6-3-08 (06/05/08)
June 3rd 2008.
This is usually the time of year, with certain areas closed to fishing for rainbow trout, when you often ask yourself, "where do I go fishing". We have asked ourselves this same question in the past and luckily we have some places for you to consider.
1. Lakes: Fishing for trout & grayling in some of the local lakes in the Anchorage area & the Mat-Su have been pretty productive recently. With the ice finally gone for a few weeks and the water temps rising, increasing bug activity, the trout are waking up after a long winter. The best times to fish are usually early morning & late afternoon. Often times this is when a hatch occurs in a lake and if you get to the lake at 11am and the hatch went off from 7am to 10am, well, most of the trout are going to be full and have no need to eat. Sure you can catch a few dragging a leech around but the "magic" 3 hour window you just missed could have made the difference of catching more than a dozen trout in a short time, rather than kicking around the lake until your legs fall asleep for just a few fish. Whats hatching? Chironomids. If you don't know what these are and you are fishing Alaska's stillwater then you are out of the game. Stop by the shop and we will get you dialed in. Also, leeches, damsels, dragons, & scuds are all on the menu and work well also. Concentrate around the shallows this time of year, maybe 10-12 feet of water, or less. Weedy areas are the best, this is where the food hangs out, so do the fish.
A great lake to start with if you do not have one in mind is Long Lake near Palmer. This is a catch & release lake, not bait, perfect for fly fishing from a float tube or canoe, minimal to hardly any bank access. There are no houses around the lake, no water skiers, no motors, no float planes landing on you! Here is a link for a lake map of Long Lake. Also a link to fish & games website of lake maps. Look around at all the lakes available. If you are fishing from a float tube or canoe, choose a smaller lake, 30 feet deep or less, for the best & most comfortable fishing. Check out stocking reports as well on the 3rd link to see if the lake you are considering has been stocked recently. Lastly, stop by the shop and we will give you a report on the lakes we have been fishing, since we have been fishing them often the past month.
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/lakedata/index.cfm/FA/main.lakeDetail/LakeID/123
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/lakedata/
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/Hatchery/index.cfm/FA/stocking.search
2. Rivers: Willow Creek, Montana Creek, Goose Creek, & Sheep Creek the roadside streams along the parks highway are fishing good right now and are open to catch & release fishing, single hook, artificial only, No Bait! for rainbow trout, dolly varden, & grayling. All the streams mentioned are open from its mouth upstream to as far as you are willing to hike until June 16th. On June 17th you can fish all the streams mentioned from the parks highway bridge to as far as you are willing to hike upstream. The 1 month closure is for King Salmon fishing below the parks highway bridge down to the river mouths, only open for for 3 consecutive weekends June 21-23, June 28-30, & July 5-7, a friday at midnight to monday at midnight King fishery, yes during this time you can fish for trout, single hook, catch & release, No Bait! Something to consider, read the regs!
Some things to try for trout up north, Sculpins, Leeches, Smolt & Fry patterns, nymphs & dries, and yes of course beads & flesh. Basically come prepared for anything up there. You can expect some little migrating salmon often, look for terns diving.
3. King Salmon: "The Kings are in" heard that before. Well they actually are, just not in huge numbers yet. A whopping 1,117 Kings past the weir on the Anchor River so far, pretty low compared to 07, & 06, maybe due to cooler water temps or stubborn fish. The big three for King Salmon down on the Kenai Peninsula is the Anchor, Deep Creek, & Ninilchik rivers. The Anchor is open on Wednesday this year, a nice bonus if you can get the day off. For Deep Creek & Ninilchik you only have 1 more weekend to beat up on Kings, June 7-9. For the Anchor you have 2 more weekends & 2 more Wednesdays to get lucky. Stop by the shop for a handful of King fly's that actually catch Kings, and hooks that won't break & bend.
Interested in a guided fishing trip. Check out these links;
Good Fishing,
Keith, Mike, & Jake
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The Kenai River is fishing good for trout right now and is open until May 1st. The Kenai closes to all fishing from May 2nd to June 10th from Kenai lake downstream to the upper Killey river.
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