June is in full swing and there are almost too many fishing choices! Kings, sockeye, sea-run Dollies and cutts. It seems like there aren't enough hours in the day. I guess it is not a bad problem to have.

The Dolly and cutt fishing is still going on off the beaches and in the river mouths. Due to our long and cold spring, there are salmon fry that haven't headed out into the deep water and the Dollies are grabbing every one they can. Larger Clouser Minnows (#2 and #4) are working well. A quick strip retrieve on top of a boil is the best technique. If no fish are actively feeding try a slower retrieve and let the fly sink 10 to 20 seconds before bringing it back in. Bracketing the low tide (2-3 hours before the low until 2-3 after the low) is the prime window. Amalga Harbor, Salmon Creek, Echo Cove, Juneau/Douglas Bridge Beach, and Eagle Beach by the Boy Scout Camp have all fished well lately. The lower reaches of some of the rivers have been quite good as well. The fry will soon migrate into deeper water and the Dollies will relocate to the rivers to await the return of the pink and chum salmon. This usually happens in mid to late June. Now is the time to get the last of the sea runs!

The king salmon season is also going strong. DIPAC's prediction of a larger than average return seems to be coming true. This is a great year to get into king fishing or to give it another go if it has been awhile. These kings are hatchery fish and return either to DIPAC Hatchery or Fish Creek. A ten weight rod is ideal but an eight will suffice if you just want to give it a try. A medium sink tip line is great for getting the fly down into the strike zone. Fish the dropping tide just after the high at Fish Creek. Kings move into the estuary on the high tide and slowly cruise around until they drop back out at the low. The incoming tide is generally less productive. A Fuschia Hareball Leech , Pink Fergus' Rockstar or a Chartreuse Stinger Prawn are three great patterns to entice a vicious strike. Be prepared for hoards of no-see-ums (tiny little biting flies.) We carry no-see-um headnets and lightweight fingerless bug gloves that will save your bacon out on the creek! To fish the DIPAC return, try the beaches around the hatchery or the mouth of Salmon Creek around the low tide. Kings cruise in this area before finally pushing into the hatchery.

Finally,the sockeye run at Windfall Creek is on for the month of June. It is open Wednesdays and Saturdays for the month of June ONLY. The creek is closed to all fishing on the other days. It is a very "social" fishery so don't go up there for the wilderness experience. However, it is a great chance to catch what is pound for pound probably the hardest fighting of all the salmon. An eight weight rod, a reel with a good drag system, and a floating line is best. A 9-foot 12 lb tapered leader, strike indicator, and split shot round out the terminal tackle. The #6 Sockeye Lantern and #6 Red Hot are two of the best flies. It is also good to have a few Copper Swans , Montana Brassies , and Shad Flies in your fly box. Practice getting a nice deep dead drift with a tight line so you can feel the strikes. Good luck!

See you on the water! Brad

As with the rest of the state of Alaska, Bristol Bay is a few weeks behind schedule with spring just kicking into gear. Heavy snow pack left over from winter will help insure good water levels for the year. The rivers and lakes are just now starting to swell with melt off. June 8th marked the opening of the rainbow season. Decent reports are coming from the Kvichak and Naknek rivers, but both water and air temperatures are cold. Try swinging leeches or smolt patterns.

Trout fishing in the Wood-Tikchik area is slow to start. The spawn is late this year and cooler water temps are keeping the spring hatches to a minimum. Char fishing at the mouths of the Agulawak and Agulapak rivers is up to par for this time of year and should only get better as more sockeye smolt start their migration out to sea. Swinging and stripping smolt, baitfish and flashy flesh patterns is working.

Grayling can be found in decent numbers right now. Fishing nymphs and small wooly buggers is producing.

With the ice just recently off the lake within the past few weeks, pike fishing is action packed. Hungry from the long winter, now is a good time to target these toothy critters. Big ugly leeches produce well along with mice on top.

Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) is estimating a return of 160,000 king salmon for the Nushagak River, with an in river goal of 75,000 fish. Rumors of a few fish being caught in subsistence set nets in the Dillingham area is a good sign. The first good push of kings usually happens sometime between June15-17 and fishing is usually hot by the 21st.

Both the Alagnak and Naknek river king salmon forecast are for average returns, which should number in the 5,000 fish mark. The parent years for this years returning fish were normal or close to normal returns. The Togiak River is predicted to have an average to above average return this year with an estimated 10,000 plus fish expected to return.

ADF&G predict average runs of sockeye to the Bristol Bay drainages this year. This is the prediction every year. What the actual returns will be is something only nature knows. To see ADF&G's Brisol Bay sockeye forecast go to: www.cf.adfg.state.ak.us/region2/finfish/salmon/bbay/brbfor08.pdf . To see ADF&G's Bristol Bay sport fish forecast go to: www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/Management/Areas.cfm/FA/BB.forecast

Ahhhh, summer is finally here and the fishing is good! Air and water temperatures are warming, lots of fry are swimming off the beaches, and Dollies and cutts are showing up in good numbers. The steelhead season is past its peak but isn't over yet. Many of the fish that are currently in are paired up and spawning. I can't over-emphasize how important it is to leave these fish alone. Look for single fish particularly near the mouth of the streams where the freshest fish tend to be. Often the fish farther up the creek are already in spawning mode. Use some discretion and we'll all be able to fish these magnificent runs long into the future.

Probably the best bet right now is sea-run Dolly Varden fishing. DIPAC is going to release their chum fry the first week in June. This is 2-3 weeks later than normal but due to the cold spring they are holding the fry longer to allow them to mature. There will be two releases, one in early June and one later in the month. All told they will release over 35 million fry in Gastineau Channel and over 47 million fry in Amalga Harbor. The Dolly fishing is already very solid in the channel. Once the DIPAC fry hit the water it will go into over drive.

Fishing the lower half of the tide is most productive. Three hours before the low until three hours after the low is best. The higher end of the tide tends to spread out the fish. Expect a lull in the fishing right around the low, too. A few spots to try include Sheep Creek (from the creek mouth all the way around to the Thane Ore House), the beach near the Douglas Bridge, little Kowee Creek on Douglas Island, Salmon Creek, the area where Peterson Creek flows into Amalga Harbor, and Echo Cove. Eagle Beach by the Boy Scout Camp will open on June 1 as well. This is by no means a complete list of spots. Dollies move all over in their search for a meal so try your luck at other spots. Another good technique is to look for birds (Arctic Terns in particular) feeding on fry. Birds can often lead you to the fish!

A five or six weight outfit and floating line with nine foot 3X leader is the best setup. If dollies are splashing around eating fry try to cast a fly right on them and strip it quickly. When they are in a feeding frenzy they tend to be much less selective and will recklessly grab a fly zipping away from them. If you don't see much going on, move around covering the water with casts in all directions. Also try letting the fly sink 10-20 seconds and then strip it in. Keep your strip short and quick. Don't let the Dollies get too good a look at your fly. Some good patterns include the Gray/White Clouser Minnow or the Olive/White Clouser Minnow in sizes 2, 4 and 6, Salmon Fry in size 6, Epoxy Mini Minnow in size 6, and Stinger Clousers in Olive/Whit e and Gray/White .

See you on the water. Brad

Its another cold spring. Spring 2008 is looking a lot like a repeat of 2007 with cold temperatures, low water, and a slow start to the fishing.

So far, the steelhead fishing has been tough due to very cold water temperatures and gin-clear low water. The stream survey guys at Fish and Game were recording river temps of 1-2 degrees celsius! While some steelhead have moved in, they have been skittish and hard to hook.

What we need is a dose of warm rain and it looks like we are going to get it this week. If things play out like they did in 2007, steelheading is about to get really good. Here is the scenario. The rains set in and this starts melting the snow pack and bringing river levels and water temperatures up. This in turn causes a bunch of big, happy, grabby steelhead to push in. Now through the end of May should be primo fishing for chromers.

Don’t be afraid to swing a big seductive fly when the water is up. Try a Pink Articulated Hareball Leech or a Foxee Prawn in Popsicle. Fish deep and vary the action of the fly. MOAL (Mother of All Leeches) in Pink or Black , Frank's Fly , Polar Caballeros , and Black Egg Sucking Leeches are all successful patterns. Both Peterson and Cowee Creek are good bets on the Juneau road system.

The beach fishing is just starting to pick up for sea-run Dolly Varden. The salmon fry are late in emerging and the Dollies are taking their time coming out of the lakes. The channel has been slow but fish have been taken around the Douglas Bridge, the Shrine of St. Terese, Dupont, and Gastineau Channel.

As we all know, when DIPAC Hatchery releases their Chum fry the Dolly fishing goes crazy. Usually the first Chum release is in Mid-May. Due to cold conditions and slower growth rates, DIPAC is looking to start releasing around the third to fourth week of May. The releases will be staggered but when all is said and done over 30 million Chum fry will be released in Gastineau Channel! The Gastineau smolt releases will occur at both Salmon Creek and Sheep Creek. Let the feeding frenzy begin! In addition to the the Gastineau Channel release, nearly 50 million Chum fry will be released at Amalga Harbor. Clouser Minnows in a variety of colors, Salmon Fry , and Stinger Clousers are all great producers. Keep your eye out for feeding birds (usually Arctic terns) to help locate schools of fry.

Fishing the lower half of the tide for Dollies is most productive. Three hours before the low until three hours after the low. The higher end of the tide tends to spread out the fish. Expect a lull in the fishing right around the low, too. A few spots to try include Sheep Creek, the beach near the Douglas Bridge, Kowee Creek on Douglas Island, Salmon Creek, the area where Peterson Creek flows into Amalga Harbor, and Echo Cove. The Dollies move around looking for fry but these spots are good starting points.

See you on the water! Brad