It has happened now for good. The Sockeye fishing has slowed to a halt on the river, but the lake should produce for the next week or so. We got some real big rains in the last couple of days, and the water rose about 10". With the water going up, the Sockeye took off, and the Kings moved on up also. Just two days ago the river opened for King fishing below the weir, but with the water going up, the Kings are all above the weir, and so it just sucks that they did not open up sooner. They are suppose to open the river for Kings, when the prediction is 750 large kings over the weir. Well as I passed the weir today, the sign said 849 large Kings over the weir, but still no opening. I don't understand it at all. I don't know if it is bad management, or if they just don't want the sport fisherman to get Kings. I just don't understand, how they can keep it closed, when the escapement has gone over the weir. I just don't get it. So, with this, all we have to fish for now, is Pink Salmon, and Dolly Varden. All those Kings, and we can get any. Just Sucks!!!!!!!!!!. Here are the pics of the Pinks we got today, also a King we released, (Take a look at all the spots on this kings gill plate),and some pics of the new Pavati drift boat the Lodge got this year, and also a Bald Eagle eyeing our hanging fish.

Good luck out there

Flymstr;

Well, I was at the fish cleaning station when the Halibut boats came in the other day. I got some good pics of these great fish. The Halibut fishing, and the Black Bass fishing, has been real good lately. They are still picking up some Kings, and some Silvers. Here are the pics of the Halibut.

Good luck out there

Flymstr;

Today Brian Woobank and Son Ryan, stepped off the plane again, for another shot at the Sockeye. Brian has been staying at the Yakutat Lodge for 19 years now, and there is no sign of slowing down. We flew up to Situk Lake, where all the Sockeye are congregating, before they go up and spawn. The fish here are very nice and bright, we only kicked back 5 red fish the whole time. The recent rains seem to have brought in a good number to the lake, and they should continue to be good throughout the rest of the month. Yakutat Lodge clients are more than welcome to take advantage of this service anytime they are staying with us. The fly out fishing is good now for Sockeye in the lake, but come September when the Silvers show up, the fly out fishing to the Italio can be fantastic. Take a look at these amenities, if you are planning to come to Yakutat, and you will see that Yakutat Lodge is the only place to be. The Pinks are here now, and if you have kids that want to get into fishing, now is the time to get here.

Good luck out there

Flymstr;

      Well it is inevitable. Every year at this time, the Pink Salmon start to show up in the river. As the Sockeye start to fade out, and the Kings are done with their push upstream,  the Pink Salmon take over. We had a great Sockeye season, and for the next 2 weeks we will still get into Sockeye's in the river, and the Lake will produce decent fish for the next 3 weeks, but every new tide brings hundreds of Pinks. Within the next week, the Pink Salmon will fill the river, and along with them, comes the presence of more Bears to the gravel bars. The Brown and Black bears will gorge themselves on Salmon over the next two months, and gain pounds of weight before their winter hibernation. This reserve of Salmon fat will help the adult bears and their new cubs, survive the long cold winter. The arrival of Pinks in the river always signifies a slow down in clients for a couple of weeks, until the Silvers start to come in.

      During this slow time, the entire staff here at the Yakutat Lodge, gets together, cleans up, and fixes any damaged equipment. We are also building some new cabins at the Halibut station on the bay. I will get some pics in the next couple of days. One of the cabins is completed, and ready for clients at any time. These cabins offer, a kitchen, a bathroom, microwave oven, stove top oven, and a magnificent view of the Mountain range, including Mt. St. Elias. The second and third cabins should be ready for Silver season, which starts the second week of August. If you have any interest in staying in these cabins, you may want to call ahead for availability. 

      Anyway, this time of year I wish more families would come up for the Pink run. The amount of Pinks in the river during the peak, is unbelievable. For the entire 14 mile float, the river is black with fish. Pink Salmon are 4 to 8 pounds on average, and they are very aggressive on pink flies, and lures. For kids, this is the best fish to get them hooked. It is not unusual for a person with no fishing skills, to hook into over 50 Pink salmon in a day on the river. The fight is good, but not to hard that kids wear out on every fish. So for the meantime I have no pics of new fish, so I will throw in some pics through out the season, that did not make the cut the first time around.

      I will not be on the river for a little bit of time, and I will be home in Oregon on a bit of a break, from Aug. 11 - Aug 17. On the 11th I will be turning 40, hope I can still fish at this age Ha Ha. I am hoping to get into some kings when I get home.

Good luck out there

Flymstr;

Two days ago with Gary and Erik, we had our fish taken by a sow and her cub. The next day we were run out of three holes, because of the same bears. Well today, I had enough, and I decided to go right at them, and run em' off. I was not sure if the sow was going to run or not. The other day when she took our fish, I let her have it with the bear spray, and she walked right through it like nothing. Her cub got a little shot today, and turned around quickly. When the sow came out, I just kept going at her, and she turned and ran off. Five minutes later she returned, and I did the same routine. Again she left, and this time did not return to bother us again. I don't know if I could have done it again, without pissing her off to bad. We were able to get some fish, but did not keep any. Here are some pics of the bears, and a fish.

Good luck out there

Flymstr;