Booked a trip for Soldotna, Alaska next September. Needed recommendations for flie patterns and sizes for silver salmon, steelhead, and Grayling?
I had best luck for silvers throwing purple rabbit strip fur streamers up on the Kenai and salt with dumbbell eyes with a teeny 300 line. Practice casting with this line. Once you get the hang of it one false cast and can throw 80 to 90 feet from a boat with a good 8 wt and let it sink to the bottom.. These are money for silvers
For steelhead crystal meth egg patterns ( SUCKER SPAWN) in pink, orange, purple, large stone fly nymph patterns in metallic green and blue and pink San Juan worms in size 8 through 12 in the Anchor river up there.
Grayling. size dry 14 purple haze or orange stIms, any bright nymphs like lightning bugs, prince in 14 to 16.
Thanks ribka, that is a good start for my flie tying what hook size for silvers?
Generally on size 2 but will tie a few up and down in size too.
This is heresy but I'll often tie in some worm rattles on my rabbit strip patterns
Hmmm. May have to try that.
Bring some surface flies like a pink rat or polly wog, sometimes the silvers will really go for them and it is a blast to take them on top. I like the Popsicle series of marabou flies for silvers and steel head. Grayling a mix of standard dry flies like the adams and stimulator, some traditional wet flies like small Mickey fins, coachman, hornberg, and some small bead head nymphs like the prince, zug bug, stone fly & caddis.
Bring an assortment of egg patterns, from single egg to the puff ball types. The egg sucking leach in black or purple with a hot pink head is a favorite.
Silvers seem to like Cerise or Fuschia especially florescent, that and black patterns.
I like to have a range of heads to cover different water depths a 300 or 400 grain head would be a good start.
Thanks I'll get to tying up some of those patterns as well!