Guided Kasilof River King Salmon Fishing

RICH KETTERMAN KING SALMON Headed to the Kenai Peninsula in search of a Guided Kasilof River King Salmon Fishing? Consider the Kasilof River a great option!  This fishery is the located 12 mile from Soldotna Alaska and is the sister river to the Kenai River.  It is also a drift boat only King Salmon fishery which means there are no motors allowed and pressure is way less than on the Kenai River, though popularity is growing every year. kasilof river drift boat The Kasilof river has two distinctive runs of King Salmon. The First run of fish start to show up around the middle of May and usually peaks by the middle of June.  These early run Kings will typically run between 20 and 30 pounds with an occasional fish weighing over 30 pounds.  During the early season the river is much lower than it is in late June and July.  It is still cold in the high country and the runoff isn’t as heavy yet.  This is the time to come if you are looking to hook a King Salmon on the fly.  As the water rises there is more glacier silt that clouds the river and less bank fishing opportunity to fly fish. The second run of Kasilof River King Salmon start to show up near the end of June mixing in with the remainder of the first run fish and will keep coming in through the end of King salmon season.  July 31st is the last day that we are allowed to target these fish.  These fish tend to be quite a bit bigger than the first run of fish, averaging 30-40 pounds and with many fish caught every year reaching 50 pounds or larger. The Kasilof river offers some great fishing opportunities, chances to see wildlife and is in a very peaceful setting.  Sit back, relax and wait for one of these large, hard fighting fish to latch onto your line.  If you are interested in a guided King Salmon fishing trip on the Kenai Peninsula I think that the Kasilof river is a great place to fish. kasilof king salom fishing Give us a call at (907) 382-6808 or contact us through the site by clicking on the book now link! Tight Lines, Scott Sager  

Alaska fishing season

20121030-153841.jpg The Alaska fishing season is over for us here at Drifting on the Fly now.  The cool 5 am mornings are now replaced with well below freezing temps, wind and snow now for months ahead. My 2012 season is over here in Alaska and I look forward to next years Alaska fishing season already. I While getting my gear in order for the long winter ahead I was able to slip out and enjoy the kenai river for a couple afternoons. The fishing was incredible and I hated to leave it. Here are a couple pictures from my last day on the Kenai river fly fishing for rainbow trout and steelhead my last few days of the 2012 season. 20121102-151837.jpg I caught this steelhead on the Anchor river using a six weight z axis switch rod 20121102-151854.jpg 20121102-151910.jpg 20121102-151919.jpg Brian of Wilderness Way looks a little chilli as we motor back up stream for another drift.  We had an epic day on the river today and I look forward to getting back out there next spring.  Who knows maybe there will be a 20 Pound fish on the end of my line next time? Tight lines, Scott Sager  

Rainbow trout and silver salmon fishing

    October has been great rainbow trout and silver salmon fishing on the Kenai river. Water levels are good and the fish are on the bite. We have picked up a lot of rainbow trout and dolly Varden on flesh flies. 20121012-225213.jpg 20121012-225226.jpg 20121012-225238.jpg Jody has caught three fish today in the high 20’s and just can’t seem to break the 30 inch mark 20121012-225252.jpg Silver salmon (cohoe) fishing on the Kenai river has been very good. We stopped for just a few minutes to cast some streamers on a grass bank and Jody was able to pick up two salmon really fast. We quickly went back to trout fishing but I think we could have picked up a few more. 20121012-225550.jpg An Alaska fishing season is very short and I always hate to see freeze up in the near future but it is that time of year. The last few trips will be biter sweet in the way of some of the best rainbow trout and silver salmon fishing of the season but they are the last few trips. I enjoy showing people the rivers I know and if you have ever wanted to fish the Kenai peninsula keep in mind that we will be right back out there next season. Give us a call anytime and we will design a trip for the upcoming fishing season. Tight lines, Scott Sager

Lower Kenai river silver salmon fishing

Lower Kenai river silver salmon fishing has it’s rewards. The tides are not bringing a ton of fish in right now but we are putting a few in the boat. I look for fishing to improve any day for the second run of cohoe!  I enjoy fishing the lower Kenai river for silver salmon and this is where you will have the best opportunity to find the freshest fish.  Here we usually back troll quick fish or cured row and when the tide turns we will bounce lead off the bottom with a small spin and glow and eggs.  We call this back bouncing and it is a very effective way to entice cohoe into biting although I have seen flies out fish bait in this section quit a few times.  Hooking a fish close to the boat while back bouncing will be as much of an adrenaline rush as landing it!  Many times when you are bouncing eggs you will only be fishing in 3 feet of water.  Sitting on the lower kenai river silver salmon fishing is peaceful and generally there are not as many people out as there is during king salmon season.     The silver salmon of the day weighed in on the boga grip at 15 pounds. This is a very good silver salmon Tight lines Scott Sager Drifting on the fly 20120912-143638.jpg

Kenai river silver salmon fishing

Kenai river silver salmon fishing this morning. I truly love all fishing in Alaska but silver salmon have to be among the top of the list for many reasons.  They are a very aggressive fish under most circumstances and do put on a show once they are hooked.  I prefer to cast flies for them but many other techniques work as well.  You can catch silver salmon on spinners, hard plastic baits, bait and we have taken them on top water as well. This big Kenai river silver salmon was caught on a chrome hard plastic bait back trolling on the lower kenai river this morning. 20120911-124233.jpg Using rubber gloves helps keep scent off my lures and baits while I get them ready to fish.  I know scent washes off fast in the current but any edge I can give you on your kenai river silver salmon fishing trip I will try.   20120911-124922.jpg Drifting on the fly’s boat dog Tok getting some love while we wait on the next bite.  Tok doesn’t get to fish as much as he wants but when requested he loads up with enthusiasm every time.  Days we dedicate to back trolling are good days for him to hang out on the river with us.    

Willow creek chum salmon

This large Willow creek chum salmon was caught on a fly off  parks highway last week. Chum salmon are a hard fighting salmon, They are very aggressive and will fight to the end.  Thrashing gear and running you up and down the river hoping not to get spooled.  As you can see this fish put up such a fight that the line cut his mouth in multiple places he wasn’t coming to hand with any ease.  There is no way to avoid this, it’s like hooking a locomotive and trying to stop it. This fish was released and handled properly once to hand. It will continue its journey and end it’s life on a spawning bed in just a week or so.  There are many fishing opportunities for chum salmon and if you are interested in targeting these fish we will be happy to help you out. Chum salmon are not as desirable to eat as other salmon but for a sport angler they may be as great of a fish to catch as any!  I recommend a 8-9 weight fly rod for these fish and wouldn’t hesitate to use a 10 weight to bring the fish in a little faster. Tight lines Scott Sager book a trip here 20120904-090322.jpg

Fly Out Fishing Trip

A fly out fishing trip in Alaska is a bit more expensive due to the cost of the flight but if you are interested in fishing around more bears than people this is sometimes the only option.  The group and I showed up just a little early this morning at the flight service for our fly out fishing trip. I like to have time to go through my gear one more time before take off And not be in a rush. Today’s weather outlook is great. It should be as good of a day as you can get for flying in the Alaska mountain. We are headed out to chase silver salmon on the fly today. The tide and timing should be excellent for being successful but no matter what the trip will be beautiful. 20120829-072323.jpg   20120829-072336.jpg 20120829-072352.jpg 20120829-072403.jpg Tim from Natron air in Soldotna Alaska has flown me out with guest many times now. He has a well maintained, clean and reliable plane.  It’s quit an experience landing on a beach in the middle of no where.  Depending on where we fly will determine if we use a wheeled plane or a plane on floats. I will report in on the trip when we get back after we get back. Tight lines Scott Sager Www.driftingonthefly.com

Kenai river silver salmon and rainbow trout fishing

20120828-231015.jpg This mornings kenai river silver salmon and rainbow trout fishing trip was gorgeous!! The 20 minute run up river was as scenic as Alaska is! You can expect anything from fog to rain to snow to any condition in Alaska but this morning was one to praise. It was 39 degrees at the boat launch and crystal clear! It’s trout season! 20120828-231434.jpg 20120828-231451.jpg 20120828-231520.jpg Dustin and “jeff”! decided to purchase an exclusive boat for a couple days and wanted to fish Kenai river rainbow trout and silver salmon (cohoe. We limited fast this morning and had smokes and lunch on my favorite gravel bar on the Kenai river. Every day can’t be limits of salmon but it is Alaska. 20120828-232125.jpg 20120828-232206.jpg On the way back to the boat launch this pair of eagles was worth turning the boat and taking a few pics for. 20120828-232340.jpg 20120828-232349.jpg This afternoons Kenai river rainbow trout trip was great! The Leslie group had been fishing with me for years. We headed up the Kenai river and pulled off a great half day evening trip on the Kenai river. We had 4 hours of great rainbow trout and dolly Varden fishing! They group also witnessed a sow brown bear and two cubs feeding on a gravel bar. These are the same two bears that have been out for the last two evenings. 20120828-232722.jpg 20120828-232736.jpg A good Alaska fall day today! Fall is here but fishing season had just begun. If you are interest in sharing a day on the Kenai river or a fly out to a remote stream with our company feel free to contact us anytime. Off on a fly out tomorrow across cook inlet to fish for silver salmon! can’t wait to get my feet off the ground and show my guests something they haven’t experienced in 20 years of coming to Alaska. The Rivers on the Kenai peninsula are great but I will never loose the drive to explore remote places in Alaska! Tight lines, Scott Sager Drifting on the fly

Kasilof river silver salmon fishing

kasilof river silver salmon fishing today was good. There are still a lot of pink salmon coming into the river. Pinks or also known as humpies are a great fighting fish and provide lots of action for anglers. They are not as desirable for table fare as silvers because they do not freeze as well to eat later.  Most of our silver salmon were caught bouncing cured eggs of the bottom of the river.  The kasilof river isn’t as clear as some river due to the glacier silt and this is why bait with scent works well for catching fish here 20120824-212654.jpg We were just shy of a limit today but that didn’t matter to these folks. We had a great day on the kasilof river and even barbecued some fresh silver salmon on the boat today! 20120824-212919.jpg Give us a call for your next Kasilof river silver salmon fishing trip and we will custom build a package for you that suites your expectations on the Kenai peninsula and beyond! Tight lines Scott Sager Www.driftingonthefly.com

Kasilof silver salmon fishing

20120821-110650.jpg We were on the kasilof river silver salmon fishing this morning. Back trolling plugs and cured eggs trying to get in front a good push of fish.   A change in the weather from yesterday for sure. Bright sunny skies have us wearing sun scream in layers instead of rain jackets!! It’s a ladies trip today and they are a riot! We’ve caught a few silver salmon and a lot of pink salmon. A few more hours are left in the day to bring in a limit for the girls. I hope it happens for them.   20120821-111809.jpg This chrome bright silver salmon put on a real show for us.  It cart wheeled 4 times before coming into the net.  Silver salmon are the number one choice for many anglers.  The ladies have been coming to alaska for many years and prefer the fishing for the silver over any other species of salmon that they have fished for.  I have to say whatever I am fishing for at the moment tends to be my favorite fish to pursue?  I enjoy meeting new people and fishing, it’s the perfect job. If you would like to give the Kasilof river a shot for silver salmon give us a call or contact us through the site and we will hook you up!