02 Oct Alaska Fishing Report: Sept 28, 2017
It’s hard to believe we are nearing the end of September and ultimately the close of the 2017 fishing season here on the Kenai. Quickly looking back, I think what strikes me most is how fast each collective season goes by and this year seemed to fly by at light speed.
After a very successful king and sockeye season here on the Kenai and the Kasilof Rivers, the fall runs of early and late run silvers certainly followed suit with large, healthy returns. The silvers were right on the heels of a steady and strong late run of sockeye which kept producing limits into the second and third week of August. By mid-month there were enough silvers present to shift from the sockeye and from there we never looked back. Daily limits were common and stayed available well into September when a strong showing of larger silvers began arriving on each passing tide. Even as of this report, limits of fresh late run coho are being taken daily so we expect plenty of silver salmon action well into October.
Trout fishing on the Kenai has been consistent but has been limited by high water. After relatively low water all summer on the Kenai, an ice dam feeding Kenai Lake finally burst and this along with a lot of rain, brought the river up to flood stage for most of late September. Rainbow fishing should improve a lot when freezing overnight lows and some clear weather drops the river down and congregates the fish in more select lies.
Steelhead fishing on the lower Kenai Peninsula Rivers such as the Anchor and Deep Creek has also been slow, largely hampered by the high water as again it has been a rainy fall here on the Kenai Peninsula. Steelhead fishing should be very good in the next week to ten days especially if water conditions improve considerably.
