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I tried the Alaska forum, and the trip suggestions forum on the main page and both places no one has replied in 1-3 months. So, since I know Idaho fishermen use the forum and a lot get around quite a bit, I figured I'd put in a request for some info.
First off I'm headed to AK in August and have 1 day planned for fishing specifically. I know, not nearly enough, but in hard economic times we all end up making some sacrifices [:/]. We will be fishing out of Seward. I've read on other forums that a couple specific charters there are really good, and they kept coming up repeatedly, Crackerjack and Puffin. I also heard a smattering of other ones, but they all only got mentioned once or twice. I'm curious if anyone here has some experience w/ them and if so (more importantly) what to expect to some extent (in general).
Second, I'm wondering what the probability is for rain during the 1st - 2nd week of August? Should I plan to buy a rain suit for the trip or just bring a jacket just in case? I figure the evenings have a decent chance of being cool (heck, we get that here) so I figure the jacket is probly going anyway. Last, if anyone has fished Seward area that time of year should I plan on kings as being very likely and buy king permit or just plan on the silvers since they are a couple weeks into their usual run?
Thanks for any help on this. I'll definitely be posting pics upon return.
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I've never fished there, but I just wanted to say that I'm jealous as heck! I've fished as far north as Prince Rupert BC, and that was amazing, so I can only imagine the time you'll have!
If I was in your boots, I'd ask the outfitter, once you choose one about species available and gear etc.
Good luck!
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I'm from the Kenai Peninsula, born and raised. First and foremost, especially in Seward, count on rain so make sure you have a good rain jacket and rain pants. Early August weather isn't too bad, they don't have huge temperature flux as we have here.
There will not be any Kings that time of year. Seward isn't known for a King run. Spring time through mid summer is when the kings arrive. You'll be fishing for silvers, but also possibly halibut, cod, rock fish etc. I can't suggest one charter over the next. If you do fish for silvers buy the Seward Silver Salmon Derby Tag!!!! You never know, you could hook a hog and get a decent amount of cash from it.
If you ask the same question on the alaska outdoor forum at [url "http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/"][/url]http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/[/url] in the fishing section, I almost guarantee that you'll get a quick and honest answer / suggestion for a great charter. It wouldn't surprise me if a charter captain PM's you fairly quickly. Hope that helped some.
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I haven't been that far North. I did fish and work for three summers in Southern Alaska. About rain gear, you did say you were going to Alaska right?[  ] Where I lived and worked 75 air miles west of Juneau it maybe had two days all summer without rain.
Windriver
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Just so happens I will be in Seward at the same time. We are fishing the Kenai on the last day of the King season (31 of July) with Hooky Charters. Then three days for reds and then on the 6th of August a 6 day charter for all sorts of fish. Truely a once in a lifetime (for Me) trip. Check out Hooky Charters they seem to be my brothers favorite. My brother has set the whole thing up and this is his 6th year going. Have fun, I will.
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I've heard of hooky charters and contacted them in the past. We just aren't going to be in their area to use them this time. I have a co-worker who was roomates with the owners daughter in college. That's where I've heard of them. Since her dad found out about the connection he has been up there fishing with them every year and reportedly has yet to have a bad report! You should be very pleased.
Right now I'm booked with Puffin charters in Seward for Halibut and salmon for 1 day on 8/7. Truly not enough time[:/]. I plan to have a good time while I'm there though!
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Once again...yes on the rain gear! If you even just buy a Helly Hansen suit they're about 40 bucks for top and bottom and they are pretty good quality!
I guided in Alaska on the Kasilof river and was able to deckhand out of Seward and Ninilchik several times for halibut and salmon trips! There is not a prettier place in my opinion than seward...and those silvers are gonna blow your mind...they are my favorite salmon to catch...super acrobatic! Tasty too! You should get into some multi-species too, possibly some lingcod and bass and such! Hopefully you get a lingcod they are some awesome fish! You will have an awesome time even if it's only for one day! It's a shame you can't fish a little longer since you'll already be up there...but I'll warn you, you will be ADDICTED to Alaskan fishing! Its the best I'm super excited for you!
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I've chartered out of Seward, it's awesome. We caught ling cod, bass, rock fish, silvers, and halibut. I was with "wild abandon charters". they rocked. The Ling cod I caught had a 20 inch salmon in its stomach and was trying to eat other fish in the live well. I also had a blast on the rusian river, not far from seward just fishing on my own, no charter needed. Caught a TON or reds, and a few silvers, and several nice trout and dollies. Honestly, you could just head to the river for a couple hours and have a blast. Good luck, I can't wait to get back up there again. Seward is one of the coolest places i went in AK. And i was there for a month. It's awesome. Where else are you going?
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I was up there about the 5 -15th of August last year. I'd second trouthound's recommendation to hit the Russian River if if get several hours one day. It doesn't get dark until like 11pm so there's more time to fish than you might realize. Just hike up the Russian, from above the campgrounds anywhere before the falls. Easy place to sight fish. I was surprised how aggressive many sockeye actually are when you do get away from the combat fishing zone lower down. What also surprised me is how much harder sockeye fight compared to the silvers and kings.
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We're crashing with a friend in Anchorage briefly before taking the train to Seward. We'll have that day there, then we fish the next. After fishing we have to catch a cruise ship (hence the less time fishing). It will take us down along the coast hitting Juneau, Ketchikan, Icy Strait, Sitka and then Vancouver BC. From there I'm staying w/ a sister for a couple days then flying home. I'd like to try fishing the river in one of the stopover points for a few hours if I can find a good run going on and a shop renting gear, but I'm not really planning on it to be honest. Either way, I've already told my wife that this is basically a siteseeing trip for our 10th anniversary w/ a little fishing thrown in. Then next Alaska trip is going to be a fishing trip w/ a little siteseeing [  ]. Either way, we're both extremely stoked!
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It's hard to go on those family trips so close to great fishing and not fish much[:/]. Throw in a 4 piece fly rod or buy a disposable $25 spinning outfit after arriving in Alaska just in case. Just be warned fishing in Alaska is highly addicting.
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Read where you were stopping in Ketchikan. My wife and I spent our 30th on a cruise from Vancover to Steward. We stopped in Ketchikan and went fishing. My wife caught a 42 lb. King. Before we went all she could say was, "OH, we're going fishiing" (Not excited or reluctant) After she caught this it was, "I went FISHING!!!". I think your wife would like to go. Here's the pics.
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That's an awesome fish that your wife caught! I can only hope for something close to that. BTW, my wife is going with me fishing on the charter, and she's basically reacting about the same as yours did, "Oh, we're going fishing."
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When you get to Sitka check out Totem park, it's pretty cool and a great place to take pictures, if you're into that type of thing. I don't know if this year is a humpy (pink) year, but if it is... there is a river / creek that runs through the park that gets loaded with spawning fish (it's smelly) but it's also a good place to see bald eagles. I don't know what the regs are about that creek, but usually there is great Dolly and Trout fishing when the Salmon are spawning.... that might be your best bet for some river fishing.
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If you have that first day there, you should try to get up to the Kenai. It may be "combat" fishing but it is awesome. The Reds will be running and they fight REALLY hard. You don't need more then a few hours to catch your limit, and as has been mentioned you can fish late because of the light. I loved "Wild Abandon" charter because the first time we went out we were with this guy and two kids. The kids were getting sea-sick so we didn't go out far and fishing stunk. When we left they told us they'd take us out for free if we came back, so we went out again a few weeks later and it was awesome. We chartered for Halibut, limited out, then they took us out for salmon. We jigged for salmon and could watch them swarm around the jig, it was way cool.
If you can't gut up to fish the Kenai there are some small rivers in Seward that will have some Reds and possibly some silvers depending on when they run. Seward isn't very big, you can see the sights easily in a half day, then spend the other half fishing the Kenai. Although, on the other hand, we took a day cruise out of Seward and saw several whales, porpoise, and tons of other animals. That was pretty cool as well.
I'm so excited for you, Alaska is such a cool place, I can't wait to get back up there again!
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In Ketchikan they had 4 hour charters when I was there that catered to the cruse ship passengers. That was several years ago. Other stops will probally have the thing. Ketchikan also has a totem pole state park called Totem Bight.
[url "http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/units/totembgh.htm"]http://dnr.alaska.gov/parks/units/totembgh.htm[/url]
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