salmon fishing in early June

[Markanddonna]

I'm trying to choose a company to go with from either Juneau 1-10, Sitka 7-3, or Ketchikan 7-1. (I listed the times we would be in each port).

 

This is for my husband's 65th BD and I am totally not a fisherman. I need your help and some basic guidance. Also, I am going to offer to go with a big smile on my face, and my only concern is getting sea sick. I have never experienced that on a ship but will bring my meds and sea band.

 

Any and all advice and recommendations are greatly appreciatd.

Connie

[slider728]

I'm trying to choose a company to go with from either Juneau 1-10, Sitka 7-3, or Ketchikan 7-1. (I listed the times we would be in each port).

 

This is for my husband's 65th BD and I am totally not a fisherman. I need your help and some basic guidance. Also, I am going to offer to go with a big smile on my face, and my only concern is getting sea sick. I have never experienced that on a ship but will bring my meds and sea band.

 

Any and all advice and recommendations are greatly appreciatd.

Connie

 

I grew up in the Juneau area and have access to my own boat and such, so to be honest, I can not tell you Company X or Charter Service Y is the company to go with. What I hope to do is fill in some of the details and help set your expectations to make the most of your trip.

 

Most of the salt water fishing is based on runs and migrations. Salmon come in runs as basically large groups of salmon move through areas, ultimately arriving (in theory) the area where they were born to spawn. Halibut are migratory. Many halibut move around the ocean with the season.

 

So at any given time, fishing might be hot in one area and a complete waste in another. Mother nature is unpredictable as well, so while you can look at charts and base the timing of the runs on the past, there is nothing that says the salmon will be at this spot on this day.

 

That being said....

 

June can be a bit of a tough time to fish. Usually the king salmon run will be in full swing then, but fishing for king salmon is is much like trying to find a boyfriend/girlfriend. You can go long periods of time without as much as a bite on your fishing line, then all of a sudden, you'll have 2 or 3 fish on at once. Halibut might be around the Juneau area, but they usually start appearing heavily in the end of June, early July.

 

Two things I would recommend looking at.

 

First is the local fishing reports. The Alaska Fish and Game issues reports (sometimes weekly, sometimes bi monthly) talking about fishing success rates in SE Alaska. The catch rate for sport fishermen is measured in "rod hours". A rod hour is exactly like it sounds, how many hours your rod must be in the water per fish on average.

 

Depending on when you go, you might start seeing 2013 reports. However, they have archived reports as well online from the previous year (won't guarantee the same results this year, but it can give you an idea). The link is at:

 

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/cfanc/sfpublic/FishingReports/

 

Click on the region you want. If there are current reports, you will usually see them on the next page. If not, you can go to the 2012 archives toward the bottom. You can use these archival reports with the dates you are going and maybe plan your excursion based on the information.

 

The next thing I would recommend looking at is the run timing chart (also Alaska fish and game). Go to the page, select the proper area from the pull down menu, and it will show you what fish to expect in the area:

 

http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingSportFishingInforuntiming.main

 

As your trip draws near, another resource you can look at is the Alaska Saltwater Fishing Forum. A number of fishermen gather on there and exchange information. You can often pick up information on the areas the fish are and where they are not. Personally, I utilize this resource when back in Juneau and my regular fishing holes aren't producing:

 

http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/forumdisplay.php/3-Alaska-Saltwater-Fishing

 

I hope this helps!

[Markanddonna]

This is just the kind of information I need to make the final decision. Please, others who have info or experience: I need to go to Alaskan Fishing College on CC.

[mapleleaves]

Members of my family go fishing in Alaska every summer. They used to go to Ketchikan but now they go to an all inclusive lodge in Sitka. Last summer's trip was 6/21-25 and they limited out every day on salmon and halibut. Wild Strawberry might be a multi day lodge but you can check their web site.

or look into Ketchikan Charter Boats and Northern Lights in Ketchikan.

If you're not into fishing you might not enjoy it. It can be gruesome. And it's pricey, so do something YOU will enjoy while he fishes.

Did you read wallys trip report currently on the front page of cc? He took several fishing excursions ... check out where he went.