Alaska King Salmon Season – Your Quiver

Today’s installment of our series on rod quivers focuses on our fishery in Alaska from mid-June to mid-July.  This time is often referred to as ‘king season’, and that it certainly is, but kings aren’t the only game in town.

Must Have

• A 9 weight spey rod between 12 and 14 feet long for kings.  When swinging for kings from our gravel bars, most of our guests are fishing spey rods these days, for a whole bunch of reasons.  9 weights are most common, and shorter spey rods are becoming more and more popular because they’re easier to cast all day and more effective for fighting big fish.
• A 6 weight single-handed rod for rainbows.  Once July rolls around, the rainbow fishing gets real, real good and you just gotta do some.

Nice to Have

• A 10 weight single-handed rod for kings.  Anchoring up and fishing from the boat allows anglers to cover slots that just can’t be fished effectively from shore.  Also, stripping flies from the boat in tidewater can make for some of the fastest-paced king fishing around.
• An 8 weight for chums and/or sockeye.  Yes, the kings get more of the attention, but the ‘other salmon’ are a heck of a lot of fun when they’re chrome – and they are in the lower part of the river where we fish.

Dream Quiver

• Another spey rod for kings.  You could bring a whole bunch of spey rods if you wanted to.  A lighter rod like an 8 weight can be a great option for fishing lighter tips.  Besides, it’s always nice to have a couple of rods rigged with different tips and/or different flies just to save time switching gear back and forth.
• A 5 weight switch rod or spey rod for trout.  You probably know by now that we love spey fishing for trout, and we think you should too.

More Gear for Alaska

• A Great Trout Reel
• Something to Keep You Warm
• An Option for Your Chum Rod