Description

May 2015 | Kings & Things

May 2015 IssueDepartments

Alaska Traveler  6

Editor’s Creel  8

Gear Bag  10

Fish Alaska Online  12

Fishing for a Compliment  14

Tackle Tech  18

Salmon Sense  20

EZ Limits: A Guide’s Angle  22

Fish Alaska Fly  24

Fish Alaska Boats  26  

Fish Alaska Saltwater  30

Fish Alaska Stillwater  36

Fish Alaska Recipe  78  

Advertiser Index  88

Final Drift  90

Features

When the Ice Clears by Andrew Cremata

Sometimes the best fishing is all about the finding, and that’s why shore fishing for lake trout is pretty hard to beat for the author, who recounts here the two distinct methods for targeting lakers he’s refined over the past 18 years of early-season fishing in Alaska. 

Go Big Or Go Home by Vince Froelich

Having become a go-to technique for many guides and serious anglers in Alaska, it is nearly essential you have the tools and skills to deploy your Chinook offerings beneath a float in the deep, fast seams and heavy water these fish prefer.  

Target Big Kings on Plugs by JD Richey

Super-sized kings are extremely territorial, which makes them susceptible to a wiggling, wobbling plug slowly creeping into their airspace. Here Contributing Editor JD Richey walks us through the methods and means of getting it done with a plug this king season.

5 Ways to Catch More Kings on the Fly by Mike Lunde

One needs the right skills to become a successful Chinook angler, but it clearly also helps to understand the fundamentals of fishing for the species. From color selection to fly movement and articulation, this feature explores five things to think seriously about before heading out to land more kings this year. 

A Pilgrim’s Guide to Deshka Kings by Dan Bonney

One of the more accessible and consistently productive kings salmon streams in southcentral Alaska, the Deshka River provides a great location to avoid bank fisherman and improve your chances of success for a high-quality chrome-bright king at a reasonable cost. Dan Bonney walks us through the particulars of planning your day on this road-system gem. 

Destination Gustavus by Terry Sheely

Just a 13-minute flight from Juneau, the curious little town of Gustavus sits at the west end of Icy Strait right on the doorstep of Glacier Bay National Park, THe fish-pastures of the Gulf of Alaska are just beyond the glistening white teeth of the Fairweather Range, and as Terry Sheely has learned, in and around these waters, it is tough, if not impossible, to go fishless when basing your fishing vacation here. 

 

COVER / Wayne Norris caught this fine Chinook on the Nushagak in 2014. © Brian Woobank.