06-16-2004, 02:46 PM
Jeneau Fishing Reports
Harvest rates for chinook salmon in Southeast Alaska ranged from 2 rod hours per fish in Sitka to 39 rod hours per fish in Haines. Catch rates in Juneau were 14 hours per fish harvested which is substantially better than the past 5-year average of 20 hours for this week of the fishing season.
Most of the fish stories heard last week probably told of king salmon being harvested in the Auke Bay area. And that is not surprising as that is where the majority of the local fishing effort occurred. But anglers who fished on the south end of town also did well last week. During this part of the season, fish caught on the north end of town will likely be hatchery fish returning to the terminal hatchery area (see below for a description of and harvest limits for the Juneau THA). Fish caught on the south end of town might also be hatchery fish moving up into the THA, but the south end also provides the opportunity of catching fish bound for the Taku River. In-river catches of king salmon at the department’s Canyon Island field camp indicate that the far majority of the Taku run is already in the river. But because this year’s return to the Taku is well above average, there may still be good opportunity to harvest fish from the tail end of this years run.
While there may some overlap of hatchery and Taku king salmon stocks in and around Point Salisbury area, there may be a greater concentration of Taku fish nearer Point Bishop and a greater concentration of hatchery fish well up into Gasitineau Channel. Fishing north of the Juneau-Douglas bridge will put anglers within the THA and allow them an expanded bag limit of 4 fish per day. Fishing much further south from Point Salisbury and further up the inlet might provide the opportunity to target the remainder of the Taku return. Anyone considering going further up into Taku Inlet should be aware that king salmon fishing is prohibited north of a line that extends across the inlet from Cooper Point on the west side to the mouth of Dorothy Creek on the east.
On the positive side, in Auke Bay, anglers should also be aware that the north or west end of the THA, depending on how you look at things, has been expanded in size (see map). This expansion allows for anglers to prospect for other areas to harvest hatchery king salmon. The expansion opens up the entire shoreline of Coughlin Island and the east shore of Portland Island. Near Outer Point, anglers can now also fish around Shaman Island and Georges Rock as they too are now within the THA. [left]Although it seems a little bit early to try fishing for hatchery kings in the Fish Creek Pond, the last set of strong high tides did bring in a few very bright fish. Whether or not many fish will enter the pond between now and the next set of good high tides remains to be seen. However anglers interested in the Fish Creek area should definitely consider giving the creek mouth a try as fish will likely be congregating there. [/left] [center]HALIBUT[/center] [center]Last week, 85% of the sport fishing effort in the Juneau area was spent targeting king salmon. The few anglers that chose to target halibut did fairly well as they catch rate for these fish was 7 hours per fish, a good two hours less than the 5-year average of 9 hours. A few local spots known to produce halibut in the area are Vanderbilt Reef, Benjamin Island and North Pass. [/center] [center] [/center] [left]Anglers looking for fresh water opportunities are reminded that it is the month of June and therefore the Windfall Creek outlet stream (from the outlet of Windfall Lake downstream to confluence with the Herbert River) is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays until the month is over. On all other days during June and for the entire month of July, all fishing is prohibited in the outlet stream. This closed area consists of the outlet stream and waters within 100 yards of the confluence with the Herbert. Sockeye salmon fishing is prohibited year round in Windfall Lake and all of its tributaries. [/left]
Other freshwater and saltwater shoreline opportunity exists in the lower reaches of some of our larger drainages. Dolly Varden fishing should be good in Peterson Creek Lagoon or Saltchuck as it is also known; the shoreline between the mouth of Eagle River and the Boy Scout camp is also good for Dolly Varden; and the long intertidal portion of Cowee Creek is a good bet for both Dolly Varden and cutthroat trout. Dolly Varden fishing in Gastineau Channel should also still be good though it may taper off as the season progresses. Later in the summer, a favorite of some anglers but unknown to many is the opportunity to shoreline fish for pink salmon in Echo Cove. These bright fish enter Echo Cove prior to heading up into Berners Bay and/or Cowee Creek.
Harvest rates for chinook salmon in Southeast Alaska ranged from 2 rod hours per fish in Sitka to 39 rod hours per fish in Haines. Catch rates in Juneau were 14 hours per fish harvested which is substantially better than the past 5-year average of 20 hours for this week of the fishing season.
Most of the fish stories heard last week probably told of king salmon being harvested in the Auke Bay area. And that is not surprising as that is where the majority of the local fishing effort occurred. But anglers who fished on the south end of town also did well last week. During this part of the season, fish caught on the north end of town will likely be hatchery fish returning to the terminal hatchery area (see below for a description of and harvest limits for the Juneau THA). Fish caught on the south end of town might also be hatchery fish moving up into the THA, but the south end also provides the opportunity of catching fish bound for the Taku River. In-river catches of king salmon at the department’s Canyon Island field camp indicate that the far majority of the Taku run is already in the river. But because this year’s return to the Taku is well above average, there may still be good opportunity to harvest fish from the tail end of this years run.
While there may some overlap of hatchery and Taku king salmon stocks in and around Point Salisbury area, there may be a greater concentration of Taku fish nearer Point Bishop and a greater concentration of hatchery fish well up into Gasitineau Channel. Fishing north of the Juneau-Douglas bridge will put anglers within the THA and allow them an expanded bag limit of 4 fish per day. Fishing much further south from Point Salisbury and further up the inlet might provide the opportunity to target the remainder of the Taku return. Anyone considering going further up into Taku Inlet should be aware that king salmon fishing is prohibited north of a line that extends across the inlet from Cooper Point on the west side to the mouth of Dorothy Creek on the east.
On the positive side, in Auke Bay, anglers should also be aware that the north or west end of the THA, depending on how you look at things, has been expanded in size (see map). This expansion allows for anglers to prospect for other areas to harvest hatchery king salmon. The expansion opens up the entire shoreline of Coughlin Island and the east shore of Portland Island. Near Outer Point, anglers can now also fish around Shaman Island and Georges Rock as they too are now within the THA. [left]Although it seems a little bit early to try fishing for hatchery kings in the Fish Creek Pond, the last set of strong high tides did bring in a few very bright fish. Whether or not many fish will enter the pond between now and the next set of good high tides remains to be seen. However anglers interested in the Fish Creek area should definitely consider giving the creek mouth a try as fish will likely be congregating there. [/left] [center]HALIBUT[/center] [center]Last week, 85% of the sport fishing effort in the Juneau area was spent targeting king salmon. The few anglers that chose to target halibut did fairly well as they catch rate for these fish was 7 hours per fish, a good two hours less than the 5-year average of 9 hours. A few local spots known to produce halibut in the area are Vanderbilt Reef, Benjamin Island and North Pass. [/center] [center] [/center] [left]Anglers looking for fresh water opportunities are reminded that it is the month of June and therefore the Windfall Creek outlet stream (from the outlet of Windfall Lake downstream to confluence with the Herbert River) is open on Wednesdays and Saturdays until the month is over. On all other days during June and for the entire month of July, all fishing is prohibited in the outlet stream. This closed area consists of the outlet stream and waters within 100 yards of the confluence with the Herbert. Sockeye salmon fishing is prohibited year round in Windfall Lake and all of its tributaries. [/left]
Other freshwater and saltwater shoreline opportunity exists in the lower reaches of some of our larger drainages. Dolly Varden fishing should be good in Peterson Creek Lagoon or Saltchuck as it is also known; the shoreline between the mouth of Eagle River and the Boy Scout camp is also good for Dolly Varden; and the long intertidal portion of Cowee Creek is a good bet for both Dolly Varden and cutthroat trout. Dolly Varden fishing in Gastineau Channel should also still be good though it may taper off as the season progresses. Later in the summer, a favorite of some anglers but unknown to many is the opportunity to shoreline fish for pink salmon in Echo Cove. These bright fish enter Echo Cove prior to heading up into Berners Bay and/or Cowee Creek.