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View Full Version : Kenai Peninsula questions



JasonB
10-31-2011, 05:53 PM
The fish gods have smiled kindly upon my wife and I. Actually my Dad is the fish god, and has decided that we needed some additional motivation to visit him in his retirement haven up in Deep Creek, Alaska; he offered us air tickets, and that was all the extra incentive we needed. Scheduling was a bit tricky for us, but looks like we'll be headed up there the last week and a half of August. The excitement is building already, and I can hardly wait to venture north!

Figured that some of you might have some experience FF in the KP and could kindly offer some suggestions. Open to any tidbits that may be of help, but specifically I'm mostly wondering about gear stuff: rods, lines, leaders, flies, etc. It looks like there should be opportunities for Coho and Steelhead, as well as Rainbows and Dolly Varden. Just wondering if a 9' 7wt would work well (hopefully so), and thinking that my 9' 5wt is probably not quite adequate. I'm guessing that I'd want some sort of sinking line as well as floating? How heavy on the leader and tippet? etc...

Also wondering if anyone has any recommendations on where to avoid the worst of the "combat fishing". My Dad isn't all that adventurous anymore and is mostly limited to easy access locations; while it will be a joy to fish with him in his new home waters (last time we did that was probably 25years ago), my wife and I hope to go out on our own for a day or two somehwere a bit less crowded (even if it means smaller fish).

Thanks for any and all advice, the more excited I get the more I realize that I know very little about what all to expect up there.
JB

Tfisher
10-31-2011, 11:16 PM
Timing wise you should be at the early peak of the fall season. Should be a decent trout year as the pinks run in even years. There is no uncrowded portion of the kenai. Get used to fishing around others. Probably won't matter too much if they have a decent return of salmon. Coho should be running in the coastal streams. A 7 and 8 wt are ideal. I prefer 10 or 9'6 because of the mending capabilities. Beads and your standard esls and salmon flies should work. Think comets in black or pink or leeches of the same color. Many sections of the kenai are accessible only by boat. Frankly you would best be served with a guide if you are new to the Kenai. Russian quartz and the coastals can be good DIY options. Also be mindful of bears. Good luck.