Sitka’s Saltwater Treasures…

Far too often, west coast fishing destinations require lots of luck and expertise. Hopeful anglers travel hundreds, even thousands of miles in hopes of maybe catching salmon or halibut. But now luck doesn’t have to be the main ingredient to catch fish – not since top-guide, Greg Kain, of Kain’s Fishing Adventures discovered Sitka Alaska.

A quick glance of a map reveals why this tiny village in southeast Alaska should rank high on the must-fish list for anglers from around the world. This tiny Baranof Island port, largely influenced by Russian settlers and Tlingit natives, sits strategically facing the bountiful Pacific Ocean. Inaccessibility to the mainland keeps cars and large amounts of people from traveling here which helps Sitka remain largely undiscovered and unspoiled.

Anglers have two productive options in Sitka – fish the “outside” waters or fish the “inside” waters. Either location could yield a trophy of a lifetime, thus eliminating the threat of a no-fishing-because-of-weather day.

Bordered by hundreds of miles of desolate island beaches, bays and waterways, Sitka’s location provides perfect conditions for explosive plankton blooms throughout the season, from May through September. Billions of Pacific sand lance swarm the area to feed on this abundant life-giving plankton. These super enriched, nutrient-filled waters blanket the area, which allowing salmon, halibut, lingcod and rockfish to feed and grow to trophy proportions.

Sitka doesn’t just rely on wimpy or endangered hatchery runs like many other west coast locales. This part of the Pacific Ocean hosts countless runs of chinook, coho, chum and literally millions of pink salmon. Nearby hatcheries do enhance the area with at least two million returning coho and multi-millions of pink salmon. Fish are so plentiful anglers may keep six coho per day – and they usually do! The waters in and around Sitka can easily be called a super highway for fish heading south to B.C., Washington, Oregon and California.

Since these fish require feed and lots of it, the abundant supply of baitfish provides an around the clock, all-you-can-eat buffet. Salmon gorge themselves like teenagers before maturing, or they prolong their long migration journey to renew lost energy. And lets not forget the fish that end their journey here, but still need energy prior to spawning.

The phenomenal abundance of salmon enables the Sitka sport fishing fleet to consistently provide some of the world’s very best salmon and halibut fishing – the reason why Greg Kain now resides in Sitka during salmon season. Add monster lingcod and rockfish to the list and most anglers can’t move their arms after only three days of steady fishing with Greg!

Greg first introduced me to this angler’s paradise last winter, at the International Sportsmen’s Exposition in Seattle. After watching Greg out fish most anglers for several years on the Cowlitz River, I took notice when he regaled me with stories from the previous season. Pictures of big fish along with his pledge to guide anglers to salmon and halibut didn’t have the same “maybeness” that many other locales and guides exhibited. But then again, I already knew Greg’s reputation for being a top-notch guide and angler.

My fishing partner, Joe Kaminski, and I eagerly booked a late summer trip with Greg to take advantage of the six coho per day limit. And of course we couldn’t keep the prized white fillets from hard-fighting halibut off our minds either.
Our flight from SeaTac Airport first landed in Juneau, where we viewed a massive glacier bordering the airport. From there, the Alaska Airlines jet whisked us to the small airport on Japonski Island in Sitka. The airport’s baggage area had more fish boxes than standard luggage – a sure sign of great fishing! Not one visiting angler in the crowd wore a frown. Most overheard conversations focused on who caught how many and who caught the biggest fish.

Prior to joining Greg at his guest house, Joe and I spent four days exploring Sitka’s historic sites, shops, trails and the entire 14-miles of roadway. Four days of land-based tourist activities, while rewarding, caused Joe and I to welcome the first morning on Greg’s brand new roomy 27-foot Sea Sport.

Bud and Jeff Nelson from the Seattle area, joined us during our three days of fishing. Not surprisingly, Greg’s Sea Sport provided lots of elbow room for us all. Instead of following the bulk of the sport fishing fleet, Greg generally travels farther, through the inside of Kruzof Island, past Salisbury Sound to the super-productive western shores of Kruzof Island. This morning was no different.

Our boat ride to the fishing grounds lasted less than an hour and revealed miles of pristine shoreline and wildlife. Within minutes of our arrival at Pt. Mary, Greg wasted no time locating a school of fish with his fish finder. Instead of drifting he lowered the anchor, securing us in 200-feet of water. Sitka guides and residents have discovered that anchoring over fish, once they’ve been located, often works better than waiting for luck to drift the boat into a school of fish.

This method proved itself almost instantly as the four of us eagerly free spooled our cut-plug herring to 45-feet. Bud first called fish on with a pink salmon followed by Joe with a 30-pound chinook and me with an ocean fresh, double digit coho. Throughout the day we traded positions as each aerial coho or darting pink salmon went this way or that way. Double headers, triples and even quadruple hookups provided entertainment and limits of six coho each.

Instead of waiting till the end of the day to clean fish, Greg immediately removes the guts from the fish and places them in a bucket. Each fish’s belly cavity is then filled with ice and placed in the fish box on ice. I’ve never encountered another guide who takes such excellent care of fish as Greg.

The fresh guts have a super high acid content from scores of Pacific sandlance. This acid, if left in the fish’s belly will ruin portions of the meat. The guts don’t go wasted either – halibut love them like no other bait!

With only 90-minutes worth of fishing time remaining, Greg moved to his can’t-miss halibut hole. Once again he anchored the boat, this time in 235-feet of water. Greg suggested that we try using his light weight G. Loomis salmon mooching rods for halibut. We all agreed with eager smiles. Guts impaled on our hooks quickly began their slow downward decent.

As if on cue, three out of four rods twitched the presence of hungry halibut. The welcomed sight of three anglers, including me, playing tug-o-war made me laugh aloud. Anytime you can find hungry halibut and lots of ‘em, I’m more than happy to trade aching muscles for future fish ‘n chips! This can’t-miss hole truly couldn’t miss. Each of us had our limit of chicken-sized halibut in less time than it takes to watch most TV fishing programs – and this action was for real!

On our second morning fog blanketed Sitka Sound with a ghostly see-through, off-white thickness. Radar and a GPS video plotter guided us safely through the early morning above water cloud. Slowly but surely Greg guided the boat to the day’s fishing paradise. Instead of anchor mooching, Greg favored drift mooching closer to shore, where we might have a chance at big lingcod.

While drifting close to the shoreline of Kruzof Island, the sun erased the fog, revealing beautiful Mount Edgecumbe, a once powerful volcano. My eyes took turns watching the fish finder and the volcano. When fish appeared on the scope our baits tumbled toward their depth, usually into an awaiting coho’s mouth. Joe and Jeff could hardly keep coho from attacking their baits. Drifting from one school of fish to the next proved rewarding in more ways than one.

On several occasions, a cut-plug fished too deep would attract rockfish, which in turn attracted large lingcod. On one occasion two lingcod, a 15-pounder and a 30-pounder, followed my rockfish to the surface. Both lings followed my struggling rockfish as I teased them with the rockfish partly out of the water. The largest ling finally couldn’t resist, prompting it to bring its head out of the water inhaling the rockfish like a trout taking a dry fly!

Our second day of halibut fishing can be described in one word – awesome! We anchored in another one of Greg’s can’t-miss holes. But this time, we rigged with heavier G. Loomis rods designed for the purpose of landing really big fish. Circle hooks surrounded by fresh coho guts on sturdy 80-pound Spectra line slowly fell 250-feet to the bottom with the aid of 12-ounce weights. Even before my fish guts hit bottom, Jeff’s rod butt pinched his mid-section when his rod tip hit the water’s edge, pulsing with the angry attitude of a 60-pound halibut.

A full hour elapsed before the next bite, but when it happened, all hell broke loose. Like magic, three rods violently jerked simultaneously in the rod holders. Jeff responded to his rod first, followed by Joe and me. Joe quietly announced, “This is the biggest fish I’ve ever had on in my life!” Moans and groans from each of us signaled three big fish, a challenging situation for Greg.

Jeff brought his 70-plus pound prize topside first. A well-placed shot to the head of the fish subdued the beast. My halibut somehow tangled in the anchor line but stayed calm while Joe and Greg subdued his 100-plus pounder. Calmly, Greg somehow freed my line from the anchor rope which allowed me to continue my battle. Soon, my fish’s brown-colored camouflage emerged from the dark depths, revealing another prize over 80-pounds. Exhausted, I sat down mumbling, no guts, no glory.

Three days of fishing paradise is almost to much! Each of us already had plenty of fish and sore muscles from many battles won and a few lost. Like good troops and the hard-core anglers we are, it didn’t take an arm twist to get us on the water in search of more fish. Our first stop of the misty morning looked fishy. The name of the place, the Shark Hole, also implied fish, but hopefully not sharks. This place got its name a few years back, when someone caught a salmon shark. Since then the nick name has stuck to this super productive salmon hole.

The day dawned bright with golden rays painting the island an unforgettable glow, as if a painter brushed the sky with a giant paint brush soaked in gold. When the glow reached the water our baits reached the fish and they weren’t sharks. Once hooked, the coho leapt skyward toward the glow, reflecting glimmers of joy from an AlasKain adventure come true.

We continued to catch coho and pinks all day, along with easy limits of halibut. In all of my travels, I’ve never experienced such rewarding fishing as Sitka’s saltwater treasures. It’s almost to easy too catch fish in Sitka – especially when you fish with Greg Kain. Now you too can experience an angler’s paradise and leave luck at home – where it belongs – with the lottery tickets.

Fishing Techniques & Tackle

Many fishing techniques including trolling, jigging and mooching work well in Sitka. Some guides, including Greg, anchor over the top of prime locations. Once anchored anglers work cut-plug herring up and down the water column. This modified mooching technique keeps anglers where the fish are and provides opportunity to vertically troll herring.

Greg also jigs for chinook and coho when there are large schools of fish on the bite. He uses light weight Crippled Herring and Pt. Wilson Dart jigs with tremendous success – especially when migrating chinook salmon arrive in force.
Only top quality G. Loomis GL2 salmon rods paired with Shimano Charter Special reels are used on Greg’s boat. Guests are welcome to bring their own rods, but it’s not necessary. Sliding mooching sinkers provide anglers a quick choice of weight.
 

About Sitka
Sitka was originally named Shee-Atika by Tlingit natives, which means people on the side of Shee. Russians first sailed to Sitka in 1799. Local Tlingit natives resisted the Russian settlement but lost in the end. By 1840 Bishop Innocent, {Ivan Veniaminov}, had St. Michael’s Cathedral built, downtown Sitka’s centerpiece. Sitka was the capital during Russia’s reign of Alaska, which gives Sitka special distinction among followers of the Russian Orthodox faith.

The Russian and Tlingits lived together for years prior to Alaska’s transfer from Russia to the United States, which took place in Sitka. In 1966 a tragic fire destroyed the original cathedral. In 1977 a replica of the original cathedral was reconstructed giving the tiny town its center piece once again. Visitors can tour the building and see many of the original artifacts for a $1.00 donation.
Visitors to Sitka won’t want to miss seeing the Alaska Raptor Rehabilitation Center, Sitka National Historic Park, Sheldon Jackson Museum or Castle Hill. The Centennial building by the marina also offers daily Russian, Ukranian and Moldovian folk dances along with performances by the Tlingit Native Dancers.

Car rentals
Baranof Motors, {907} 747-8228
Fish Prep & Travel
After returning to the dock, Greg fillets the day’s catch, cuts it into meal-sized portions and commercially vacuum packs the catch. Each angler is allowed to travel aboard Alaska Airlines with two carry ons and two 70-pound boxes of fish that count as baggage. If you exceed this limit the airline will charge you a minimum of $45.00 per piece of luggage. Packing the right size carry on bags counts when traveling to Alaska.

Seasons
Chinook season begins in mid May and continues through the third week in August. Fast action for chinook can slow when the commercial troll season gets underway in early July. Coho invade the area in July and provide the best action for big hooknose in mid August through September. Halibut fishing remains excellent from May through September. Pink salmon invade the area by the millions in July and August. Rockfish and lingcod always provide top-notch action.
 

Other Activities
Several area trail heads lead to mountain lookouts and lakes full of fish. Area streams also provide fast action when the season allows the taking of salmon. A few anglers bring pack fly rods and take advantage of the miles of shoreline teaming with pink salmon. Failure to catch pinks on a fly here means you didn’t use a hook!
Kayaking excursions as well as wildlife viewing abound. Flight seeing tours also provide a unique view of the area. All of these activities seem tempting, but it’s hard to spare time away from the saltwater’s myriad of angling opportunities.
For more information about these opportunities and more, contact the Sitka Convention & Visitor’s Bureau at, {907} 747-5940
 

Fishing Packages
Kain’s Fishing Adventures in Sitka includes the following: airport pickup and delivery; lodging in his guest house overlooking Sitka Sound; breakfast and lunch; fully licensed and insured guide; licenses; top quality G. Loomis rods & Shimano reels; all tackle & bait; and fish packaging to a limit of two 50-pound boxes of fish. Package does not include airfare to Sitka, {$385.00 round trip from Seattle Alaska Airlines, 1-800-926-7932, or dinner.
Greg offers four night/three full day fishing packages.

You can contact us via e-mail email@kainsfishingadventures.com or call us toll free at: 1-800-926-7932