the spotted tail

The Godsey Whale Pass Fishing Report

August 8, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

The Godsey Whale Pass Fishing Report

The Godseys are a family. Although we had other guests, eight Godseys spent the entire week here. Thus the Godsey Whale Pass Fishing Report.

Official sign of the week:

You’ll see this sign on the road into Whale Pass.

Monday I had half the Godsey clan. We got some halibut, black cod, Pacific cod, and pink and coho salmon. It was good.

Alder with a kid-sized halibut.

I am figuring out how to catch the ocean salmon (both pinks and silvers) on spinning tackle. We sight-fish them, after a fashion. Salmon jump, like mullet do. When we see them jump, we cast to them. The lures of choice are the Sting Silver, from Haw River Tackle Company, and the DOA CAL jig, 3/8 ounce, with a three inch DOA CAL shad tail #308, Glow with holographic flake belly. I am 100 percent certain I could catch them with flies too. Experimentation on this front has been impossible with the children on board.

Two of the Godsey brothers with another kid-sized ‘but.

Tuesday I ran a glacier trip without the Godseys. The Peters and the Levines joined us for that one. Fog covered the Sumner Strait on the way, making navigation a challenge. In spite of that, we made it to Petersburg without incident, and then on to the LaConte Glacier. It was still there, and put on a good show. Then they went kayaking.

For the iceberg fans- they get pretty darned big.

For the iceberg fans- they get pretty darned big!

Paddling with icebergs, always cooool.

On the way home I stopped in Petersburg again to pick up supplies for the Lodge. While waiting for the van for a ride back to the dock a car pulled up. The driver asked me, “Want a ride?” He turned out to be Don Holmes, who runs the M/V Juno out of Petersburg on glacier trips and other non-consumptive charters- kayaking, hiking, whale-watching, etc. Great guy, very knowledgeable. Thank you for the ride, sir!

Wednesday the Godseys went to the glacier. The weather was absolutely spectacular and the glacier was calving like crazy. Awesome day.

Thursday the Godseys went to Memorial Beach, hoping to catch some Dolly varden. The forecast called for a southeast wind, but it was blowing hard out of the northeast. The waves were high, the water was dirty, and the fishing was blown out. We got some pink salmon along the ride back.

Friday the Godseys were again on the Blashke. Although fishing was slow, we picked up four halibut, several Pacific and black cod, and a few salmon. We had to negotiate fog to get out to the fishing grounds. Once we were there, the scene was ethereal- floating in the fog, whales blowing all around us. The fog would thin out. Long, twisted strands of vapor floated above the water’s surface, moving slowly in step with the cosmic beat. Then the fog would thicken again, and the shoreline would once again disappear.
Once the fog finally cleared, the whales were still all around us. One surfaced within 100 feet of us. They are enormous, magnificent, amazing animals. It turned out to be a whale-watching day with a side of fishing.

Another Godsey halibut.

The whales are amazing.

Saturday all the guests left. The next batch comes in on Sunday.

And that is the Godsey Whale Pass Fishing Report from Spotted Tail and the Lodge at Whale Pass.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Humpie Time Whale Pass Fishing Report

August 1, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Humpie Time Whale Pass Fishing Report

What on earth is humpie time, you ask? A humpie is another name for a pink salmon, a noble little creature. They are starting their spawning run in the creeks on Prince of Wales Island. It’s humpie time, thus the humpie time whale pass fishing report.

Alex with a pink salmon, or humpie.

Nick Colantonio, come on down!

Nick, a.k.a. the Comatose Angler, emailed me the following haiku, related of all things to glaciers.

Drinking glacier melt.
Has ice worms. Tiny, die at
thirty-two F. Ugh

Nick went on to say, “Ice worms are not harmful. They are about 1/32 inch, if I remember correctly. On one glacier tour out of Whittier, Alaska, the naturalist gives the glacier worm lecture after guests chill their drinks with glacier ice. I was drinking coffee. Hot.”

Nick, email me a snail mail address and I will get you a book when I get home.

This week’s bumper sticker:

Hey, it’s Alaska!

I had two glacier trips this week, and one to the bear viewing site an Anan. I’ve never been to the bear viewing site myself. I just bring the guests there. The bears gather at Anan because the pink salmon try to swim up the falls there. The bears recognize an easy meal when they see it. So after the guests were dropped off I pulled out a fly rod and got my first pink salmon of the season, on a small pink and orange marabou streamer.

Wine and cheese at the glacier…

On Thursday we only had four guests in house. They went halibut fishing with Capt. Julian, leaving me with most of the day off. After tying some flies I got Nuttapong, who had not yet caught a salmon in Alaska, and together we went to the 108 Creek.

Nuttapong hit a wild silver salmon on his first cast, using a Fiord Spoon. He also got two Dolly varden and a pink salmon.

I hooked and lost a salmon, then missed a strike, then hooked and broke one off, and then finally got a pink. It has been raining all week (almost biblically), so the creek is running high. My fish put up a hell of a battle, way more than I normally expect from a pink salmon.

The 108 is running a little high…

Perhaps the extra water and the little eight foot three-weight I used gave the fish an even chance.

Friday I woke up under the weather (yes, it was still raining, although we got about 15 minutes of sun in the afternoon). So no fishing got done.

Saturday the Keach’s went fishing with me in the 108 Creek. Mr. Keach fly fished, Mrs. Keach spin fished. Both did well, with several silver salmon caught and 15 or so pinks. It’s humpie time!

Mrs. Keach, fishing the 108.

Danya with one of several salmon she caught, this one a pink.

Silver salmon fishing at Neck Lake Outlet seems to be slowing down. The run this year certainly did not come near to last year’s in terms of numbers of fish. But the pinks will just keep getting better from here on, into September.

The pink salmon will be this thick in the 108 Creek in a couple of weeks.

And that is the Humpie Time Whale Pass Fishing Report from the Lodge at Whale Pass and Spotted Tail.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, salmon fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

A Glacial Whale Pass Fishing Report

July 25, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

A Glacial Whale Pass Fishing Report

Glacier trips! That’s what this week featured. Oh, and Capt. Julian aboard the Thorne put his angler Curt on a 300 pound plus halibut this week, too, though unfortunately I do not have photos of that beast.

Monday found Leslee, Megan, and Robb on the Blashke for a trip to the LaConte Glacier. First, please allow me to brag on the Blashke. Owned by the Lodge at Whale Pass, the Blashke was purchased specifically to make the glacier trip. The 32 foot long Almar aluminum hull is powered by a 500 horsepower Yanmar diesel. The drive is a reversable jet, and can easily propel the Blashke to a cruising speed of 30 knots. The Blashke can make a full 360 rotation within its length. It is astonishly nimble, and I certainly have not mastered the full use of the reversable jet drive yet. Like all Lodge at Whale Pass boats, the Blashke is named after nearby islands. The boat is amazing.

Megan is a bundle of energy.

Back to the glacier trip. Megan is a bundle of kinetic energy, always moving, very animated, highly enthusiastic, and certainly pleasing to look at. She wanted to taste the icebergs, drink the meltwater from them, paddle around them, etcetera, loads of fun. When we got up to the glacier face it put on an incredible show, big chunks calving off, shooters popping up, loud reports, spectacular fountains of spray, big waves. Everything the glacier can do it did do. We certainly had an awesome day.

Leslee and Robb take photos.

Leslie knows how to have fun, too.

Robb gets into the act! Nat obtains more ice.

Can we be silly?

In a sea full of ice.

In the center of this photo, a large piece of glacier has started to fall.

BOOM! The noise is almost deafening…

Megan sent me this email:
“Well, it’s the furthest thing from a glacier…Phoenix! Made it back late Tuesday night, and I am still in denial of being home. What a magical experience it was! A warm thank you for making and taking the time to create a once in a lifetime memory for Leslee, my brother Robb, and I. Your attentiveness, knowledge, great company and shared enthusiasm for my “goals” for the day were awesome! All achieved…drinking from a waterfall, licking…(or whatever the hell you want to call it) an iceberg, drinking from an iceberg, holding an iceberg, and sea kayaking through it all! Clearly you are doing what you love, and know how appreciative I am of all of your efforts for our day John! I trust you have a whole new crew of guests coming and going, and you will enjoy your days. I have never been to such a pristine, majestic place on earth.”

Thank you Megan. We certainly appreciate your staying with us, and miss your high energy around here.

…and that is how these icebergs form.

Tuesday found Leo and Cynthia and their three children aboard the Blashke for another glacier trip. The glacier was not performing as well this day, unfortunately. But all of them got out in kayaks and paddled among the icebergs and the seals for almost an hour and had a wonderful time.

Your reporter, floating and boating.

Wednesday was another glacier trip. The glacier is always awe-inspiring but, the travel time seems to keep getting longer, even running at 30 knots. The weather was perfect for a glacier run though, with even the Sumner Strait looking like a pond, a glassy surface the whole way both ways. Our guests this day were Laura, Stacy, and Sarah. Jonathan, Jessica, and Nuttapong, LWP staffers, were able to come along as well. The glacier still did not perform like it did on Monday, but we did get a couple of moderate-sized calves breaking off, as well as a shooter.

What is a shooter, you ask? The glacial face does not end at the water line. It extends well below the surface (I would like to know just how far down it goes. The water near the face is almost 800 feet deep.). Pieces of glacier that are underwater break off too, of course. The ice, being buoyant, shoots up towards the surface. If a piece of ice has a large flat surface it can move quite a distance laterally, making it quite dangerous to vessels that exhibit an excess of boldness. These pieces that break off underwater and then shoot to the surface are called shooters.

Nuttapong is from Thailand, where glaciers are rare.

For those who have never heard the name Nuttapong before- Nuttapong is from Thailand. He’s in the States on a student visa, and is working his butt off as an intern in the kitchen at the Lodge. I like his cooking. He understands how I like to eat. He says Nuttapong is a very common name in Thailand. Who knew?

That big halibut was caught on a piece of cut bait, in this case a chunk of pink salmon. I think they were in Snow Pass but I didn’t ask. I know Julian likes to fish there. Anytime you catch a 300 pound fish though, you deserve kudos. Congratulations, Curt!

Thursday was a low-key day with only two guuests in-house. I tied some flies, watched the rain fall, and did other low-stress activities. Julian took the guests fishing at the north entrance to Whale Pass, where they had success trolling for salmon.

Friday Kurt and I took Jeff and Pat to Memorial Beach, hoping to catch some Dolly varden. The fish were thick and Kurt and Jeff railed on them. Kurt used a Mepps spinner, Jeff a Fiord Spoon. I tried with a fly rod. In spite of changing flies a half-dozen times I only managed two, one on a Firecracker and one on a Silver Thorn. Pat likewise only got a few, even though she was throwing the same lure as her husband.

Saturday dawned with some low fog, which has now burned off. It looks to be a spectacular day weather-wise. We’ll see what it brings!

And now, for the results of the Haiku Challenge!

I’m afraid there weren’t many poets among my readers this week. So far exactly one response has come in, from Joe Pires:

I am a pilot of a low and slow aircraft.
Break the bonds of earth
World becomes an image of god
till i must return

Joe’s poem clearly does not fit the tradition haiku mold, which is as follows:

“Haiku is a traditional form of Japanese poetry. Haiku poems consist of three lines. The first and last lines of a Haiku have five syllables and the middle line has seven syllables. The lines rarely rhyme.”

That having been said, since he was the only entry, we have a winner! Joe, use the contact form to email me a snail mail address and we will snailily get a book out to you. Thanks for participating!

And that is the A Glacial Whale Pass Fishing Report from Spotted Tail and the Lodge at Whale Pass.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, fly fishing, halibut fishing, La Conte Glacier, Whale Pass Fishing Report

Haiku Challenge Whale Pass Fishing Report

July 19, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Haiku Challenge Whale Pass Fishing Report

During such free time as comes my way here at Whale Pass, I have been reading Peter Matthiessen’s The Snow Leopard. Published back in 1978, it is a brilliant piece of work, masterfully written and full of profound insights into human nature and the fleeting nature of one individual’s life.

At one point Matthiessen writes, “Amazingly, we take for granted that instinct for survival, fear of death, must separate us from the happiness of pure and uninterrupted experience, in which body, mind, and nature are the same. And this debasement of our vision, the retreat from wonder, the backing away like lobsters from free-swimming life into safe crannies, the desperate instinct that our life passes unlived, is reflected in proliferation without joy, corrosive money rot, the gross befouling of the earth and air and water from which we came.”

A guy I know says, “Life is short. Go fishing.” Or hiking. Or anything else that gets you out into the world, away from devices and documents and deadlines.

During the long summer I miss my family but I’m so happy to be at Whale Pass.

The Snow Leopard contains a couple of haikus. It inspired me to write a couple…

Sinker thumps bottom.
Big tug. Set hook. Fight to boat.
Fat, flat, halibut.

And,

Faux fly garners strike.
In response, fish jumps and runs.
God gives sacred gift.

So, here’s the haiku challenge. Consider your passion for the outdoors. For most of my readers fishing is an obvious one, but it could be about any other outdoor interest you may have. Write a haiku about it and email it to me using my contact form. The ones chosen by our panel of judge (me) will be published in upcoming blogs. If your haiku is published you will eventually get a complimentary copy of Flyrodding Florida Salt when I return to Florida, around September 1. Please keep in mind that internet access at Whale Pass is at best intermittent, so I may not receive or respond to entries for several weeks.

Ah, yes, there is supposed to be a fishing report in here someplace!

One of my goals for this summer was to try to figure out how to catch ocean salmon on light spin and fly tackle. I have not yet had much opportunity to experiment with that. On Monday, while out with the Bergers from New York, I managed to hook a silver salmon near some rocks on a Sting Silver, made by Haw River Tackle of North Carolina. The Sting Silver is one of my favorite lures for Spanish mackeral and little tunny at home. Hooking an ocean salmon on one was a small step toward my goal, but it was a step. The Bergers each got a silver salmon while mooching cut herring, and hooked and lost another.

I got an hour or so of fishing in by myself on Tuesday, fly fishing near the Neck Lake Outlet. The first cast garnered a strike from a feisty silver. It ran at me faster than I could reel. The slack line that formed wrapped around the rod tip. When the line came tight again the fish immediately broke off. The fly, a chartreuse #4 Clouser Minnow with luminescent green Sili-legs, had been tied that morning and was on my leader for exactly one cast before being lost. Fortunately I tied six, and so have a small strategic reserve.

Tuesday’s foul weather was accompanied by the loss of our last guests while we waited for another group to arrive. We performed routine maintenance on a number of systems and attempted to amuse ourselves.

Wednesday was son Maxx’s birthday. Happy birthday, Maxx! Natbug and I had Eram and Christina out bottom fishing on the Blashke. Although the weather was beautiful, it was a tough day fishing-wise, three halibut and little else. But Christina, a lovely and bright young woman, looked great holding the biggest fish we got, a halibut of 30 pounds or so.

Christina and her halibut.

Our other boats went salmon fishing and did quite well on silvers, with a 20-plus pound king and several pinks thrown in for good measure.

Thursday found me on the Etolin as a deckhand for Capt. Julian. Our anglers were Jerry and Greg. We trolled for salmon all morning, just south of the Triplets. The downrigger wires sang their eerie song as they always do, sounding like undecipherable communications from deep space.

Periodically a rod would go off. We bagged a mixed catch of silver and pink salmon, with one short (and released) king taken as well.

We tried halibut fishing for an hour in Snow Pass but did not get a bite, and were back on the dock at about 3:30 PM.

Some of you, suffering in the summer heat, won’t sympathise with this, but it’s been cold and wet here for a couple days now. High temperatures have only hit the low 60s, 100 percent relative humidity, with wind. If it were any colder it would be miserable. As it is I am having trouble staying warm.

Friday’s guests arrived late. John and his children Jack and Eva joined me for a trip to Neck Lake Outlet. The silver salmon are nothing if not reliably there. Although they are far from suicidal, they certainly will eat if you keep casting. We got five bites and Jack and Eva both put one in the boat. Since Eva is only 10 years old, this was quite an accomplishment. 🙂

Eva with her silver salmon.

Saturday the three of them, plus Eva’s twin sister Grace and mom Leslee all joined Nathaniel and I on the Blashke. Our first goal was to catch some salmon. The salmon refused to cooperate, so we went rockfishing. The happy squeals of the girls made the day a lot of fun, and Jack was pretty fun to have aboard as well. After taking a 10 fish limit of quillbacks and other assorted fish, we went halibut fishing.

We stopped to see Leroy the sea lion while halibut fishing.

Fishing Snow Pass, the halibut were cooperative enough that we caught four, including one right at the 42 inch size limit. Everyone got a chance to pull on some fish, some folks maybe more than they wanted to!

Jack got a workout while halibut fishing.

And that is the Haiku Challenge Whale Pass Fishing Report from the Lodge at Whale Pass and Spotted Tail.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, Halibut, halibut fishing, salmon fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

Got the Cutt Whale Pass Fishing Report

July 12, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Got the Cutt Whale Pass Fishing Report

In the fishing story of the week, we got the cutt today, explanation below. Because that was the best fish story of an excellent week, we have the got the cutt whale pass fishing report.

Even though I had a glacier trip this week, lots of fishing happened, double shifts on some days. First, the glacier. Nat Cook and I took six folks to the glacier on Monday. It’s kind of a long ride, two hours plus each way, with at least one stop in Petersburg. This week we stopped there twice, once each way.

The LaConte glacier, as close as we deem safe.

Once we negotiate through the fiord and the ice and get as close to the face of the glacier as we deem safe, we shut off the boat. While the guests put on more clothes (it’s COLD there) and ooh and ahh, we pull out a fruit and cheese tray and uncork a bottle of fine wine. Wine and cheese at one of the most spectacular spots on the planet! How can you top that?

The glacier calves…

Oh- that’s right! The glacier calves! Big honking pieces fall off the glacier’s face all the time and go crashing into the water. What a visual and auditory display that is!

…and the water explodes.

When we are done at the glacier the guests frequently get transfered to a float plane and take a flight-seeing tour over the glacier and mountains, then fly back to the lodge.

The airplane takes off, carrying our guests.

This week Nat and I stopped again in Petersburg to fuel the Blashke. There were some magnificent boats there. One of them was an old tugboat that had been converted into a dive charter boat.

The Swell, a converted tugboat.

What a vessel! It’s a fairly safe bet that they ain’t building boats like this one any more. The Blashke is awesome in its own right but it felt like a tin can next to this one.

The Blashke felt like a tin can next to this.

Petersburg fishing boats headed out.

We caught some big halibut this week. The Federal regulation for halibut in our section of southeast Alaska is that any halibut between 42 and 78 inches must be released alive. Needless to say measuring a fish in that 42 inch range is not an easy task. This week Auguste Hanna fought a ‘but up to the boat that was probably too big. Lucas lip-gaffed it and dragged it up onto the swim platform so we could measure it.

Auguste battles a big halibut.

Lucas dragged it onto the swim platform.

We took the opportunity to get a photo. The fish was in fact several inches over the 42 inch slot, so somewhat reluctantly we pushed it back into the water and watched it motor back into the depths. The fish was taken in Snow Pass in about 200 feet of water.

After this photo Mr. Halibut was given its freedom.

In the same area on a different day Cheryl Schoolfield hooked a nice halibut that proceeded to try and kick her butt. I told her there was no shame in passing the rod off to someone else. She ignored that idea. She got the fish to the surface three seperate times before we could tape it.

Cheryl fights the fish.

Forty-one and one-half inches! She told me afterwards she would never under any circumstance surrender her fishing rod to a man. Good for you, miss!

She showed this fish who was boss.

Several other personal fishing firsts were recorded this week. Staff members Jonathan and Jessica joined me for some after-dinner fishing out in the bay. Almost immediately Jessica caught her first salmon on a hootchie squid.

Jess with her first salmon.

Then Jonathan got one on a Pixie spoon. I think anyone who comes to Alaska ought at least to catch a salmon as part of their Alaska experience. Kudos to both of them!

Jess netted Jonathan’s fish, too.

Eleven year old Robert Horowitz also got his first Pacific salmon, a silver, also on a hootchie squid. Those hootchies are a hot tip, very effective.

Master Horowitz with his first salmon.

The fish story of the week goes to Robert’s grandfather, Dave, 73 years young. Dave told me he had caught brook trout, rainbow trout, and brown trout, but he had never caught a cutthroat trout. He wanted one badly. So I took him, his son Alex, and his grandson Robert up into Barnes Lake to try to get one.

At first it did not go well. I got the boat stuck. After we freed it Alex caught three respectable cutts in a row. Apparently Alex had a history of being outfished by Dave, and he was slightly less than gracious, in a good-natured way, about the fish count!

There is a rapid at the entrance to the creek into Barnes Lake which is impassible at lower tide phases. The tide was going out and I was worried that we might get stuck if we didn’t get out of there. But I wanted Dave to get his fish. Talk about conflict! I stopped at the last spot on the way out to try to get him that fish.

He hooked one and lost it! Oh, the humanity! We have to get out or we’ll be trapped here for hours. Please get one.

Boom! He’s on! Play it well! Get the net! We netted the fish, the best cutthroat so far this year. They are such lovely creatures, cutthroat trout. I didn’t try to get a picture, being concerned about the welfare of the fish, but Alex snapped a couple. Dave got the cutt!

We turned the fish loose, then hopped into the boat and high-tailed it out of there. The rapid was still passable, even easy. A very happy Dave said, “I’ve been waiting for that fish for 73 years.” Great story, happy ending. Kudos to you too, Dave.

And that is the Got the Cutt Whale Pass Fishing Report from the Lodge at Whale Pass and Spotted Tail.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski

www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing, Alaska fishing report, cutthroat trout fishing, halibut fishing, salmon fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

Independence Day Whale Pass Fishing Report- A Photo Essay

July 4, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Independence Day Whale Pass Fishing Report

Three trips to the LaConte Glacier this week led to an adventure and less fishing than usual; however, we did get some fish for the Independence Day Whale Pass Fishing Report. So happy Independence Day to all you Americans out there!

The week started with a trip for two guests to the LaConte Glacier. Local captain Jared Cook was along to show me the ropes. He brought his lovely lady Hannah along too. The sky was overcast and not great for glacier photography, but it was real nice for people pics. I photographed the young couple.

Hannah and Jared, a beautiful couple.

The colors were muted, but the light was nice for black and white.

All but one of my fishing trips this week were fly fishing trips for silver salmon in the vicinity of the Lodge. My angler for these trips was Andy Wilson, an angler who can cast a fly! We killed it, using a chartreuse Clouser Minnow, with a limit of salmon every day. We would look for schools of fish cruising, head them off with the skiff, and cast. Andy, on his game, made the most of the majority of his shots. That was Hot!

Andy found it easier to catch the fish than hold them, making for a more interesting photo…
That was hot!

The odd fishing trip was a mooching trip around the Triplets with Christie and John Michael, mother and son. We got a variety of fish including silver salmon, halibut, and rockfish, but the highlight of the trip was a 22 pound king salmon. That was Hot!

John Michael and Christie with a nice fat king salmon.

Trolling around the Triplets has been yielding king, silver, and pink salmon. The catch of the week was a 42 pound king salmon landed by the Ryter brothers, Ethan and Lucas. Sadly I do not have an image of this impressive catch. But it was Hot!

The Wilson family also took a glacier trip. Captain Cook came along again, in a supervisory capacity. The ice in the fiord was very thick. I didn’t realize the Blashke was an ice-breaker, but I quickly learned what an amazing vessel it is.

Nearing the glacier in the Blashke, maneuvering through the ice.

Jared tells stories about hunting mountain goats around the glacier.

Of course, we had to get out of the fiord again.

On the glacier trips we spend some time in Petersburg to stretch legs and see an Alaska fishing town. I love to walk the docks and photograph the boats.

I’m getting a good idea what to use when trolling for salmon.

On July 3 Nathaniel Cook and I took the Greenberg family, from New York, to the glacier. We photographed Leroy on the way. The weather was awesome.

Leroy with his harem.

The weather was awesome.

We watched the glacier calve.

After watching the glacier calve for a while we took them out to the mouth of the fiord to meet their float plane. Nathaniel and I decided to take the short-cut back in spite of the fact neither of us had ever run it before. We got to the shallow spot too late and grounded the Blashke on a large sand flat.

Oops!

Why is there a channel marker where there is no water???

The sunset was worth the price of admission.

The short cut cost us about ten hours while we waited for the tide to bring enough water back to float the boat, which happened about midnight. The rest of the ride back happened under an almost full moon and deep twilight (it never did get dark) and was absolutely gorgeous. We did not damage the boat or ourselves, and if you’re going to get stuck we could not have picked a nicer place to do it.

And that is the Independence Day Whale Pass Fishing Report from Spotted Tail and the Lodge at Whale Pass.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski

www.spottedtail.com

http://www.spottedtail.com/blog

www.johnkumiski.com

www.rentafishingbuddy.com

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Photo Essays, travel blog, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, salmon fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

End of June Whale Pass Fishing Report

June 29, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Some metal art we found in Ketchikan.

End of June Whale Pass Fishing Report

It’s not really the end of June yet, there being two more days in the month at the time of this writing. However, it certainly will be the last fishing report posted by me in June 2015, so it is the End of June Whale Pass Fishing Report.

The north entrance to Whale Pass. We have plenty of water to fish.

It started last Sunday afternoon when I took wife Susan and Ethan Ryter up into Barnes Lake. The stretch of stream between Barnes and Sweetwater Lakes is the only one I’ve ever fished that has a reversing flow. As the tide comes in it flows one way. As the tide drops it flows the other way, in my experience a unique place to fish. The coastal cutthroat trout were biting and we caught some on both fly and spin tackle. If last year is any indication they will soon be gone, following the salmon smolts out to sea.

Ethan with a average sized Barnes Lake cutthroat trout.

After we left there we went to Neck Lake Outlet, where fishing has been tough. We did get a silver salmon on a hootchie, though, and Sue posed with it.

My bride with a nice silver salmon from Neck Lake Outlet.

I guided parties of fly fishers to Neck Lake Outlet three times this week and did not get a bite. Friday’s excursion was the first time we were sure that we were casting to fish. It was the first time we’ve been able to see them in the water this season. The salmon run is late, and nowhere near as strong as last year’s. The weather has been dry (for southeast Alaska) and the streams are all low, perhaps the cause of the less than enthusiastic salmon in Neck Lake Outlet.

This is how some Alaska drivers decorate their vehicles, in this case a Ford Ranger.

On Thursday we took a party of four out on the Blashke for some halibut fishing. The Blashke had been being used for glacier trips and did not have all the requisite fishing implemenets on board, as we discovered when Bob C. hooked a nice ‘but. No net. No gaff.

Mick had a cod on at the same time. The two lines got all tangled. I was able to get the cod on board and untangle the lines so Bob could keep fighting his fish. We decided I would try and get my hand in its gills and haul it aboard, not exactly standard operating procedure. First try did not work, and the fish ran back into the depths. Second try did not work, nor did the third, fourth, or fifth. The hook had worn quite a large hole in the fish’s jaw by the time I was finally able to get my hand into the fish and pull it onto the boat. Bob was very happy, as was I!

Aye, I grabbed the swabbie with me bare hands and hauled him aboard…

All the anglers managed to get a halibut, along with numerous cod and a silver salmon, a pretty good day for everyone.

The Etolin, one of the Lodge’s vessels, in action on the halibut grounds.

Saturday the Wilson family from Nevada joined me for some salmon fishng at Neck Lake Outlet. We hooked and lost two silvers, broke one off, and landed one about eight pounds, all on a pink hootchie. The increase in the number of fish was encouraging!

And that is the End of June Whale Pass Fishing Report from Spotted Tail. I’ll be back in July!

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski

www.spottedtail.com

http://www.spottedtail.com/blog

www.johnkumiski.com

www.rentafishingbuddy.com

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, alaska halibut fishing, cutthroat trout fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

Father’s Day Whale Pass Fishing Report

June 21, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

A coastal cutthroat trout from Barnes Lake.

Father’s Day Whale Pass Fishing Report

Pagans of the world celebrate the summer solstice today. Additionally, it’s Father’s Day. Happy Father’s Day to all of the good dads out there, and pardon me while I pat myself on the back…

Thanks to all who participated in last week’s photo quiz. The picture was taken at the Chihuly Museum and Gardens in Seattle, and the artist was Dale Chihuly. David Gunn of Massachusetts sent the first correct answer in about three minutes after I posted the email, and gets the Johnny-on-the-spot reward of a copy of Flyrodding Florida Salt.

So I’ve been at the Lodge at Whale Pass for a week, this summer’s gig, and have only been out fishing a couple times. The silver salmon run at the Neck Lake Outlet is decidedly late this year, with very few fish having shown up yet. Capt. Kurt Gorlitz on the Etolin says halibut fishing has been slow. He has been bringing back fish every trip though, with Pacific cod and some rockfish in the catch as well.

We spent three hours trolling the north entrance of Whale Passage on Saturday, getting three bites and catching two silver salmon in that time. The downriggers were set at 30 feet, and the bait was a hootchie behind a flasher.

I was able to get a Barnes Lake trip in with two young women and the 10 year old son of one of them, a boy named Hunter. Hunter caught several nice sea-run cutthroat trout on a Dardevle. Ashley received a fly casting lesson from me. I was able to get several nice cutts on the fly. She was not so fortunate. The fish should remain in there for a couple more weeks.

And that is the Father’s Day Whale Pass Fishing Report from Spotted Tail.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Whale Pass Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Alaska fishing report, Cutthroat trout, Halibut, halibut fishing, salmon fishing, Whale Pass Fishing Report

Outta Town Orlando Fishing Report

June 13, 2015 by john kumiski · 2 Comments

Outta Town Orlando Fishing Report

Let’s go straight to the Orlando Fishing Report-

Sunday Paul and Garrett Santini joined me for a day’s fishing on the Indian River Lagoon. I somehow got the idea they were fly fishers. They were not. Thank God I brought a spin rod backup. Garrett, who attends Lehigh University, had once had a fly fishing lesson. I augmented it enough that he could fish with the fly rod while dad used the spinner. We missed a few strikes but it was tough fishing, windy, cloudy, and dodging rain. Paul got a single redfish with a RipTide weedless jig/DOA CAL jerkbait combination at the end of the trip and that was it for the day.

We dodged rainstorms all morning.

Tuesday Capt. Bruce Eaton again joined me for some IRL fishing, this time with his son Val. Last week I wrote the Capt. Bruce flew a 737. CORRECTION- he flies a 747. We had continuous clouds and wind and basically it was impossible to sight fish. Bruce did not get a shot. Val, using a spin rod and the same RipTide weedless jig/DOA CAL jerkbait combination, got two redfish, smallish ones, and two trophy puffers. We wrapped it up around 1130.

Val’s first redfish was not gigantic, but he did get some.

Tuesday I took the kayak down the Econ for some last minute bass fishing. It was a decent bite, with bass, redbellies, stumpknockers, and especially gar. They seemed especially aggressive. The biggest bass I got was maybe two pounds, no big ones. The water was a little higher than last week, and a bit dirtier, too.

Wednesday morning Susan and I caught a 737 out of OIA and spent most of the day travelling. On Thursday we went to a musem where I took this photo. The first person who can tell me the artist and/or the town gets a copy of Flyrodding Florida Salt.

Who’s the artist? Where is the art?

We did some very non-fishy things on Friday and are travelling again on Saturday and Sunday.

And that is this week’s Outta Town Orlando Fishing Report from Spotted Tail.

Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Orlando Fishing Report, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: Bass fishing, fishing indian river lagoon, flyfishing for bass, Indian River Lagoon, redfish fishing, seatrout fishing

Quite the Week Orlando Fishing Report

June 5, 2015 by john kumiski · Leave a Comment

Quite the Week Orlando Fishing Report

It was quite the week, apart from the fishing. And with the exception of a scout day that turned up nothing, fishing was pretty darn good. It could have been called the week of the bass! Read on for this week’s Orlando fishing report.

First of all, my son Maxx has been trying to get into a Physician’s Assistant program ever since he graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Radiology. Monday he found out that he has been accepted into the P.A. program at Barry University. He starts in September. Congratulations, my son! I am so proud of him.

After sister Cheryl moved in with us we got some chickens. Three turned out to be roosters. We ate a couple of them a month or so back. One got away from me and had been living on borrowed time. Sunday he met his maker. He had beautiful feathers so I tried to skin him. That did not go too well. Any tips on how I could do better, assuming there is a next time, would be welcomed.

A streamer I tied with feathers from the currently defunct rooster.

If cars could write their history I suspect most would be horribly dull. “I commuted in gridlock traffic every day this week. My owner almost lost it one day with road rage…” Anyhow, in 1999 Susan and I bought a new Toyota Sienna, something safe and reliable for carrying young kids and all. My kids grew up in that van, which I am still driving (Thank God for YouTube!), towing boats, carrying canoes and kayaks, etc. Monday morning, in beautiful Bithlo, that vehicle hit a heck of a milestone. See the photo.

This is a big deal for a car.

When the Sienna hit that milestone Scott Radloff and I were going scouting on the Indian River Lagoon, in the vicinity of Cocoa. The water was mostly beautifully clear, enough we could see all of Rhodophyta algae on the bottom, even in three or four feet of water. There were a few lonely strands of widgeon grass here and there, but no manatee grass at all. We went from SR 520 almost to the Rinker Canal and saw exactly one redfish. Won’t be going back there for a long time.

Tuesday Capt. Bruce Eaton, a 737 pilot for one of the major airlines, joined me for some fly fishing on the Indian River Lagoon. We saw quite a few fish but were not exactly covered up with bites, getting exactly two. The one fish he got, on a bendback streamer, was a magnificent 28 inch seatrout. I left my cameras in the car- ARGGGHHHH! The photo below was taken with a phone. Phones will never replace cameras if you want quality photos. Weather drove us back to the ramp about 1 PM.

Capt. Eaton landed on this fine seatrout.

Wednesday found me floating in an Ocean Kayak on the St. Johns River. Fishing was only OK until I hit the magic spot. Then Blam! POW! It was some of the fastest bass fishing I’ve ever had, topped off by a solid five pound fish on a foam popping bug. Then the wind came up and it was over. The boat was back on the van shortly after noon.

Yeah, bass have really big mouths. My popper is lodged down there. It came out easily.

Same fish, with yours truly.

After Wednesday’s extravaganza how could I not try again? Thursday saw me back at the same place with a supply of new poppers. Alas, it was not as good as the previous day. Honestly, how could it have been? Still, over a dozen fish were released. Sadly, I lost both of the big ones. Bass strikes are just unbelievable sometimes.

Friday, just to stay in the bass groove, I went to the Econ. It was flat out the best day I’ve had there. I wore out two flies and broke another one off on a big fish. I hooked and lost another one, but still managed to get a couple real nice ones, and a bunch of smaller fish, a couple redbellies, a couple stumpknockers, and a spotted gar. No bluegills, surprisingly. Didn’t really miss them. The water is low and clear, looks great.

A real nice Econ River bass.

Same fish, with yours truly!

A different nice fish, clearly showing the fly.

An even better shot of the fly, this time with a spectacular redbelly.

And another shot of the fly with one of the many other bass caught.

And that is this week’s Quite a Week Orlando Fishing Report from Spotted Tail.

Thanks for reading! Life is great and I love my work!

Life is short- Go Fishing!

John Kumiski
www.spottedtail.com
http://www.spottedtail.com/blog
www.johnkumiski.com
www.rentafishingbuddy.com
https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/jkumiski

All content in this blog, including writing and photos, copyright John Kumiski 2015. All rights are reserved.

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Filed Under: Fishing Reports, Orlando Fishing Report, Paddle Fishing Florida, St. Johns River Fishing Report · Tagged: adventure fishing, Bass fishing, florida fishing, fly fishing, Indian River Lagoon, kayak fishing, Orlando Area Fishing Report, orlando fishing charter, orlando fishing report, seatrout fishing

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