Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Alaska Lots of Russian River Reds...

Looks like the managers have shifted another run out of its historical track...


https://www.ktuu.com/content/news/R...-limits-amidst-strong-run-511434262.html

Russian River anglers get another bump in bag limits amidst strong run

By Lex Treinen | Posted: Mon 4:15 PM, Jun 17, 2019 | Updated: Mon 4:35 PM, Jun 17, 2019

ANCHORAGE (KTUU) - The Russian River salmon run is still hot, and starting Wednesday, anglers can take even more of the early-run sockeye home.

Alaska Department of Fish and Game issued another Emergency Order (EO) bumping up the limit from six to nine, with a total allowance of eighteen in possession.

That’s because over 45,000 fish have already made it to the weir above the falls, where the fish are counted. The so-called escapement goal--the number of fish that biologists allow to make it to the weir before increasing limits--is normally between 22,000 and 42,000.

More than 5,000 fish have made it to the weir every day since June 11, with a peak of over 8,000 fish in one day on June 12. Last year on this date, just over 6,000 fish had made it that far.

The EO also encompasses the Upper Kenai River from Skilak Lake to just past the Russian River Sanctuary. The new limit goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday, June 19.

“We opened the waters of the sanctuary and increased the bag limit from three to six last week and sockeye salmon keep pouring into the Russian River,” said Colton Lipka, the Area Management Biologist. “With these numbers, it is appropriate to increase the limits and allow anglers an opportunity to harvest more sockeye salmon.”


The emergency order is in effect until July 7.

Copyright 2019 KTUU. All rights reserved.

Damn, i'm going to have to dust off our flyrods and plan a trip down there soon.

Do the Sockeyes outnumber the anglers yet?

I hope it is at least 9:1 the next few days!

lol. our head guide was down that way last weekend with his gal to just get away. She said she had never seen the combat fishing, was "interesting to see/watch". Nope they were not dumb enough to even try.

I don't like experiences like those... but it happens.

When the silvers arrive here, it gets to be enough for my tastes.

King is closed, its more relaxing, but pays much less...

Must be all the reds avoiding Bristol bay because of the proposed pebble mine

The one year I'm not there to fish, and everyone I know going there is limiting out. The oldest and I hit it up last year and got a big goose egg. I got a letter from him Monday and he was telling me how much he misses fishing. Luckily for him, he only joined the Army Guard and will be back around Thanksgiving and we can fish all next summer together. I am hoping I can get the youngest on some pinks come early August when I get home. Not the same as a nice sockeye, but still fun to catch.

Should turn into a real cluster in a few hours...

Well it being weds shouldn’t be too bad, but my bud was down there Monday morning. You think it would be a ghost town everyone working. Wrong said it was a pretty packed. So tomorrow will be no different makes you wonder about who works up here.

I have never known the Russian to be a ghost town the first two weeks of the season. Heck, my old AF unit would drop manning about 2/3 during open season at the Russian.

Us cretins use gill-nets at Kasilof..... . 16 fish Thursday - not bad for an hour's work setting, picking, retrieving the net. Read a book and played with the dogs on the beach (two of them with me) while I "fished". Visited with the usual suspects on either side of me- see them every year.

Go ahead and spend hours flailing the water combat fishing. Of course, fish on the line IS more fun than one in the net.

Fish arenot very thick through the body this year tho. Might have to save a few on my limit for dip netting the nicer Kenai fish.

Or I could go flail the water a quarter mile from my house....................nah!

The state keeps reducing the hours for the gill netting on the kasilof. So we didn't do it this yr again. Maybe next year..

2012 the run was abysmal.. but the klutina River was rocking the copper run was running very well. Overnight the klutina became the Russian River. Glennallen Certainly liked it..

Some of us are from the Lower 48. We have to combat fish. No gill or dip netting for us. That's OK--my wife likes to floss the Kenai. We'll be there on the 17th of July. Hope the 2nd run of reds is as good as the 1st.

You better hope like hell they aren't a week early like couple other runs we had so far

Took the Grandson to last year and we were too early. We left on the Jul 22 and they were just starting to hit Soldotna. It was painful watching all those fish landed and all our stuff was packed and ready for the drive back to Anchorage. The ocean excursions and King drifts (catch and release) made up for the lack of Reds. Grandson had an ear-to-ear grin the entire trip!

The peak of the second run traditionally hits the mouth of the Kenai July 19, You were "too early", the reds were right on time, or just about. Maybe a couple days late. I haven't seen when they peaked last year. Just not a good run of them.

They take a day or two to get to Soldotna, usually.

Years ago an acquaintance of mine explained how he always managed to have a comfy stretch of the Russian all to himself when fishing for reds. He carried a paper bag filled with empty beer cans. Just as he reached the shore he’d pretend to stumble and spill all of the empty cans. Then he’d I unholster his 44 and fire two or three shots into the air while yelling “who wants to party?” Always worked for him.

[u][/u]
I think I met him once...