The Upper Kenai River opened this
week with prime water conditions, and big Rainbows were in battle
formations
ready to pull anglers' chains after a long winter. The first run of
Sockeye have arrived on the Upper Kenai heading for the Legendary
Russian
River, a main tributary of the Upper Kenai River. Magnum Trout and Char
are
using these five to seven pound chromers as meat shields to navigate up
the river
into the Combat Zone where hundreds of pounds of Sockeye carcass, guts,
and egg
sacs are being thrown back into the river by mobs of blood thirsty,
frenzied
salmon anglers below the confluence of the Russian and Kenai Rivers.
Trout
anglers dead drifting micro flesh flies and 8mm beads in the deeper runs
and
drops below the Salmon Apocalypse are getting their rotator cuffs
stretched to
the max.
The Kenai River Canyon is also producing some mega
results in the Boils and deep cliff runs for some big native red
stripers and
transitional Chrome out of Skilak Lake. Again, flesh and egg patterns
are
standard connectors, however do not hesitate to swing some big leeches
in the
mix. The River delta into Skilak is especially kicking down on the
swing, but
be prepared to get embarrassed when that ultra rainbow pulls a figure-
eight
360 swirl maneuver and wraps your neckpiece with fly line.
The middle Kenai River is throwing down some epic
leech
fishing for Rainbows from the outlet down to the Killey River Tributary.
Trout
anglers swinging deep with big 4-6 inch Loop Leeches in Black, Brown,
and Olive
are getting crushed on the swing. Massive schools of smolt are boiling
out of
Skilak Lake and the setting is straight out of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The
Birds” with Arctic terns and Loons swarming on the feed. Below the
Killey
River, articulated flesh flies in white, grey, and cream are lighting it
up in
the “dirty water” below this trib. I would highly recommend upgrading
your tippets to the 12lb class in this stretch of water as the Rainbows
here
are completely on another level and hand out free lessons like you have
never
seen.
More Reports to follow
Billy
