Talkeetna?

[Shirleyshusband]

Hi,
Shirley and I are traveling around Alaska this summer. Have to be home by October. We're in Talkeetna for another 3 weeks visiting my niece. After that we'll be headed down the peninsula for a week or so then back up to Valdez, Haines, Skagway...
We're not having much luck catching fish! I never would have thought that would problem in AK! Probably going to try Nancy lake for pike tomorrow (love catching and eating pike). We have kayaks (just flat water).
I do have a river fishing trip set up here through Phantom tri-river for July 28. It's my understanding salmon should be running then?
We did catch a few rainbows but it was catch and release. That's fine, but we really like eating fish too!

Can anyone offer any pointers for Talkeetna?
Thanks

 

[Tundrawookie]

You're kind of "between things" as far as salmon runs are concerned. Chinook are done and coho haven't really started yet. Your best option for salmon fishing right now is to head down to the Parks Highway and do some looking around between Willow Creek (about mile 70) up to Montana Creek (mile 96). A little prospecting will certainly turn up some pink and chum salmon. Coho (silvers) are possible, but don't count on it; they usually don't show up in fishable numbers until the beginning of August. Having said that, some of our salmon runs began early this year, and there have been confirmed weir counts on the Deshka river (only accessible by boat). That is only about ten river miles south of Willow Creek.
I assume that your trip on the 28th will be focused on silvers, most likely out of Clear Creek, a tributary of the Talkeetna River. If that's the case, you're a bit early yet, but there will certainly be some fish around. If it's pike you're after and you already know where Nancy Lake rec. area is; I strongly suggest that you do the three mile hike into Red Shirt Lake. Rent a canoe from Tippecanoe in the South Rolly Lake campround and your canoe will be waiting for you at Red Shirt. 40 to 50 fish days are not uncommon.
Without question, you will have a lot more options once you hit the peninsula. Sockeyes should be pouring in to the Kenai any minute now, and coho runs will be spooling up at the beginning of August. Plus, just about any piece of flowing water will be plugged with pinks. I hope that this helps you out a bit, your options are pretty limited in the Talkeetna area for the time being. Report back with any news, good or bad, and I'll try to get you pointed in the right direction. Good luck!

 

[Shirleyshusband]

Thanks for the reply, I've really been floundering here (pun intended)! Yesterday I did some scouting, ran up towards Wasilla taking back roads. On the way towards Hatcher pass I found a cool stream (don't know the name) but saw some 3' (I think sockeye) headed back downstream. I'm thinking I may try fishing there and catch them on their way up? If they are mostly deep red, are they bear food at that point?

I did catch one small (had a few others but lost them... jumpy little buggers) rainbow about 12". Kept it cause it was hooked near the eye pretty good. Small as it was it sure tasted good. I fish from a kayak with my 60 lb golden retriever in the back. He's normally pretty well behaved back there but these jumping fish have his attention! Him moving around and me playing a fish got kind of intense! LOL

Is there any place you can recommend for shore fishing on the peninsula? I'm thinking we'll be going to Seward and probably down to Homer. Actually camping recommendations too. We're in a truck camper.

We'll probably spend a day in Anchorage so if you'd like do meet for a beer or lunch?

Again, thanks for the reply. Nothing better than getting information from a local.

 

[Tundrawookie]

Don't beat yourself up too bad, we locals do our fair share of floundering as well. I should caution you to be certain of the regulations before fishing where you saw those sockeyes (may have been kings this early in the season); a lot of those Mat-Su Valley fisheries are pretty restrictive. Many are closed to salmon fishing, and others are weekend only. Without knowing what creek you were looking at, I can't be certain that it's open to fishing. Having said that, the darker the fish get, the lower quality they are for grilling. The real test is to actually feel the fish...bear with me here...if the fish is firm to the touch, especially closer to the tail, then you're good to go. If it feels mushy, it's probably not worth messing with. Besides, you'll have ample opportunity to get into some dime bright fish before too long and you'll be living large.
Ha! Yeah, I gave up on the combination of dogs and canoes a long time ago, I can't even imagine a kayak! A retriever and things splashing in the water are wonderful things, as long as I'm standing on my own two feet.
As far as places to fish and camp on the peninsula, you have more options than I could possibly mention here. Unless you have a charter planned, I would steer you towards Homer. Shore fishing in Seward can be lights out, but usually not until the end of August when the silvers start showing up. Homer on the other hand will give you more options than you'll have time to explore.
Shoot me a PM, we can swap cell numbers and I can give you a lot more info than I can here. I'd be happy to meet up, have a beer, and talk fish and birds. On that note, you mentioned that you'd be passing through Valdez. Ptarmigan season opens on August 10th...I'll fill you in if you have the means of doing some bird hunting.
You're very welcome. Happy to help out a fellow fuger. Shoot me a PM and we'll get you pointed in the right direction. Until then, good luck! I'll be hitting the Kenai River this weekend...there's supposed to be a big slug of sockeyes coming in!

 

[Shirleyshusband]

Regulations! Man, I used to wine about wisconsin. You guy's have 4 pamphlets... and then they even talk about hook size. Dang.

Pm sent

 

[J.Bennett]

I spent a lot of time in that area, though it was quite a few years ago. As Tundrawookie said, you are kind of between runs, but about now the pinks and chums should be starting to show, and maybe even a handful of early silvers. Silvers will usually start showing up in decent numbers in early August. Things may have changed since I was last there, but there was pretty good fishing to be had relatively close to Talkeetna (within a 20 minute drive). Birch, Sunshine (one of the few places in that area that I caught sockeye with any regularity), Willow, and Montana Creeks all can hold a lot of fish. You want to focus your efforts on where the creeks enter the main river. Between runs, may want to try upper Montana Creek for rainbows. Check regs though, when I was up there you couldn't keep any rainbows caught on that creek. I always fished it barbless and released the rainbows that I caught. There are some real pigs up there getting fat on salmon eggs.

 

[AvianQuest]

Things may have changed since I was last there, but there was pretty good fishing to be had relatively close to Talkeetna (within a 20 minute drive). Birch, Sunshine (one of the few places in that area that I caught sockeye with any regularity), Willow, and Montana Creeks all can hold a lot of fish. You want to focus your efforts on where the creeks enter the main river. Between runs, may want to try upper Montana Creek for rainbows. Check regs though, when I was up there you couldn't keep any rainbows caught on that creek. I always fished it barbless and released the rainbows that I caught. There are some real pigs up there getting fat on salmon eggs.

^^^^
All good places.

Sunshine Creek...

Montana Creek...

 

[AvianQuest]

On the way towards Hatcher pass I found a cool stream (don't know the name) but saw some 3' (I think sockeye) headed back downstream.

May have been the Little Susitna River...