Area Sport Fishing Reports
Southern Kenai/LCI

Archived Sport Fishing Report

August 31, 2020

* Just a reminder to all our anglers, please do your part to help slow the spread of Covid-19 by following and reviewing the current State of Alaska Health Mandates in effect. This includes practicing social distancing while sport and personal use fishing and wearing a face covering when fishing and if you are needing fishing supplies from your local store as indicated in Health Alert 010.

* The Alaska Board of Fisheries adopted several proposals establishing new sport fish regulations for the Lower Cook Inlet Management Area at its Seward December 2019 and Anchorage February 2020 meetings. Please see the 2020 Southcentral Sport Fishing Regulation Summary booklet for a complete summary of the Lower Cook Inlet sport fisheries regulations.

Emergency Orders

Please review the Emergency Orders and Advisory Announcements below in their entirety before heading out on your next fishing trip.

  • Emergency Order 2-RCL-7-03-20 and 2-RCL-7-04-20 closed all EASTSIDE Cook Inlet beaches to clamming for all species from the mouth of the Kenai River to the southernmost tip of the Homer Spit in 2020.

Freshwater Fishing

Salmon

  • Coho salmon fishing has been great in the lower section of the Anchor River. The use of bait is prohibited after September 1, but spinners are likely to still entice bites after the river level falls from the recent rain.

Dolly Varden

  • Dolly fishing on the lower Kenai Peninsula roadside streams including the Anchor River has been fair. Expect success to fluctuate with stream levels. Beads should work best, but it’s worth trying different tackle including small spinners and spoons, and flies.

Steelhead

  • A few steelhead have been caught in the lower Anchor while targeting coho salmon. Enticing a steelhead bite is famously difficult, but is most commonly accomplished with beads, jigs, and plugs. Steelhead love a well-presented dead drift, as well as the colors pink and purple. A jig under a bobber is one of the easiest ways to start steelhead fishing. Swinging flies is also effective. Anchor River steelhead counts are now available on the Fish Counts webpage - only 28 have been counted so far, so it’s still a bit early.

Saltwater Fishing

Halibut

  • Halibut fishing has continued to be excellent near the mouth of Kachemak Bay, in Cook Inlet, and around the corner from Point Pogibshi. If you don’t have a boat, there’s lots of charters available in Homer, Anchor Point, and Ninilchik.

Salmon

  • King salmon trolling has been excellent in locations near the mouth of Kachemak Bay. Fishing with herring behind a flasher is always a good bet, but fishing with spoons often works very well for fall trolling out of Homer.
  • Trolling for coho salmon remains slow in Kachemak Bay and Cook Inlet. The best coho salmon fishing has been at the mouth of Cook Inlet near Point Adam and along the Chugach Islands.
  • The coho salmon run in the Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon is all but wrapped up.

Don’t forget to bring your 2020 sport fishing license and king salmon stamp! Help maximize social distancing and purchase your 2020 sport fishing license and king stamp through the ADF&G online store and print it off from the comfort of your own home. Also, make sure to review Emergency Orders and the 2020 Southcentral Sport Fishing Regulations Summary booklet for the area you are fishing before you head out.

For additional information, please contact the ADF&G Homer office at (907) 235-8191.

Archives

Lower Cook Inlet Area Archives for:
Sep 22, 2020 Aug 31, 2020 Aug 25, 2020 Aug 18, 2020 Aug 11, 2020 Aug 04, 2020 Jul 28, 2020 Jul 21, 2020
Jul 13, 2020 Jul 06, 2020 Jun 29, 2020 Jun 22, 2020 Jun 15, 2020 Jun 08, 2020 Jun 02, 2020 May 26, 2020
May 19, 2020 May 11, 2020