Location: Sitka, Alaska
Where I stayed: Kingfisher charters Lodge
dates: 8/27/08-9/3/08
Target species: Halibut, Salmon
Anglers: 19 in our group
For the 10th year-n-a-row some of the gals from GCLA (gold coast lady anglers) made the trip to Sitka Alaska, and this year I decided to join them. A small group of us landed in Sitka a few days early to check out the Raptor Center, salmon hatchery, museums, hiking, and other local attractions. We stayed at a B & B (which was a pretty nice establishment) thanks to Norma. And, also thanks to Judy for the use of her car
But lets get down to the fishing!
Day one fishing: I was surprised at how pleasant the weather was... overcast and a bit chilly (like a cold morning in Ventura)... but not bad. Started out the day with trolling for salmon with limited success, but I managed to get one silver (coho). We had been told that the salmon run was spotty all year, so we set off in search of BIG BUTTS! We waited about an hour before the first strike.. Maureen caught the first barn door of the trip (255lbs). Most of the other fish were in the 40-50lb range, but before the day was out we boated another 173lb butt. Lings mixed in between ranging from 30-50lbs, but due to such a small slot limit none were within 30-35 inch slot. Back to the barn for dinner and relaxation.
Day two fishing: Started the day off with more halibut fishing... everyone got limits but no hogs for us on this day. SO... we loaded up on the yelloweye rockfish (10-20lbs), then moved on to jigging for lings. This was cool because I got my first chance to use custom jigs made by flipper... quickly nicknamed the mardi gras jigs because of the glitzyness of them. First drop I got nailed by a huge ling (40+ lbs), second drop got me another halibut (but short). The rest of the ladies managed several nice lings and blackbass.
Day three fishing: Nursing a hangover I starting to get nervous that I wouldnt get my "barn door" we headed into 11ft seas. All I wanted was to get my 100lb patch and get my jacket. But the
3rd day wasnt going to give that up for me. The seas were unrelenting and made fishing hard, but we managed to scratch a few salmon and nice butts. So back to the lodge to gather our strength for our last day of fishing in AK.
Day four fishing: Capt. Paul took us out through the inside passage north of town to troll for salmon. Again, the salmon fishing was slower than normal but I managed to grab yet another one for the box. With the day wearing on, we dug deep into our bag of tricks for a rally libation of cognac. Not long after that the I got hammered on the lite rod jigging a white mogombo... I knew this was what I was looking for!!! After about a 30 minute tug-o-war we saw color... my knees knocked with excitement and nervousness... the gaf sunk deep and over the side it came with a big thud. Not as big as some others caught on the trip, but for sure the biggest halibut Ive ever caught (130lbs). High fives all around and I took a seat for the rest of the day.
All in all... fishing was great. I'll be eating salmon and halibut for some time now... bring home two fifty pound boxes of pure alaskan filets. Sunsets are amazing... fish in every inlet stream, eagles, bears, whales, on and on and on... just an amazing place! I can see why people want to keep coming back every year... i sure do!
ok... now some pics for y'all
this is my 130lb halibut...
and this is the ling and halibut I caught on mikes jigs...
This yelloweye was REALLY happy to see me...
Another nice ling...
And a few more pics to round out the trip...
Sitka Alaska -Kingfisher '08
WOW man!
Life's journey is NOT what you can acquire.
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