Fish

As you might learn if you care to look, much of Alaska lives for fish. Alaska claims more shore line than the rest of the US and that involves fish. I knew none of this twelve years ago when I came north, but I am learning.

This morning, two hours after high tide at midnight, the King Salmon would be expected to be packed into the Anchor River below a fish counter just installed by Fish & Game. The big white counter lay like a blanket clear across the river. It spooked me, just driving across the bridge, seeing it in my peripheral vision. I expected it to spook the fish resulting in a traffic jam of Kings below the fish counter. The conventional wisdom of local fishermen suggested a major event. Fishing was closed until midnight. The big feeder King or one fresh from the salt water attracts serious anglers and subsistence types as well as the Bear. I have seen bear and fishermen alike lined up on the bank of a stream when the salmon are running.

This morning the fishermen were there. I arrived at 2am, the area was packed with RVs, and the stream lined with fishermen. The bear was remarkable for his absence and so was the salmon. I fished for two hours and gave it up. I lost the pixy off my spinning rod to a submerged log, the same one that was there last year and vowed never to fish with the heavy baseball bat that is my spinning rod again. I do admit that I need at least a 10 foot number 8 fly rod for Kings, however, rather than my light #4 rod. The salmon must not have been at all concerned by the big white counter, or simply pulled a no show on this tide.

The strangest sight that I recall, fishing Kings occurred at Big River Lakes near the entrance to Lake Clark Pass. The charter operators keep boats and fuel pulled up on a tenuous floating island of peat moss and grass in the sheltered river entrance to the lake. The fishing is especially good at the narrow point where the river empties into the lake. It is a popular fishing spot for natives and for bear. High rocky cliffs and mountain rise to the left, and soggy grassy semi floating marsh extends to the right. The floating marsh grass breaks through as you try to walk on it so one can only access the river entrance by boat. The rocky side belongs to the bear.

There are usually two or three boats near the stream. I have flown passengers to the floating island where they can fish from the more substantial floating areas. I should have kept a boat and fuel, but I really did not go there that often.

This was a June morning. The Kings stacked up, waiting their turn at the river. Boats crowded the area. Many of the natives just netted the Kings and there were bears in the water. One native fishing boat, overloaded with family had hung a string of fish over the stern. A Brown Bear, they are all large, went after the string of fish. The native woman, standing in the stern of the boat beat it over the head with an oar and pulled on her end of the string of fish.

My passengers shot a role of film of the action. This was bear viewing at its best. We walked around on the island and enjoyed the show. We did not fish, frankly for safety reasons. The bear comes first in my view. (They split the fish about half and half, the woman and the bear.)