Alaska Trip help

[Rust.E]

hey everyone
my name is eric and my friends and i got a job working in seward for the summer and we plan on fishing during our days off. i have never been to alaska or fished it, i was wondering you guys can help me get some background information on what kinda of fishing there are near seward or at seward, what type of patterns/sizes, rod wts and line, if we need protection from bears and other info would be helpful. thanks

Eric

[ak_powder_monkey]

all sorts of fishing by seward from saltwater dredging for big uglys to trout fishing in mountain steams and lakes to surfcasting for salmon in the bay.

I went a long time fising up here with just an 8wt and a 5 wt but you may want to add a 10 and a 3 patterns range from six inch baitfish to size 20 midge patterns for selective fish on lakes and everything in between. Go heavy on the wet flies nymphs eggs flesh and bugger though if you like trout. Heavy on the clousers if you like salmon

[flying ties]

What A_P_M said...

Eric,
A_P_M gives great advice...If you only have one rod, it should probably be a 7 or 8 wt - preferably with a lifetime warranty (!) as fishing K.P. can be rough on your gear. If you bring two rods, a 5 or 6 wt is great to have with you too, or maybe a 10 wt for those big, mean kings.

Don't overlook the small lakes and trout fishing in the area. In addition to the flies previously mentioned, have a lot of pink (!) rabbit fur & flash flies for the silvers and kings. I've personally had some success with large nymphs on strong hooks for the reds...try experimenting with them before trying the "grip and rip" famous on the Russian.

If you have the means, take a float on the upper Kenai in Aug/Sept. You'll enjoy it.

And good luck!

[Mad Dog-11]

I'd purchase a book or three online before you come up. There is almost a limitless amount of information on fishing in Alaska. In Seward, you are on the Kenai Peninsula and will have access to all five species of Pacific Salmon, plus trophy rainbow trout, Steelhead, grayling, halibut, rockfish, salmon shark, dolly varden, etc...

Here are three books that I recommend -
1) "Fishing Alaska's Kenai Peninsula" : by Dave Atcheson
2) "The Alaska Roadside Angler's Guide" : by Gunnar Pedersen & Joe Nedland
3) "Alaska Fishing" : by Limeres and Pedersen

Any or all of these books will get you started in the right direction. These books will cover everything you need to know to get started, from gear, to flys, to tackle, to technique, to location, and even fish run timing. Any of the fishing stores in the area will be more than happy to assist you more in depth when targeting a specific species. Good luck and enjoy the adventure!

[Rust.E]

thanks. i am planing on taking my 5,7, and may be 9wts. wow i didnt know that would be a midge hatch in alaska. i was looking on the map for seward and i saw that there were two rivers that dumped into the harbor. salmon creek and resurrection river. are these places fishable? as for the other locations in alaska i dont think that we are going to have a steady srouce of transportation mostly walking distance or if we can get a hold of a rental. i have been looking for fly shops and it seems that kenai cache outfitters is the closest one to seward. also for licenses how much are they? thanks for the help.

Eric

[garnede]

The books are available on this site and amazon so you can look up the best flies, rods, etc to bring with you. You need to become farmilliar with the fish and game website. http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/
Wildlife notebook series: http://www.adfg.state.ak.us/pubs/notebook/notehome.php
Sport fishing regs for SC: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/state...ons/scregs.cfm
Regs for seward and the north gulf coast: http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/state...tral/SCngc.pdf
and the emergency order page. http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/eonr/index.cfm

For transport you can rent a car, hitchhike, buy a bycicle off craigslist, or share a ride with people who post on here or craigslist.

[Alaskan Salmon Sith]

To echo Mad Dog....

I'd purchase a book or three online before you come up. There is almost a limitless amount of information on fishing in Alaska. In Seward, you are on the Kenai Peninsula and will have access to all five species of Pacific Salmon, plus trophy rainbow trout, Steelhead, grayling, halibut, rockfish, salmon shark, dolly varden, etc...

Here are three books that I recommend -
1) "Fishing Alaska's Kenai Peninsula" : by Dave Atcheson
2) "The Alaska Roadside Angler's Guide" : by Gunnar Pedersen & Joe Nedland
3) "Alaska Fishing" : by Limeres and Pedersen

I cannot echo Mad Dog enough. I've been fishing in AK for the last 8 years and I still resort to books by Gunnar Pedersen. They will get you pointed in the right direction. Not only does it show timing charts, but it also recommends gear, terminal tackle, and tried and true patterns.

[ak_powder_monkey]

thanks. i am planing on taking my 5,7, and may be 9wts. wow i didnt know that would be a midge hatch in alaska. i was looking on the map for seward and i saw that there were two rivers that dumped into the harbor. salmon creek and resurrection river. are these places fishable? as for the other locations in alaska i dont think that we are going to have a steady srouce of transportation mostly walking distance or if we can get a hold of a rental. i have been looking for fly shops and it seems that kenai cache outfitters is the closest one to seward. also for licenses how much are they? thanks for the help.

Eric

RIvers in Seward are fishable if they are clear but you can only fish for salmon in one of them in the fall

[Rust.E]

thanks for the info everyone,
Mad Dog 11 thanks for the book recommendations, but i am a super broke college student so i cant afford them. do you have any sites with good info?

[garnede]

http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/regio...kly/resmay.cfm
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/state...on/MgtAreaID/3
http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/regio...ubs/kenrun.pdf

[danattherock]

Get Scott Haugens "Flyfishers Guide to Alaska". Some 400 pages and over 100 maps and tells you when and where to go. Most importantly, how to get there. There is a whole chapter on the Kenai Penninsula. A must read for you. Get it here on the forum store in the fishing section or at Amazon. All you need to know is in that book. For Grayling, have Scenic Mountain Air in Moose Pass fly you to Upper Paradise Lake. Rent the only cabin on the lake, a state cabin, for $45/night. $300 per person round trip from Moose Pass (near Seward). Also, hike the Lost Lake trail. Not sure how good fishing is, but it is pretty. On my to do list. For great fishing, plan on driving 1.5 hours or so to the area between Cooper Landing and Sterling. Tons of places to fish of course. But you will need to do a bit of driving to get the most out of your trip. A 5 and 8 wt would be my choice for fly rods. You can cover a lot of grounds with that. Buy flies when you get there. Have a guide at Troutfitters in Cooper Landing take you out one day. That will pay big dividends. Pick his brain a bit and have fun.

[bigcox]

Get Scott Haugens "Flyfishers Guide to Alaska". Some 400 pages and over 100 maps and tells you when and where to go. Most importantly, how to get there. There is a whole chapter on the Kenai Penninsula. A must read for you. Get it here on the forum store in the fishing section or at Amazon. All you need to know is in that book. For Grayling, have Scenic Mountain Air in Moose Pass fly you to Upper Paradise Lake. Rent the only cabin on the lake, a state cabin, for $45/night. $300 per person round trip from Moose Pass (near Seward). Also, hike the Lost Lake trail. Not sure how good fishing is, but it is pretty. On my to do list. For great fishing, plan on driving 1.5 hours or so to the area between Cooper Landing and Sterling. Tons of places to fish of course. But you will need to do a bit of driving to get the most out of your trip. A 5 and 8 wt would be my choice for fly rods. You can cover a lot of grounds with that. Buy flies when you get there. Have a guide at Troutfitters in Cooper Landing take you out one day. That will pay big dividends. Pick his brain a bit and have fun.

Yes.....Dido on that one. I love Haugens book. I still haven't read through the whole thing. Its nice to be able to see or hear about a certain river you haven't fished, then go and grab that book and find out alot about it. It's definently a fishermans "must have". I would definently add it to your arsenal.

Fish On!