Hello everyone,
I am an Idaho native looking to possibly plan a trip for the end of June into the beginning of July. My dad and I have wanted to make it up there for a while, and it just so happens that I have some open time this summer.
I've been doing some research on the possibilities, but i wanted to post here and see if anyone could guide me in a general direction.
First of all, we are not looking for a five star guided trip, where we have to spend 4-5 grand for a few nights stay and a couple days of guided trips. We would like to have a somewhat "do it yourself" sort of trip, but obviously we don't want to go up and have it be a bust, and turn into a waste of time. We also don't want to go into an area where it's "combat" fishing, as we have rivers here that we can enjoy that scenario! I have looked into different options online, including the possibility of staying in forest service cabins for cheap, to spending a little bit more for other amenities available.
As I have read, certain rivers will have chinook available during this time, which we are interested in, does anyone have a suggestion for rivers that will have a king run during that time period I have mentioned that fits into the "do it yourself" criteria? I may be off base, as I don't have a ton of knowledge about the state of Alaska, but any possible information that you could provide, including suggestions that goes against my preferences, I would love to hear!
This is a starting point for possibly planning a trip, and I thank anyone who is willing to help!
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Hopefully someone will answer you on this board but you will likely get a answer quicker on the Utah board:
http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gfo...i?forum=58
Lots of members there have been to Alaska and have done the exact thing you are asking about. I can even move this post to that board if you like or you could just make the same post there.
WH2
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Thank you for your suggestion! If you could move it over to there, I would really appreciate that. I will also post a similar post on the Idaho board. Thank you again for your help.
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Is there any way you can delay your trip for the last week of July into the first week of August?? If you are looking to make this the bucket list trip to Alaska you will be much better off to wait for the silver salmon to start showing up at that time. Chinook are starting to slow down by the end of June and you're too early for the rest of the salmon in the time period you have listed.
Just my $0.02 having guided up there for 5 years in a former life that is my recommendation.
If you are looking to ocean fish and do it on your own I would recommend Doc Warner's up by Juneau if you can wait until the end of July.
Or you could look into Whale Cove down on Prince of Wales Island. The plus to POW is that there are rivers and road access all over the place so you can ocean fish or river fish.
Additionally I would highly recommend Silver King Lodge down by Ketchikan. Or the same group also runs Clover Pass Resort and that is right in Ketchikan. They have self guided opportunities and the kings will still be around the area at the end of June.
Best of luck.
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There are quite a few lodges and hotels in or near Soldotna that have private waterfront for guests or residents only and would be worth the time and cost to make a reservation. Avoid the regular public access areas on both the Kenai and the Russian where it's so bad you often have to wait long periods to be elbow to elbow unless you want to hike about 3 miles up the Russian from the confluence with the Kenai.
There are several guides there where you could grab a King charter on the river or day Halibut trip to Deep Creek.
As another poster noted the timeframe is not good for silver coho salmon. If when fishing the river it gets unduly slow the commercial netters are probably at the bay just go rest up and look at the proclamation for what time they have to cease fishing and about 1 hour after that the fish will be pounding up the river again and you can return to fishing.
Make sure you learn to fillet large fish with a large knife as the processors have been charging allot more if you bring in whole or gutted fish.
Prince of Wales island is also a great area as noted but it's not a great area for diy as it sounds you are trying to do.
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Been lurking for a couple of years and now wanting to reach out and help. We go to the Katmai Lodge on the Alagnak the second week of July every year. Kings, sockeye, chum and big rainbows every year. Check them out.
Here in UT now for 5 years and finally figuring out the Provo with all the help I get from here.
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I have also lived and fished in Alaska. Late June early July means King (Chinook) salmon and to be honest I don't recommend it. The kings have been hurting for years and often times the fishing season is closed or altered by emergency order. Without a boat your likely option will be a hatchery run like in Ship Creek in downtown anchorage. If you fly out you will have more options for shore fishing but I still don't recommend it.
I would go at the end of July/beginning of August and catch reds, silvers, and pinks on the Kenai Peninsula until your arms are sore. You say you don't want combat fishing but that is generally what you are going to get in Alaska if reds or silvers are present. If it isn't combat fishing, you are either on private property or the fish aren't in. Everything that is public on the Kenai will be loaded with people, period. A boat will not get you away from crowds because everyone has access to a boat. Sometimes there will be a lull in the crowd but generally be prepared to fish with people.
Also, you need to get acquainted with how to catch salmon in AK. Since the salmon generally don't bite once in fresh water everyone will be "flipping". If you come in and try to "fish" and start interfering with everyone else, your trip will be miserable.
One option that might be a little less crowded would be to go to Copper Center and fish the Klutina. The Copper River run is famous for the quality of the flesh. The downside would be you are in Copper Center and you would be catching exclusively Reds.
The Alaska Outdoor Forum referenced above is great for information. I have been a member for years. Just be warned that the crowd can be a bit leary of outsiders asking for fishing spots.
Added some fish porn below.
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Thank you to everyone for all the information provided. I think after looking at the situation, I will probably wait a few years when my shedule may be a bit more flexible. Lots of information on the decline in king numbers, along with the dates I have just don't seem logical. Will probably take the advice of others and plan a trip for later in the summer once I have the chance. Again, thanks for all the help and info, I'll keep it in mind down the road when this plan comes through.
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Well I think that is the worst option you could have possibly come up with!!
Instead look into Shelter Cove lodge, El Capitain lodge, or Fireweed Lodge on Prince of Wales Island. If you tell those guys you want to catch Kings they will take you out on some of the outer reefs and there are Kings there year around. Take your Dramamine and hold on cause your on the open ocean.
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[#000000]Everything, everybody is telling you is true.[/#000000]
Alaska is overbooked, overpriced, crowded and the regs. change on a daily basis, unless you are loaded with coins. Even then, the weather can chase you off.
Go to the Northwest, pay for a good guide and catch fish like these for 10% of what Alaska will cost you.
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Coffman Cove now has hatchery king salmon in the bay returning plus the feeders. I get sea sick fairly easily but it's never been an issue on charters out of there. You can also split your time between kings and silvers then when tide changes fish halibut. Plus to everyone's chagrin I seem to always pull out a stray king in the streams.
You could split your time on a DIY trip with 1 paid charter in the Cove and then head up to Neck Lake Outlet for some silvers. All my trips to POW are DIY trips with the exception of half the time doing a charter one day. The little extra planning pays off with avoiding combat fishing. There are so many hours of daylight and we're usually catching so many fish that we start to look for things other than fishing to do even on week trips. So don't sweat the little extra time it takes to get there. There are a few places with sockeye on the drive from the Cove to Whale's Pass if you're into mouth snagging (flossing) sockeye. Last year runs were strong for the island.
Kenai can be fun but it's combat even with the couple mile hike upstream on the Russian. Copper River is glacial silt. OK for a day or 2 but personally sight fishing is so much more fun. Lots of streams between Anchorage and Denali but all can get crowded at times when the fishing is good.
Life is short and unpredictable. Go this summer with the dates you have to POW Island and next time go a little later wherever you go.
Sight fished king out of stream on POW[inline Alaska_2009_032.JPG]
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Is that king out of eagle creek? Or Harris River? I too have caught a few on the rivers on POW, but nobody has believed me.
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I completely second what River Dog is saying. You can hit early silvers at Neck Lake, I always forget about them. Or there is the north fork of the thorne river gets early silvers and some reds up it. Or sarkar creek for reds. I think you should take a DIY trip to Prince of Wales island. You will not regret it. Then take a one day charter from any of the outfits I mentioned or one located in Coffman Cove. There are lots of options, just start cruising the internet and see what you can put together. If you need help on what tackle to take shoot me a PM with your phone number I would be happy to talk with you and help figure your trip out.
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You have my interest with the POW/Coffman Cove information. So from what I am understanding, in your past trips you've fished rivers with success, then spent a day out in the cove? We are definitely more interested in fishing rivers and that would be out focus. Never have had a chance to fish for reds, so not really familiar with the flossing deal. Where did you stay for lodging, any suggestions? Found one service that loans you a vehicle and lodging, but is otherwise a diy set up that has fair pricing. This area does sound most logical if we decide to go, if River fishing is a viable option.
Thanks for all the info
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Thanks for your prior posts and info. The POW idea is looking more logical than other thoughts we have had. Looking at it now, Kings are not the end all be all of our decision. We would like to focus on rivers and it would be nice to find some Fishing inland. Never have fished for reds as I mentioned in my previous post. Would be fun to learn though. Thanks for your offer for gear info. If this materializes I will for sure be in contact with you! When you are talking about early season silvers, are there numbers available in the rivers, small runs, varies?
Thanks again, everyone has been a great help
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I hear what you're saying about not wanting to fork money out for a guide, but in my experience it's worth the investment, as your chances of getting skunked would definitely go down. Also, when I went I went to Ketchikan, and actually caught all the types of salmon (plus halibut) on a charter boat out in the ocean. It would be more spendy, however you would be able to avoid the crowds on rivers and catch a bigger variety of fish. Because Alaska is something many of us won't get to do very often, It's better to err on the side of caution and make sure that you ensure you have the best trip possible
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your explanation is one reason why I have considered waiting until I have more free time to go at a more opportune time. We do want to fish the rivers, so that's why I am thinking a trip later in the summer in the future may be better. It isn't necessarily not wanting to fork out the money, but more of using the money we will be forking out for a trip that meets our demands. Kind of like you said, not many people get to go very often, and we fit that description, so I would like to put the money into a trip that I know would be the most enjoyable for us. I am not totally against the ocean charter trips, but for my first trip up there I'd like to focus on the river fishing. Lots of things to consider, thanks for your input.
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That king was caught on the Klawock. I was sight fishing to the shiny silvers among all the the pinks right below the falls. Worked well as I didn't hook any pink but got quite a few silvers. I thought that hen was a silver until I got it out of the water. My brother in law snapped a picture and I released it. I don't think you're supposed to remove kings from the water on the Klawock but it was a mistake.
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Yeah all the kings are supposed to stay in the water if caught in POW rivers. But it is an easy mistake to make. That is a pretty fish.
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