8/21/25 Fishing Report

The coho fishing is on and it is as good as we have ever seen. People are starting to find more fish up and down Thane Road, but once again the hottest spot is Sheep Creek. Several anglers have reported getting their 6 fish limits in just a couple hours. Dolly Llamas continue to be the best pattern for success, however, lots of entries have been submitted for the contest with folks having great luck with other patterns such as Kushy Tushis, Clouser Minnows and Hareball Leeches. If you don't like throwing the massive cone headed llamas, then we are sure to have something for you at the shop that will work almost as good.

One the freshwater side of things there has been some excellent bead fishing lately. Having more water has helped tremendously and has brought in a new batch of salmon. Bead colors from fresh all the way to mostly dead have worked well and the Dollies in the are starting to take on their fall spawning colors. Not only are the Dollies plentiful and beautiful but anglers have been having some excellent cutthroat trout fishing as well. The trout will also take beads, but they are more opportunistic, so you can use small sculpin patterns, nymphs and flesh flies if you want to try and focus in on targeting them.

The 2025 COHO DERBY is going now, have your photos submitted by 10 AM September 20th to be entered into the drawing! This year we will be blending last year's coho contest and this year's king contest. The contest will run from August 15th till 10:00 AM September 20th. Like last year you will need to catch three coho on three different flies. Here is how it works:

Come into the shop and pick out three different flies you will use to catch three different coho.
We will record your choices at the shop.
New rule for this year: You cannot choose Dolly Llamas as any of your three flies(!)
Once you have come into the shop to get your three flies and register, those are the three flies you must use for the contest (you can use and many as it takes, but the pattern and color can't change).
All three coho must come from the Gastineau Channel anywhere between the mouth of Fish Creek and end of Thane Road. All coho must be caught from shore and photographed with the fly in their mouth.
Either come in to show us the photos, send them to our Instagram page or email them to cory@alaskaflyfishinggoods.com.
All anglers who complete the task of catching their three coho on the three chosen flies will be entered into a drawing for three awesome prizes. We will draw the winners on Saturday September 20th; you don't need to be present at the shop to win.

COHO CONTEST PRIZES

First Place: Echo EPR 890-4 fly rod.

Second Place: Simms Dry Creek Zippered Backpack

Third Place: Grundens Dillingham Tech Hoody with Alaska Fly Fishing Goods Logo.

As always, we love featuring your photos for our fishing reports. If you have a great fish, scenery, or action photo that has to do with fishing around town send it our way! You can email photos or videos to cory@alaskaflyfishinggoods.com. Please remember to handle fish with care, especially if you are practicing catch and release. Consider getting a net with a rubber basket to help land fish quickly, pinch your barbs and keep them in the water until you are ready to snap a quick photo.

See you on the water!

The Crew at AFFG

Listed below are the hot patterns of the week. Fisheries change here through-out the season and so do the best patterns to use. Below are some of the recommended flies for the current fisheries. Happy fishing!