More carnage from Alaska
September 12, 2007
Since I last checked in from Alaska, we’ve had 7 inches of rain (and small craft advisories) in just over 2 days here in Cordova…we’ve fished through it all, though. When all the rivers were flooding, we found coho in back sloughs that looked like bass ponds and we absolutely killed them on a bassy-like technique that will remain a secret…
Sometimes, it’s just best not to ask…
September 8, 2007
Let’s just say that I get all kinds of folks out on the boat when I’m running guide trips!
Postcard from Cordova, Alaska
September 7, 2007
After our quick fishing tour of Anchorage yesterday, we hopped on a plane to Cordova this morning and fished our asses off in a variety of spots. At Hippie Cove, there were thousands of chrome (and big) silvers laying in the salt water off a spawning stream mouth. They were rolling all over the place — you can see fish jumping behind Tim here…
Running amok in Alaska
September 7, 2007
Reilly and I hit the ground running in Alaska today. We had a 1-night layover in Anchorage before we head to chase the giant silvers of Cordova, so we rented a car and burned up the highway to Willow Creek. All the local reports said that the fishing sucked, but it turned out nicely for us as there was nobody on the water. Plus, we caught some nice fish, like this beautiful rainbow…
Macks & bears and fires, oh my!
August 23, 2007
Well, with river salmon fishing not looking real promising these days, I headed back up to Lake Tahoe to chase mackinaw again.
I got back up to the West Shore on Tuesday evening to find a little bit of a disaster at the house (more on that later).
Up early the next morning, we hit the lake and found lots and lots of macks on the graph but the bite was so-so. We still landed probably 10+ fish and got limits but we really had to work for them for some reason. Part of the deal was that my net blew out of the boat on the way up, so we lost three nice keeper fish right at the boat. Like the old saying goes…it’s always something, right?
Anyway, here’s Jackie from Auburn, CA showing off a typical laker that we caught on 2-ounce spoons jigged in 89 to 135 feet of water.
There are so many fish in the areas that I’ve been working that it’s sick and when they start chewing aggressively again, we’ll be back to the easy limits by 7 am program.
But the fishing is only part of the story…
A nice, misty-eyed moment
August 14, 2007
When Mike Globe of Willits, CA heard his brother Steve was buying a new jetboat, he was stoked. The only thing better than owning a boat is having a buddy or family member who does. Then, Mike and his wife were floored when Steve placed the name of their young son, Gunner, on the transom.
“It was out of nowhere and it caught my wife and I totally off guard,” says Mike. “It was probably the nicest thing he has ever done for me…one hell of a gesture from my bro….”
That’s one way to do it…
July 24, 2007
If you’re ever in a jam and need to get across the lake — and you got a spare coffee table layin’ around…
On vacation in the Crustacean Nation
July 21, 2007
Sometimes, you’ve just gotta get away from it all for awhile. Ideally, you head somewhere where there’s a beach, nice weather, good scenery…and Dungeness crabs. Lot’s of em!
Luckily, I’ve got friends with a beach house on Puget Sound’s Hood Canal and, even better, is the fact that we’ve yet to do anything to tick them off enough to not get invited out once in a while. My good Alaskan guiding pal Matt and his wife Heidi had us out to the “Canal” in early July and we had a blast. While Hood Canal’s once world-class fishing has been nearly wiped out, the crabbing’s still worthwhile. Being, to put it mildly, crab enthusiasts, we were fired up when Matt suggested we do a seafood dinner!
We loaded up the pots with raw chicken and headed out to a dropoff near the house…
We dumped the pots in 80 feet of water and then it was back to tierra fima for the painstakingly long wait of 3 hours. Patience isn’t a string suit of mine when I’ve got crab on the brain…
Always, always check the forecast before you go…
July 19, 2007
If it sounds like I’m speaking from experience, here, you’re right. Not taking my own advice yesterday, I headed for Lake Oroville without checking what the weather was supposed to do. Why check the forecast? It’s always sunny and hot in July in the Valley, right? Well….
I show up at dawn in my typical summer gear…only to find it sprinkling. A little rain never hurt anybody, plus I had a sweatshirt in the boat. I quickly launched and headed out under a beautiful sunrise…
Don’t drink & row….
July 10, 2007
Man, that sandbar came outta nowhere…guess maybe I should lay off the sauce a little.
