Wow.
It was a tough week of red salmon fishing on the peninsula. Not only did I send a group to try the Russian River where they had no luck, I also canceled a couple of trips on the lower Kenai River.
When the fishing is this slow, in good conscience, I’m going to let my clients know and give them an opportunity to make other plans. It’s not the best for business, but it’s the right thing to do.
So, how were the days on the river? They were great. Perhaps it was a precursor to today, Father’s Day. The three days I fished were all with father/son combo’s. Being out together recreating was more important than catching something. The above photo is Guy and his son Jack. They caught nothing on the first day.
On day two Guy caught the only fish. A sea-run dolly varden trout.
My next father/son combo was Eric and Steven. We must have tried eight different places trying to find a red salmon.
It didn’t happen.
Eric and Steven are repeat guests, who last fished with me in July of 2017. Mike, Eric’s other son, was also on that trip. Team Stearns, all in their red and black rain gear, limited out on Kenai kings. We all have fond memories of that day.
This was highly unusual.
While Eric and Steven were flipping for reds on the bank, something floated by us that seemed out of place. I thought it was a dead harbor seal. An hour later, as we were heading home, we saw it again. This time I thought it was a moose. When we got within 50 feet it was clear it was a dead brown bear.
I talked to a lot of people who’ve spent their lives on the river and no one can recall a dead brown bear floating down it before.
I’m going to go with my friend Gary’s explanation about what happened. He said when animals are sick or injured, they seek out water for comfort. This bear most likely died on a gravel bar, and when the river started to rise, it was swept downstream.
For the week ahead, I’ve got a couple of groups looking to red fish. Unless there is a change in the lower river, I’ll strongly encourage them to venture up to the Russian River. The reports for the Russian have been slow, but improving daily.
See you next week.
Fishing Report Week Ending 6/12/22