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Angling paradise: Seward has a line on halibut and salmon fishing

By KEN MARSH
Anchorage Daily News

Published: May 17th, 2005
Last Modified: November 8th, 2005 at 07:54 AM

Off the stern of the charter boat Glacier Breeze, the peaks of the Aialik Peninsula jutted from the sea like the teeth of a giant salmon shark. Puffins, gulls, murres and auklets flew overhead and, in the distance, Bear Glacier could be seen winding out of the Kenai Mountains, pouring its icy heart into Resurrection Bay.

In the center of it all, angler Cheryl Myers had barely dropped her herring bait over the gunwale when she suddenly cried out. An unseen force was trying to wrench the salmon rod from her hands, forcing the retiree from Apple Valley, Calif., to hold on as the tip bent sharply toward the water.

Skipper Chad Washburn was at her side in an instant.

Myers reeled, straining against the fish, as Washburn grabbed a long-handled net. The fish ran, stretching the 20-pound-test line as tight as a guitar string, but Myers hung on and soon began gaining line. She led the fish close to the boat, then hauled back and brought it splashing to the surface. Washburn quickly scooped it up and dropped it into a holding pen mounted on the stern.

Weighing 9 or 10 pounds and as bright as a dime, the first silver salmon of the half-day charter -- and Myers' first salmon ever -- had been hooked and boated within 10 minutes of fishing.

Situated on the southeastern portion of the Kenai Peninsula, Resurrection Bay is famous for its glacial fjords, abundant wildlife and, as much as anything else, its excellent fishing. Home port is the city of Seward, which, tucked at the head of the bay, serves each summer as the gateway for thousands of memorable fishing trips.

Seward lies at the southern end of the Seward Highway, a scenic two-hour, 127-mile drive south of downtown Anchorage. Backed by the high peaks and hanging glaciers of the Kenai Mountains, this waterfront city of 3,000 is geared for sportfishing. Everything anglers need -- including licenses, charter boats, boat rentals, launches, campgrounds, lodging and restaurants -- can be found here by those looking to tackle the region's halibut, salmon, rockfish, salmon sharks, lingcod and more.

The fishing season in area waters never really ends (a couple of charter services offer king salmon trips year-round), but the action for all species is generally best from late May to September. And for most anglers, the first fish of spring and early summer are the local heavyweights: halibut and king salmon.

HALIBUT

On rare occasions, halibut weighing more than 350 pounds have been caught inside Resurrection Bay, but anglers here most often hook "chicken" halibut -- smaller fish ranging from 10 to 35 pounds. Much larger specimens, "barn doors" weighing from 100 to 300 pounds and more, are more consistently caught outside the bay in the broad, open waters around the Chiswell Islands, off Cape Resurrection and off Montague Island.

Halibut are bottom fish generally found in sandy or gravel-bottomed areas; most are caught at depths of 90 to 500 feet. They are opportunistic feeders capable of chasing down bait fish, but they are also perfectly comfortable scavenging carrion. The halibut's voraciousness often makes these fish easy to catch. Most anglers use stout 5- to 7-foot rods with heavy level-wind reels capable of holding 300 yards of 50- to 80-pound-test braided line. Preferred baits are salmon heads, herring or octopus impaled on No. 16 circle hooks. Halibut are also caught on lead-head jigs or large spoons jigged off the bottom.

Plenty of weight is needed to keep baits down where halibut lie. Depending upon depth, current and tides, anglers may find themselves using anywhere from 2 to 5 pounds of lead.

Since halibut are deepwater fish, few are caught by shore anglers. For those who don't have their own seaworthy boats, many excellent charter operators can be found in Seward.

KING SALMON

Hatchery king salmon start returning to Lowell Creek and the Seward Lagoon between mid-May and July, with the run normally peaking around June 15. Resurrection Bay anglers catch 2,500 to 4,200 kings each year, with fish normally weighing from 25 to 45 pounds.

Kings are caught from boats and by anglers casting from shore. Cut-plug herring baits, artificial plugs and spoons are popular among local trollers; shore-bound anglers often connect with bright spoons, spinners and baits such as cured roe hung under bobbers. Snagging is legal in the bay's saltwater, and many shore anglers catch their limits this way, attaching nothing more to their lines than a treble hook and some weight.

Smaller "feeder" kings, immature fish that include hatchery and wild stocks, are caught in Resurrection Bay year-round. Many are caught by trolling or "mooching," a technique by which anglers drop baited hooks over the sides of boats in waters where bait fish schools are concentrated. Feeder kings are frequently caught around Eldorado Narrows, Aialik Cape and Rugged Island.

SILVER SALMON

Perhaps more than anything else, the waters outside Seward are famous for silver salmon. Most of these medium-weight, 6- to 18-pound salmon caught in Resurrection Bay are stocked by either the state or nonprofit hatcheries.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game releases 240,000 young silvers out of Lowell Creek and the Seward Lagoon each year. Meanwhile, Cook Inlet Aquaculture has a permit to release up to 250,000 in nearby Bear Creek.

The Resurrection Bay silver salmon sportfishery continues to grow in popularity. For example, anglers' total catch of 9,800 silvers in 1984 mushroomed to 98,000 in 2002.

Silver fishing in the bay's outer reaches normally begins in late June. The salmon usually start arriving in the Seward area around late July and run through August. Like kings, they can be caught from shore by anglers casting spinners, spoons or baits hung under bobbers. Popular spoons include Pixees and Hotrods, and No. 4 Mepps and Vibrax spinners also work well.

Local charters are a great way to go. As with halibut charters, most supply rods and tackle. Anglers catch silvers by trolling herring baits or spoons. As with feeder kings, mooching is an effective way to catch Resurrection Bay silvers.

Rockfish and lingcod are found in rocky-bottomed areas of the bay. Both are relished by fishermen for their tasty, flaky white meat and are easily caught on medium-weight rods rigged with herring baits or flashy jigs.

Lingcod may not be retained in Resurrection Bay, but they can be kept when caught in waters outside the bay from July 1 through Dec. 31. Also, special bag limits apply to rockfish species, so be sure to check the state sportfish regulations.

For more information about fishing regulations and Resurrection Bay fishing, visit the Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Sport Fish Web site at www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/sf_home.cfm.

Ken Marsh is a Daily News copy editor who lives in Anchorage.