optimist. I owed it to myself and all my longtime customers to provide an updated platform and I had been dreaming of a 35’ Bertram Sportfisher for quite a while. I love the layout, from the seating area to the cockpit. The visibility is great for seeing the beautiful scenery and wildlife, and most importantly for watching the fishing rods! Whether you are trolling for salmon or taking a break from halibut fishing you can still see all the action going on in the cockpit. With a 13’3” beam, The Optimist has a huge cockpit with plenty of elbow room. It can easily accommodate 6 anglers with plenty of room for easy movement without having to bump into each other when the action heats up. It also has a full-size marine head and a forward v-berth if you need to catch up on some sleep on our way out to the fishing grounds. The speed of the boat is impressive too, when the weather allows, we can get her up on step and quickly cover some distance. We usually cruise at 22 to 24 knots and that is important when we are fishing for multiple species in a day as it cuts down on running time, and that converts to more fishing time.
