After getting sidetracked by a career in finance, avid naturalist Amy Gulick returned to her main passion: writing about and photographing nature. Gulick has been contributing to magazines for 25 years now, but since 2010, she has also produced books focused on the delicate, fascinating ecosystem of Alaskan wild salmon. Her first book, Salmon in the Trees: Life in Alaska’s Tongass Rain Forest, was released through the nonprofit conservation imprint of Mountaineer Books and won an Independent Publisher Award and a Nautilus Book Award. This year, Gulick is showing readers the human side of this story with The Salmon Way: An Alaska State of Mind, focusing on different Alaskans’ deep relationship with “these extraordinary fish.”

What made you interested in nature as a subject?

I was one of those kids who was always outside climbing trees, catching frogs, and imagining I was living with elephants and lions in faraway lands. In the second grade, my teacher asked us what we wanted to be when we grew up. I drew a picture of me sitting next to a chimpanzee—just like my childhood and present-day heroine Jane Goodall.

When did you first start writing about and photographing nature?

When I was 6 years old, I wrote and illustrated a tiny, little six-page book about trees. That first endeavor planted the seed, but it wasn’t until I was in my late 20s that I began publishing my work in magazines.

What was most important to you in publishing your work independently? 

It was critical that I work with an imprint whose emphasis is the conservation of wild places. I make my books to make a difference—to tell stories of nature and its importance to both wild and human communities in the hope of spreading the message that these places need to be conserved. To work with a mission-focused publisher was essential in creating books that could both convey my vision and reach appropriate audiences.

How did the wild salmon in Alaska first catch your attention?

In researching my first book, I found that the common language that everyone spoke was “salmon.” And no matter where I went and who I met with, I always left with salmon in my hands. I was so touched by this generosity, and I learned that people view wild salmon as a gift. The fish are a gift to the land, water, animals, plants, and people. And when you’re on the receiving end of a gift, you give thanks, you give back, and you share.

What gave you the idea to collect stories from the communities involved in fishing?

I was intrigued that there is still a place in the world where the lives of people and wild salmon are inextricably linked. Throughout my travels, I asked everyone I met how he or she values salmon. And you know what? Everyone gave me the same answers: family, community, culture, well-being, connection to a home stream and to the land. The Salmon Way is a celebration and exploration of the web of human relationships made possible by these extraordinary fish.

What will help these communities to continue?

In order for that to happen, salmon must have healthy habitat in order to thrive. But the threats to salmon in Alaska are greater than they’ve ever been—large-scale extractive development that damages habitat and the impacts of climate change and an acidifying ocean. And yet if wild salmon can thrive, it’s a good indication that other species can too, including us. Our lives are linked. 

Rhett Morgan is a writer and translator based in Paris.