Fishing Tips

Many steams support runs but unless a river is fed by a lake, its seelhead population is probably fewer than fifty fish. Steelhead population exist in Red bay, Saint John harbor, along with several other lake fed rivers in the Point baker area. The bag limit for wild steelhead is one per day with seasonl limit of two fish.

Cutthroat, rainbow, and steelhead trout occur thoughout Southeast Alaska, but ADF&G became concerned in the early 1990's that these species had been over harvested. Regionwide cutthroat and steelhead harvests had declined, and anglers expreesed concern over lower catch rates. At the same time, angler effort had more than doubled since 1985. To preserve these fish populations, the Alaska Board of Fisheries set an annual limit on steelnead and modified daily bag , possession and size limits for cutthroat and rainbow trout. A seasonal ban From November 16 thru September 13 on bait in fresh water was also introduced because higher catch and release mortality rates result when bait is used, especially for smaller fish.

The steelhead regulation of one willd steelhead per day 36 inches or longer and two per year will protect over 90% of adult steelhead from harvest but makes for some great catch and release fish.

Wild steelhead and resident cutthroat trout populations are fragile in Southeast Alaska waters. Catch and realease fishing techniques to avoid injuring released fish:

Anglers must complete an harvest record for each steelhead caught. It is located on the reverse side of sport fishing license.

King Salmon is a highly prized sport fishing species and is one of the least abundant salmon speciies in northern Southeast Alaska, but grows the largest and is a powerful, enduring fighter.

King Salmon inhabit the water of Southeast Alaska year round. Large king salmon bound for spawning grounds and weighing up to 70 pounds are around from late April through June. Immature "feeder" or "shakers" kings ranging from 10 to 40 pounds come through Sumner straight area and remain in the area to feed during July thru September. Persistent anglers can find a few scattered fish throughout the winter.

Anglers visiting the Point Baker area most frequently ask, "when is the best time to fish for King Salmon?" Fishing improves greatly with spring weather in late April, but the prime time is from late May through the month of June. Anglers targeting kings may have catch rates of up to 5 hours per fish harvested in June. Catch rates fall with the beginning of the commercial troll fishery in July, although good king salmon fishing continues thoughout the summer.

The best way to locate king salmon is to locate bait fish, usually with a fathometer. Once herring or needlefish schools are found, you can be sure king salmon are not far away. Presence of sea birds also indicates presence of bait fish. Murres, Murrelets, Auklets, and other diving birds are notorious for swimming under herring shools and forcing bait fish to the surface. When this happens, flaping, anxious gulls can be spotted form miles away attacking the balled up herring schools. If you don't find bait fish shools on the fathometer or see bird activity, explore around points of land that project out into tidal currents, where schools of bait fish are likely to be found. The current create eddies and rips that concentrate food for bait fish, and in trun attract king salmon.

Marine sport angler use two techniques for ocean salmon fishing: trolling and mooching. The traditional method, "trolling," uses flasher gear like commercial salmon trollers, but many trollers forego the use of flasher and fish a herreing behind the sinker, hooked to swim in a large oscillating circle. this method usually catches larger, although maybe not as many, fish and is often used near dropoffs and submerged kelp beds. flashers or dodgers require relatively heavy line (20 to 30 pound or greater) and heavy sinkers (8 to 32oz) A downrigger with a quick releases lets an angler fish without heavy weights on there gear and makes fighting a hooked fish much easier. Our boats are all equiped with downrigger and seems to help with depth control as well.

Rotating flashers or side wobbling dodgers attract salmon either by resembling a school of bait avoiding a predator or by imitating the flash of a salmon attacking a school of bait.

A suitable flasher rod is long enough to cope with five of six feet of flasher leader, plus two and a half feet or terminal leader. Shorter rods can be used along with a downrigger, as no flasher leader is required. Rods should be sensitive enough to feel what is on the line. Flasher gear may appear to be insensitive and unwieldy, but it is in fact are so sensitive that small pieces of grass fouled on terminal gear are easily detected and corrected.

Terminal gear usually consists of a small herring,or strip from a larger one, treaded onto a treble hook or affixed onto twin single hooks with a "bait biter" so that it is tossed back and forth by the rotating flasher. Single or double hook artificals (plastic hootchies or skirts, Bucktail flies, and small spoons can also be used behind a flasher. Most anglers trail the terminal gear twenty eight to thirty two inches behind a flasher when fishing for Kings. Flasher color and size are individual preferences, based on experience, reputation, or superstition.

The other saltwater salmon fishing technique,"mooching", consists of fishing with lighter gear from an anchored, drifting, or slowly trolled boat. During the peak summer months, mooching probably is more effictive for catching large king salmon because it can cover the widest range of depths. Mooching rods are seven to ten foot fiberglass or graphite composite, rigged with a light saltwater revolving spool reel with line capacity of about two hundred yards of twenty to thirty pound test monofilament.

The many kinds and colors of artificial lures, plugs, and spoons displayed on tackle shop walls may all be used effectively, although some colors work better than others during certain times of the year. Many king salmon anglers, though, leave the artificial lures hanging in the tackle shop, because the very best bait, day in and out is herring. The three basic herring setups are a whole herring, a plug cut herring and a strip or narrow triangle cut form the side of a frozen or salted herring. Most anglers use two hooks of size range 2/0 to 5/0, tied in tandem depending upon bait length; some prefer a single hook rig. All herring bait setups ar designed to spin in the water. Any rate of rotation will work as long as there is rotation. Which of the three setups to use is purely a matter of personal preference, and the best way to learn to use them is to have someone who fishes them show you how.

Coho Salmon: To many anglers, these are second only to king salmon. With the exception of pink salmon in some years, more coho salmon are harvested by sport anglers than any other species in Southeast Alaska. They are easy to catch, and they often travel in large schools that provide intense action. Coho fishing can be done with a variety of gear from any vessel. Large boats can work deeper waters, and open skiffs even canoes can cruise along the margins of kelp beds. Most anglers fish with fresh or frozen herring bait while trolling, drifting with the tide, or anchoring in areas of active tidal currents. Coho salmon are usually no deper than 30 feet and are frequently caught within a foot or two of the surface. Gear varies with the angler's style. some use heavy line with leaders, flashers, or dodgers, and a whole herring for bait. Coho can be taken just as effectively on the simplest gear: 15 to 20 pound test line and 2 to 6 ounce weights, followed by a 25 pound test double hook leader and a herring fished whole, as a strip, or plug. When they're biting nearly everything works. Spinning gear is equally effective, with fly rod and flies, or bait casting. Coho salmon are aggressive and strike readily. They usually do so on the run and set the hook themselves. All anglers agree on one thing, successful coho fishing is a matter being in the right place at the right time. The right place is an area where ocean currents and coastal topography concentrate the fish or their food source. The right ime is usually an hour or so before or after a change of tide. However, none of the above seems to matter when the run is a its peak, usually the third week in August. Coho salmon begin appering in the sport catch late in June, when the anglers are fishing for kings. Their availability and cach rates rise through mid august. In early to mid September they head rapidly toward their home streams to congregate near the estuaries the left as smolt 17 months earlier. Saltwater fishing for coho is essentially over by the end of September.The most common cause of lost fish at the boat is when anglers get to aggressive and try to net a green fish. Take your time, keep a tight line and play them until they are ready. A quick tug on the line by the angler, when the fish is close to the boat usually accounts for a lost fish.