FLY-FISHING LESSONS FROM ALASKA
Beth Engstrom
Recently, Bill Rittenhouse asked if I would be willing to submit an article
for the newsletter several times a year. I agreed to give it a try and hope that I can cover
subjects that will be of interest to this membership. Kurt and I have been members of Rogue
Fly- fishers for a number of years, but to be truthful, I have attended only a handful of
events. So I guess a short introduction is in order.
I taught for the Medford School District for 15 years and retired 2 years ago.
Since the day after retirement, Kurt and I have been traveling and thoroughly enjoying our new
found freedom! I have always been an outdoorsy kind of girl and enjoy camping, fishing, and most
of all, wildlife watching. Many of our retirement adventures revolve around these outdoor
activities. One of our dreams for retirement was to spend a few months exploring Alaska. Okay, I
have to admit that it was more Kurt's dream than mine, but I was willing to go along. And now
that I've been, I'd go back in a heartbeat. Since we spent three months traveling and camping
our way around this big beautiful state there are too many adventures to cover in one article so
I will focus on some of our great fishing experiences while there.
Now I'll be the first to admit that fly-fishing does not come easy to me. My
line seems to spend more time in the trees behind me than in the water. However, I found my
fly-fishing niche in Alaska. Most all of our fishing was done while standing in the mouth of a
river or right out in the bay as the tide was coming in. No bushes or trees to contend with so
even with my clumsy casting there was nothing to get snagged on but the seat of my own pants.
I've always loved salmon fishing in the rivers with a spinning outfit, but
what a rush to feel the fight on a fly rod! We had three experiences using different methods to
catch three species of salmon while in Alaska. One of these was a guided trip and the other two
were trial and error on our part. The guided trip was in Homer on the Kenai Peninsula fishing
for Silvers. Our guide, Gary, was originally from Corvallis and his father was the person who
invented the fish pellets that they use at the hatcheries. Gary took us to a place on the Homer
spit called the Fishing Hole. The Fishing Hole is a manmade lagoon with an outlet into Kachemak
Bay. When the tide is going out, the outlet, which is only about 75 yards long, turns into a
rapidly flowing river. Gary had us start fishing the “river” moving us 3-4 feet toward the bay
every 15 minutes as the water level drops about 3 feet an hour. Gary set us up with a fly rod
rigged with monofilament line and eggs for bait. Not true fly-fishing by some standards, since
we were basically drifting eggs in the outgoing current. When we felt the bite we had to wait 3
full seconds before setting the hook. The waiting to set was the hardest part! There were six
people in our group and only three salmon caught that day with me catching two of them. Kurt
just hates it when I skunk him! The best thing about a guide is that he does all of the work
like baiting the hook for you and cleaning the fish and we get to have the fun of catching and
landing the fish.
The most challenging “fly” fishing we did was in the Kenai River for sockeye
or red salmon. We only had one day to fish with a limit of one each before they closed the river
due to late runs. We really had to work to catch that one fish, with it taking about 5 hours of
constant fishing and most of that time spent learning how it was done. The set up was a spinning
rod and reel and hook with a piece of bright pink or orange yarn as the legal “fly”. These fish
are interesting in that they do not feed as they move up river to spawn. So the trick is to snag
them in the mouth as they open it to breathe. The term is to `legally snag' them. An oxymoron if
I've ever heard one! In Soldotna where the Kenai runs through town, they have built metal
walkways along the river to preserve the banks and plant life. There are steps down into the
river every 50 feet or so for fishing access. The trick is to use the spinning rod much like a
fly rod in that you do not reel in line after each cast. We let out about 12 feet of line, cast
up stream, let it drift just past you then give a little jerk, lift your line like in fly
fishing and recast. When you jerk you hope to snag a salmon in the mouth. We had to learn by
watching other fishermen since it was such a different way to fish. It took me a long time to
get the hang of it and in the meantime I managed to snag and land several carcasses. One man
there said he was going to do a newspaper article on the woman who kept catching dead fish!
However, it did pay off in the end because we were able to salvage enough tackle from the
carcasses to keep us fishing until we both managed to catch our limits of one each. That was the
hardest I've ever had to work for one salmon and I could barely lift my arm the next day. But it
sure was fun and those fish on the Bar-B-Q are fantastic!!
Our last salmon adventure was on Kodiak Island. We spent a week there and
fished three days. The run was on for humpbacks also known as pinks. The locals rate these fish
as one step above the dog salmon that they only feed to their dogs, but we found them to be very
good since they were fresh out of the ocean. This is where I decided fly fishing for salmon was
the best! The fly we used was a weighted purple articulating egg sucking leech which was tied by
a former colleague of mine at Wilson School. We decided to fish the Chiniak River and when we
arrived we thought we were in fish heaven. The salmon were so thick about 100 yards from Chiniak
Bay that they were pushing each other out of the water. You literally could have walked across
the river on their backs. We thought this would be a great place to fish but soon discovered
that they were so thick that you could not even get your line to sink. It would get caught on
the backs of the fish and then snag a fin. After a few frustrating minutes of unhooking snagged
fish we moved to the mouth of the river where we could see swarms of salmon surfing the waves
into the river. We would cast into the waves and let our fly drift into the river and had a bite
almost every cast. Landing them on the rocks was a little tricky but the fight is the most fun
anyway. One of the days was spent fishing in Kalsin Bay where we stood in the surf, fishing as
the tide was coming in. The limit was five a day each and we managed to get our limit all three
days within an hour or two. I never thought that fly fishing would be ?xa0;so much fun. I
decided if I were to live in Alaska, I would want to live on Kodiak Island. What a beautiful
place for scenery, fishing and wildlife!
Of course, Oregon is my home and first love, so trees or not, I guess I need
to work on getting my fly line in the water in the rivers around here. After all, maybe I'll
land that record chinook someday with a fly on the Rogue!
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Board Notes
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( Board notes from June meeting )
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Directors & Guests in Attendance:
Directors: Bill Ackermann; Tom Bettencourt; Keith Coddington;
David Haight; Chick Parsons; Dennis Remick and John Ward.
Guests: Bill Hill; Pat Hurley and Bill Rittenhouse.
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Treasurer's Report:
Net worth as of June 4, 2008 was $17, 526.66.
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Communications:
• Communications received included many newsletters from other flyfishing clubs; a State Land
Board meeting notice regarding Rogue River navigability [Discussions on navigability followed
and many of us were encouraged to learn that Land Board decisions and interpretations were
definitely favorable for fishermen and boaters.] and a monthly report from Oregon Stewardship.
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Reports:
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Programs(Mike Ireland & Steve Haskell):
Details for the June club program were not available but will be published in the June
newsletter. It seems most likely that we will have a program regarding the LNG pipeline proposed
to route though southern Oregon. No other future programs were discussed. The club’s annual
picnic is scheduled for July (no meeting at the Red Lion Hotel in July)
*
Outings (Chick Parsons):
Tom Bettencourt noted that the salmonflies were up as far as Shady Cove, and the date for the
salmonfly outing at the Holy Water has been set for Saturday, June 14. This outing will feature
grilled hamburgers for $2 each. The date for the Klamath Lake outing has been set for Saturday,
June 28. [Be sure to view the updated outings schedule in this newsletter.]
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Membership (Bill Rittenhouse-Jeffrey Bernard):
According to Bill Rittenhouse-Jeffrey Bernard, we will have the non-renewal numbers before the
June newsletter is published. We have over 270 memberships, but that number includes non-renewed
memberships.
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Conservation (Chick Parsons):
Chick Parsons reported that a seven- or eight-member conservation committee has been formed. A
smaller committee including Jack Schlotter, Jim Harleman and Peter Ware are working on
developing a club position regarding upcoming changes to the fishing regulations. A letter
stating these recommendations will likely be sent to club members and members are encouraged to
support the recommended changes OR to offer their opinion on changes they would prefer. [This
kicked off a big discussion on the main (most-contentious) proposed changes to the fishing
regulations.] Membership support for or against any regulation changes requires sending comments
to the appropriate state agency.
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Holy Water Taskforce: (Steve Haskell)
David Haight recommended that the Holy Water Taskforce give high priority to taking
macroinvertebrate sampling at the Holy Water. He stated that the recent stocking of fish at the
Holy Water exceeds what has occurred in each of several past years. Also, that without
sufficient food source, over stocking results in stunted growth of trout.
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Steelhead Tournament-Fundraiser:
Steelhead Tournament plans and ideas for implementation not yet available, but coming soon. It
was mentioned that Steve Haskell had some ideas for obtaining auction donations. Also, that Lee
Wedberg has worked on changes to Tournament rules that include some revisions.
*
Old Business:
• John Ward brought the Board up to date on the Latino Youth Leadership Team that he is involved
with. About two months ago the Board agreed the club would support, through donations of
equipment by club members, complete fly fishing rigs. John reported 1) that the eight members of
the Team are each scheduled to receive a completely rigged fly rod in ready-to-fish condition;
2) that several club members have already been providing fly casting instructions to these
youth; and 3) that Saturday, June 7, the Team members are schedule to be taken to a local lake
for an opportunity to use their fly fishing equipment.
• The Board will proceed with reserving Picnic Area A at Emigrant Lake picnic grounds. It
appears that we will be having the picnic catered and that the per-person fee will be
approximately $12.
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New Business:
• A special fishing outing for Board members and invited club guests was discussed and the idea
met with approval. It seems like Monday, June 23, will be the best date for this outing.
• As a sideline to earlier discussions of changes to fishing regulations, Board member Keith
Coddington suggested contacting other fishing clubs to get their opinions on regulation changes
and to see if there is any consensus of opinion regarding regulation changes. This process is
hoped to lead to a better understanding among the fishing clubs. Keith agreed to set up and make
the contacts.
*
Meeting Adjournment:
The Board meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:15 p.m.
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"From The President"
"Upcoming Activities"
and
"Volunteer Activity Log"
can be found
on the Home Page
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IN REMEMBRANCE OF RUSTY RANDALL
Dale Heath
With the death of Rusty Randall on June 19, 2008, we have lost a club member who has done much
good work for our club and the Rogue River fishery. Rusty was a retired Chief Boatswain’s Mate
and had a 20-year career in the US Navy. He was on the Battleship USS Nevada on the day it was
sunk at Pearl Harbor. He had strong memories about that and the days following. Rusty was a very
giving and caring person, always giving so much more than he received. He never received enough
recognition or appreciation for all he did for everyone else. A true friend of the fish,
fishermen, and fly tiers, Rusty will be missed by his family and friends. One way of remembering
Rusty is to make a donation, in his name, to the Rogue Flyfishers’ Reed Ryan Habitat Fund.
THE OTIS CHALLENGE
The Otis challenge, as abstracted from Otis Swisher’s article in the
November ’07 newsletter, is this: “Maybe you’ve had short, pithy ideas.
One-liners…Any and all ideas will be welcome…Get those ideas out of the
recesses of your mind, and off the tip of your tongue. Get them into
print. They will enrich the fishing experience of others; flatter the
originator; bring pleasure, or not, and may encapsulate for generations
to come what flyfishing is all about.” Submit your contributions to Bill
Rittenhouse ( writtenho@clearwire.net).
A limerick submitted by Gene Cates
Downsizing
I tied on a big deer-hair popper
In hope of a large-mouth bass whopper
But fate shattered my dream
All I hooked was a bream
Of diminutive size on the dropper
FAVORITE FISHING SPOTS…DAM TO CASEY PARK
Otis Swisher
The Holy Water
I seldom fish it. I like faster moving water.
The Hatchery Hole
I refuse to fish it. This is my way to protest what I feel is a bad policy by the ODFW
Commission. If I wanted to fish in places like this, I would put some fish in an aquarium and
“dap” a fly for them. It is treating the great Rogue River salmon and steelhead as if they were
trash fish. No place else on any Oregon River does the Commission permit? Allow? no, encourage!
the taking of these anadromous fish at a keging-up place below a regular dam, an irrigation dam,
or any impassable structure where stacking up takes place. Their reason? They say that kind of
fishing would be unethical. So, why permit it on the Rogue? I protest this bad fishery policy
both for the Rogue and for Oregon.
From the Deadline to Casey Park
• I like to fish the riffle which was first mentioned to me by Bob Hunter years ago. Shallow
water, O.K. Fast water, O.K. Where Vince Zauskey took the first steelhead from my boat. Where
lots more fish have been landed. I like to fish the tree with its gouged-out slots, giving fish
holding spots beside and below it.
• I like to fish the place where I followed son Mark one day. The flow was 5000 cfs and ripping
under the boat. As I came into view his client had a good-sized winter steelhead on.
• I like to fish the spot where, again at nearly 5000 cfs, I picked up a 17-inch fish less than
two rod lengths from where I stood in street shoes on the bank.
• I like a spot where during a hatch, from my boat, Vince Zauskey and I landed a dozen or more
trout up to 14 inches on dry flies.
• I like the spot along the bank where steelhead lie and can be reached with 20-foot casts.
• I like the spot where without wading I landed a 30-inch steelhead. It was the first time I
could not bring a big fish upstream against a heavy current, so I experimented by putting my rod
tip under the water and wound slowly. The fish came up stream and to hand “like a lamb.”
• I like the spot where son Stephen waded along a gravel bar at Christmas time, in very cold
water, and from a small “seam” beside the torrential main flow, picked up a chrome-bright
steelhead.
• I like the spot where Vince Zauskey and Steve Godshall landed handsome
first-steelhead-of-the-year on January 1, a year apart.
• I like the spot where Derek McGraw and I fished dry flies to feeding trout. Over 30 fish
caught, up to 14 inches. At that same spot, another day, I picked up Eric Smith of RFF who had
been fighting the shoreline’s overhanging brush rather unsuccessfully. Catching from the boat
was much easier. It was at this same spot where I was, on another occasion, planning to retire
my #14 blue dun after landing fish No. 65 on it, only to have No. 65 break off the fly and teach
me to “test the knot.” At this same spot, son Mark, from the boat, had on a 5-6 pound fish. A
lad of perhaps 10 years, Mark pushed the net at the fish instead of dipping and lifting. Such
composure on Mark’s part when the fish was knocked off the line. Marvelous!
• I like the spot I fished for years from the bank during the winter hatches, and trip after
trip had great dry fly fishing with my #14 blue dun using my 3-weight rod; in street shoes; in
regular street wear. It was normal to take 10-20 fish up to 13 inches, with an occasional one at
14 inches.
• I like the slot along the bank where my landlord was doing the “Rogue River Twitch” as the
boat slid towards the brushy bank, only to be Kawhammed by a 20-inch steelhead. There’s no
take-down like that which comes when the line is straight downriver from you.
• I like to fish where I can fish either side, R or L, from the bank which has lots of good
back-cast room. Where dry fly fishing for trout has produced not only nice trout, but where at
almost dusk a #6 McMillan Caddis took a 19-inch jack salmon in the film. And, below that spot
less than 200 feet, another jack was taken on a swinging Montana Nymph. And, across the river,
eight great trout rose to a dry in less than 20 minutes; and where, at less than a rod-length
from the bank, two steelhead were taken during the high water (flood) years of ’96 and ’97.
• And, I like the bridge abutment where a nice holding “hole” has been gouged by the flow, and
where son Stephen fought a nice steelhead and became all messed up to the point he leaned waaay
out over the prow so far I grabbed his belt because I felt he might go overboard head first.
• I like the spot at the lower end of a fast riffle. I fish it from a boat. There is great rock
structure as well as slower moving water near the bank. It is great cutthroat holding water.
• At another spot, I like fishing trout from the bank for 200 feet of water. Here, I see fishers
wading nearly to mid-river and casting to hit the far bank. When they leave and the water has
quieted, then I fish. I once fished my dry where they had been standing and winding in 200 feet
of mono and roiling the water time after time. And, on three casts I landed two 14-inch and one
15-inch cutthroat. What a trip!
• When the winter hatch is on, I like the “seam” when the river is at high flow. From one spot
on the bank a dry fly cast of 25 to 30 feet starts the catching process. It ends with fish taken
out as far as mid-river and in the heavier “chop.”
• I like to fish this stretch of river since I get takedowns from close to shore to as far out
as mid-river. Probably I like this stretch of fishing so much because there is so much to like.
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