22 Sep Alaska Fishing Report: Sept 22, 2016
With the fall leaves in full display, it is definitely September here on the Kenai River. The transition from August to September came very fast and we spent the majority of latter August fishing below Skilak Lake for both silvers and for trout. Getting to witness the vast sockeye spawn as well as a good number of kings and most recently pink salmon, it is a wonder to see all the fish completing their circles of life. The silvers in August were steady just not ever red hot like we have seen in a few recent seasons. That’s the cyclical nature of salmon but this year’s return did hold lots of great action and a definite unique feel to it.
It was definitely a wet August with lots of rainy weather mixed with a handful of very nice days as well. Rain or shine we saw some very good tout fishing this late August and early September as the fish are definitely getting congregated around salmon spawning and that’s pretty much everywhere at present. Along with beads, the bigger rainbows are also responding to flesh flies and with each passing day, more and more fish carcasses can be seen floating downstream. With the pink salmon spawn at its peak at this time, trout are fat and have a lot of food choices. Soon the pinks will largely die off and as the days grow colder and the water drops, the trout will become more and more aggressive. Fall rainbow fishing on the Kenai is always very exciting.
The late run of silver salmon has been arriving much like the early run and can be best described as consistently average. The fish are definitely arriving on each passing tide and they have been very nice looking big fish, there just has not been a surplus in terms of numbers. The challenge to fish the right places and intersect their travel has been fun and we have been rewarded with some nice catches of late run silvers. This late run of Kenai coho will continue to arrive well into October and we look forward to the great silver fishing opportunities still to come.
Steelhead trout have begun their return to the lower Kenai Peninsula rivers as well as the Kasilof and even a few recorded catches on the Kenai. These opportunistic feeders enter from Cook Inlet in the fall and feed behind spawning silvers. They over winter in the rivers and then finally spawn themselves in the early spring before returning to the ocean. They are the best treasure in the river when you connect with one fresh from sea and bright as a dime. We hope to spend several days chasing these silver missiles, steelhead fishing is definitely a favorite of ours.
Enjoy the pictures and we will keep you posted on what this fall has in store for us!
