WP Job Openings - Alaska Wildland Adventures

General Qualifications for the Weather Permitting Team:

Cheerful and enthusiastic attitude during long days in a sometimes cramped workspace.
Possess the ability to work within a team structure and in a flexible manner to accomplish a variety of tasks.
Load heavy and awkward items like luggage, coolers, totes, pony kegs or boxes weighing up to 50 lbs. or more daily, both independently and with a team.
Ability to safely and confidently drive a 15 passenger van.
High quality guest service standards.
Work effectively and efficiently in supervised and unsupervised settings.
Chores as assigned to allow for values of integration, coordination, cross training, employee benefits of sharing drudgery tasks, synergy, and maximum employment opportunity. You will be expected to do “dirty work” and “manual labor” from time to time, including but not limited to: cleaning bathrooms, lawn care, assisting with fleet cleaning, etc.

Support Staff

Office Staff

Our office staff are the face of Weather Permitting. You will be answering phones, taking our kayak partners’ reservations, ensuring our lodge guests have a great experience, and supporting Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge as needed. Some duties include:

Strong verbal and written communication skills with both guests and employees and excellence in customer service.
Basic knowledge of G-Suite platform (especially Google Drive, Google Sheets and Google Docs) with a willingness and ability to learn more.
Meet and greet guests who check in at the office; label luggage with tags with cabin number; shuttle guests, luggage and supplies to boat as needed with help from warehouse staff.
Greet boat on return; receive backhaul and sort/transport to appropriate facility (recycling, empty coolers and totes, etc.).
Help expedite items for Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge as needed.
Assist warehouse staff in receiving, checking and storage of food, beverage and supply orders for Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge when needed.
Work with a team to process all garbage and recycling that comes out of Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge and the Weather Permitting office.
Able to communicate effectively verbally and in writing; take reservations and answer inquiries about Weather Permitting water taxi services.
Occasionally accompany small groups of guests through Seward who have been misplaced by bad weather.

WORK LOCATION: Seward, Alaska

SCHEDULE: 4 consecutive days a week / 10-hour shifts

SEASON: May-September

WAGE RANGE: $15-$18 / hour DOE + shared tips

Subsidized housing may be available ($300/mo for a single occupancy room in downtown Seward)

Warehouse Staff/Expeditor

Our Warehouse Staff works behind the scenes to assist the Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge. Some duties include:

Receiving, checking and storage of food, beverage and supply orders for Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge.
Greeting guest boats daily and helping to load and unload luggage and supplies.
Working with a team to process all garbage and recycling that comes out of Kenai Fjords Glacier Lodge and the Weather Permitting office.
Able to communicate effectively verbally and in writing.
Ability to purchase, store and track items for the lodge. Organizational skills and attention to detail is required to keep warehouse and supplies organized and clean.
Occasionally accompany small groups of guests through Seward who have been misplaced by bad weather/boat cancellations.
Basic computer skills (email, word processing and data entry) as well as basic phone skills.

WORK LOCATION: Seward, Alaska

SCHEDULE: 4 days a week / 10-hour shifts

SEASON: May-September

WAGE RANGE: starts at $15/hour + shared tips

Subsidized housing may be available ($300/mo for a single occupancy room in downtown Seward).

A detailed job description will be emailed to applicants before interviews.

Maintenance

Port Mechanic

Our Port Mechanic makes sure our 4 vessels run smoothly, keeps our inventory stocked, manages service providers for anything more than routine maintenance and helps diagnose and troubleshoot any problems. We are willing to help train someone with a motivation to learn more about our boats. Our Port Mechanic works closely with our Lead Captain and various service providers in Seward and should have the following skills:

Basic computer skills or a willingness to learn Google Drive, Google Sheets and Fleetio.
Perform mechanical work on Cummins Diesel marine engines, Volvo Penta diesel engines and Suzuki 350 outboard motors with experience repairing and maintaining Hamilton jet drives, hydraulic equipment and valves, electronics and all other related marine equipment and systems.
Immediate response to and diagnosis of vessel breakdowns. This may require performing or assessing repairs at any time within a 24 hour period.
Manage a preventative maintenance program (via Fleetio) and inventory for all related marine systems and equipment in use. Provides technical support to all Weather Permitting staff performing maintenance on and repairs of any marine systems or equipment.
Proficient use of all hand and power tools associated with marine engine and equipment repair.
Establishes lines of communication and works with marine product vendors and technicians to purchase parts and supplies.
Writes specifications and recommendations for the purchase of marine parts, supplies and equipment for known repairs and also for a stock of inventory of parts with support of Lead Captain, if needed.
Physically capable of lifting heavy loads of up to 75 lbs or more.
Able to work in confined spaces.

WORK LOCATION: Seward, Alaska

SCHEDULE: As needed up to 40 hours per week

SEASON: Flexible, but typically April-October

WAGE RANGE: Depends on experience

Subsidized housing may be available ($300/mo for a single occupancy room in downtown Seward).

A detailed job description will be emailed to applicants before interviews.

Crew

Boat Captain

Weather Permitting boat captains are in charge of showing off the amazing aspects of Kenai Fjords National Park with our guests’ safety and comfort in mind. Our qualifications we require and some of the captains’ duties include:

Must possess at least a 25 ton Near Coastal USCG license and be able to provide proof of USCG Boat Captain license and First Aid/CPR certification. Be familiar with USCG regulations and adhere to them.
Extensive experience safely operating vessels in a variety of conditions along the coast of Alaska.
Excellent risk management skills with a tendency towards conservative decision making.
Experience evaluating dynamic weather and conditions and experience keeping trip participants safe in a variety of weather conditions.
Natural history interpretation and guest services experience.
Must participate in a random drug screening program as required by the United States Coast Guard. WP will pay for the cost of initial and random drug screenings.
Basic knowledge or willingness to learn Google Drive, Google sheets, and Fleetio (vessel maintenance tracking) app.
Work requires knowledge gained in advanced training and specialized experiences in operating a boat in the capacity as Captain, natural history interpretation, principles of group leadership and interpersonal communications, basic mechanical knowledge, as well as safety skills and precautions.
Communicate effectively with the Lead Boat Captain and WP Operations manager on vessel upkeep and maintenance via the Fleetio app. Able to maintain a clean and organized vessel.
Provide safety briefings for each vessel, natural history interpretation and impeccable guest services.
Consistent exercise of discretion and judgment in the performance of the work with regard as a boat captain. WP expects captains to be conservative in risk management decisions and take into account a wide variety of perspectives (kayak guides, safari guides, KFGL, WP staff, other WP vessels) when making those decisions.
Close attention to detail and adherence to time schedules. Operations are delicately balanced on tight schedules. Arriving and departing on time throughout the day is of the utmost importance.
Boat tasks and chores, including, but not limited to, assisting the Deckhand/Naturalist as needed, keeping the boat clean and orderly, assisting in light maintenance duties on each vessel and completing pre and post departure checklists and tasks.
Safely operate landing crafts with guests and/or freight on board.

CERTIFICATIONS REQUIRED:

25 Ton Near Coastal USCG License or higher
CPR and First Aid

WORK LOCATION: Seward, Alaska

SCHEDULE: 8-12 hour days; 5 days on/2 days off

SEASON: May – September

WAGE RANGE: starting at $320/day, DOE

Subsidized housing may be available in downtown Seward ($300/month, single occupancy).

Deckhand/Naturalist

Deckhands assist the captain with the vessel and are in charge of the guests’ onboard experience. Interacting with and teaching passengers on each vessel about the wildlife they see and about Kenai Fjords National Park is one of the most important aspects of the job. Some other aspects of the position are:

Experience or skills in boat work including boat navigation, natural history interpretation, ropes and common knots, docking and landing procedures, emergency procedures, basic boat maintenance, daily communication with other departmental staff and captains.
Must participate in a random drug screening program as required by the United States Coast Guard. WP will pay for the cost of initial drug screening as well as random screenings throughout the summer.
Basic computer skills or a willingness to learn Google Drive, Google Sheets and Fleetio.
Assisting the captain with safe operation of the vessel, helping to dock, fuel, and perform minor mechanical work as directed. Safely operate hydraulic landing craft bowgate and other systems on board.
Assist captain in providing ongoing, in-depth natural history interpretation during the trip. In the case of the M/V Wild Lander, this is done using a PA system.
Helping to load/unload and secure guest luggage, kayaks, coolers, totes, lodge supplies, garbage/recycling on a daily basis.
Providing accurate and engaging natural history to guests as appropriate as well as imparting instruction in safety to guests on board.
Complying with all safety protocol and procedures as laid out by the USCG and the vessel captain. Assist captain with safety briefing as needed.
Daily boat cleaning responsibilities at the end of the day as well as occasional “deep cleans”. Maintain a clean and organized vessel including a well-stocked beverage bar

CERTIFICATIONS REQUIRED: