Capt Jeremy Downie
Captain / Owner
“Treat Clients like family, because clients become family.”
Fish Happens was started by lifelong Sitka Alaska resident and Retired Navy Combat Veteran Chief Jeremy Downie (aka Fishhead). Growing up in Sitka Alaska, Jeremy learned how to fish from his father and grandfather, teaching him 90 years (4 generations) of Alaskan fishing knowledge. At the age of 8 he started assisting his grandmother on her Commercial Fishing boat. Her retrofitted 32’ Sailboat (Loon) was a complicated but successful fishing vessel. Not only did Jeremy assist as the primary deckhand, he also learned how to sail at a young age, giving him a great love for the ocean and all that it has to offer. At the age of 17, Jeremy became a deckhand in the charter fishing business with local fishing legend, Charter Captain Wayne Brown (Brownie’s Charters).
After graduating from Sitka High School Jeremy enlisted into the U.S. Navy and completed a 20 year career, retiring as a Navy Gunnersmate Chief Petty Officer with an extensive background. Jeremy was stationed aboard 3 ships as . Naval Cheif. The first being the USS DIXON AS-37 whose home port was at Point Loma California, the second being the USS O’BRIEN DD 975 whose home port was at Yokosuka Japan and the third being the USS KLAKRING FFG-42 whose home port was at Mayport Florida. As a graduate of the Navy’s Special Warfare SWCC class 38 in November of 2001, he became an extremely skilled high speed 11 meter RHIB captain at Special Boat Unit 12 in Coronado California. Jeremy conducted many missions inserting and extracting domestic and foreign Special Forces members on covert missions throughout the world.
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As a Water Survival Specialist, he taught water survival to more than 30,000 adults at the Navy’s Recruit Training Command in Great Lakes Illinois. A successful Rescue Swimmer with more than 400 rescues and recoveries, Jeremy taught and certified more than 1,000 U.S. Navy Rescue Swimmers. As a tried-and-tested Mission Commander of an Elite 12 man Maritime Tactical Security Team, Jeremy protected several High Value Assets from multiple pirate attacks near the Horn of Africa Region. Other military and civilian training certifications and accomplishments earned by Jeremy include: Wilderness Survival Specialist, Land Navigation Specialist, Firearms Instructor, Master Training Specialist, Foreign Relations and Negotiations Specialist, Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection Specialist, Private Pilots License, PADI Rescue Diver, High Speed Emergency Vehicle Operator, Active Shooter Response Specialist.
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Jeremy's Naval Career brought him to more than 40 countries and 5 continents, where he enjoyed the experience of learning new fishing techniques in different fishing environments worldwide. He has caught 5 of the worlds 7 Salmon Species as well as Halibut, Lingcod, Pelagic and Non-Pelagic Rockfish, Rainbow Trout, Steelhead, Dorado (Mahi Mahi), Barracuda, Grouper, King Mackerel, Blue Shark, Dog Fish and many more. Being highly experienced in operating vessels up to 650 feet in length and more than 22,000 gross tons in displacement throughout the world, You'll be in the best of hands with one of Sitka’s most seasoned Fisherman holding a USCG 100 tons Master's License.
FISH HAPPENSTM
