Alaska silvers!!dry vs. wet line

[Hwy1Steelhead]

I have used a dry line approach to my alaska salmon fishing. Silver salmon tend to hold a little deeper and many people say wet line is more effective. I tend to stay with what works but would like a die hard silver(coho)fisherman to leave an opinion. My fall trip came together at the last minute and instead of oregon 1/2 pounders it will be two weeks of the mighty silvers. If anyone wants to send a picture of your favorite silver fly I would enjoy seeing it. Thanks for the report on the Rogue from Riverdog. If anyone needs fly boxes my companies name is Irideus. You can find them on our site and they will not burn a hole in your pay check. Hope a few silver fans respond back!!!!!!!
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[Thudpucker]

You dont say where your fishing for these Silvers.

You use a smaller fly up in the rivers and a larger fly out in the Bay.
You can use Clousers out in the bay.

I'm not a Die-hard Fly-only Silver fisherman, but out of Seward, I used a bunch of big Salmon Fly's I brought with me from Puget sound.
It aint easy!

I stood up on the bow of my 24' boat. Cast and cast and cast....My arm and shoulder ached for a couple days over that trip.

I had a 9' #9 Fenwick with a #10 fast sinking line. Dark Green line. I'd lose the line in the dark of the water and could still see the fly for several feet as it sank.
You know you have fish when the fly starts bouncing from place to place down there. They are fighting for it.

Your gonna get your fingers burnt when you hook one and he takes off. Dont try to rein him in too soon, and be ready for the Charge. He'll go out away from the hook till he's sure that wont work, and then he'll come back to you and under the boat a lot faster than you can strip the line in. Dont fiddle with one of those Stripping baskets.
I just kept my feet apart and every time he took a breather I reeled in line like a crazy man.

If your gonna fly fish for Salmon in a River you better hire a boat. There's plenty of places to fish for Silvers from a boat, but hardly any from the bank.
The 'Combat Fishermen' wont put up with Fly Fishing on those bends where its elbow to elbow.

When your coming back in (from your salt water trip) make your return speed about 10 Mph and put a rod in the holder.
Trail a big Silver fly back in the wake of the boat. The fly will go up the wake, down the other side and back.
Let the drag be loose because Silvers hit at pretty hi speed.
I know you'll have a good time no matter where you go.
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[Hwy1Steelhead]

I will be in that neck of the woods. I will fish Quartz creek, the Kenai and some other various water. Seems the combat fishing has slowed to make for some good casting. Thanks for the tip on the sinking line. I will be hitting some good fish and am really looking forward to it. I am a commercial fisherman by trade and in California, it has been hard to work through the regulations that do not help the fish. I will be glad to get a break from it. I am making fly boxes, if you ever need any look up Irideus. I have some great boxes I am proud of. Thanks for the reply I leave Sunday!
Tim
Irideus
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[Thudpucker]

Quartz creek? I guess I've never fished that one. I seem to recall seeing it along the hiway though.

If you get down on the peninsula, dont pass up the Kasiloff river. I'd hope you could get a boat ride down the Kasiloff. It's one of the best kept secrets in AK.

One note of caution on casting in that heavy moving water with a heavy line. (the Kenai or the Russian)
Be careful to keep your line on your own side of the rocks in the river. If the current takes that line around the other side of the Rocks you might just lose your line!

I never liked casting up stream.
I always cast straight out or a bit downstream. Always lead the Rod tip down stream ahead of your line. Like your trying to pull it downstream.
You dont get hung up or snagged as often that way.
Also when the rod is pointed almost to the bank its time to pull the line and the line will be straight out from the tip.

Thats where your trick and fancy backhanded cast to put the line back up-stream will come in handy.

The water may be three feet deep right behind those rocks. The current digs some of the loose stuff out and makes a hole.
I've stopped the boat right up against a rock and peered over the rock to see as many as Five Salmon stacked up, right on the bottom.

The Fish lay or rest just downstream and right up near the rocks. You want the fly to be sunk by the time it goes into the vortex of water at the top of the rock, and the fly will be carried right down into the fish's mouth.
Be ready for the line to stop right at that instant!

After that split second, if you didnt get a bite, pull it up and cast again.

If your in a boat where you can anchor, cast downstream at the top of the rock and let that line drift just past the rock. If you dont see the line stop, re-cast.

If you could see the fish down behind those rocks, you'd see them panting, mouths open, jaws working open n' shut.
For that reason, (some guys say) you should always set the hook if that line stops.
The reason is maybe the line is just in a fish's mouth and he's not intending to grab the hook.
So if you set the hook, you might drag that line through his mouth and get a fish that has a hook in his gill flap or the outside of his jaw.

One last word of caution. If you have found a place where you can fly fish, mostly alone for a few feet, look out for Bears.
They look for those un-inhabited waters too.

One more thing for those who've never fished those Alaskan rivers.

Your probably gonna fall in, slip in, get your feet dragged out from under you, etc.
You'll be so goldanged cold and shocked at the temp you'll just panic.
Eventually you will get back to the beach.
You probably wont find any firewood when you do.

So, first thing to do is memorize your escape route back to the pickup. Make sure you have a set of keys you can get quickly.

If your one of the tough guys. Sit down on a rock, take your boots off, get out of most of your clothes. Ring em' out as best you can and get em' right back on again.
Then get moving. Remember your losing body heat all the time when your wet. Less wet, less body heat loss.

Dont take chances where the water is deep. Like fishing off the top of a big rock into a deep pool below you.
There's all kinds of snags under the surface.
If the current carries you into one of those deep spots, try to stay up on the surface laid out flat. Hopefuly you'll go on through the flat water and get to the rocks again.
The Flat water is deep and that's where the snags hide.

Dryrod's never gonna let me post again. I take up too much space.
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[Dryrod]

[center][font "Garamond"][#008000][size 4]Hey there Thudpuker to the contrary, I enjoyed reading your take on fishing the Alaskan waters.[/size][/#008000][/font]
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[Hwy1Steelhead]

That is some great advise! I got back last night and it was a great trip. The crowds were gone, the silvers were hot and the leaves were turning. And yes my solo day on the Russian river had a bear scare. It seems the most humbling thing to have bear in front of me. I think there is truth for all humans in the eye of the grizzly! I hope other people read your post, Alaska can bring great rewards but is unforgiving and will silence your life in a wrong step. Your advise is something that I hope everyone takes to heart. It also shows we both are lucky to have seen those silvers stacked up like torpedoes.
Good fishing!
Tim
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[Thudpucker]

[:|] Yes, I've met the Bear quite a few times.
Fortunately, if you let him have the right of way, usually it's not a problem.
I have some stories though.

The strangest Bear thing I ever saw was on the upper Russian river.
A small Black Bear Sow came down out of the brush on the other side of the River.
She was followed closely by another even smaller Black Bear, and it was followed by a Cub bouncing and struggeling along behind.

You just dont realize how smooth and agile the Adult Bears are till you see the three stages of development.
I sat still like a stump till they'd gone on down the river and back up into the brush.[laugh]
I have no idea why the three odd sized Bears were together.

Another funny one took place in Denali state park up the parks hiway on the way to Mt McKinley.
There are lots of Black Bears around that park and lake.
In my inflatable, fly fishing, in the evening about 8 pm, plenty of light in the summer. I'd cast, give the oars a pull, then lay back and watch the steep hillside as I mooched the wet fly.

A Sow and cub came into view. The Sow was digging in search of food. She rolled a log a bit, dug into it, then went on to another site.

The Cub, squirrly like a child was bouncing and jousting at brush, and finall made it to the log Mom had just loosend. He jumped right up onto the log.

With the Cub on board the log started off down the very steep hill. It rolled over the Cub, and the Cub let out a wailing cry that echoed up n' down the lake.
Waaaaaaaooouuccchhhe. (I cant spell that noise, but I'll never forget the noise)

Mom stopped what she was doing immediatly and stood upright. For a long minute the log rolled down into the brush.
When the noise just about stopped, the Cub, moving very slow, moved back into sight and worked his way back up the steep hill and over to Mom. He'd fallen about 50 yards down the steep hill after being rolled over by the log.

Mom calmed down and messed with the cub a bit, then went on in search of food.
After awhile the Cub seemed to be OK again. Bouncing a little less though.

The things you see when you dont have a Camera![:|]
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