Alaska King Salmon Fishing

Fishing for King Salmon is really not strictly fly fishing but I thought I would put a few comments in as it can be an exciting adventure. In Alaska there are a few main rivers for Fishing for King Salmon in Freshwater. Charters are operated on most of the rivers, these can include a guide and boat.

One river is the Kasilof River which is fed from a huge glacier, giving it the slate grey colour. Drift boats are used in the river as the average depth of the river is less than four feet. The salmon enter the river from the sea twice each day on the flood tides. The Kings caught in the Kasilof River average around 20-25lbs with some fish in the 40-50lb range.

Another, the Kenai River is the home to the all time, sport caught, world record King Salmon and stands alone for trophy class King Salmon. Once again this is a glacier fed waterway from which the at least 9 of the top 10 largest, sport caught King Salmon of all time have come. If you are after the best opportunity to catch a large, trophy size King Salmon, the Kenai River is the place to fish. The present Alaska state sport fishing record is 97.25 lbs taken on the Kenai River. The King Salmon start entering the Kenai River in the first week of May. There are two runs of big Kings each year. One is from approximately May 15th to June 30th and the second from around July 1st to July 31st. The average King Salmon caught on the Kenai River is 40-50lb.

A third river is the Nushagak River in Alaska which drains into Bristol Bay. The Nushagak River supposedly has the largest Alaska King Salmon fishing run. The King Salmon reach up to 50lbs and it is not uncommon for 40 to be caught in a day. The King Salmon is a challenging fish and is a test for anglers.