Revisiting the Inside Passage – Part II – Darwin’s Theory – An Outstanding Bar

Posted on December 17, 2025 by Thebeerchaser

Welcome back to Thebeerchaser. If you are seeing this post through an e-mail, please visit the blog by clicking on the title at the top to see all of the photos and so the narrative is not clipped or shortened.

On our Holland America Cruise this summer, Darwin’s Theory was only about five blocks from our hotel in Anchorage and this legendary dive bar radiates character.

I may be a bit biased since it’s owned by one Darwin Biwer – a 1966 graduate of my undergrad alma mater – Oregon State University.

It’s true that unlike fellow OSU grad, Linus Pauling, he didn’t want multiple Nobel Prizes. Similarly, unlikw fellow OSU alum Jensen Huang he’s not the founder and chief executive officer of NVIDIA, which in 2024 became the most valuable public company in the world.

That said, Darwin Biwer, owns and operates an outstanding establishment.

(External photo attribution at the end of the post) (#1)

Prior to opening the bar, he had a storied career as a wildlife biologist for the State of Alaska. In the early eighties he decided to do something different as stated below:

“When Darwin and his buddies opened the bar at its current location on G Street, they all set out to open a bar where people could come and build community while sitting down to enjoy a cold beer.

Over its 40-plus years in business, Darwin’s Theory has become a neighborhood bar with a happy and laidback atmosphere that quickly becomes busy and boisterous when ‘the regulars” come to visit- locals, out-of-state visitors, grandchildren and great-grandchildren of some of Darwin’s first customers, airline crews, and more.” (#2)

Our first visit was eleven years ago on our 2014 cruise. That summer afternoon, Janet and I stopped at Darwin’s – which appeared to be just a hole-in-the-wall dive with a cool name in an old building. Our bartender was Barbara Jean (who I found out later was a legend like Darwin “Hisself.”).

Like many of the dive bars I’ve visited in the last fourteen years, Darwin’s was preceded by another establishment in the same quarters. In this case, a long-established bar named Ruthie’s Forty-Niner. As stated by Darwin in the book, Last Call: (#3)

Darwin “Hisself”

“I bought Darwin’s Theory in Anchorage with two partners back in 1981. It was Ruthie’s Forty-Niner before that. Ruthie was seventy-six years old and she’d been in the bar business for thirty years, so she was ready to get out of the bar business.

But she couldn’t find anybody. I mean, all kinds of people were always wantin’ her to sell it to ’em all the time, but she was a shrewd old tomato and she wasn’t ready to sell it to just anybody.”

But Ruthie relented when Darwin got two partners – Birdhouse Dick Delak and Bill Seltenrich from Fairbanks. The rest is history.

Now there were some other good and colorful bars in Anchorage that we checked out in 2014, such as Humpy’s Great Alaskan Ale House, McGinley’s Pub (reopened in 2023 after closing during the pandemic) and the Pioneer Bar.

I wrote about these and our first visit to Darwin’s in my 2014 blog post https://thebeerchaser.com/2014/07/08/thebeerchaser-does-alaska-anchorage-part-1/

Eleven years ago, we had an 8:00 PM dinner at the Glacier Brewhouse and we walked back to our hotel at 9:30. As might be expected in the Land of the Midnight Sun, it was still very sunny – the average summer daylight in Anchorage averages 19.5 hours.

I told Janet, “There’s no way I can get to sleep even with heavy curtains; I’m going back to Darwin’s!” It was a good decision.

That Friday night, the watering hole was jammed. I sat at the horseshoe-shaped bar drinking a can of Budweiser next to a friendly guy named Bill – in his fifties and an oil field worker. He had also spent years fishing in the Bering Sea and some exciting times running marijuana from Mexico to the East coast in the ’70’s. “I had an old Lincoln with really big fenders….”

Barbara Jean was still serving and happily posed for a photo with Thebeerchaser logo. She told me she’d worked at Darwin’s for twenty-nine years.

Barbara Jean

Unfortunately, Barbara Jean Ahberg passed away from cancer in 2015. Darwin’s has a pictorial memorial to her (see below) This was her description of Darwins in the aforementioned book:

“It’s a fun kind of old-fashioned bar. No tricks. What you see is what you get. You can tell people that they have to leave if they’re in a bad mood; which is right because it’s a small bar, so a bad mood or if somebody’s angry is going to impact everybody else’s mood.

So you can tell them to come back when they’re in a better mood and, generally, everybody listens to the bartender here, so we don’t have a big problem. We don’t have fights, or anything like that.”

The Darwin’s Easter Egg Decorating Contest and Stick Pony Race on Derby Day – are still annual events which she originated and hosted – ongoing tribute to her. (#4 -#7)

Barbara Jean’s description of how the Easter Egg contest “evolved.”

“Easter Sunday, my first year, there were three people here and it was so boring. Everybody was out doing lunches and church and all that. I just couldn’t have that, so the next year I had an Easter egg coloring contest.

…..There were about eight or nine people who participated the first year. This last year, thirty people participated and everybody wore Easter bonnets and I made a big turkey, a lot of food and champagne. And now it’s blossomed into a full-blown event.”

But What About Evolution?

It seems paradoxical, but one of the captivating features of Darwin’s Theory is that it has not evolved! As stated in The Alaska Current:

“They haven’t caved to the trends of the time and installed 15 taps of various local IPAs. They are still rocking cans and bottles only. Never change Darwin’s, we love you.”

They still have the best free popcorn in Anchorage – maybe all of Alaska – also true of their juke box. And don’t expect to use a credit card or a pay by check – “We accept no out-of-town checks and damn few local ones!”

Their signature drink still “…is sure to warm you up — cinnamon schnapps and tabasco!. According to their website, Darwin is the world’s biggest seller of cinnamon schnapps!”

That said, I didn’t verify if they still have what their website advises patrons to see:

“Be sure and visit the “Heavy Petting Zoo” in the backroom! (#8 – #9)

This description in a Yelp review from 2013 by Eric from Nevada City still holds true:

“When you step inside, you’ll realize that this is no hipster dive bar. No sir! This has been a dive bar since inception and doesn’t appear to have changed. Beer in the bottle, great service, and interesting patrons round out the perfect dive-bar experience.”

And the long-time tradition of all-female bartenders still remains as evidenced when we returned this summer. One recent Roadtrippers.com review stated, “Amazing dive bar, if you’re lucky hottie Alaskan Annie will be bartending.” Annie was indeed our bartender and proudly showed us her calendar entitled “Ladies of the North.” (#10 – #11)

And Then There’s Gene Ferguson

The 2023 Alaska Current newspaper article cited above, when listing the highlights of Darwin’s Theory, lists as the bar’s Most Valuable Person:

“The guy who tries to sell you wildlife postcards every single time you walk through the doors.”

Gene Ferguson

After about ninety minutes at the bar, our party met that MVP – 76-year-old Gene Ferguson – a Massachusetts native, who has now been in Alaska almost forty years. We had noticed him sitting at the bar near the entrance and showing people photos.

He then came over to our table and told his fascinating story, which again shows Darwin’s heart for his community. (I could devote an entire post to this incredible guy!)

Below is the first paragraph about Gene’s saga from the 5/3/2007 edition of the Alaska Frontiersman entitled: “Gene Ferguson takes on Anchorage Police over a DUI charge.”

“Thousands of people are arrested for drunken driving in Alaska every year. Some are doctors and lawyers who wear suits and live in big houses. Others are more like Gene Ferguson, who dresses in plaid flannel shirts and cargo pants, and is content to live in his van.

Ferguson beat his DUI rap, but Anchorage Police still seized his van, which left him not guilty yet homeless

Gene told us that about 2:30 AM, someone broke into his old van and stole his violin. He tried to report it to two patrolmen. They advised him to wait until the morning and go to the police station which he did eight hours later.

Gene’s current home.

“…(two police officers) asked Ferguson if he’d been drinking. He told the officers he’d had a few drinks the night before, he said, and then tried to tell them about the stolen violin. But that’s not what (the cops) were interested in. They had Ferguson perform several field sobriety tests.”

Gene flunked, in large part because of his physical limitations, and they arrested him and impounded his van. But that’s is where the plot thickened. He blew a .0145 on the breathalyzer, which is way below (about one-fifth) of the .08 legal limit.

The charges were dropped, but a hearings officer ruled that because the officers had probable cause, Gene had to pay the $400 in impound and related fees to get his van back. A lawyer represented him pro-bono in a subsequent hearing. I don’t know if he prevailed in getting the fees refunded.

Gene was animated and philosophical as we listened intently to his story and although neither we nor our friends, the Noppers, have ever done a similar transaction in a bar, we each readily paid him $25 for two beautiful photos. The stunning mage of Mount Denali below is now framed and hangs in our house in Oregon.

Gene Ferguson evidently has many friends who look out for him besides the crew at Darwins. On his 70th birthday, Darwins had a birthday party for him.

Purportedly, noted Alaska artist, Byron Birdsall, known for his exceptional talent in watercolor and oil paintings, “was impressed enough by (one of Gene’s) photographs to make a painting, as well as a limited-edition print of it, shown here with the photographer.” (#12 – #13)

I don’t know when we’ll return to Alaska, but I’d love to meet Darwin in person and would suggest if you visit Anchorage, to stop, have a beer or a peppermint schnapps and say hello to Gene, who will probably convince you to buy a photo or a postcard.

The pandemic resulted in the permanent closure of many bars and breweries in Alaska – just as it did throughout the US. But Darwin’s Theory Bar give’s credence to English philosopher, Herbert Spencer’s phrase “Survival of the Fittest” describing Charles Darwin’s Theory of Natural Selection.

Darwin Biwer has been in business for over four decades and had to close his bar several times during the pandemic, but stated in the March 9, 2021 edition of Alaska’s News Source:

“’We’ve had volcanoes, we’ve had earthquakes, we’ve had our share being downtown here, but nothing, nothing close to this,’ he said, reflecting on the pandemic that forced him to shut his doors more than once….’You probably noticed, I have a big, big smile on my face,’ he said. ‘We’re eight days short of a full year of our first closure…’

“It feels like there is hope that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel,’ he said. ‘We’ve been in a real dark tunnel for a long time.’

Charles Darwin once said, “A man’s friendships are one of the best measures of his worth.”

Darwin’s Theory is now thriving and customers, from not only throughout Alaska, but airline personnel, oil field workers, fishermen and just plain tourists from all over the world, make a beeline for Darwin’s Theory when they come to Anchorage. I would suggest it’s going to keep happening for several more decades.

Besides the free popcorn, that’s because the owner and his employees all convey Charles Darwin’s sentiment above.

Cheers and Blessings for the Season

External Photo Attribution

#1. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page logo (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=490204523111461&set=pb.100063657515543.-2207520000&type=3)

#2. Yelp Review (https://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/darwins-theory-anchorage?select=WNztjmz6O_HDLGRoIhcq7Q). Jeff C – 8/8/24.

#3. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/darwinstheoryalaska/photos/pb.100063657515543.-2207520000/1853568564683285/?type=3)

#4. Legacy Alaska.com (Barbara Jean Alberg Obituary).

#5. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page – derby (https://www.facebook.com/darwinstheoryalaska/photos/pb.100063657515543.-2207520000/2177964025577069/?type=3).

#6. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=921019780029931&set=pb.100063657515543.-2207520000&type=3).

#7. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=923705796427996&set=pb.100063657515543.-2207520000&type=3).

#8. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo/?fbid=977459521052623&set=pcb.977460011052574).

#9. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/darwinstheoryalaska/photos/pb.100063657515543.-2207520000/2103396279700511/?type=3).

#10. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/darwinstheoryalaska/photos/pb.100063657515543.-2207520000/671773299529490/?type=3).

#11. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=634992978632614&set=pb.100063657515543.-2207520000&type=3).

#12. Darwin’s Theory Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/darwinstheoryalaska/photos/pb.100063657515543.-2207520000/2124421557597983/?type=3).

#13. Alaska Life Facebook Page (https://www.facebook.com/TheAlaskaLife/posts/anchorage-alaska-in-the-dead-of-winter-photo-by-gene-ferguson/2260378640660854/) Daryl Pederson 8 January 2019.

Revisiting the Inside Passage – Part I

Posted on December 11, 2025 by Thebeerchaser

In 2014, Janet and I took a Holland America cruise down the Inside Passage from Anchorage to Vancouver, BC with her sister, Linda Nelson and husband, Dick. The nine-day trip commenced with a train ride from Anchorage to Denali National Park.

After one and one-half days at the Park, we returned by bus to Whittier where we boarded the SS Statendam for the remaining seven and one-half days. The trip was wonderful as might be evidenced by the photos below:

When our good friends, Jeff and Susan Nopper, with whom we’ve done several previous cruises, asked us if we would repeat our Alaska trip with them (they had never been) we readily agreed. The itinerary was pretty much identical to our 2014 voyage only this time on the Nieuw Amsterdam – a slightly smaller ship, albeit still a very large vessel.

It accommodates just over 2,000 passengers and 900 crew members with a length of 936 feet and width of 106 feet. Launched in Venice in 2009, it had all of the amenities of the larger ship.

Although it was not mentioned in the Holland America material, I was not overly concerned about the ship’s grounding incident in 2017 when strong winds blew her from her mooring and snapped her lines in Mexico and the collision with another vessel in 2019 while docking in Vancouver, BC. (Wikipedia)

I have to give Janet credit for this vacation because although I love cruising, she’s not totally enamored with the experience even though she has enjoyed the three we’d taken. Part of that may be because she is prone to seasickness. She only experienced that to a limited extent, however, on our cruise to the Panama Canal.

So, she checked with our wonderful primary-care physician who prescribed an anti-nausea skin patch for motion sickness. The physician isn’t a fan because they can have some side effects, but due to the limited duration and that Janet might not even need it, she wasn’t overly concerned.

Janet went to fill it and the pharmacist stated, “You should not use this while drinking alcohol,” which caused my wonderful spouse of forty-five years to do a double-take and respond, “Well that may be a challenge.”

That’s because of the somewhat ridiculous marketing ploy by Holland America. The “benefit” below was not one we requested but just added as part of the basic cost.

For each day of the nine-day cruise, each passenger on our package receives fifteen drinks. Now basic coffee and soft drinks don’t count although my daily Americano and Janet’s latte did, but we laughed and figured given the circumstances, she would just avoid the patch.

The daily drink quota seemed absurd and if one consumed even a good part of that amount, he or she might need the patch to keep from throwing up ingested alcohol rather than vomiting from seasickness. (#1)

Here’s today’s allotment Mr. Williams

Not to get overly involved in a discussion about alcohol, but I had to laugh at a blog doing a cost-benefit analysis on the issue which stated, “Unlike some cruise lines that offer truly unlimited beverage packages, Holland America line has a cap of 15 drinks per day.” (emphasis added) Really!? Perhaps the blogger should further explain that distinction.

I might add that the beer selection was really poor, so I was more than comfortable deferring to my drink-of-choice when it’s not an IPA or Miller High Life (in a bottle) – a gin martini, up and with olives.

Janet also pointed out that notwithstanding those from the gin and given the outstanding cuisine each day, fifteen martinis with three olives (an absolute requirement) would be forty-five additional calories.

Each olive is about five to seven calories. In addition, one health-related website advised that more than 10 to 15 olives daily presents some sodium concerns…..(#2 – #3)

Not to belabor the point, but the only other concern with the drink package was resolved with my due diligence before the cruise. Given the aforementioned collision and grounding, I wanted to make sure that the ship’s officers and the bridge crew were not also eligible for the fifteen-drink daily allotment.

For those interested in naval history, the traditional daily grog (rum) ration on ships – known as the “daily tot” was essentially ended in 1970 (at least in the British Navy) on what became known as “Black Tot Day.”) (#4)

No more daily “tot” for these guys.

It should be noted, notwithstanding my attempt at humor above, that the crew of Holland American (HA) ships are exceptional mariners. Take the captain of our ship – one Bas van Dremel.

He was born in The Netherlands and attended the prestigious Willem Barentsz Maritime Institute. van Dremel first worked for HA when he was still in school as a cadet in 1995 and then after graduation for the next twenty-eight years rising from navigator to the rank of Master (Captain) of several different HA vessels.

Those who had contact with the Captain on the ship said that he was both articulate and personable. (#5)

Personable and Articulate

Why Cruise Alaska?

There are those who scoff at cruises as a way to expand one’s travel horizons. To really see the western coast of Alaska and sights such as Glacier Bay, I would suggest it’s the most effective from a standpoint of cost and time. Some prefer booking on smaller vessels, but exploring by car presents some real challenges.

Below is the itinerary showing the three ports we visited after our two-day visit to Denali National Park. The days without a port call and just “scenic cruising” such as on Glacier Bay were my favorite.

While many of the passengers took part in activities such as origami folding, coloring for adults, a Sjoelen (table shuffleboard) tournament, a ladies pamper party (?) or creating designs from doodles, I just went out on our veranda with a book (and sometimes a martini -one of the fifteen…) and reveled in the panoramic surroundings.

Oregon is a beautiful state; however, Alaska is almost unbelievable for the ongoing 360-degree scenic vistas – I mean sensory overload!

Before leaving for the morning train trip to Denali National Park, we had an afternoon and evening in Anchorage. Of course, I prevailed on our party to have pre-dinner beers at one of my favorite (in the top five) bars of the 400+ I’ve reviewed since starting Thebeerchaser in 2011.

In the next post, I’ll tell you in detail why if you are ever in Anchorage, you have to experience the dive bar ambiance and character of Darwin’s Theory. Stay tuned! (#6)