The Crew & Guides
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 Captain: Responsible for safety of all passengers and crew, the operation and navigation of the vessel, and the selection of each evenings dinner wine.
Captain Michael Yourkowski
About 20 years ago Mike got tired of farming in Pennsylvania and decided to come to Alaska. It didn't take him long to fall in love with the sea. Mike began fishing for halibut and salmon in the early eighties and then started a shipwright business working on classic wooden boats a few years later. In 1986 he purchased the 73 foot Kittiwake II from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. He worked the boat for two years and then in the early spring of 1989 the Exxon Valdez spilled over 11 million gallons of oil in Prince William Sound. Mike has been escorting research crews in Katmai National Park, Kodiak Island, Kenai Fjords National Park, Prince William Sound, and Cook Inlet ever since. Some of the research work includes; migratory bird studies, salmon mortality and spawn deposition studies, sea otter habitat and capture studies, and intertidal assessments and mapping projects. With this background and experience, it didn't take too long before adventurists also began asking him to come onboard.
Mike has worked with National Geographic, KTOO Television, Universities of Washington, California, and Alaska, Alaska Departments of Fish and Game, Environmental Conservation, BBC Television, Transglobal Films, Broadcast Services of Alaska, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, BLM, NOAA, U.S. National Parks Service, and U.S. Biological Service.
Michael grew up in Oregon where he attend Oregon State University as a Math major. He has a 23 year old son who is presently attending the University of Montana. He has been active in habitat preservation and land use planning. He is a board member of the Kachemak Heritage Land Trust, an organization that has helped preserve thousands of acres on the Kenai Peninsula. He is also active in local government as a councilman in Homer, Alaska and is past president of the Kachemak Wooden Boat Society
Lydia Rabottini
Lydia and Mike have worked together for about ten years on various cruises from Prince William Sound research projects to Katmai bear viewing trips. She became interested in wildlife issues while working at the Wildlife Way Station, an exotic animal rehab center in Southern California. After receiving her 100 ton Coast Guard license she began working as a naturalist for the Pacific Whale Foundation and crewed on the 85 foot schooner
"Machias" in Hawaii. Lydia is our first mate and our most excellent chef on the "Kittiwake II". She has taught yoga and enjoys tile and mosaic work. Many of her winters have been spent sailing the Caribbean on a 30 foot ketch. Some of her clients include IMAX Films, BBC, Erwin and Peggy Bauer and Tom Brakefield
Guides:
Dale Chorman
 Dale has worked in Alaska as a naturalist for over 20 years. A life long
birder and botanist, he has managed remote brown bear viewing camps and
has guided photographers throughout the Alaska Peninsula. He helped
build Chenik Brown Bear Camp and operated it for three years. Dale has
also operated natural history tour boats providing viewing of pelagic
birds and marine mammals and has a 100 ton masters Coast Guard license.
He currently owns and operates Auk tours.
His client list includes Art Wolfe, John Micolson, Lenard LaRue, Joseph
Van Ose, Boyd Norton and Wendy Shattil.
If you have any questions you can email him at ddnsc@xyz.net.
Brad Josephs
 Although born and raised in North Carolina, Brad went north to Alaska to attend the University of Alaska in Fairbanks. He graduated with a BS in wildlife Biology.
Brad has guided and supervised groups in Katmai National Park, Prince William Sound, the Kodiak Archipelago, Aniakchak National Monument, the Yukon Valley, Wrangell Saint Elias National Park and in Southeast Alaska. He has worked for the Alaska Department of Fish and Game at McNeil River Game Sanctuary as a bear guide and group supervisor. . In addition, he is an expert in the interpretation of the natural history of the sanctuary and aspects of bear safety.
He has held position with the Institute of Arctic Biology, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the American Bald Eagle Foundation and has also worked with film crews from IMAX, BBC, and Gondwana Films. Brad loves to travel, fish, cross country ski and snowshoeing. Be sure to tease him about his girl friends.
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