“Planning a Fishing Trip to Alaska” Pray! – “A man’s heart deviseth his way: But the Lord directeth his steps.” Proverbs 16:9
1. Decide what you want to fish for.
The species you want to fish for will determine when you need to go. The most sought after species are salmon. Alaska has all five species of salmon. Every salmon species has two “names.” Chinook/Kings, Sockeye/Reds, Coho/Silvers, Pink/Humpies, Chum/Dog. Unfortunately, the number of King salmon is in steep decline. Sockeye are probably the fish most people are after. Trout are available most of the year; some areas have closed seasons. ALL species have different seasons. Make sure you check on this. The game wardens in AK do not mess around! My favorite time to trout fish is September. Cooler weather, less crowded, no (few) mosquitoes. The trout are fattening up for winter on salmon eggs and flesh. Silver salmon, the second biggest salmon, are at their peak in September. The following link takes you to a detailed run time account.
https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishingSportFishingInforuntiming.main
2. Decide when you want to go (what month) other factors.
Weather is a big factor. June (some species are closed to fishing in early June), July and August will be your warmest months and best chance for some sunshine. The following link takes you to a good summary of what to expect as far as weather.
https://www.alaska.org/expert-advice/weather-climate
Start looking for plane tickets. I use Kayak to search for tickets. I look for weeks and sometime months if I don’t have anything else to do. Sometimes Tuesday seems to be when tickets are cheapest. There is a feature where you can choose + or – three days. Use this feature. It can save you a lot of money if your dates are flexible.
3. Decide where you want to fish. Like everything else there are a lot of options! Most people fly into Anchorage. From there you have one of two “major” choices to make. Are you going to stay in South Central Alaska (also called the road system because you can drive to these locations), or are you going to fly out to a remote location? Big choices! Remote fly outs are usually pretty expensive. We have done a couple. They are nice. You decide. Fish Alaska Magazine (link below) has a service where you can fill out a form, tell them what you are interested in, email it to them and they will help you find what you are looking for.
Fish Alaska Magazine
If you are interested in doing a fly-out and want to camp, you can try the Brooks River. We have done this, and it is a great experience. You have to book a flight to the park, take your own gear, food etc. They do have a restaurant where you can eat at the lodge.
https://www.nps.gov/katm/planyourvisit/plyovicamp.htm
If you want to stick to the road system, you can book with a lodge, an outfitter, or do it yourself. There is so much information on the internet, it can make you dizzy. Again there are two major options here. You can head south to the Kenai/Seward/Homer area or north up the Parks Highway to the Willow Creek, Montana Creek, Talkeetna area. If I could only do one area on my first trip, I would go south. This is also going to be the best salmon fishing. Thirty minutes out of Anchorage, Cook Inlet, you are going to see some of the most beautiful part of God’s creation you can imagine. The Kenai River is the most “fished” part of Alaska. If you are wading (no guide service) during peak salmon season, it’s going to be combat fishing. The Russian River is a tributary to the Kenai in Cooper Landing. It can be pretty crowded, but most people will be salmon fishing early in the season. You can do pretty good trout fishing. There are other streams available that won’t be as crowded. Quartz Creek comes to mind also near Cooper Landing. Lots of salt water fishing available on the Lower Kenai Peninsula. Homer is the farthest south and most well known.
I like to go North. Willow Creek and Montana are two of my favorites. Many other streams are available. No salt water options. The opportunities for salmon fishing are more limited on the Parks Highway. The following link is slap full of maps and info on traveling the highways in Alaska. You will want to look at it.
Another good “one stop” resource is the Roadside Angler. The website has in season fishing reports and lots of other useful information. The book has just about every roadside accessible stream in Alaska, that you can drive to, as well as, what kind of fish and when they are available. They may say none of the books are available, but I would give then a call. Used editions are available online. If I had to have one fishing resource, this might be it!!!
https://roadsideanglersguide.com/
4. I’ll save the best for last. As far as I am concerned the best way to see Alaska is to rent an RV. It is not cheap but not as expensive as most fly outs and probably cheaper than staying at a lodge on the mainland. When you rent an RV, you have your place to stay and your transportation. The two most expensive items after you arrive in AK. We liked it so much we just bought one! Of course my son and his family live in Eagle River. We rented our RV from Great Alaska Holidays. There are other options available probably some cheaper.
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