The Reds are coming! The Reds are coming! The Reds are still coming! And still coming, and still coming??? As the first half of August winds down, we are still seeing strong sockeye returns to the Kenai River with counts around 30,000/day all through the month so far! Usually mid August we are getting excited about the silvers coming, and the silvers are starting to come, but mostly we are amazed at the late run of red salmon. Water levels are fairly low throughout the rivers, so boat carefully and be aware of the conditions. We are also losing light quickly, so its staying darker later in the morning and getting darker earlier in the evening.
Kasilof River
Similar to the Kenai, the Kasilof River had fair to slow fishing for silver salmon in the early part of August. The slow trickle has turned into a much more consistent flow of chrome, and limits are becoming more and more common each day. When fishing, be sure to stay out of the channel, as there are still quite a few (King salmon) hanging around and they should be left alone this time of year as they are preparing to spawn.
Middle & Lower Kenai
On the Lower and Middle Kenai, the sockeye are still center stage with six fish limits continuing to be very attainable. Good numbers of sockeye on the Lower River means the middle river should see good fishing much later than what is traditionally seen. As the run progresses- and it will end sooner or later- follow the fish up river for continued success. Silvers are also entering the Kenai, and although the early part of the month saw fairly slow fishing, good numbers of silvers are now consistently entering the river and fishing has been very good for the past week. Much like last year, many of the first run coho have been huge and look much more like 2nd run Coho. Expect silver fishing to improve and stay good for the next couple of months.Try casting bright Dolly Llamas and other bright colored streamers into eddies & strip back slowly. As the number of sockeye fishermen have started to dwindle, the trout are moving in closer to the banks grabbing up flesh and salmon parts. With kings dropping, there is a pretty good bead bite as well throughout the river in various sections between Soldotna and Skilak Lake.
Upper Kenai
The Upper Kenai water levels continue to be extraordinarily low for this time of year. At 4900 cfs, the trout can be consolidated in obvious water, making fishing easy. The Kings have begun to spawn in a few spots and the river is filling up with bright red ripe sockeye. It's about to go big! Expect it to be matching the egg "hatch" for the next few weeks when it comes to fishing for trout. The color of your bead could change by the day, but a nice 8mm in natural roe colors will do the trick. Make sure you pinch your barbs as the rainbows and dollies are very vulnerable to getting caught by egg imitations this time of year. As a bonus, bright shiny coho are beginning to show up. Fish a big pink or black hareball leech for success. Their run should peak up here near the end of the month but will be good through September. The Russian River is down to a trickle, but it's raining now and the water should come up a bit over the next few days. Beads become legal fare after August 20th, and if you want to be in the game, that's what you should be using! Salmon anglers have thinned out, so if you want a chance at some rainbows, now's the time!
Summary
Weve reached the midpoint in August, and typically the sockeye season would be coming to a close. However, a strong steady late run has kept this fishery going along with silvers and what is expected to be very good trout fishing going forward! So get your gear and get out there- and make sure to plan for our fall Alaskan weather, as you never know which way it will go once you get out there!
Fishing report compiled on 8-15-15 by Brendyn Shiflea of Pretty Fly For a White Guy with in river action reports and pictures submitted by guides Lee Kuepper of Alaskas Angling Addiction, Mark Wackler of Fishology Alaska, and Brian Kaferstein of Alaska Wildland Adventures. All are current or past board members of the Kenai Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
