The monster was 31 inch by 18 inch rainbow
Six trout over 10 lbs and a 17lb 10 oz silver with numerous trout in the 5 to 8 lb class.
And to ice the cake the Anchor steelhead trip yielded 5 chromers in the 10 range.
The fishing is red hot for dollies,rainbows and steelhead.The silvers are starting to slow up abit but the trout fishing is smoking.

The Halibut Fishing was tough this week due to high tides but the silvers are still a good bet on the Kenai and Kasilof rivers.
The flyout is also producing limits of silvers on spinning gear,as the high water has made it difficult to fly fish.
The pinks are almost out of the river system and the trout fishing in the middle and lower sections should be productive.
The 12mm  washed king bead is the old stand by for the lower sections while the upper sections of the river seem to fish better with the 6mm freshy beads.  

From diesel dancing to malt liquor blind taste the Bass Bros always bring on the big game.The week started out Huge with big silvers on the Kenai followed by some awesome flyout action and finished up in the Kenai refuge with large rainbows.
Charles pulled me aside one night after some ritual bonfire bonding and in a sobering insight asked me why the big fish always show when they arrive.
I was taken back,and with a big pull off a 26 oz. can of Steel Reserve I stated with a somber tone “there always here”.This was immediately followed by another jerry can of fuel on the log fire and the party continued.    

“All the creeks seem to go off at once” was the general concensus around the campfire that night.With both Russian River,Quartz Creek,Anchor and Deep Creek all seem to push fish.
These small streams a reached easily by car and fish great.The usual method is too swing beads on an indacator and expect both silvers and steelhead to grab.
With very little pressure on the week days this can be an awesome fishery in a scene out of  a fishing catalog.

WEIGHT and WEIGHT and WINE was the venue for the Heller Group.
With the silvers running strong and the halibut going on, the group was able to reach their quota of 750 lbs fillet. Dispite all the good times and fish guts the fearless crew was able to get in some awesome trout fishing.In fact “little big fish”caught 15 lbs of a rainbow trout that he promptly released to a roaring drift boat crowd.
Lots of fish and laughs was had by all………

“WOW you mean we can flyout to different places everyday”Phll asked me.
Oh yeah,with our flight service we use, they fly to different places everyday with state of the art turbo beavers and otters.
Most of the flying is done on the west side of the inlet about half an hour away but miles away from civilization.
The Block party opted for two flyouts with limits both times and some bear encounters that will last a life time…underwear will wash…..memories last…….

“That’s right a pound a week” I explained to my clients.No sooner had I finished my “fish rap” that Jeff Fecteaus rod buckeled..long time TRL guest, he finally hit paydirt with 18lbs.10 oz monster that he put on the wall.
The flyouts are red hot and the river is kicking limits every day.
Plenty of bears with both black and brownies mixing together and enjoying a buffet of red samon all you can eat…….GRIN AND BEAR IT……..

We finished the Kings with a bang,with three Kings over 60 lbs. on the last offical day July 31.
Silvers/Coho spawn in cold,clear freshwater from September to February.
Silvers travel in large tight schools,and can go on feeding frenzys that are shocking.
They enter the Kenai the first week of August and continue strong through September.
The first run target eggs on the back bounce with a light bite followed by a tail walking battle.
Because of their aggressive nature they will take a fly..so hang on……..

Our earlier predictions by Fish and Game of a record Sockeye is on the wane. The numbers are not as strong as predicted and some catch limits will come into play.

The Kasilof remains a bright spot for Kings and the fly-outs  are trasitioning between reds and silvers. Three more King days left of King fishing (no guided trips on Sunday and Monday) so I am off to tie-up some Quick fish and get ready to back-bounce The Hole!

With just 11 days left of King fishing our guests are hard at it! We are running 2 trips a day… morning and afternoon and ripping reds in between. We have great private beach to rip on the reds and are pounding them morning, noon and night.  Fishing is strong on the reds but a light this year on the Kings with not that many shopping days left for the new World Record… we better get busy!

-Mike

Always the best King fishing on the Kenai seems to be the last couple of weeks of July and this year is no disappointment. In fact the fish are on the bite as well as the guests. Some say the “Best food in Alaska” and even the fish agree! Eat-Sleep-Fish… Life is good!

-Mike

Well, the photos show why so many people pick the Kenai in July… size does matter. July is a busy month for the biggest trophy King Salmon in the world. Our reds are still going strong and some nice Rainbow trout and caught and released. We are having some strong drift boat fishing for Kings on the Kasilof to throw in the mix, too!

 

We are flying to Big River Lake and the salmon fishing is red hot on the Sockeye and the bear viewing is awesome. We have been rolling some nice big Kings on the Kenai and the Kasilof. The Summer Soltice makes for warm sunny and long days of daylight (22 hours) of fishing and enjoying beautiful Alaska.

Can we have an endless summer… Please!

-Mike

Our Kasilof guide Skinny Pimp is shown getting ready for the clean and jerk  event on the Kasilof River. 

As the early run of kings continues, the fishing remains good on both the Kenai and Kasilof rivers. The sockeyes have been coming in too, in nice numbers, which makes the fishing even better.

Halibut fishing also continues to be dependable and anglers are bringing in their fair share of the flat fish. Fly-outs are producing as well, including photo opportunities for bear pictures and gorgeous shots of mountains.

The weather dipped a bit as we hit some badly-needed rain, but the forecast indicates clearing soon so all is good!

Melanie

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The fishing report, courtesy of Mark this time, is that the past week was very good on the Kenai with lots of fish caught. The regulations require release of kings between 44" and 55", but the fun is in the catching! The opening of the river to bait fishing has helped with the catch record this week, too, and should continue on throughout the month.

Halibut has been very good too, with the biggest fish of the week weighing in at a whopping 205#! Now THAT'S going to be a great beer-batter halibut party!

The Konoske group reported in and said they had a wonderful time. In Pat's words: "My dad thoroughly enjoyed himself, calling this a “trip of a life time” even before he hooked into a 50-inch, 60-lb. king during the last 90 minutes of our last day on the Kenai River. Even though we had to release, it ranks up there with the biggest fish he’s caught, ever. I was lucky enough to also hook into and land a Kenai king measuring 44 inches and 38 lbs."

Pat shared some photos of a king and a couple of halibut they caught, too! What a fun week.

. .

Melanie

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These larger halibut are know as “shooters.” The trick is to harpoon the fish at precisely the same time that you shoot the fish with a 410 shotgun. Timing is everything! When it sounds like a war zone on the big and beautiful Inlet… you are on a good bite.

As Billy, the younger angler attested, “This beats Disneyland, but sorry mine is bigger than yours, Dad!”

We are getting them good and all is well!

-Mike

A brace of fish… all I know it is a bunch of fish. Matt and Melisa and the Jackson family are proudly showing off their load of halibut on the Inlet. We are located 45 minutes away from the Deep Creek where we tractor launch our boats and head for the Deep Blue.

Loads of action and plenty of freezer pets is the name of the game!

-Mike

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Check out our guide Rich North with the Kenai steelhead and we are loading up on Fish n’Chips in Cook Inlet. The cold water have the Kings staying out in the salt longer than usual with low, clear water on the Kenai. We waiting for the warm weather to melt the glacier and raise and warm the water.

All is good and the lodge wintered well, as we have opened our doors and started fishing Cook Inlet. We are doing driftboat fishing for the halibut and avoiding the heavy weights and it is quite a trip with our “Shallow water light tackle” fishery.

The Kasilof has been going off on steelhead and showing a few salmon. Our saltwater is the stand-out with combo trips for salmon and halibut. Weather is cool and the fishing can be hot! 

Too early for fly-outs so the Beaver is idle but the critters are up and running and no crowds… life is good and great to be back with everything up and going. We are excited about the up and coming season!

-Mike