Alaska Steelhead Fishing
Fire
and Ice
On our last steelhead
trip to the Anchor River we nearly froze to death... and we loved it!
Anchor Point, Alaska
Steelhead
fishing is always tough. A common saying holds, "if you're not
freezing your a#* off you're not going to catch a steelhead. For the
most part this saying holds true. Winter conditions are normal when
pursing the ever allusive anadromous rainbow, and nowhere else can these
conditions be quite so extreme but in Alaska. This story involves one
very cold but red-hot day on the Kenai Peninsula's Anchor River.
My friend Mike and I kept
saying, "Boy, we better get down to the Anchor before it snows."
We both had a very busy fall and thus far had only enjoyed one of a
usual half dozen fall steelhead trips. We were both overdue and equally
anxious. The fish were there and would continue to be there. The problem
is that temperatures were barely above freezing and the next inevitable
push of precipitation was sure to be white not wet.
As our 4WD whined up an
overgrown trail cut into a bluff overlooking the river, I started to
feel different than I had on any other steelhead trip. I really did
not want to get out of the truck. I know it was at best 30 degrees outside
but with the sustained 30-mph wind the true wind chill was well below
zero. I've done some pretty stupid stuff just to set a hook but this
was a little different, like life threatening.
Once we had our neoprenes
on and rods ready we started bailing down the frosty hillside toward
the river. Conditions (for the fish) were perfect. The water level was
up but not too high and the clarity was good. Normally Mike and I will
fish our way up to a couple of larger holes we like, hang out for a
while, and fish our way back down. Today there was no stopping. We bee-lined
up river to keep warm until we reached our favorite spot. The entire
walk up I noticed sheets of ice holding strong along the river's edge
and on shallow bars. Crystal clear, round icicles the size of golf balls
were hanging from the trees and riverside foliage, some less than inches
from the river's current. Soon the running water and hanging ice will
all become one, solidified under a blanket of snow until spring. I was
beginning to think my feet might be frozen that long as well.
As I confirmed with Mike
on the ride home, my second thoughts were not alone. Despite our mutual
urge to just run right back to the truck, I instinctively unbuttoned
my hook and pulled the frozen strains of yarn, that was my fly, away
from my rod. I squeezed my fly in my fingers and it felt like a piece
of slush. Almost half the eyes on my rod were frozen shut. After frantically
picking out the ice, I began fishing the hole. I could make a maximum
of two casts before my hands retreated for cover. About my third cast,
I felt a small jolt, likely a biter, but I could barely muster a half-hearted
hook set. By this time Mike was working the hole behind me and on his
second drift he yells out, "there we go" and into the bushes
a nice big steelhead went. His 11 foot. noodle rod is bent over good
and he's thumbing him hard to slow the retreat. Unworried, Mike held
up his end of the stalemate until the fish finally gave in and was pulled
into the icy shallows. A cold and speedy release was over after a quick
picture and we both had wet, frozen hands. We had two choices. Start
a fire or start a fire. I started collecting wood.
Finally after what felt
like big ordeal, we had a good fire going and began to regain feeling
in our hands. Now that Mike had caught one, I knew he'd at least triple
that. It was either stay by the fire and listen to him the whole ride
home or get back in the river. After chipping the ice from my guides,
I launched my 2BB slinky with 6-lb. test attached to a very simple but
select yarn pattern, into the frosty current. As my graphite rod reverberated
the many rocks on the Anchor's bottom, I felt a bump with gills. It
was that tell tale headshake and it was making the end of my rod look
like a bungee cord. It was all I could do to get my lethargic muscles
to set the hook. Into the trees he went and then right back at me just
as fast. As I looked back at Mike he was leaving the fire for the river,
shaking his head. The long and short of our day was well over a dozen
steelhead hooked and seven landed between Mike and I. We could only
bear the frigid wind for two hours. Those two hours were the coldest
I've ever been period, let alone while fishing. As I settled in to the
truck for the ride home I was overcome by a remarkable sense of respect
for the cold weather, the fish and the quality of our outing. Shivering
over a fire along a freezing Alaskan stream full of steelhead may not
be everyone's idea of fun but I know one angler that would do it again
in a heartbeat.
"Weather
is the key to...fishing. Foul weather, usually: imitation commando wool
sweaters, hooded rain slickers, wool hats, fingerless gloves, long johns,
wet cameras, wet camps, cold food, shots of whiskey for the illusion
of warmth. It seems to have some weird connection to that good old Protestant
ethic wherein anything that's easy or that feels good is sinful. You
can catch trout on a warm, pretty day, of course, but you'll probably
catch more if you suffer. In a strange, masochistic way, it only seems
right."
Taken
from "Sex, Death, and Fly Fishing" by John Gierach
The Anchor River is located
115 miles Southwest of Anchorage on the Kenai Peninsula. Beginning in
the mountains, the river flows for 34 miles before emptying into Cook
Inlet 16 miles north of Homer.The Anchor offers several access points
via the Sterling Hwy close to the town of Anchor Point. The Anchor's
Steelhead run has been called the best in Southcentral Alaska and fishing
is entirely artificial only and catch and release. Steelhead begin entering
the Anchor in late August with the majority of the fish returning from
mid-September thought late August. Fishing remains good into November
(weather permitting, bring matches) The fish overwinter in the river,
spawn in the spring and then return to sea. Recent years have been particularily
successful for this wild steelhead stock and fall fishing has been very
good.
