Klondike Kid:
Most Alaskans in Southcentral are aware of the OTF (Offshore Test Fish Index) the commercial division of ADFG uses to determine the numbers of fish heading up Cook Inlet to the various home waters. This test boat samples the waters down at Anchor Point to provide a heads up as to what is coming. Dipnetters and sport anglers use this daily index as a planning aid to decide what is going to be their best fishing opportunities.
With the Emergency Order shutting down all King Salmon fishing in Cook Inlet north of Bluff Point and in all the rivers due to super dismal returns so far this season, the commercial beach site fishermen have been shut down too. There are no beach nets fishing from Deep Creek to Nikiski for the rest of the summer. Only the Drift Boat Fleet will be allowed to fish to the end of the season in early August.
The OTF index beginning the 25th to present have been showing a huge movement of sockeye through Anchor Point test fishery. HUGE meaning five days (so far) of continuous schools of reds....and not a single net on the beaches to stop them. Only the drifters.
It takes 5 to 7 days for those AP fish to reach the Kenai. And with daily river counts already at the 52,000 to 62,000 level the dipping and bank fishing has been very good. The first "slug" should be hitting the Kenai (and Kasilof) right about now and it looks like its going to be day after day of some very big sonar counts in the Kenai. With dipnetting closing Saturday, that harvesting source disappears and for the sport anglers the river is literally going to be jumping with fish.
I suspect that IF ADFG can't get the drift fleet on these fish in the Inlet to thin the numbers down, ADFG will have no other option than to raise the sport limit to SIX Reds per day to reduce escapement numbers. If you haven't filled your freezers yet, this will be one of the best opportunities of the year as we go into this new week.
Edit ADDENDUM: OMG! I just checked the commercial announcements. ADFG commfish won't be fishing the DRIFT FLEET until at the earliest Sunday! Sharpen those fillet knives!
Stinger Hook:
That sounds pretty exciting! We can use some good salmon news.
Too bad it is a 50 hour drive for me:-(
Lutefisk:
Whats the update? How many fish in the cooler?
Klondike Kid:
--- Quote from: lutefisk on August 01, 2021, 08:49:36 PM ---Whats the update? How many fish in the cooler?
--- End quote ---
Well I took a "short cut" Saturday and went dipnetting on the last day of that season and put 21 in the freezer. I hate processing fish til 230am! But it's a necessary evil I guess. Running out of room in the freezers partially from stocking up extra supplies during the ongoing pandemic. I did hook a king on my fly rod this morning from the bank flipping for reds but the hook pulled loose after 5 minutes of thrills and a jump.
The sonar has counted 322,000 reds past my back door in the previous 5 days with Saturday's count hitting 78,000 fish (avg. 3,250/hr). I was running my 6x6 on the beach this evening enjoying a rare 78°F afternoon and a glassy Cook Inlet and there were sockeye jumping every minute or so heading along the beach for the river mouth. The drift fleet fished today but were scattered all over the Inlet and that indicates they were having trouble corralling those schools. Perhaps a good portion has move inside the 1 mile beach corridor where the drifters can't fish. ADFG said the run is only 54% complete and they estimate the run is 5 to 10 days late in timing this year. Run projection at the moment is 1.4 million but it should easily end up a few hundred thousand more than that.
Badger68:
KK, Many halibut over the weekend at WG. Weather from now on looks bad for the rest of the week. Badger 68