Area Sport Fishing Reports
Southern Kenai/LCI

Archived Sport Fishing Report

July 07, 2021

* Just a reminder to all our anglers, please do your part to help slow the spread of Covid-19 by practicing social distancing while sport and personal use fishing, and wearing a face-covering when social distancing is not possible, and if you are needing fishing supplies from your local store.

Freshwater Fishing

• The Ninilchik River is open to fishing for hatchery king salmon for the rest of the season. The bag and possession limits were increased for hatchery king salmon from one to two fish and there is no annual limit. Please review emergency order 2-KS-7-18-21 below for more info.
• Fishing for hatchery kings is slowing down. Try fishing the lower river as the tide recedes for a shot at hooking into newly arriving fish. Dolly Varden is starting to show up in low numbers but could begin entering on the tide in the next couple of weeks.
• The Homer Reservoir is a great place to take kids and try fishing for Dolly Varden. The fish are small but plentiful. Casting a spinner from shore works great.

Saltwater Fishing

Halibut

• Halibut fishing continues to be good. Some large fish have been caught in Cook Inlet in the last week.
• Both drifting and anchoring can work to catch halibut, try the other if one isn’t working.
• Marine weather forecast looks mostly favorable for the week in Kachemak Bay and Cook Inlet which should allow anglers get to the offshore locations. The tides are moderate for most of the week.
• Herring on a circle hook is the most popular bait; however, octopus, salmon heads, and jigs also work well.

King Salmon

• Trolling for king salmon has slowed a bit in Kachemak Bay last week. There has been a consistent bite near Bluff Point and lots of bait in the water column near Point Pogibshi. Some pink salmon are beginning to show up around Point Pogibshi, but they aren’t there in masse yet.
• Most anglers use downriggers and fish with troll sized herring or spoons behind flashers.
• The Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon is mostly cleared out of king salmon, but it’s nearly time for the earliest of the coho salmon run to begin showing up there. Fresh fish were caught over the weekend.

Sockeye Salmon

• China Poot opened to dipnetting on July 1. Anglers had success dipnetting and snagging sockeye there over the weekend. Snagging is often easiest as the tide is flooding and bringing new fish in.

Other Saltwater Fishing

• If you are limited by access to a boat or by the weather, fishing off the end of the Homer Spit can be a great way to wet a line. Anglers have recently been catching chum salmon off the end of the spit. Species available include walleye pollock, Pacific cod, Dolly Varden, a variety of flatfish species, and the occasional king salmon.

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-KS-7-18-21 increases the hatchery king salmon bag and possession limits in the Ninilchik River from one fish to two fish 20” or greater in length and removes the annual limit through 11:59 p.m. Sunday, October 31, 2021.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-7-17-21 closes sport fishing for king salmon within one mile of shore in the saltwaters of Cook Inlet north of the latitude of Bluff Point (59° 40.00' N. lat.). This regulatory change is through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, July 15, 2021.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-7-16-21 closes the Anchor River and Deep Creek to all sport fishing through 11:59 p.m. Thursday, July 15, 2021.
• Emergency Order 2-KS-7-08-21 reduced the king salmon annual limit north of Bluff Point from five to two fish through 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, July 15, 2021.
• Emergency Order 2-RCL-7-04-21 and 2-RCL-7-05-21 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 2021.

Don't forget to purchase your 2021 sport fishing license and king stamp! Help maximize social distancing and purchase your 2021 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 2021 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.