Area Sport Fishing Reports
Kodiak

Archived Sport Fishing Report

May 18, 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 Kodiak Island, Alaska Peninsula, and Aleutian Islands at the Kodiak January 2020 meeting and the Anchorage March 2020 meeting. Please see the 2020 Southwest Sport Fishing Regulation Summary booklet for a complete summary of the Kodiak and Aleutian Islands sport fisheries regulations.

Emergency Orders

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

  • Emergency Order 2-RF-4-12-20 reduced the nonresident rockfish bag and possession limits on the eastside of Afognak and Kodiak islands from Big Fort Island near Shuyak Island to Dangerous Cape on Kodiak Island through 11:59 pm. Thursday, December 31, 2020.
  • Emergency Order 2-KS-4-11-20 closed the Karluk River drainage including the lagoon and its outlet stream to king salmon fishing through 11:59 p.m. Saturday, July 25, 2020.
  • Emergency Order 2-KS-4-10-20 closed the Ayakulik River drainage to king salmon fishing through 11:59 p.m. Saturday, July 25, 2020.

Freshwater Fishing

  • Dolly Varden fishing has picked up in the last week with fish being caught regularly in the Buskin Drainage. Most effort is focused in Buskin Lake, but Dollies can be found in all parts of the drainage. Small spinners or leech flies are a good bet to catch Dollies right now.
  • The sockeye salmon run at Buskin typically starts in mid-May, though if anyone has caught them in the river, they aren’t sharing it yet. The weir was installed on Monday, so keep an eye on the ADF&G fish counts webpage for daily counts.
  • A couple sockeyes have passed the Litnik weir in the last few days, but its likely fishing won’t pick up in the river for a week or so.

Saltwater Fishing

  • Most calm days have seen a considerable amount of effort for kings, with Kalsin Bay and Buoy 4 being the go-to spots. This last weekend saw lots of fish caught and fishing likely is only slowed by the weather at this point. Everyone’s got their favorite trolling set up but its hard to beat a green hoochie for kings.
  • Halibut fishing has been great by most reports, with fish being caught in most of the usual summer spots of Kodiak Rocks, Kalsin Reef, Cape Chiniak, and even inside Kalsin Bay. Most catches have been on jigs versus bait, so far.
  • Many anglers have reported catching decent numbers and decent sized Pacific cod, which haven’t been around in large numbers for several years. Cod are being caught while fishing for rockfish or halibut and some have been caught weighing up to 15 lbs.

Local Lakes

  • Stocked lakes are warming up right now and the Bells Flats lakes (Aurel, Cicely, Caroline, and Lee) are typically good springtime lakes. Hiking in is easy without the summer vegetation too. Try small spinners or leech flies being common tackle and bring a float tube or raft if you can.

Don’t forget to bring your 2020 sport fishing license! Help maximize social distancing and purchase your 2020 sport fishing license 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 Southwest Sport Fishing Regulations Summary booklet for the area you are fishing before you head out.

For additional information, please contact the ADF&G Kodiak Area Office at (907) 486-1880.

Archives

Kodiak Area Archives for:
Sep 29, 2020 Sep 21, 2020 Sep 14, 2020 Sep 08, 2020 Aug 31, 2020 Aug 24, 2020 Aug 17, 2020 Aug 10, 2020
Jul 27, 2020 Jul 20, 2020 Jul 13, 2020 Jul 06, 2020 Jun 29, 2020 Jun 22, 2020 Jun 15, 2020 Jun 08, 2020
Jun 01, 2020 May 26, 2020 May 18, 2020 May 04, 2020