You are here: Home / Archives for salmon fishing

Goodnews River, Alaska Fishing Report

July 1, 2012 by · 1 Comment

The kings are running in the Goodnews River, but to this point the run has been inconsistent. Some days have been good, followed by tough days in which a few boats went king-less. Some boats have been running plugs, others have been tossing flies on fast sinking lines. The fish of the week in my boat was caught by Chuck Trover, who got a 36 inch king, using a cerise bunny leech on a 500 grain line.

Monster King Salmon, Goodnews River Alaska

Chuck Trover was real happy with this fish.

The salmon slack has been taken up by chums and sockeyes, with an occasional pink for good measure. Today we caught two sockeyes fairly, one on an articulated bunny streamer and one on a synthetic silver salmon Clouser Minnow. Chums aren’t usually very fussy and pink flies will produce a lot. Gary Vasques and Gordon LaFortune got four salmon species on fly today, all of the Pacific salmon except for silvers.

Chum Salmon, Goodnews River Alaska

Chum Salmon, courtesy of Gary Vasques.

Trout and grayling fishing has been consistently good, with catches in the double digits for fly casters who know the drill. Grayling have been taking dry flies, rainbows black streamer flies.

Fish Story of the Week- one of Drew Rosema’s fishermen, while fighting a king salmon, had their spool fall off the fly reel into the water. Drew grabbed the line and started pulling. After he pulled all the backing off the spool (piling it in the bottom of the boat) the runaway spool was recovered. Drew started coiling the backing back on the reel by hand. A huge wad of it came up, too complicated to untangle while the guy was still fighting the fish.

Double hookup, Goodnews River. Drew is winding line like crazy.

Then his second angler hooked up on the spinning rod. Drew was too tied up with angler number one to help him. He lost the fish when it got around the anchor line and broke off. In the meantime Drew had cut the tangle out of the line, tied the ends back together, and wound the rest of the backing back onto the spool.

When he put the spool on the reel they quickly realized Drew had wound it on the wrong way. It all had to come off and be wound on properly.

Happy ending- the angler caught the fish, a king salmon of 10 pounds or so.

Drew is happy, his angler caught the king salmon.

That is this week’s Goodnews River, Alaska Fishing Report. All my reports until mid-September will be from the Goodnews River.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2012. All rights are reserved.

Share |

Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Fishing Stories, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , , ,

Effective Fishing Flies- Gartside’s Gurgler

February 16, 2012 by · Leave a Comment

In my last fishing report I mentioned using the late Jack Gartside’s Gurgler for seatrout with great success. I went to Jack’s website (yes, it’s still up and running, you can see it here) to see if I tied it anything remotely like Jack did. It’s modified quite a bit. I suppose that’s to be expected. Fly tyers always modify stuff to fit their own needs.

You tie these in the sizes and colors you need to match what your intended target is. For the seatrout I tie it as below, in white. I tie it on a #4 Gamakatsu SC-15 for baby tarpon. I use it in Alaska as tied below, but in pink, for silver salmon and on a #6 long shank hook in orange for Dolly varden. I tie little ones for bluegills. It’s a wonderfully versatile pattern.

Here’s how I tie it. Fishing instructions are below.

Gartside gurgler fly

What a finished gurgler looks like. Note the double layer of foam at the front.

Hook- Mustad 34011, size 2

Thread- flat waxed nylon

Tail- short piece of calftail, marabou, or Arctic fox

Body- Estaz or similar material

“Shell”- craft foam cut to about a 1/4-3/8th inch width.

1) Start the thread and wind back to hook bend. Tie in the tail. I find a short tail fouls much less frequently than a long one.

2) Tie in the Estaz, same spot.

3) Take the strip of craft foam and your scissors and taper the end to a “V.” Tie in the point of the V such that the strip extends out over the tail.

4) Wrap the thread up to a point about 1/4 inch behind the eye of the hook. Wrap the Estaz to that point. Tie it off and cut it.

5) Fold the foam over and tie it off at the same point.

6) Fold the foam back on itself and tie it off again, at the same point. The foam is now two layers thick. Drop the bobbin and use the scissors to cut the foam off 1/4 inch behind where you tied it off. The doubled foam increases the fly’s buoyancy, and makes it somewhat more durable.

7) Whip the head, then cement it.

When fishing for seatrout I try to make the fly pop and spit water. It does not make the commotion a popper will but it seems to make quite enough for the trout.

spotted seatrout caught on a gurgler.

Spotted seatrout caught on a gurgler. They seem to like it quite a bit, and it’s easy to make.

In Alaska when fishing silvers I fish it the same way.

For dollies cast it quartering downstream and give it little pops as it swings. There is no more enjoyable way of catching them.

Please let me know how it works for you.

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com

 

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2012. All rights are reserved.

 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Tips, Flies and Fly Tying · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Gamefish of the Goodnews River, Alaska

September 7, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Here in one place find images of the major gamefish found in Alaska’s Goodnews River.

Of the anadramous fishes, the first to appear are the king salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Kings reach weights in excess of 50 pounds on the Goodnews, making them the largest type of fish found in the river.

Your average "nice" Goodnews River king, a fish of about 25 pounds.

King salmon get quite large.

You'll also find king salmon jacks, precocious males that, despite their small size, are sexually mature.

Sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) come in next. When they come into the river they are bright silver (see the photo of the silver salmon below). As they prepare to spawn they become bright red with a green head. The males develop a hump.

Sockeyes, hard to catch when they first appear, become aggressive once colored up.

Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) come into the river a few days after the sockeyes start. Like the sockeyes, they come in by the tens of thousands. Unlike the sockeyes they strike flies aggressively.

This chum shows some color.

Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) come into the river every year, although alternate years have a larger then a smaller run. When they’re thick they almost become a nuisance.

This pink salmon threw mud all over Calene.

The last salmon specie in are the silver salmon, (Oncorhynchus kisutch). They may be the most popular fish among anglers coming to Goodnews River Lodge.

A bright silver salmon, early in the run.

Later in the run some of the silvers color up. This phenomenon happens to all the salmon.

The Dolly varden char follow the salmon up the river, hoping to gorge on their eggs. They range in size from little “micro” Dollies to fish over ten pounds. They also color up once in the river.

This nice Dolly varden is still quite bright.

This Dolly varden shows lots of color.

We also have two resident species in the river. The Arctic grayling (Thymallus arcticus) is a lovely, delicate fish. A big one is three or four pounds, and could be in excess of 20 years old.

The Arctic grayling sports a showy dorsal fin.

Finally, the river hosts a population of beautiful leopard rainbow trout, (Oncorhynchus mykiss). These are also very popular among Goodnews River Lodge anglers. We release every trout we catch here.

An average sized Goodnews River rainbow trout. A big one will push 30 inches.

a detail of a pectoral fin, rainbow trout

That completes my pictorial roundup of Goodnews River gamefish.

John Kumiski

Home- Spotted Tail Outdoors and Travel

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

Share
|





Filed Under: Photo Essays · Tagged: , , , , ,

Still More Bears and Silvers on Alaska’s Goodnews River- Goodnews River Fishing Report

September 4, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

The Goodnews River Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 9/4/11

Upcoming Events- I will be available for charter in my usual stomping grounds in central Florida around the 15th of September. Word is the water is very high and very dirty, hardly ideal conditions. But the mullet will be running, so fishing along the beach could be outstanding if Katia doesn’t mess things up too much. Stay tuned…

Also, I hope to be running Show and Tell seminars on October 29 and 30. The 30th will be an on the water seminar. I will post more details when I get better internet access; i.e., after I get home.

Now, back to the Goodnews!

This is my last week here. We have only two guests this week and several staff members have already gone home. We’ve been getting camp ready for winter, pulling boats and attending to other necessary chores. In spite of that we have still had some time to fish.

A few days ago Jeff Arnold took Alex and I up the south fork for some trout fishing. The stream is just gorgeous. It was overcast and cold with intermittent showers, not an ideal trout day. The water temperature was only 44 degrees. In spite of that Alex got a couple of nice fish on streamers. I got one redded up silver salmon on a flesh fly, on my four-weight, pretty cool.

Even the more modest rainbow trout here are visually stunning.

Bears are searching hard for food. When we fillet fish gulls show up. They make a lot of noise, screaming excitedly, waiting for us to feed them. The bears hear them and come running. We are not cleaning fish by ourselves, and we keep a Remington handy in case Mr. or Mrs. Bear tries to get too intimate.

This bear was fishing for salmon carcasses. I had just finished filleting at this spot.

I nevr see bears catch a beaver but it's entertaining watching them try.

Yesterday Chris and Debbie, two school teachers from Goodnews, joined me for a day of salmon fishing on the middle fork. We caught a lot of fish, on both fly and spin tackle, many of which still had sea lice. Silvers are still coming in in good numbers.

Chris got this slob Goodnews River silver salmon while spey casting.

Chris used a spey rod with a sink-tip and unweighted flies, I used a seven-weight with a floating line and weighted flies, and Deb used a spin outfit with a Pixie spoon. We all caught fish. Late in the day Chris tried the Pixie for a while and got what may have been the smallest fish of the season. We vacuum packed it so he can eat it later this winter (just kidding).

This fish? A trifle more modest.

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , ,

More Bears and Silvers on the Goodnews River- Goodnews River Fishing Report

August 29, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

The Goodnews River Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 8/29/11

Upcoming Events- I will be available for charter in my usual stomping grounds in central Florida around the 15th of September. Word is the water is very high and very dirty, hardly ideal conditions. But the mullet will be running, so fishing along the beach could be outstanding if Irene didn’t mess things up too much. Stay tuned…

Also, I’ll be running Show and Tell seminars on October 29 and 30. The 30th will be an on the water seminar. I will post more details when I get better internet access; i.e., after I get home.

Now, back to the Goodnews!

Bears are searching for that last hurrah of summer, trying to fatten up before the salmon disappear. We are seeing them almost every day. They get very close to camp and a few have felt the sting of non-lethal rubber slugs from JA’s shotgun.

This bear is searching for fish. She's got mouths to feed.

Fall is definitely here. We’ve had frost, seen stars, and are watching sunrises and sunsets, things you just don’t see here in June.

The rivers are full of silver salmon. Some of them aren’t so silver any more. They color up like the other salmon species, turning a beautiful shade of red. Silver, pink, or red, they are hitting the same stuff as always. The epic run of 2006 saw 42,000 fish pass through the weir on the middle fork, and this year’s run are the progeny of those fish. So we’re in the middle of another epic season of silver salmon fishing. Fishing has been outstanding.

Rob got this silver salmon on a fly.

Most of the chums and pinks are lying dead along the banks, as are many of the sockeyes and kings. Shawn, one of my fishermen today, caught a nice sockeye while fishing for silvers.

Shawn got this sockeye while fishing for silvers.

Finding dollies and trout is more difficult than it was last week, although we got some nice specimens of both species today, on both egg-sucking leeches and flesh flies. Ross’s anglers used beads and bobbers, and while I don’t like to fish that way his fishermen got more fish than mine. To each his own I suppose.

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.


 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , ,

Brown Bears of the Goodnews River- A Pictorial

August 25, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

Goodnews River Lodge sits in a remote part of southwest Alaska, in the middle of bear country. We live in brown bear (Ursus arctos) habitat, and see them daily during the latter part of the season. Large, magnificent, goofy, dangerous, awesome, stinky, these and many more adjectives describe them. I love watching them and of course I’ve been photographing them as much as I can.

Rather than copy from another website the facts about these fascinating animals, I’ve included this link http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=brownbear.main for those who want more information. I will be satisfied with sharing a few of my photos.

This bear posed briefly on a gravel bar. Barnum Mountain forms the backdrop.

Another bear, another gravel bar. This one eats a chum salmon.

These bears possess an incredible sense of smell and can see as well as we can.

Bears will tear a beaver lodge apart in minutes.

A bear family strolls along the banks of the Goodnews River.

One cub had something the other wanted. Possession did not change.

The bear watches us while it secures its prize, a chum salmon.

Live is short. Get outdoors!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

Share
|





Filed Under: Photo Essays · Tagged: , , , , , ,

Dollies and Silvers and Bears, Oh My- on Goodnews River- Goodnews River Fishing Report

August 22, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

The Goodnews River Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 8/21/11

This week and next mark the peak of the Goodnews River silver salmon run. Some fly fishers are tallying 50 fish days and we’re finding fish everywhere. Fish run up to 30 inches or so and strike streamers, poppers, gurglers, spoons, spinners, and jigs, with chartreuse, cerise, hot pink, orange, and various combinations of those colors being most effective. While most fish caught in the lower river have sea lice, a few are starting to pink up already.

This silver salmon just missed the popper.

A couple days ago Steve and Julie Butler, fly casters from California, joined me for a day of silver salmon fishing on the middle fork. They brought a Pyromid charcoal grill with them, a super neat little device. We got a small salmon, which I filleted. In spite of a steady rain they got the charcoal burning and we enjoyed a very civilized lunch of freshly caught, steaming hot grilled salmon while sitting in camp chairs in the rain. A thermos of hot tea was a nice addition. They caught so many fish…

Reaching for a silver salmon.

On Saturday Phil and Linda Shmerda, from Texas, joined me for some Dolly fishing. We went up the north fork a way and started off by tossing little crappie jigs. They ought to be illegal. Phil even got several silver salmon on them, quite the battle on his 6 pound spin outfit.

This fine dolly took an orange tube fly.

Phil had interest in trying for Dollies with fly tackle. I had a couple six weights aboard and set him up with a gurgler. To use a Lefty-ism, it was like rolling a wine bottle into a jail cell. The Dollies were all over it, and he got a couple rainbow trout as well.

We came to a braid that I have a history with. A deerhair mouse imitation was tied onto the leader of the six weight, then well greased. We walked over to the braid and Phil made a few casts. Wham! Suicidal rainbow trout. Another cast or two and Wham! That one was big, and of course he got away.

Linda and I went looking for unusual stones on a gravel bar. The sun was out and it was just beautiful, wonderful people, awesome day.

We’ve been seeing bears every day. I was cleaning fish on a gravel bar a few evenings ago and here comes a bear up the river heading my way. Oh, crap. I put all the fish back in the boat and launched it asap. The bear came over to the side of the river I had been on and went swimming for one of the salmon carcasses I’d discarded. I waited patiently in my boat, watching. The bear finished its snack, then re-crossed the river and wandered back the way it had come, so I went back and started cleaning fish again.

Of course the bear came right back.

The bear came up the gravel bar.

I said the heck with this, packed up the fish and my gear, and ran up the river a couple miles to finish the job in a more bear-free environment. Bears are wonderful critters, but I wouldn’t want to get in an argument with one, especially over a few fish.

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , , , ,

Flesh Flies, Silver Salmon, and Dolly Varden on Goodnews River- Goodnews River Fishing Report

August 15, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

The Goodnews River Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 8/14/11

A fogbow down at Goodnews village.

The silver salmon bite is going strong on the Goodnews River. We’re still using weighted salmon flies on size 2 hooks dressed in pink, cerise, orange, and/or chartreuse. Pixies, Mepps Flying Cs, and 5/8 ounce jigs with twisty tails all work, too. Although the run certainly hasn’t peaked yet anglers are increasing the excitement quotient by fishing with poppers. The fish will be found in soft water all through the Goodnews River system. As always, the freshest fish in the river get caught in tidewater and still have sea lice on them. We caught the first colored silver of the season today.

Leon Martuch with a fat silver salmon.

Dead chum and pink salmon litter the banks. Fishing around the dead salmon requires a certain tolerance for stink. Trout and dollies are still eating salmon eggs but flesh flies are taking a good number of fish. I have to admit to being prejudiced against beads, since they are not flies, but the flesh flies are tied with zonker strips. In other words, they’re real flies.
In a related vein one of my fishermen, Ed Bowman, caught a dead chum while fishing in the middle fork. Appropriately, he was using a flesh fly. He also managed to catch several live rainbow trout and dolly varden.

A gratuitous picture of Drew for his mother. Hope you like it!

Dolly fishing is still sensational. The size of the average fish has is still about 20 inches long. Most of the bigger fish have moved far up the river. I still prefer a small orange gurgler tied on a #8 long shank hook, but flesh flies, egg sucking leeches, and of course beads are all working.

Fishing story: Before his arrival at Goodnews River Lodge our breakfast cook, Chris Robb, was not a fisherman. He bought a $50 fly fishing outfit before coming here. Yes, rod, reel, and line, all for fifty bucks. Needless to say, it was a complete piece of crap. I cast it myself just to see how bad it was.
Anyway, I took him out for silvers with said piece of crap and he managed to get not only his first salmon ever, but several others besides. He kept saying, “I can’t believe that rod didn’t blow up! That was the best fifty bucks I ever spent!” Crap outfit, happy ending. Good stuff.

Chris Robb battles a silver salmon on the Goodnews River.

We’ve been seeing more bears, eating salmon on the river banks and berries on the hillsides. Bears are way cool, but don’t mess with them. Here at Goodnews River Lodge we have never lost an angler (or a guide) to a bear!

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report · Tagged: , , , , ,

Silver Salmon, Dolly Varden Fishing Hot in Goodnews River- Goodnews River Fishing Report

August 8, 2011 by · Leave a Comment

The Goodnews River Fishing Report from Spotted Tail 8/7/11

Silver salmon bite steadily in the Goodnews River, with five fish limits being caught daily by most anglers. Weighted salmon flies on size 2 hooks dressed in pink, cerise, orange, and/or chartreuse are working well, as are Pixies, Mepps Flying Cs, and 5/8 ounce jigs with twisty tails. While the run is going well, it certainly hasn’t peaked yet and there’s lots of room for improvement. We prefer to catch fresh fish in tidewater but folks well up the river, fishing for dollies, have been running into silvers too.

Chums, pinks, and sockeyes are still busily digging redds and dropping eggs. Dollies and rainbow trout are sitting just downstream gorging themselves. These fish are suckers for a dead drifted bead or glo-bug.

Dolly fishing is still sensational. The average fish has dropped to about 20 inches long. Most of the bigger fish have moved far up the river. My fishermen have been using a small orange gurgler tied on a #8 long shank hook almost exclusively, the most fun you can have with a Dolly (other than maybe eating one). Most are just starting to color up. A few are already sporting fall colors.

My man Kim with one of dozens of Dolly Varden he caught on the gurgler fly.

Dead chums begin to litter the banks. The gulls are sitting there, burping. Trout will be keying on flesh. Time to tie, and use some nasty looking flesh flies.

Dead salmon support life on the Goodnews River. This was a chum salmon.

The weather this past week has, with the exception of one day, been cold, rainy, and windy. Running the boat has not been fun, but the clouds swirling around the mountains have been very dramatic, just beautiful. This is such an incredible place.

The sun tries to make an appearance through a hole in the clouds.

Most days lately have looked like this.

We have a sow bear with three cubs in the vicinity of camp. We see them frequently. She seems to be a very good mama, as all three cubs look fat and healthy.

Mama bear with some of the kids.

Embrace simplicity.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- go fishing!

John Kumiski
http://www.spottedtail.com/

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2011. All rights are reserved.

 

Share
|



Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Goodnews River- Alaska Fishing Report, Photo Essays · Tagged: , , , , , ,
« Previous Page