Mat-SU
Valley lakes +++
Trout, grayling, landlocked salmon, pike
Let others chase wily salmon and worry about high, murky river water. Trout and grayling in still water tend to be more cooperative on wet, gray days. Spinners, spoons, nymphs and leech patterns all work. Knob and Ravine lakes both have nice views.
Willow area lakes +++
Trout, grayling, pike
Herring suspended beneath a bobber are a good bet for pike. Try top-water weedless lures and flies in the heavily vegetated bays and sloughs. Try the Nancy Lake Recreation Area and Long Lake.
Sheep Creek +
Rainbows
Flood advisory, but running well under flood stage Wednesday. Still probably too early for silvers. Probing upstream for egg-hungry trout may be your best bet.
Montana Creek ++
Trout, grayling
Flood advisory, but running well under flood stage Wednesday. Silvers moving in. Only catch-and-release fishing for rainbow trout and grayling.
Little Susitna River +++
Silver salmon, rainbows, chum salmon
Anglers are averaging one fish apiece, according to Fish and Game. Chum and pink salmon are also being taken. Typically, the meat of the Little Su silver run is in late August and early September. Bait is not allowed until Aug. 6, and the daily limit on silvers is two.
Willow Creek ++
Silver salmon, rainbows, grayling
Salmon are on the move as the water rises and not holding in all of their normal hangouts. Good fishing awaits anglers who find the spots salmon stop to rest. Rainbow trout must be released downstream of the Parks Highway. Fishing for Dolly Varden and Arctic grayling should be fair.
Jim Creek +++
Red and silver salmon
Good fishing at the mouth for both reds and silvers, but the crowds can get thick during weekends. Bag limit is three salmon, only two of which can be silvers.
Eklutna Tailrace +
Silver salmon
Occasionally, fishing is fair for silvers -- but more typically it's slow. Bait and multiple hooks are legal for both kings and silvers. Vibrax spinners or cured roe early in the morning may be your best bet.
Fish Creek ++
Red salmon
Dipnetting for red salmon is open through 11 p.m. Saturday, though the run may have peaked. Many limits were taken over the weekend, particularly by netters working just before and after high tide. Some 19,000 reds passed the weir near Lewis Road on Friday; 1,052 on Tuesday. Don't use 4-wheelers on the stream bank or to cross Fish Creek. On Aug. 14, Fish Creek will open as a weekend-only fishery to rod-and-reel anglers chasing silver salmon.
REMOTE FISHERIES
Deshka River +++
Silver, pink and chum salmon
Silvers that had been loitering at the river mouth moved upstream when rain brought rising water. Some 4,100 silvers have swum past the weir through Tuesday, and this year's silver run is already outpacing last year's. Among the effective lures -- No. 5 Flashtrap Spinners and K-13X Kwikfish backtrolled.
Lake Creek ++
Silver salmon, rainbow trout
A few silvers are showing up, but other Yentna River tributaries and sloughs such as Moose and Indian creeks may prove more productive.
Talkeetna River ++
Chum, red salmon, rainbow trout
Still early for silver salmon, but reds and chums have shown up on the Talkeetna River at the mouths of Clear and Larson creeks.
ANCHORAGE AREA
Local lakes & streams +++
Trout, graying, char, pike, salmon
Rainbow trout can be found at Jewel Lake, DeLong Lake, Sand Lake and Campbell Point Lake. Sand and Campbell Point lakes may be your best bet for char. Remember, the bag limit at Anchorage-area lakes has been cut to two rainbows, two grayling and two Arctic char per day, with only one 12 inches or longer. Bait is banned in Chester Creek.
Campbell Creek +
Silver salmon, Dolly Varden
Silver salmon anglers are trying their luck in the legal area between Dimond Boulevard and C Street. Morning tends to be best, but high water can be a problem.
Ship Creek ++
Silver salmon
A couple of bright silvers were spotted below the dam during Tuesday morning's high tide, but overall the fishing has been slow. Expect it to improve over the next week. Beware: The creek upstream of the Chugach Power Plant to the Reeve Boulevard bridge is closed through Sept. 30 to protect wild populations of spawning rainbows.
Bird Creek ++
Pink, chum and silver salmon
Pink run is picking up, and chums are arriving too. But not many silvers. Fishing is legal from Turnagain Arm to regulatory markers located about 500 yards upstream.
KENAI PENINSULA
Deep Creek ++
Silver, pink salmon, Dolly Varden
Exploring the river mouth around high tide can yield silvers, with fishing expected to improve over the next two or three weeks. Pink fishing is no better than fair, but Dolly Varden are biting.
Ninilchik River +
King, pink salmon
Expect poor fishing for hatchery kings, which have a missing adipose fin, but check the Ninilchik harbor for late- arriving salmon. Bait is allowed. Wild kings must not be removed from the water and must be released.
Homer Spit ++
Silver salmon, Dolly Varden
A few silvers are at the entrance of the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon and fishing should pick up. Snagging is illegal. Dolly Varden are available at the end of the Homer Spit; small silver or orange spinners often work.
Anchor River +
Silver, pink salmon, Dolly Varden
Silvers are starting to show, but don't expect fishing to really gear up until the second week of August. Pink fishing is picking up. King salmon angling closed. Any steelhead hooked must be released without being removed from the water. Marine waters adjacent to the mouth of the Anchor have reopened.
Kasilof River +++
Red salmon, Dolly Varden
Red salmon continue entering the river, and anglers fishing between slack-water near the Tustumena Lake outlet and the Sterling Highway Bridge are having success. Expanded commercial fishing openings in the inlet may tamp down anglers' success.
Russian River +++
Red salmon, rainbows
Red salmon run should soon kick into high gear as fish move up the Kenai River. Right now, it's well behind last year's pace but it could be roaring this weekend. Upriver, rainbow trout fishing has been excellent. Russian River anglers are asked to clean fish at the cleaning tables located at the Russian-Kenai confluence as well as at the ferry crossing. Anglers are also encouraged to chop fish waste into numerous small pieces and throw them into deep water with fast moving current.
Upper Kenai River +++
Rainbows, red salmon
Reds are downstream of Skilak Lake, and large numbers should reach the Upper Kenai soon. Rainbow fishing has been dependable, with side channels often more productive.
Lower Kenai River +
King, red salmon
Tail end of a slow king salmon season -- which ends Saturday night -- should weaken further now that commercial red salmon fishermen have expanded openings in the Inlet. Angler Bob Penney said he counted 208 boats between river mile 10 and 16 Tuesday morning and saw five kings being fought and seven down rods. "Twelve kings harvested for 650 or so anglers is pathetic," he said, "and all because of the emergency openings the (Fish and Game) department gave the commercial fleet. Across from my home, at mile 23, I can count 56 folks fishing for reds along the river bank. Before yesterday, there were an average of six to nine or so reds on all the time. Today we have not seen a red hooked for over one hour. " It takes guided anglers an average of 22 hours to land a king and unguided anglers 29 hours, according to biologists' estimates. On Tuesday, water clarity was rated excellent.
Peninsula dipnetting ++
Red salmon
Kenai dipnetting closes 11 p.m. Saturday. Early success by dipnetters working both the Kenai and Kasilof has slowed as commercial fishing openings have expanded. The Kasilof is open around the clock until Aug. 7. Dipnetters are asked to not camp, drive cars or ATV's, or otherwise disturb the Kasilof River dunes and pack out all trash.
Clam Gulch +
Razor clams
Razor clams can be found on the sandy beaches from Kasilof to Homer and are exposed on any minus tides. Expect to find many small clams on the Ninilchik beach in the 2- to 4-inch range. Larger clams may be difficult to find. All razor clams that are dug must be kept regardless of size.
MARINE FISHERIES
Outside Resurrection Bay ++++
Halibut, rockfish, lingcod, silver salmon
Lingcod fishing continues strong and some anglers swear the ugly bottom fish tastes better than halibut or salmon. Try a small silver spoon or jig for kelp greenling. Kids can easily catch these fish and they are tasty table fare when eaten fresh. Halibut fishing has been good.
Resurrection Bay +++
Silver salmon, halibut, rockfish
Silvers are widely dispersed throughout Resurrection Bay and that lack of concentration mean limits are harder to come by. For halibut, fish the slack tide and keep your bait on the bottom. Rockfish are active and often easy to catch, but keep what you pull in because rockfish don't survive release well. Limit is four per day.
Deep Creek offshore ++
Silver salmon, halibut
Silver salmon have started to arrive with charters going west, 25 miles out, to find large schools. Most anglers have been catching their two-halibut limit. Herring is a popular bait, but octopus, squid, salmon heads and jigs also work well.
Kachemak Bay +++
Halibut, pink, silver salmon, rockfish
Halibut up to 30 pounds have been found about 15 miles out. Expect solid lingcod fishing by Elizabeth Island at the end of the Peninsula. Pink and chum salmon are arriving, with good numbers of pink salmon reported in Tutka Bay. China Poot personal-use red salmon dipnet fishery continues through Aug. 7, but most netters say it's been slow.
Prince William Sound +++
Halibut, lingcod, shrimp, salmon
Shrimpers have enjoyed a banner summer, with pots as deep as 500 feet and as shallow as 70. Halibut angling has been productive in bays that support pink and chum salmon runs. Anglers have reported catching larger fish at depths as shallow as 100 feet. Pink and chum salmon are abundant throughout the sound. Still a little early for silver salmon most places, though a big 16.8-pounder leads the Valdez Silver Salmon Derby.
Alaska Dispatch Publishing