Here are some of my favorite fly fishing trips.......past 50 years.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Half-pounders on the Klamath River

Dean river for Steelhead in BC, Canada

Winter Steelhead on the coast - Gualala, Garcia, Eel rivers - 1970s

King Salmon on the coast - Eel river tide water - 1970s

Rainbows on the Pit river - before the higher flows

Rainbows on the Upper Sacramento river

Lake fishing for trout around Kamloops, BC, Canada.

Bonefish at Christmas Island

Baby Tarpon in the MX Yucatan

Permit out of southern Belize

Peacock Bass in Brazil's Amazon

Roosterfish out of La Paz, Baja, MX

Dorado out of Loreto, Baja, MX

False Albacore out of North Carolina

Silver salmon on the Tsiu river, Cordova, Alaska

Atlantic Salmon on the Miramichi river, Nova Scotia

Giant Brook trout in Labrador @ Copper's Minnipi Lodges

Big trout in New Zealand

Top water Large Mouth Bass in the Delta

Small Mouth Bass in moving water anywhere



I mostly fish with a floating line, mono tapered leader and light fly, if possible.

If I am not catching fish, at least I can enjoy some wonder fly casting.

[gitt]

That is a nice list. The mention of the Tsiu conjured memories of an unforgettable day.

Alaska’s Tsiu River is definitely a stand out for silvers. We flew in for the day from Cordova. The scenery was not evident as the ceiling was 400-500 feet. Four of us flew out with a retired United pilot who had an air taxi business along the coast, while one brave soul flew out in an aerobatic plane that flew up for the summer from Seattle. With the low ceiling, we hugged the coastline heading south. The aerobatic plane followed the mountains. Our solo companion wasn’t sure he would make it in the lightweight plane as it jostled with the wind currents. Our flight over the water along the beach was a sight to behold. A dead gray whale had washed up on the beach and a grizzly was doing his best to feast on the large mammal. A couple of miles further and we could see a few anglers on the short river paralleling the coast with bent rods. Our pilot dropped us off on a bluff overlooking the river in a strong headwind. As we were getting out of the plane, he asked if we had extra clothes and food. He wasn’t certain if the ceiling would hold and he might just have come back when things cleared. All we had were our lunches and a few granola bars and the waders we were wearing. I mentioned it was a little late to provide the preparedness and safety lecture. He said he would normally drop us off closer to the river, but he thought if he turned the plane around, his plane would flip with the wind.

Instead of walking back upriver to traverse water, we slid down the steep sandy embankment to the water's edge. Little did we know, but the river bottom was soft. The heavier one was had the sand going up to our knees. Some of us brought wading staffs that came in handy. Others left their wading staffs in their day packs. Once mid-river it became apparent that we had made a bad decision. We made it across the river miraculously and assessed where we might want to throw our flies. The very first cast swung tight to a silver. We joked how the upriver wind created a perfect mend cast immediately without thinking. Further upriver we could see guides with their clients from the lodges. With the ATV action on the bluff, we figured we were pretty safe. That is until a group of five grizzlies showed up on the bluff and hit the river almost on the same route we took. When they crossed to our side of the river and headed toward the mouth, we felt safe. Of course, the grizzly group hit the mouth of the river and returned to see if we had any fish that they could easily pick up. One of the anglers with us was an Alaskan neophyte. I can still picture him picking up everybody's day pack and heading towards the group upriver from us. Once we knew our lunches would be safe, we continued fishing. That is until the bears got closer. What was noticed as a saunter became a gallop towards our group. The pilot that flew the aerobat walked down to see how we were doing. He even brought hot coffee. But those bears were quickly closing in on us. I asked if he had a gun on him. “No”, was his answer. It was suggested that we stand shoulder to shoulder while yelling and waving our arms overhead to provide a larger profile for the bears to see. It seemed to work as they stopped in their tracks and crossed the river only to meander upstream and cross back over on our side of the river. Luckily, they continued upriver to harass the lodge guests.

We continued to watch the low ceiling overhead as we fished and at times the fog was at ground level. We began to think the worse as suggested by our pilot. Oh well, the fishing had been good, so a second day could not be such a bad thing before heading back to Cordova. We mentioned the soft bottom to our coffee serving aerobatic pilot. He said the bottom was pretty hard further upstream. We had continuous fresh pulses of silvers throughout the day as they pushed onto their natal waters. I have yet to experience anything close to this particular day fishing silvers. And yet, I never went back. Time to think the Tsiu again.

Thanks for your list, Bill.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

You could be an outdoor writer Gitt........I was scared just reading that.

We usually never saw any bears up close when we were there.

Not sure but think I must have gone to the Tsiu River about 6 times?

Old Joe Shirshac, retired Sac City fire fighter took people there for many years.

It has to be one of the best destinations for Silver salmon.

Still one of the best values in Alaska.



Alaska Wilderness Outfitters, Cordova, AK

https://www.alaskawilderness.com/TsiuRiver.htm


If any one wants to catch fresh wild Silvers on the ocean in shallow sand bottom river let me know.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FPiKxncxtA