Alaska News

When Alaska's Alagnak River delivered a treasure trove of fish

NEWHALEN -- The first time I fished the Branch was late in the summer of 1974. Cal Martin, his son Danny, and I teamed up that summer to commercial fish for pink salmon near Graveyard Point in the Kvichak district on Bristol Bay. When the season was over, Cal wanted his setnet skiff taken to Newhalen, on the north shore of Lake Illiamna.

The distance from Graveyard Point to Newhalen is approximately 150 miles, and it is home to some of the best rainbow trout fishing in Alaska -- perhaps the world. The Kvichak River, near its outlet on Illiamna at Igiugig, is known for huge rainbow trout.

Less known, but a great fishing river in its own right, is the Alagnak River, or the Branch as it is known locally. Today, several fishing lodges in the area concentrate on an excellent king salmon run. However, more than 1 million red salmon also spawn on the Alagnak. There are numerous chums on the Branch and a good silver run too.

Mixed in with all of the salmon are enough rainbows to make it seem like they are a run of their own. There are numerous pike in side sloughs on the lower river and big grayling lurking under snags along the shorelines. Dolly Varden fin slowly behind the spawning sockeye, scooping up eggs until they will hardy take a lure.

Danny Martin and I left Graveyard Point in early August. We drove a 20-foot open skiff with a 40 horsepower Johnson as the main engine with an old 25 Evinrude to back it up. When both of those motors were going, we could really scoot.

We motored up the Branch on a bright sunny August morning. After 15 miles of the Kvichak and we turned east up the Alagnak. The lower river was well within tidal effect, leaving the water murky and slightly saline. Other than a few fresh kings from the August run, there were few fish.

Danny and I stopped to fish for an hour and managed to land a couple medium-size kings. This was the 1970s; we could fish with salmon eggs, something no longer allowed.

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We continued up the river to a small fish camp populated by a few local families. We stopped there for a bit to visit and trade the fresh kings for a bundle of dried sockeye to feed my big German shepherd Collin.

We continued up the Branch, stopping at a side slough to fish for pike and make camp. We fished for an hour, catching a couple of small pike, but eventually mosquitoes drove us out on the river again. I chose a sandbar some 5 miles upriver to camp. We put up a tent, started a smoky fire and broke out the light poles.

The first hit I got was a hefty king, which promptly broke off, taking my red and white Mepps spinner. I was targeting grayling, but couldn't keep the rainbows off the hook. At times there would be a half-dozen fish fighting to see who could reach my lure first. Danny switched to heavier gear and managed to hook and land the king I lost, recovering my Mepps.

One needs plenty of gear to work the Alagnak successfully. Medium to heavy gear is good for kings, but the rainbows, though they can weigh 10 pounds, are best fished with lighter gear. My experience with grayling on the Branch is that they are not readily taken on flies in the summer when the river is loaded with salmon. That changes on the middle and upper river, where their are more riffles. A fly rod would be a handy addition there.

Small pike in the Alagnak's lower reaches prefer quiet sloughs. I have not seen one larger than 20 inches, though I would guess a few bigger fish hanging out in the weed beds.

The Alagnak turns into a jetboat river within 20 miles of its confluence with the Kvichak. Rainbows get a bit smaller and livelier in the upper riffles. Grayling and dollies are more aggressive too.

Danny and I could have stayed on the Branch fishing rainbows for a week, but Cal was waiting for us in Newhalen with his Cessna so after three days we reluctantly nosed our skiff back downriver. We waited out a pretty good wind at Igiugig before heading up the lake to Newhalen.

The Alagnak has changed since 1974. Fishing is far more regulated than it was 40 years ago. There are more setnets on the parent river and far more sport fisherman working the Branch. Lodges advertise extensively, promoting a location that's difficult for the average fisherman to access.

That and judicious regulation has kept this river pristine. There are no crowded fishing holes. One can easily find a stretch of the river to fish alone.

I haven't had a skiff up the Branch in three or four years. Most of the setnetters on the lower Kvichak now just catch their salmon and go home instead of making a side tour upriver to sport fish. Maybe this is the season for me to make a run back to rainbow country and see if the middle Alagnak is as I remember it? Danny Martin was lost years back in a crabbing disaster, or I bet he would go with me.

John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race.

John Schandelmeier

Outdoor opinion columnist John Schandelmeier is a lifelong Alaskan who lives with his family near Paxson. He is a Bristol Bay commercial fisherman and two-time winner of the Yukon Quest.

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