Fish Stories
20 HOURS OF FISH, PART II
We left off last month’s story just ending our very successful halibut trip out of Seward, and heading back to Soldotna for a late afternoon sandwich before heading out again. This time, we were heading to the steely blue water of the Kenai River for king salmon. Although we were still swaying from being on a boat all morning, a quick stop and some food refreshed our souls and prepared us for the big evening fight.The evening fish brought us back to the center of Soldotna to the Kenai River. The Kenai River is legendary for the bi-annual summer salmon run. Most notably, the world record king was caught on the Kenai back in 1985 by Les Anderson…a 97 pound 4 ounce monster that, had it been weighed at the time of catch, may have been over 100 pounds (evaporative weight loss over the four hours between catch and official weigh in). It is not uncommon to see fish in the 35 to 50 pound range being caught on a regular basis. And the way they catch them is quite different from what we do here.
While we fish Michigan for the same fish, the Alaskan fishing is completely different. When the salmon are “running”, they are migrating from feeding out in the northern Pacific Ocean to warmer fresh water at the top of the smaller rivers. These rivers are very fast moving and require a significant amount of energy to make the trek from the salty inlets to the nesting grounds. Most guides will use 18-22 heavy duty Jon boats with jet outboards or small propped outboards. Instead of trolling for miles looking for fish, they will use the engine to hold position against the current and slowly make their way down stream with the lines drifting out back. As the river winds and turns, the guide will maneuver the boat to let the plugs rest in eddies where the salmon stop and take breaks on their long journey up river. If nothing is there, the drift continues. The plugs used are very similar to plugs used here, with one twist. I may be giving away a guide’s secret, but I don’t think he’ll come down here and protest!!! Each plug has a small strip of sardine tied to it with thread, and then scent is poured on top giving the lure a real attraction.
As we were launching the boat, another guide was tied up at the launch waiting to load. In the bow of his boat was about a 50 pounder. Good site to see and a great way to get fired up. It was about 6:30 pm when we hit the water, and down stream we went. The ride was gorgeous. The banks of the Kenai changed from 150 foot cliffs to gradual banks that had small fishing cottage communities and random riverside restaurants. Some people were fishing from shore hoping to latch into an early sockeye salmon coming up stream while other boats dotted the middle of the river going for the much bigger king salmon. After about a 10 minute ride, we hit our spot.
Lures were rigged, and lines were put out. Within 10 minutes and 500 yards of drifting, a boat next to us netted a huge salmon; at least another 40 pound king. Ten minutes later, BOOM!!!! My lure took off. Knee jerk reaction told me to yank away, but the guide prepped us ahead of time to let the fish run a bit before setting the hook. Patiently, I waited a few seconds until the guide yelled,” NOW!” Hook set, and the game was on. Now keep in mind, we are in an 18 foot Jon boat with six people…it can get a little tight. Everyone reeled in to clear lines while I ran from bow to stern and side to side to keep the fish on. With line feeding out and some great jumps, the salmon ran up and down river for a good fifteen minutes before exhaustion set in (as much for me as for the fish). I was able to maneuver the fish to the side while the guide came up and netted a beautiful, 35 pound salmon. Then it was decision time. We were only able to keep one fish per person. So it was either keep this one and stop fishing, or throw it back and hope for a bigger one. Well, I’ve never been much of a gambler, so we kept the fish and I became a crew member instead of a patron. As it turned out, that was the right call.
We continued to fish for the next five hours without another fish!!! Up and down the river we went looking for anything that might be activity. Although the fishing was slow, the scenery was beautiful. Bald eagles were flying by with fish in tow. Smaller sockeye would crash at the banks from time to time, and an occasional sea lion would surface for a breath of fresh air. Although fun to watch, dolphins and sea lions were in the area looking for the same thing we were. And they are much better fishermen than we’ll ever be. By now the sun was starting to set and the temperature was dropping with it.
At midnight, a very popular fishing area that had been closed was opening, and I would have been eligible for a second fish. So we made our way there. Amid 70 other boats, we let our lines out in hopes of scoring a second fish. After another 45 minutes of fishing, we pulled the plug and called it a day. I give the guide credit…He went above and beyond trying to get us hooked up, but it just wasn’t our day. The day before, he won a local tournament with two 40+ pound fish, but today, lady luck was not on his side (or ours).
We made it back to the launch at about 1:30 in the morning, and (lucky me) I still had a fish to clean. At this point, the sun was gone, the temperature was in the 30’s, and all I had to see with was a small head lamp. It may not have been the best fillet job, but we ended up with some nice 2 1/2 inch thick salmon fillets. We went back to camp, and as everyone else hit the pillow and went immediately to sleep, I went to the kitchen to clean the bones out of my sloppy fillets, bag them and get them in the freezer. By the time I made it to bed…well let’s just say it was a good day. A few more salmon in the boat would have been nice, but for a day of fishing in Alaska, the weather could not have been better, the company was fantastic and coming home with 50 pounds of fish is not bad either. Lying in bed that night still feeling the swaying of the boat and replaying all that had happened made this 20 hour day of fishing one to truly remember.
Here’s customer Jerry Wilment’s grandson Grant Brooks, (future Lund Boats salesman). Grant keeps his Grandpa entertained watching Lund product videos.
Mr.Pike 16 owner Mike Rasch shows a 180# sailfish that he caught in Mexico last November.
Here's some nice pictures of Mike and Dan Schneider with some nice bass they caught while fishing with Door County guide Gary Nault.
Matt Sevcik caught this great 21" Largemouth in Oconto County out of his new Lund 1700 Explorer this summer.
