May: Something to Look Forward to



                                                                

As an exceedingly long and snowy winter slowly begins to give way to longer days and melting snow it is  hard not to think about the upcoming spring fishing season. Bait opener on the Kasilof river comes in mid May, and these days catchable numbers of kings seem to enter the river shortly after. But before we get to experience our first king salmon takedown of the year there is much work to be done. 

Permits need to be applied for, various odds and ends need to be replaced or repaired on the drift boats. Don't even get me started on trailer wiring and mice. Rods & reels need to be re-rigged with fresh line & leaders. Dozens of fresh Spin n' Glo rigs rigs get tied, usually over a couple of drinks with other guide friends. Bait needs to be prepped. Once all is said and done many hours of prep work has been completed before I even have an opportunity to dip the oars.

                                                                

                                                                     Freshly tied Spin & Glos ready to go 

The first trip of the year is always a "fun trip" to work out any kinks and figure out if any equipment didn't make it into the boat. Many years the catching on this 1st trip is slow but some years its excellent. (About 3 years ago our first trip out resulted in a boat limit of kings in about 3-4 hours!). Muscle memory quickly returns as the rowing technique comes like riding a bike. I typically make one pass each through Peoples hole, Stump hole, Coho cove & Grassy bank, not stopping unless we hit a fish. My goal is get down to last chance hole and desperation alley for tidal fish. I suspect it is the low May waters that keeps fish held up on the lower stretches of river but I always seem to have my best success in the wind swept tidal areas on my first several trips of the year. Or maybe it's just a confidence thing, it's hard to say for certain. Motoring out at the end of the day one must avoid the extra shallow gravel bars of the tidal zone and you may even end up walking the driftboat over some due to low water. The nice thing about this first trip is the wait at the Cabins drift boat take out usually is not very long and in a short half hour after reaching it we can be on our way home. Hopefully we will even have a  few of the best tasting fillets Alaska has to offer to throw on the grill to kick off the season.

Soon we will be meeting clients, both new and repeat alike and taking them down one of my favorite fisheries in Alaska. But for now it is back to shoveling and pre-season prep work. May on the Kasilof River simply can't come soon enough.

If you would like to book a Kasilof river fishing trip give me a call at (907)312-0039 or visit my website at https://chadwicksfishing.com


                                                                                         May King Limits!!


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