Those that return from the Sea

Alaska

King salmon! In the summer of 1996 the Alagnak River and all Bristol Bay streams were running very low. The conditions made for spotty king fishing using traditional methods, but fly fishing for kings was outstanding at times. The fish pictured at right took a spun marabou fly at The Glory Hole, then proceeded to tear backing off my reel like no other salmon I have ever hooked. A half hour and an aching, cramped forearm later, this fish came to the anchored boat nearly expired. That's the only way I was able to get it in the net.

An ocean bright silver, or coho, salmon on the lower Alagnak River, Southwest Alaska, August 1994. The first silvers start to show in the lower river in early August, but the big runs usually appear in the second half of the month. Alagnak silvers aren't large, but they love to take wet flies on the hard swing.

The sockeye salmon at right spent its final days in the Kulik River (Southwest Alaska), in Katmai National Park. Sockeye congregate between Nonvianuk and Kulik lakes in July and August. Here they spawn and die, in the process carrying nutrients from the sea back to their otherwise nearly sterile natal stream. The returning salmon attract hordes of hungry creatures, like brown bears, eagles, and to the angler's delight rainbow trout. The rainbows feed on the spawning salmon's eggs and decaying flesh. The trout fishing can be phenomenal! (the good sockeye jpg's are from photos taken by Andrew Hendry, University of Washington School of Fisheries)

British Columbia

A fly-caught winter steelhead. This photo is from the Bella Coola River in British Columbia, mid-April 1995. This 5 lb. hen was the only steelhead we caught that week. Sadly, the once healthy winter and spring run of native Bella Coola steelhead appears to be endangered.

The sea-run cutthroat on the Bella Coola were much more numerous, along with sea-run dollies. Both species were receptive to minnow-imitating wet flies as well as big, leechy steelhead patterns.

Here's another sea-run cutt from the Bella Coola.

And another BC steelhead, river of origin unknown to me . . .

Washington State

Earlier that same week, I caught this minty fresh Skykomish hen steelhead. She took a dark leechy fly on the hard swing and also fought well. This fish was about 33 inches long, silver and black, gorgeous...

A Skykomish sea-run dolly varden, spring 1994.

An Atlantic salmon in Puget Sound? That's right, this escapee took a swinging muddler fished by none other than Seattle's Brian Lencho in August, 1996. It was the second Atlantic we took on flies that day. Brian's fish weighed about 8 lbs, mine was a "grilse" of 22 inches or so. In recent years there have been many reports of these fish-farm escapees following Pacific salmon into local watersheds. This summer's Atlantic run has been rumored to be especially large. The Atlantics seem to take flies readily, and all five that I've examined appear unable to reproduce (thankfully!). Nonetheless I find it troubling that there are so many domesticated, non-native fish nosing into our salmon and steelhead streams. If you catch an Atlantic in a Pacific stream, do the right thing and knock it on the head!