Goodnews River has a lodge now? 'Course, i haven't been there since '81, but damn! That is one fishing river! I was one of a crew of three that established the first salmon counting station about 17 miles up-river. I and the other peon were the only ones with experience of such. (Why were we not in charge..... ?
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DeeDee Jonrowe was area biologist. Nice lady. Harry Dodge was crew leader. Guide on Kodiak- later had some unfortunate experience in crossing Frasier? Lake, swamping. the skiff, losing a client, and barely surviving himself, IIRC the details.
All 4 species of salmon, rainbow, grayling, Dolly Varden, and certainly a number of other fish species in the river. I would just change presentation (Krocodile) and location in river or pool for whatever we wanted for supper... On the last day of my stay, I ruint it - I caught a rainbow less than 16 inches... 14 1/2. Two casts later I lost that lure to a 40-50 lb king that wasn't 'sposed to be in that place... I'd used that single lure on 12 lb test line almost every day for 6 weeks!
I then transferred to a fish counting station below Big Eddy on the Yukon for a few weeks, then did a subsistence use survey from Kaltag to Eagle, including tributary villages. like Arctic Village , Venetie, Allekaket.. That initial 6 week summer job lasted 4 1/2 months, with a number of incidental yarns generated along the way. One of my best summers ever!
I believe i have previously related the instance (on Goodnews River) in which I believe a 6 1/2 pound female rainbow was leaping several feet up onto a cutbank to snatch voles running the skyline, then flopping her way back into the water? She had a stomach full of them, plus one in the gullet, and when I caught her, one partially down, the short tail hanging out of the corner of her mouth. Greedy bitch!
We ate her....
At the time, there was no lodge there, but there was at least one guide outfit that was flying clients into Redfish Lake, then floating the river down to the village at the mouth. When I had, twice, from across the river, seen that fish jump up on the bank, then flop a couple times to regain the water, I thought it was a broken-line fish hung up on willow, as a couple guide boats had passed an hour or two before. Nope- just a rainbow with a truely unique hunting style!!
Blew my only chance at catching a fish on dry land (by trolling a mouse lure down that vole runway) instead of dangling a spoon into the middle of that willow bush! If had known.... She was so full, she had no fight in her- I just led her out of the branches onto a tiny beach a few inches wide and 2 feet long, below the overhang.
We F&G guys provided much amusement to the locals that summer, by mis-reading on a dropping tide the mud-flat channels in front of the village.. It can be a looooong time between high tides.....
