Happy 4th of July! I hope everyone is having a safe and enjoyable holiday day. On a side note, if you’re coming to the Kenai Peninsula for the 4th of July fireworks show, you’re going to be disappointed. With nearly 24 hours of daylight, it’s a little bit underwhelming. If you want to see a great show, join us for New Year’s …
Fishing Report Week Ending 6/27/21
King salmon fishing on the lower Kenai River remains slow. I had two trips this past week. On Wednesday, I fished with Ben and Kaleb. On Saturday, I fished with long time friends Taylor and Colette. On both days, we never had a bite. Ouch. I can only conclude that low sonar numbers and marginal water conditions made for …
Fishing Report Week Ending 6/20/21
Careful for what you wish for. This past week, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game announced the Kenai River early run king salmon fishery will be restricted to catch and release fishing from June 17th until June 30th. This measure is being taken to protect a weak run and to ensure fishing opportunities in the future. An …
Fishing Report Week Ending 6/6/21
Last year, it took until June before a king salmon came to the boat. This year, we got it done in May. Just barely. On May 31st, after a three year hiatus, I was reunited with Chuck and Deb. On this visit, they brought their friends Larry and Brenda. Not too long into the morning, Larry expertly reeled in the first …
Fishing Report Week Ending 5/30/21
Cue the animals. What a week for animal viewing. The highlight came when I was walking down the dock and came upon a mamma moose and her newborn calf. Considering the calf was still wet, the birth had to have happened within a couple of hours. The caribou decided people should see them too. A very popular …
Fishing Report Week Ending 5/23/21
I first fished the Kenai River on May 19th, 1985. I didn’t catch a king salmon on that day, and I didn’t thirty six years later. If I’m lucky, I’ll be fishing thirty six years from now too. I got out on the river three days this past week with Dave and Dan. We’re still waiting for our first salmon bite of the …
Fishing Report Week Ending 5/16/21
For me, there’s nothing like the walk down the dock for the first guided fishing trip of the year. It’s the giddy anticipation of the day ahead and for the season that will come. I guided on the river twice this past week. My conclusion is this: it’s early, and you can’t catch what’s not there. We weren’t completely …
Salvage Run 2021
I had cabin and boat chores that needed my attention, but the call of the river was just too strong. A big part of my annual river float is to salvage gear that was lost from the previous fishing season. The best time to do this is when the backwater sloughs and gravel bars are completely ice free. As the …
The Dock Is In
With lots of ice in the creek to start the week, I really had my doubts that the dock would go in this month. Thank you Super Pink Moon for happening at the end of April rather than the beginning of April. Whenever the high tide is over 22.7 feet, I usually have enough water to float the dock to the end of the …
Breakup
I was starting to wonder if we would ever have spring. Well, that’s a little dramatic, but you probably know what I mean. It’s been a long, cold winter and the grip was finally released this past week. On Sunday, I took a river photo at the bridge in Soldotna. As you can see, it’s locked in ice. Only two days later, I …