On the previous ALASKA BOUND thread many indicated they where headed north. Since I am new to the board and planning my second trip to Alaska (probably in 2005) I would appreciate any information on gear that you anglers will be using. If you could list the species you will he fishing for and the type of rod, reel, line, etc. you will be using it would be very beneficial to novices like me.

Thanks in advance,
ClearCreek

Chinooks/Kings:
- Lamiglas Titanium Heavy - 20 pound Maxima Chameleon on Calcuatta 400
- Backup: Lamiglas Kenai Special - 20 pound Maxima Chameleon on Ambassador 5500
People can't believe the lightness of this tackle, but I've caught up to 50-pounders from the bank without a problem.

Sockeyes:
- Use same as above as current in Kenai is swift and fish fight very hard
- Formerly used Lamiglas 9 1/2foot spinning jig rod with 18-pound TUF line and 8 pound leader. (This is basically my steelehad bobber fishing outfit.) Now is use just one rod - simpler.

Cohos:
- 8 1/2 foot steelhead drift rod with 10 pound line and 8 pound leader. (This is my w. steelhead outfit.) This also handles the pinks and chums you encounter.

If you're fishing Kenai kings, or any river that has a big strain of fish, bring a rod with some serious back bone. I've heard a lot of stories about a lot of people breaking a lot of rods on big fish. Your choice of rod in a 15-50 or something like that would be my preference. A reel comparable to the Calcutta 400 or Abu 6500. I'd go with at least 30 lb mainline (I'd go berkley high vis big game) and it's not uncommon to use leaders over 40 lb test. A guide I fished with used 80. If you're fishing bait, fish heavier leaders than seems neccesary. There's no reason not to on non-leader shy fish, and these things have whicked-sharp teeth. If you're using hardware like k-fish you would be safe using a little lighter leader cause it's less likely they'd swallow a plug to the point where the leader would be rubbing their teeth. Fighting with light gear is fun, but if you go all the way to Alaska, and fish somewhere like the Kenai, you might get one chance at a real good fish, and you don't want to miss it due to not fishing heavy enough gear. Hope some of this helps, tight lines, FC.

Thanks for the responses OB and SC. I was hoping more of the anglers heading north would chime in, but maybe thay are already gone.

ClearCreek

Just book a trip to Rapids Camp for huge bows! Makes everything easier

I'm leaving on Friday, and although I have a halibut trip booked. I was hoping to fisha few of the smaller streams like Deep Cr. and the Anchor Rv. Anybody have info on these and what type of gear I should take along? Thanks.

NEN

Check out the AOJ Board:

Alaska Outdoor Journal

A treasure trove of stuff there, guys!

NEN ... It all depends upon how you want to fish for them. Many people up here line fish in these streams (many in Kasilof are fished this way as well off of the bank).

If you wish to get one to "bite" ... fishing eggs or hardware is your best choice in most instances. Deep Creek is extremely high with runoff from what I'm hearing, so the Ninilchik might be a better bet, especially now that you're not limited to week-end only fishing like you are on the smaller rivers.

They are small ... they are busy and quaters are tight ... so you usually have to run fairly heavy to hold on to your fish and not tick off the 100 or so people that you'd pass through with light tackle. 25 main and 20 leader would be a starting point on these streams in my book.

Hopefully, the waters will recede some to give you some better ops on these streams before you arrive.