www.driftingonthefly.com Archives - Page 2 of 19

Brown bear viewing along the Kenai River

Posted on September 25, 2012 by Drifting-admin

Brown bear viewing along the Kenai river on a nice fall evening makes for a great trip.

Brown bear viewing along the Kenai River can very interesting. When the salmon show up in good numbers the bears both black and brown will come down along the Kenai to feed. Often in the late summer and fall the bears can be seen at anytime of day. Though like with most animals the best time to view them is in the early morning and the evenings. These three bears played and fished for a few hours while we fished for rainbow trout. This gave us plenty of opportunity to take pictures and enjoy them without getting to close. The bears will usually tolerate boats pulling up at a reasonable distance to take pictures but they are wild animals and they will decide what is to close. We always respect the wildlife by giving them the space to do what comes natural to them! FISH. If you are interested in brown bear viewing along the kenai river give us a call and we will try to line up a short trip for you.

Alaska kenai peninsula weather

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Drifting-admin

The Alaska Kenai Peninsula weather has been ugly the last few days. I drove up to anchorage for yesterday and encountered some heavy gust of wind and bad rain on the way up and the way back.

This is a picture I took coming around turnagain arm this morning. The wind had to be blowing at least 40 miles per hour here.

The Alaska railroad along Turnagain arm heading to the kenai peninsula

I Launched my boat on the Kenai River this evening and it ended up being beautiful. The wind laid down and the clouds even let a few rays of sun through.The fishing season is far from over on the Kenai peninsula. In slower parts of the system like in this picture you can find concentrations of Silver salmon. Here I like to throw steamer patterns such as egg sucking leeches or articulated bunny flies, spinners also work well. I find that a slow steady retrieve finds most of my bites. If you are interested in one of the prime dates for rainbow trout, silver salmon and or steelhead give us a call anytime. Tight lines, Scott Sager 907-372-6808 Drifting on the fly

Kenai peninsula fall

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Drifting-admin

The Kenai Peninsula fall is short but the peak colors can be beautiful if you catch them right. It is just about peak And in a couple more days and the leaves will fall and winter will be here for the most part. Termination dust is starting to top the mountains and the hills are starting to look a little more bear now. Along the Kenai river the views are spectacular right now. Cool mornings and almost 65 degrees in the afternoon make for my favorite time of year. The rainbow trout, silver salmon and steel head fishing are in full swing right now. I am finding that the silver salmon fishing is very good. I have had a good time back trolling, casting spinners and casting flies at these acrobatic salmon. most of our fish have been very bright and we haven’t had to release very many due to being in the river to long yet. Silver salmon fishing should continue to be good through the month. The Kenai Peninsula falls have a lot to offer from spectacular views to excellent fishing!

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Walk and wade on the Kenai river

Posted on September 17, 2012 by Drifting-admin

Walk and wade on the Kenai river can be a great way to chase trophy rainbow trout. There are many steams and lakes that are in the surrounding area as well as the kenai river to fish. Rainbow trout and dolly Varden are staged behind spawning salmon which in places can be very close to shore. Match the hatch and it should be fish on. When ever I walk and wade on the Kenai river I carry pepper spray or a firearm. This is the time of year that bears are cruising the banks during daylight hours and one never knows. Sometimes using good judgement and respecting the wildlife isn’t enough and you need to have protection. Remember you are in Alaska. Guided day trips for walk and wade fishing trips are 275.00$ per person plus tax. I like to keep it to a maximum of 4 people per guide so that we don’t loose that personal attention that you are paying for. Give us a call or click here anytime and we will be happy to get you lined up

Walk and wade on the kenai river is another great way to enjoy your Alaska fishing vacation. These anglers were able to fool these fish into taking there presentation and never set foot in a boat.

Kenai peninsula steel head fishing

Posted on September 15, 2012 by Drifting-admin

Kenai peninsula steel head fishing Dolly Varden are a real bonus fish while Fishing for steelhead on the Kenai peninsula . This morning the bite was on in a few holes and we just happened to be there while it was going on.

This Steel head was hooked and released in very shallow water. When approaching any body of water make sure you take a second to look and see if any fish might be close enough you could spook by just walking up to the edge of the water. You might be making your first couple of cast standing back in the bushes to not spook these fish

Once you have covered the water closer to shore then you can make your way further out into the stream. Most of the Kenai Peninsula steel head fishing is done in smaller streams and rivers. They are easily accessible and in most places you can wade across the river. This makes it nice for chasing those big ocean run steel head up and down the river too!

Lower Kenai river silver salmon fishing

Posted on September 13, 2012 by Drifting-admin

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

Kenai river silver salmon fishing

Posted on September 12, 2012 by Drifting-admin

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.

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.

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.

Kenai river fly fishing

Posted on September 11, 2012 by Drifting-admin

It was a beautiful fall day to be on the Kenai River fly fishing. The morning started off below freezing then Quickly warmed up to almost 60 degrees. There was not to much wind and almost not a cloud in the sky. The rainbow trout fishing was good but the dolly Varden seemed to be on the bit the most today. Salmon carcasses are starting to pile up on the gravel bars and this is the time of year I wait to run some of my best flesh fly patterns. When the Dolly varden wont seem to let the egg pattern alone switch to a flesh fly and you will see your rainbow trout catch start to go up and we did! I don’t discriminate against Dollies but when they are aggressively feeding on eggs its hard to find a trout bite sometimes. Dolly Varden are hard runners and head shakers you can almost tell instantly the difference between them and a rainbow trout when you hook up.

The 2011 season is quickly coming to an end. If you are still thinking of taking a Rainbow Trout, silver salmon or steelhead fishing trip feel free to give us a call anytime at 907-382-6808 or email us Tight lines Scott Sager!

KingFisher Restaurant

Posted on September 10, 2012 by Drifting-admin

After a good day of fishing the upper Kenai river fishing for rainbow trout and dolly Varden we decided to have dinner at the kingfisher restaurant. The KingFisher restaurant is located just above the waters edge on Kenai lake, excellent food and one of the best views of any restaurant I’ve been to. Plus I really enjoy the IPA that is on tap.

Leaving the kingfisher full and ready to hit the water after sleeping off a large meal.

Paddle boarding is getting popular on the kenai peninsula. Although I did see a group going down the kenai river the other day and with the boat traffic I don’t know that I would recommend that or not? Probably not!

While at dinner we had a table over looking Kenai Lake and this brilliant rainbow appeared. I’ve seen this view many times but the rainbow had me gazing out over the lake like it was the first time again. All in all I think that if you are in or passing through Cooper Landing Alaska the KingFisher Restaurant is well worth making time for.

dolly Varden fishing on the Kenai river

Posted on September 9, 2012 by Drifting-admin

Dolly varden fishing on the kenai river can be excellent. Along with the rainbow trout fishing you will find that these hard fighting fish can really be a good variety to your day. The guys taking time for family photos on the Kenai river and soaking in the experience. The high bank I am on is a great place to eat lunch and view the river and mountain range behind skilak lake.

The rainbow trout and Dolly Varden fishing was really good in the morning and tapered off a little by the afternoon. We still managed to find pockets of fish that were willing to feed. After I dropped my guest off I picked up a buddy and my dog at the dock and hung out on the river for another couple hours. It makes for a long day but winter is coming fast and this is the time of year I love the most.

If you are interested in a day on the water this year I still have days available for the in September and october this year. Give us a call at 907-382-6808 or click here Tight lines Scott Sager