07/01/2004
Deshka River — I guided 3 people who caught and kept 6 king salmon the largest of which weighed 20 pounds. 5 kings were caught on silver #5 Flashtrap Spinners and one king salmon was caught on salmon eggs drifted below an ESB Bobber.
Little Susitna River — David Dickson guided one angler who caught one silver salmon on a Flashtrap Spinner.
07/02/2004
Deshka River — Greg Acord and I guided a group of 9 guests who caught 14 king salmon, 3 jack king salmon, and 1 silver salmon. Most of the king salmon were caught on Flashtrap Spinners while a few king salmon and the silver salmon were caught on salmon eggs. A week of cool cloudy weather has cooled the Deshka to where fishing has been good for the past few days and should likely continue to be good as long as the water temperature remains cool enough for the salmon to be active.
Little Susitna River — David Dickson is currently guiding a group of 4 guests and I`ll post results after I hear from him. The water level has been dropping and will continue to drop dramaticly for the next few days. Water is now quite low.
07/03/2004
Susitna Tributaries and Deshka River — I guided a group of 5 people who caught 4 king salmon and 2 jack king salmon. 3 king salmon and 1 jack king salmon were caught on magnum Wiggle Warts, 1 king salmon was caught on a Spinning Cheater, and 1 jack king salmon was caught on a Flashtrap Spinner.
Greg Acord guided a group of 4 people who caught 5 king salmon on spinners.
07/04/2004
Little Susitna River — Greg Acord guided a group of 5 guests who caught 1 king salmon, 2 silver salmon, and 1 chum salmon while casting spinners. Water conditions are extremely low and clear.
07/05/2004
Deshka River — I guided 6 guests and we failed to catch a salmon. We got a late start and there were several groups in boats already fishing for more than an hour by the time we reached the Deshka. We saw salmon jumping, and had a few strikes, but did not manage to hook any salmon for a significant amount of time. While we were fishing we saw two salmon caught — so it looked like most of the action occurred today before we arrived on the river. I also talked with a friend of mine whose group caught kings further upriver than where we were fishing. We fished several prime spots where kings had been holding in significant numbers during the past week and only saw good numbers of king salmon jumping in one spot, so it seems highly likely that most of the king salmon holding in the lower river have moved upstream. The water is extremely shallow going upstream past the silver salmon hole, so I did not even venture that far. There are enough king salmon around however, the a boatload of anglers could still have a good trip if they could coax the salmon into biting.
Little Susitna River — David Dickson guided a group of 3 guests who caught 2 king salmon by casting with Flashtrap Spinners. David reports both of the fish were still in good shape.
07/06/2004
Little Susitna River — In the morning I fished some of our silver salmon holes with David Dickson and we caught 1 silver salmon on a #5 Flashtrap Spinner. We did not see many other fish, but the water is low and warm.
07/07/2004
Little Susitna River — David Dickson fished less than 10 casts this morning and caught a silver salmon followed by a king salmon, both of which he kept. He caught both fish on a #5 Silver Flashtrap Spinner. Water should remain very low and clear until we get some rain as there is very little snow remaining in the mountains, and we`ve had an extremely dry June and early July.
07/08/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 5 guests who caught 3 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. 2 silvers were caught on #3 silver and black spinners and one silver salmon was caught on a #4 ornage blade spinner. We also fished over plenty of king salmon, but couldn`t coax any strikes out of them.
I guided an afternoon group of 4 people who caught 1 silver salmon and also brought a foul hooked silver salmon to the boat. The legal fish which we kept was caught on a #3 silver and black Flashtrap Spinner. As in the morning we fished over several schools of king salmon, but could not get any legal hookups.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 3 guests who caught 1 silver salmon, 1 king salmon, and 1 whitefish all on Flashtrap Spinners.
Greg Acord guided a morning group of 2 guests who caught 1 silver salmon on a spinner.
The water is low and clear so it is possible to sight fish for salmon in many places — although the fish are not much interested in striking. Expect the silver salmon run to continue to build over the next several weeks.
07/09/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a group of 2 guests who caught one king salmon which weighed 16 pounds and a silver salmon which weighed 10 pounds. Both salmon were caught on silver/black Flashtrap Spinners. In addition one of my guests also hooked 4 more salmon which pulled loose before he could fight them to the boat.
07/12/2004
Little Susitna River — I fished with a group of 5 teens who caught 1 silver salmon of about 9 pounds on an orange #4 Flashtrap Spinner. We saw a few small schools of salmon, but only managed to get the one bite. Of the salmon we saw it looked to me like some were silvers, some chums, some sockeye, and one was an old red king salmon. I`ll be targeting king salmon tomorrow on the last day of our king salmon season, so I expect we`ll see quite a few more king salmon when I focus on trying to find some for my guests.
David Dickson fished with 2 friends and they caught 2 silver salmon and 2 chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. The water keeps getting lower, so boat operators need to pay attention at all times or risk running amuck.
07/13/2004
I guided a morning group of 3 guests who caught and released 2 king salmon and also caught and kept 3 chum salmon. We fished on several differnet groups of king salmon and also had some bites and hookups which we did not catch. The water remains very low and clear and condusive to sight fishing for salmon. On our trip we also saw small schools of silver salmon, sockeye salmon, and chum salmon. The king salmon were caught on #3 Flashtrap Spinners in silver/black and black patterns. The chums were caught on a #4 silver/black and a #5 silver pattern Flashtrap Spinners.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 2 guests who caught and released 3 king salmon and caught and kept 1 silver salmon. All the fish were caught on Flashtrap Spinners.
07/15/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 3 guests who caught 2 silver salmon, 2 chum salmon, 1 rainbow trout and also foul hooked some additional salmon which were all released. All the salmon were caught on #5 silver Flashtrap Spinners and the rainbow trout was caught on a #3 black Flashtrap Spinner.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 4 guests who caught 1 silver salmon on a Flashtrap Spinner and hooked but lost some other salmon.
David Dickson guided an afternoon group of 4 guests who caught 1 rainbow trout, caught some foul hooked salmon which were released, and hooked a few salmon in the mouth but ended up loosing them.
Dave Osgood guided an afternoon group which fished for a couple hours without landing a salmon. Water remains very low and clear and strong numbers of salmon have not shown up yet.
07/16/2004
Little Susitna River — David Dickson guided a group of 2 guests who caught 3 chums, silver salmon,a and a king salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. King salmon season is now over so the king salmon was unhooked and released.
Dave Osgood guided a group of 2 fishermen and they ended up catching 7 salmon – 4 chums, 1 sockeye, and 2 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
07/17/2004
Little Susitna River — I fished with a group of 2 guests in the afternoon on a catch and release charter and we caught several silver salmon, the first pink salmon I`ve seen on the Little Susitna River this year, a chum salmon, and also foul hooked numerous sockeye salmon. All the fish were caught on Flashtrap Spinners and nearly all of the patterns we fished produced. We caught biters on #3 silver and black, #3 black, #4 silver and black, #3 orange, #3 chartreuse, and #5 brass and silver. The water remains extremely low in the Little Susitna River, but the number of fish migrating upstream has increased dramaticly in the past couple days. Another note on how low the water is – several people were wading around pushing jet boats off of gravel bars, and some people also needed to pick rocks out of their jet units. If you take your boat pay extra attention, and also be careful while navigating around the numerous corners as another boat could be coming the other direction and because the water is so low some of the channels are quite narrow.
I expect to see many more limit catches to come in the next several weeks, and both the silver and sockeye salmon runs seem to be producing some nice large fish as well. Give us a call at 907- 376-3687 if you`d like to join us for a trip in the coming week.
07/19/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided an afternoon group of 6 guests who kept 3 silver salmon with one member of the group who released about another 3 silver salmon. In addition the group also caught several foul hooked silver, sockeye, and chum salmon. All the fish were caught on Flashtrap Spinners and the top bite drawing lures seemed to be #3 black and #4 silver and black.
Dave Osgood guided 3 people who caught 9 salmon of which they kept 6 silver salmon and 1 sockeye salmon. All the fish were caught on Flashtrap Spinners.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 2 guests who caught 1 silver salmon and 1 king salmon (the king salmon was released). David said they were fishing on a school of fish during the entire trip and hooked a few other salmon, but did not manage to land them.
07/20/2004
Little Susitna River – I fished with 3 people this morning and we each caught a limit of silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. All the fish were caught on either a #3 black or #4 silver and black spinner. In addtion to the silver salmon, we also caught 1 sockeye salmon and 1 chum salmon that were hooked in the mouth, and foul hooked numerous other sockeye salmon.
David Dickson guided 2 guests in the afternoon who caught 4 silver salmon and a chum salmon all on Flashtrap Spinners.
Dave Osgood`s morning group failed to show up so he and his wife went fishing and each of them caught and kept a limit of silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Even with the welcome bit of rain we had today the river has not come up much — infact the USGS website shows the river did not come up at all, so expect low water on the Little Susitna River until we get considerably more rain.
07/21/2004
Little Susitna River — I fished with 2 guests in the morning and we caught 4 silver salmon, 3 sockeye salmon, and several chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. #3 black, #3 silver and black, and #4 silver and black all produced.
I guided 3 guests in the afternoon who caught 3 silver salmon and a pink salmon all on silver Flashtrap Spinners.
David Dickson guided a morning trip of 4 guests who caught 4 silver salmon and a chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Dave Osgood fished with 3 friends in the afternoon and they caught 7 silver salmon casting spinners.
07/22/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 3 guests who caught 3 silver salmon, 2 sockeye salmon, and several chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. #3 black, #3 silver and black, and #4 silver and black spinners all produced salmon.
I guided an afternoon group of 3 guests who caught 5 silver salmon and a chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. 3 silver salmon were caught on #4 orange spinners, 1 silver salmon and the chum salmon were caught on a #4 silver and black spinner, and 1 silver salmon was caught on a #5 silver spinner.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 4 guests who caught 4 silver salmon and a chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Dave Osgood guided an afternoon group of 4 guests who caught 7 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
07/23/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a group of 6 guests who caught 4 silver salmon, 4 sockeye salmon, 1 chum salmon, and 1 pink salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. #3 black was our best producing spinner pattern. The water level continues to drop, and boaters should navigate with extreme caution around the numerous tight corners in case another boat may be navigating the same corner going the opposite directon. While boating along the river, I scraped bottom in several places.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 3 guests who did not catch a salmon.
Dave Osgood guided a morning group of 4 guests who caught 6 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
07/24/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided 4 people in the morning who caught 5 silver salmon, 2 chum salmon, and 2 pink salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. #3 black and #3 black and silver caught all the salmon.
07/25/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 3 guests who caught 1 silver salmon on a #5 Brass Flashtrap Spinner.
Neal Sanderlin guided a mroning group of 4 guests who caught 3 silver salmon, 1 chum salmon, and 1 pink salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
07/26/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided an afternoon group of 5 guests who caught 9 silver salmon and 1 chum salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. The salmon were caught on #4 chartreuse, #5 silver and #5 silver and brass spinners.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 4 guests who caught 8 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Dave Osgood guided a 4 people in the morning who caught 8 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Danny Jones guided 2 peopel in the afternoon who caught no salmon.
07/27/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 6 guests who all limited on silver salmon and also caught 1 chum salmon. All the fish were caught on Flashtrap Spinners. #4 and #5 silver bladed patterns were produced most of our fish.
I guided an afternoon group of 4 guests who caught 7 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners. All 7 silvers were caught on #3 black spinners.
Dave Osgood guided a morning group of 4 guests — and I do not know how they did – but hope to post those results tomorrow.
Greg Acord guided an afternoon group of 4 guests who all limited on silver salmon and also caught a pink salmon.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 3 guests and I do not remember how he told me they did – but hope to get it posted soon.
07/28/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a group of 6 guests who caught 10 silver salmon, 1 chum salmon, and 1 pink salmon all on Flashtrap Spinners. Silver bladed spinners in sizes 4 and 5 were produced most of the salmon.
David Dickson guided a group of 4 guests who each caught a limit of silver salmon and one guest also caught a chum salmon.
Dave Osgood guided a group of 5 guests who he estimated caught a total of at least 20 salmon, and each person except one ended up keeping a limit of silver salmon.
The water level in the lower river was up a bit following yesterday`s rain, but the river would still have to be classified as extremely low. According to the USGS water chart for the Little Susitna River, the water level only came up by the slightest of margins today, but hopefully the showers we experienced off and on throughtout the day will help bring the river us some more.
07/29/2004
Little Susitna River — Dave Osgood guided a group of 4 people who each caught a limit of silver salmon and the group also caught a few chum and pink salmon as well. #4 silver and black Flashtrap Spinners were the hot producer. Dave reports that the water rose slightly for the second day in a row.
07/30/2004
Little Susitna River — I guided a morning group of 4 guests who each kept a limit of silver salmon all of which were caught on #3 black Flashtrap Spinners.
David Dickson guided a morning group of 4 guests who caught 6 silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
David Dickson guided an aftrnoon group of 2 guests – but I have not heard from him since he finished that trip.
Dave Osgood guided a group of 5 guests who caught 17 salmon on Flashtrap Spinners and ended up keeping 5 fish.
Even with our recent rain showers the river remains much lower than normal. Boaters should proceed with extreme caution.
07/31/2004
I guided a morning group of 4 guests who kept 6 silver salmon, and caught and released additional silver salmon, chum salmon, and pink salmon. All of the salmon were caught on Flashtrap Spinners with #3 black, #3 silver and black, and #4 silver and black all producing fish.
I guided 1 guest in the afternoon who caught a limit of silver salmon on a #3 black Flashtrap Spinner.
Neal Sanderlin guided a morning group of 3 guests who all caught limits of silver salmon on Flashtrap Spinners.
Nathan Drake guided a morning group of 2 guests who caught 3 silver salmon.