Looking For Alaska King Salmon / Halibut Info

[Al Agnew]

Yeah, they are impressive fish. But I can only take a day or two of salmon fishing before I'm bored with it, because every fish you catch will be about the same size. Actually, the most fun king salmon fishing I've ever had wasn't in Alaska but on the Pere Marquette River in Michigan, a smallish river with 15-20 pound class fish during the run that are really beasts on a fly rod.

[MeatintheFreezer]

Ducky, Thanks for the detail.

I would interested to hear your view on saltwater tolling for kings with downriggers out in the inlets or bays vs fishing the rivers. I understand it is a different type of fishing, but I am talking catch rate. It that still the "boring" type fishing you mentioned in the Kenia or could a group expect to pick up enough to be intertaining?

Looking at the map, I don't see much population around the Nush. Where do the outfitters dock & is there any lodging around?

[Gavin]

Kings run early and you get better numbers with silvers. Halibut fishing is like chopping firewood. A work out but a chore. Like dragging 30-50lb door mats out of deep water.

[duckydoty]

I do not know anything about trolling salt for kings other than I have heard of a few doing it and catching some. I have never fished the salt. The outfitters on the Nush set up out camps. Most of them tent camps. You can do daily flyouts to the Nush like my lodge does, or you can be flown out to one of the camps and stay a week. Only one fishing lodge with actual buildings on the Nush and it is right outside the village of Portage Creek. Bristol Bay Adventures is thier name. I guided for them about 6 years ago. You can fly into the town of Dillingham and then take a float plane air taxi service to any of the camps you are staying at on the river. Fresh Water Air Taxi would be the ones that would do that. I enjoy the king fishing. Some days can be long and slow but other days can be complete and utter chaos. Most places fish 4 people per boat and when you get more than one fish on at a time, it really gets fun. The kings started running the end of May this year and ran good till the middle of July. During that time frame you can also get into Chums and Sockeye salmon.

I have always wanted to try the halibut fishing and my brothers have gone up there while I was working in Bristol Bay. They have done good fishing for the Halibut and catching salmon in the salt. They mostly caught silvers by jigging in really deap water, but they did catch one king. I think the scenery is better in the areas you have to go for the halibut due to the water needing to be deep. Chances of seeing whales, bears, calving glaciers and so on. If i were going up there just to play, salt is the way I would go. Been wanting to see that part of the country for a while now.

[Quillback]

Ducky, Thanks for the detail.

I would interested to hear your view on saltwater tolling for kings with downriggers out in the inlets or bays vs fishing the rivers. I understand it is a different type of fishing, but I am talking catch rate. It that still the "boring" type fishing you mentioned in the Kenia or could a group expect to pick up enough to be intertaining?

Looking at the map, I don't see much population around the Nush. Where do the outfitters dock & is there any lodging around?

Having done a lot of salt water trolling for kings, it's all timing, you want to talk to the outfitters/guides and get their recommendations on the best times. It's always a bit of a gamble, like fishing always can be. You'll also find that the best places to fish and the best guides get booked at least a year in advance at the peak times. Kings are the glamour fish, everyone wants to get on them at the best times.

If you're strictly after kings, don't forget British Columbia either, all the kings that are bound for Washington state and the BC rivers from Alaska, swim down the BC coast on their way to the spawning rivers. I don't know how the king fishing has fared in BC lately, I don't follow it anymore, but they had a strong run of Columbia river fish this year, so next year may be good if the runs remain strong.

[Quillback]

Here's some links for some BC info, if you are interested:

Barkley Sound - http://www.salmonuniversity.com/vis_barkley_sound.html

Rivers inlet - Some big kings return here, some of the lodges have boats that their guests can use instead of hiring a guide. They'll tell you how and where to fish and set you up. http://www.salmonuniversity.com/vin_rivers_inlet.html

[kjackson]

I'd check out northern Vancouver Island--I've fished at Nootka, and it was a good hit, but it was BYOB. Don't know if there is boat rentals or guides there, but I'm guessing there must be. I've fished Rivers Inlet and enjoyed it, but it too was bumper boats. I stopped tracking RI when there was a serious failure in the runs--this was some time ago. However, if the runs are back up to speed, it provides a better chance to land a really big king than the Kenai. My lodge had two or three 60-pound plus kings come in the week I was there. I blew one big fish but managed to land my largest king to date--44-9.

I'd also look to SE Alaska. There are some less well-known fisheries that are good and worth checking.