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Fisheries NewsWelcome to our news center. Here you will find:
Current Fishing Report:Outlook 2004: A fishing forecast from Mark Glassmaker Fishing….As daytime highs hover in the forties and daylight expands to nearly eighteen hours, spring has finally eclipsed winter in most of the Greatland. Swollen rivers carry melting snow and the normally glacial green Kenai has taken on a drab olive, almost brown color. Calving shore ice and snow flurries serve as a frigid reminder of a long winter season reluctant to let go. Just as many remnant signs of winter still cling to our northern landscape, many tell tale signs of spring and summer have announced their arrival. Sea-run rainbow trout appear as gray ghosts to coastal rain forests in Southeast Alaska. Millions of Eulachon (hooligan) smelt also head the arrival of spring and blanket tidal reaches of snow-fed streams from Craig to Cook Inlet. Bears awaken from their winter slumber and overhead, long boisterous formations of waterfowl fly north toward open water to lay their eggs and raise their young. Swallows dip in and out of budding alder and birch, inspecting every possible nook and cranny for a place to build a nest. Indeed, even the most subtle hints of spring foreshadow another spectacular season of life in Alaska and in the cold, food rich waters of the Pacific ocean, voracious schools of salmon feed with a heightened sense of urgency as their internal compass instinctively guides them to their natal flows. The imminent 2004 fishing season is indeed on the horizon and many indications give anxious anglers a lot to look forward to. Predicting salmon runs is a lot like looking into a crystal ball, as despite great scientific advances in quantifying pending returns, Mother Nature and fate still hold all the cards. I will do my best to predict what the coming months may reveal. Beginning on the Kenai River, the first salmon to arrive will be early run king salmon. The first pushes of these legendary salmon typically show in late April and early May. Anglers are reminded that although the early run is not know for the overall size or strength of the late run, the world's largest sport caught king salmon was taken from the Kenai's prestigious early run, an incredible 97 lb. king caught May 18, 1985. With above normal snowfall in south central Alaska this winter, river levels all already on the rise. Given the healthy snow pack in the Kenai Mountains, this elevated trend should extend to May and June, allowing safe passage to much of the river's best fishing water. This will be the second season for recently enacted slot limit regulations on the Kenai that require all fish 44-55 inches to be released. This effort to conserve the larger four and five ocean Kenai kings for which the river is famous for, was well received in its inaugural season and we look forward to letting more of these valuable "hogs" go in an effort to protect and preserve this very valuable class of fish. While we do see a number of fish in this "bubba" class, a large number of the early run fish are smaller than 44 inches, providing plenty of harvest opportunity for those intent on taking a fresh king home to eat. Please remember early run king salmon fishing on the Kenai is artificial lures and single hook only. ADF&G expects this year's early run of Kenai kings to be merely average with an in-river return of 14,000 fish. On the neighboring Kasilof, May and June should offer more consistent and predictable angling success as a mixed return of both hatchery and wild king salmon enter from nearby Cook Inlet. We are told that 100% of hatchery-originated king salmon this season will be clipped and available for harvest. New rules put in place last season only allow adipose clipped, hatchery fish to be retained, making all unclipped "natural or wild" kings off limits to harvest. This combined run, and the use of bait after May 15, affords anglers excellent "catching opportunities" and with all the hatchery fish marked this year, harvest opportunities should greatly exceed what was available to keep during last year's fishery. It should also be noted that ADF&G does feel more confident that the wild component to this early run on the Kasilof is stable and therefore can withstand some harvest opportunity. This issue will be re-examined at the 2005 Board of Fish meetings and we should regain some level of harvest opportunity for this segment of the run for the 2005 season. Mid to late June opens additional angling opportunities on the Kenai Peninsula and the West Side of Cook Inlet as trout season opens and the first sockeye salmon fisheries take the stage. June 12 marks the opening day of trout fishing on the Kenai, although some of the most productive rainbow water below Skilak Lake remains closed to access by motorized vessels through June 14 to protect nesting Trumpeter Swans. This makes June 15 the true system wide trout opener and this is always a great time to be on the water. These numerous and aggressive resident species are very hungry after recovering from their spawn and the long winter and they actively attack flesh flies and single egg patterns drifted from our power boats. June 12 also marks the opening day of sockeye fishing in the Russian River and the upper Kenai below the Russian River confluence. Although this run was only average last year compared to the two previous year's returns, this is always a very fun and exciting fishery with lots of ocean fresh red salmon available for harvest. Anglers should also not overlook the excellent rainbow trout fishing on the upper Kenai River and in the Russian River itself as the fish fatten up on the abundance of salmon meat left over from carcasses returned to the river by sockeye anglers. Small orange flesh flies work well. Accessible by floatplane, the West Side of Cook Inlet will also be seeing an enticing sockeye salmon fishery in June as thousands of these feisty silver bullets begin to mass at the mouth of Wolverine Creek on Big River Lake. This fishery continues to build through mid July as wave after wave of fresh sockeyes stage in the Lake before running the rocky, shallow Wolverine Creek to reach upper Big River Lake to spawn. Since sockeye returns are predicted to be above normal throughout Cook Inlet, this run should see strong returns similar to the past few seasons, when their obvious abundance has attracted nearly 9,000 annual visitors. This early run of reds also attracts a number of regular and highly visible brown bears to the area, adding to the popularity of this remote destination. July marks the peak of our summer fishing season and the beginning of the more prolific late run king and sockeye salmon fisheries on the Kenai River. This second run of kings to the Kenai sees more than triple the number of fish as the early run as well as more than triple the number of anglers. July 1 also marks the opening day of bait on the Kenai and this only adds to the hype surrounding the late run. ADF&G is forecasting an above average late run of Kenai kings with a return of 52,000 fish expected. The late run of Kenai River Sockeye is also expected to be above average. Experienced Alaska sport anglers know excessive sockeye runs can be a double edge sword as these fish are targeted heavily by commercial nets and the larger runs of red salmon result in additional commercial fishing time in Cook Inlet. Commercial fishing nets, particularly shoreline set nets, indiscriminately harvest Kenai bound late run king salmon along with the sockeye, so the more fishing time they get, the more kings they get, and the effect on the in-river sport fishery can be substantial. This was especially evident last season when excessive netting in the last week to ten days of July slowed king fishing on the lower Kenai to a trickle, forcing us to move upriver and target kings that had entered the river earlier in the fishery. ADF&G managers are expecting a total return of 3.8 million late run sockeye to the Kenai River with in-river escapement goals of approximately 750,000 - 1,000,000 fish. Hopefully they will prosecute the commercial harvest by using responsible fishing windows, thus allowing steady pulses of both sockeye and king salmon to enter the river throughout late July and early August. On the neighboring Kasilof, the very consistent late run of King salmon is expected to be strong as usual. August will signal the end of king season on the Kenai and Alaska in general, although a certain portion of both the late run of Kenai kings and sockeye does continue to arrive past the July 31 fishing deadline. August marks the beginning of our fall fisheries with the first steady pushes of silver salmon. The early run of silvers typically peaks in the second and third week of August and the late run of Kenai silvers in mid September. ADF&G is expecting average to above average silver returns to the Kenai. This being an even numbered year, we will once again see our bi-annual deluge of Pink salmon in the Kenai with run estimates as high a 3-5 million fish. Combined with healthy returns of silver salmon and prolific fishing for fat and feisty rainbow trout and dolly varden, fall fishing on the Kenai Peninsula is best described as an angler's paradise. To add additional anadromous icing to the cake, southern Kenai Peninsula rivers will also be receiving their seasonal returns of Steelhead trout, making this time of year tough to beat in terms of variety and sheer numbers. As always, fishing forecasts are merely speculation and visitors are urged to bring along plenty of patience, optimism and a few grains of salt as they prepare for their pending fishing adventures. Not even the most advanced science can truly predict what Mother Nature really holds in her cards and the only way to approach unpredictable run strengths, weather and water conditions is with an open mind and true appreciation for Alaska's undeniable beauty and amazing resources. The old saying "that's why they call it fishing and not catching" is important to bear in mind and if the overall success and enjoyment of your visit is not predicated on the numbers of fish you catch or how many pounds of filleted salmon you take home, you be essentially guaranteed a rewarding experience. This said, myself and all of my guides provide 100% effort 100% of the time assuring your fishing experience will be both fun and productive. I hope you have found this 2004-fishing forecast enlightening and educational as you prepare for your trip and I wish all of you the best of luck during the upcoming fishing season. As always, I strongly encourage you to call or email anytime if I can answer any additional, more specific questions regarding your planning. Great Fishing! Mark Glassmaker News Articles of Interest:
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Fishing with Mark Glassmaker, 1-800-622-1177 | E-mail: mgfish@mgfalaska.com ©
2003, Alaska Fishing with Mark Glassmaker |
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