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Tag: kenai river fly fishing

Pre Tied Leaders

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Pre tied leaders are a must for the serious fisherman.  Having them on hand will keep you in the strike zone longer than if you have to tie them on the river.  I recommend a pips box for holding my tippets  that I tie in the winter each year. It will make you more efficient and you will catch more fish.  

I find for the kenai river bead rig I can get about a hundred pre tied tippets in one pips box.  This saves me A lot of time on the water. For my standord Kenai river leaders I will start with 2-3 foot of 25-30 pound for a but sections.  Amnesia works well for this. Then work down from there in leader material size.  Depending on the water level of the river I will use a 9-11 foot leader.

We wish everyone to have a great holiday season and look forward to the start of 2009 Alaska fishing season. Here at Drifting on the Fly we are settled into our cabin and are enjoying the winter season.  Dec. 21st is a day to mention, we start gaining a little sunlight each day now until June.  It will not make much of a difference for a month or so but it is nice to think about.

Tight lines, Scott Sager www.driftingonthefly.com

Fly Tying For Alaska

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Fly Tying for Alaska fishing trips can be a great way to keep your mind on the fun trip ahead.  Tying flies that will produce more Rainbow trout and salmon for your trip will save you money. The first entry will deal with putting together an articulated hook system.  Articulated flies work well imitating leaches, minnows, other fish.  I enjoy fishing them but tying for example an articulated leach takes some time. No Matter what hooks you use and where you make your articulation the steps are basically the same.  On this particular fly I made the head articulated to the shoulder of the fly.  This is different way to make an egg sucking leach.   1)  put your front hook in the vise (cut at the shank or not) and make a few wraps with you bobbin and thread. 2) take your Dacron or other rope like material and loop it through the eye of the trailer hook. 3) Now you can take the tag ends of the Dacron and tie it to the front hook.  3 or 4 wraps to start and pull straight down to lock it into place.  then continue forward with wraps up the shank of the front hook. 4) Once you are 3/4’s of the way up the shank fold the material back towards the bend of the hook and wrap back over the tags.  This will lock in the material and it shouldn’t be able to pull off the front hook.  I always add super glue between any step in the process.  It’s cheep and it also adds strength to your fly. For this fly I prefer the head to be weighted with lead eyes to achieve the action I want. To add lead eyes I first add super glue where the eyes will be laying on the hook then with many figure 8 wraps lock the eyes on.   Tying flies can be fun, it allows you to be creative and it also passes the time in the cold winter months.  I highly recommend it and if you have an idea and would like me to share it on my blog, don’t hesitate to let me know through my website at www.driftingonthefly.com Thanks and tight lines

FLY TYING FOR ALASKA SILVER SALMON

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  silver salmon fishing Fly tying for Alaska silver salmon fishing is a great way to pass the cold winter months.  Filling your fly boxes in the winter can save you lots of time when the bite is on.  There is nothing that can slow a great day of fishing down more than running out of your favorite pattern.  I start with silver salmon flies first.  After I get my bead boxes back in good shape, tying bright, flashy, big patterns keeps me interested and motivated.  Articulated flies are always good to have in your box.  Purple, Dark brown, chartreuse, pink and black are all good colors to start with when you are filling your box.  There are many new materials available to us for fly tying and coming up with your own variations of fly’s is always fun.  It is also more rewarding to me when I catch a fish on a fly that I have put together.  Give it a try if you haven’t already and I would be happy to give any advice that I can.  Give us a call and we can talk about patterns that you might need for your next fishing trip to Alaska.   Stay tuned and check in on the website at www.driftingonthefly.com for more information.

Winter Kenai River Rainbow Trout Fishing

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  A few things to keep in mind for Winter Kenai River Rainbow Trout Fishing. 1, watch the weather patterns and fronts that are moving through.  If it is calling for a high of 30 degrees it is probably going to be warm enough to keep the ice off the guides for a few hours. 2, fish slow and thorough concentrating in good, producing runs.  Fish will concentrate and follow the food source. 3, stay warm,  Slow down and take the time to keep yourself warm.  Sometimes I find myself wade fishing too long and needing more time to warm up. 4, be smart,  carry extra cloths, first aid kit, extra hand warmers and lots of extra gloves.  Wet hands  will make your whole body cold, try a hook and release tool to keep your hands dry. Remember that removing fish from the water in below freezing temperatures will freeze there gills almost immediately.  I know that I have been bad for this in years past like many folks but it is something that is very important and is our responsibility in helping protect our resource. If you are interested in booking a 2009 trip or just have a question feel free to contact me at www.driftingonthefly.com Tight lines, Scott Sager

FALL TROUT FISHING ON THE KENAI RIVER

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Fall trout fishing on the Kenai River can be epic.  My good friend Nigel Fox caught this Rainbow Trout on his favorite flesh fly. If the temperatures are right at this time of year we will allow you to remove the fish briefly from the water for a picture Late Oct. when the conditions are right you might switch it up and try one of your favorite flesh flies.  Many flies work at this time of year.  Leech’s, flesh flies, egg patterns, a variety of nymphs and many more, so techniques change as we change patterns. The mornings are cold and winter is knocking on our door now.  I would like to be able to chase kenai river rainbow trout for a few more weeks though. Guiding on the kenai river is very exciting for me because you never know when the opportunity for a fish of a lifetime is willing to bite. We offer both fly fishing and spin fishing guided trips.  No matter how you would like to fish the Kenai River we can accommodate your style.  Upper river drift boat trips and middle kenai river power boat trips available. I hope that if you are interested in a guide trip that you will contact us for your next Alaska fishing vacation. Tight Lines, Scott Drifting On The Fly, LLC

KENAI PENINSULA GUIDED FISHING

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Kenai peninsula guided fishing for Trophy Rainbow trout fishing combined with sockeye salmon fishing makes for a fun day.  Kenai river king salmon fishing is also available at this time of year. The Sockeye Salmon fishing should pick up again near the end of the  first week of July and be good through the second week of Aug.  That has been the norm for the last few years.  These are hard fighting fish with a built in instinct to trash gear you can plan on some excitement.  If you plan to chase these fish on your own make sure that you put a little extra in your gear so the odds of getting them to shore gets a little better. The  Rainbow trout bite has been very good while fly fishing leeches and minnow imitations.  I like to fish a down and across drift right now with a sink tip line.  The water has been very clear but is now coming up with just a little color. In the bigger water the larger leech patterns show up better and produce the most strikes.  If you have any questions feel free to contact me at www.driftingonthefly.com for your next guided kenai river trip. Thanks and tight lines Scott Sager

FLY FISHING FOR KING SALMON

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RICH KETTERMAN KING SALMON Fly fishing for king salmon on the Kenai Peninsula! How about a few busted knuckles? I narrowly escaped with mine intact yesterday while . We were fishing about 100 yards from the saltwater and when I hooked him, he decided he didn’t like the fresh water anymore. I have to say that I have never had any fish, run that hard in the fresh water!  This king salmon took an olive articulated egg sucking leach at the end of the swing. The fishing has been great this time of the year. The King Salmon are starting to increase in numbers though it has taken a little while for them to get going. It has been a cool Spring in South central Alaska and this affects everything, even the salmon run. This has however been my most productive Spring season with a fly rod for King Salmon though and I can only hope it keeps going that way. Are you interested in learning how to fly fish for a few tackle busting King Salmon? Give me a call 907-382-6808 and we can arrange for that to happen in short order on your next kenai peninsula guide trip with Drifting on the Fly! Tight Lines, Scott Sager Drifting On The Fly, LLC

Silver Salmon Fly Fishing

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When I think of Salmon on the fly rod I think Silver Salmon fly fishing.  The fishing typically gets good by mid to late July on some of our fly out fishing and mid Aug. to the end of Oct. on the Kenai peninsula and the kenai river.  In the right conditions silver salmon will take the fly very aggressively.  I’ve even had many opportunities to take these fish on top water.  Bunny flies, articulated flies, marabou flies, leaches, spoon flies, etc. are just a few patterns that will work well for these fish.  I find a slow strip in slow water or swinging your flies in faster water draw the most strikes.  I prefer a strip set or scissor strike to set the hook.  This way if you miss the fish you don’t pull the streamer out of the strike zone and often the fish will come back to give you a second chance.  If you are fishing from a boat make sure you fish the fly all the way back to the boat.  I see fish chasing all the way to the boat for a last chance strike. If you are interested in matching your skills with these fish make sure you contact me at www.driftingonthefly.com and we’ll get you lined up on a alaska fishing guide tip. Thanks and tight lines Scott Sager Drifting On The Fly, LLC

DOLLY VARDEN FISHING ON THE KENAI RIVER

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Dolly Varden fishing on the Kenai River is often off the hook in the spring until the middle of september.  This beautiful fish was caught in the fall right before the Dolly mVarden spawn.  Dolly Varden are in the char family and spawn in the fall.

When you find spawning Sockeye Salmon you’ll be sure to find a Dolly Varden or two behind them.  With clearer water look for the shadows under and behind the salmon.  They can be hard to see sometimes but whenever you approach the stream or river make sure you spend a minute looking before walking right up to the water.  This fish was caught in the middle of September on the Kenai river and is a very good fish. Large 25 inch or bigger Dolly Varden are caught daily on the kenai river when the bite is going off. Guided Dolly Varden fishing on the Kenai River is easily booked with Drifting on the Fly.  Give us a call or email us here and we will get you hooked up on a fishing trip of a lifetime. Tight Lines, Scott Drifting On The Fly, LLC

FALL STEEL HEAD FISHING

Posted on by Drifting-admin
fall steel head fishing is in full swing right now. I don’t know if it is good or bad… The river level that is. On one hand I cannot get to my favorite “winter fishing” areas because I can’t wade across the river. On the other hand these levels make the river very easy to float the Kenai River. The Kenai River continues to flow at a July level. An ice dam breaking started the abundant flow of water and recent rain/ snow has kept the levels up. As I write this it is 23 degrees but yesterday the high was 45 degrees – balmy! The snow from last week has almost all melted in the flats though, the mountains are fully covered. The middle river (Kenai) is still fishing well with flesh and eggs. Steel head fishing has been hit or miss but my most productive runs have been producing fish every day.. The Steel head runs seem to be sporadic this year than like other years and the streams on the lower peninsula are dirty from the rainfall.  This is probably why the fishing seems to be sporadic? Give us a call to book a fishing trip on the kenai river or surrounding waters or to get a report on what I have been experiencing. Tight Lines, Scott Sager Drifting On The Fly, LLC