Exploring the Kasilof: A Guide’s Perspective
Guides and locals often refer to this river as the sister of the Kenai or “little K”. Similar to the Kenai River, guides and anglers alike have broken it down into 2 distinct sections; the upper and the lower.
Both sections of the Kasilof River are different and at times almost feel like 2 different rivers. The Kasilof River begins flowing out of Tustamena Lake for 20 river miles to its end point being the Cook Inlet. Tustamena lake is the largest lake system on the Kenai Peninsula creating a fast river current and pumping an enormous amount of water through such a short river. Tustamena lake is fed by a melting glacier making the Kasilof River a glacially fed river system just like its neighbor the Kenai river. The Kasilof river still stands in the shadows of the Kenai but make no mistake, the fishing is just as good and at times even better than the Kenai River.
Lower Kasilof River
The lower section of the Kasilof river unofficially begins at the Sterling Highway bridge and recreation area boat ramp. This section of fishing is about 6 miles long before utilizing the boat retrieval site a couple miles before Cook Inlet. Local guides and myself refer to this portion as the “ditch”. The term “ditch” came about because of the last few miles of fishing and floating flows through the tidal portion just like any river. This “tidal section” is beautiful, tall grass and birds abound while your guide rows through the slow water before motoring out for the day. The lower is always a “drift only” fishery until the last 2 miles of your day. Unlike the upper Kasilof the lower has noticeably less rocks, deeper holes and flows a bit slower making it the ideal section to fish for King salmon.
Kasilof Kings
King or Chinook salmon fishing on the Kasilof river is our first species we fish for. It is also the beginning of the guide season for the majority of Kenai River fishing guides; providing anglers a great early season option for Alaska Salmon fishing. Kasilof King salmon begin entering the river in early May and typically peak sometime between June 1st and mid June with decent to great fishing during this period. King salmon on the Kasilof are the largest Alaskan salmon we chase during the fishing season. Early season (spring) King salmon range from 8-15 pounds with some fish reaching 20-25 pounds. Generally a bait fishery, your chances of successfully landing a King salmon are increased. This portion also has a small hatchery run of King Salmon.
These fish supplement the total run and allow anglers to retain (on most years) 2 hatchery fish per angler, while releasing any wild Chinook we may encounter. Kasilof hatchery King salmon fight and taste exactly the same as their counterparts as they are only created with wild Kasilof river stock at the crooked creek hatchery. Crooked creek is the tributary that flows into the Kasilof river just below the Sterling Highway bridge. The science and process with the hatchery has been proven over the years making this fishery a popular trip for guides and locals alike. Another added benefit of Kasilof King salmon fishing is the bonus fish. The bonus fish is a sockeye salmon which may be retained outside of your King salmon limit. Once we start seeing more Kasilof Sockeye salmon entering the lower section by mid June; its time to shift gears and begin floating the upper section of the Kasilof river.
Upper Kasilof River
The upper Kasilof starts off as a lazy float through slack water below Tustamena lake. Once we’ve floated through the slack water section we navigate the upper section through a series of small rapids. The upper portion has many large rocks in the river that were deposited thousands of years ago as the glaciers receded back above the top of the lake system, carving out the channels we float through on a fishing trip. This section flows for about 12 river miles down to the Sterling Highway bridge which is usually the end of the day when fishing on the upper.
The upper Kasilof has 3 species of Salmon present, Sockeye, Silver and Pink Salmon during specific times of the fishing season. We fish 2 of these species as the 3rd (Pink Salmon) is just a bycatch and not particularly good table fare. First on the plate is the sockeye salmon otherwise known as reds. These abundant salmon are generally available late June until about the second week of August most years. This section has become popular over the years because of its many shallow “gravel bars’ and easy wading.
Kasilof Sockeye
Unlike the Kenai River, Kasilof sockeye enter the river as normal but travel very quickly since their journey is very short given the shorter river system. They have one goal in mind, get to the spawning grounds!!! This makes for fast and furious fishing so you better be ready. Often times you achieve your limit very quickly and all at once as they blast through river right at your feet. The upper Kasilof is very unique in this sense, Sockeye salmon swim up river in extremely shallow water which is to your advantage!
Kasilof Coho
Our second salmon we chase on the upper Kasilof is the Silver Salmon also known as “coho”. Coho are known for their acrobatics and aggressive takes. These salmon don’t blast through the river system like their counterpart the Sockeye. They prefer to rest in slow pools and even almost slack water. Coho spend the majority of their life in the river, longer than any other salmon in Alaska, before heading out to Cook Inlet, typically only for one year. Most Kasilof fishing seasons bait is open for Kasilof Coho, adding to your success rate and offering more styles of fishing.
The Coho fishery bait closure of September 15th is perfectly aligned with the arrival of our final anadromous (born in fresh water, migrates to ocean for adult life then returns to spawn when mature to its home river) fish species, the Alaska Steelhead. Kenai Peninsula Steelhead are a “fall run” Steelhead. This means they only return to their natal stream in the fall and winter months in order to spawn. Alaska Steelhead on the Kenai peninsula spawn in spring around late April through the end of May. Although the fishing season is open during this time we choose not to disturb the spawning process as they are vulnerable during this time period.
Steelheading on the Kasilof
All the Alaska Steelhead fishing action occurs after the bait closure on the Kasilof. As mentioned before, ADF&G (Alaska Department of Fish and Game) has timed the closure since Alaska Steelhead are coming up river in decent numbers by this time. Alaska Steelhead fishing on the Kenai Peninsula is a catch and release fishery on the Kasilof along with artificial lures/flies only with a single hook. The float is very different from a Sockeye Salmon trip, we fish all the way through the river from the drift boat vs floating/motoring down to fish from a bank/gravel bar. This is the big advantage of fishing for Steelhead on the Kasilof river. It is a great little fishery that has the potential to hook and land Steelhead fishing from the drift boat.
The Float: Drifting on Kasilof River
Most anglers may be new to Steelhead fishing and think that its always the big adventure trip, walking and wading up and down the fast current and bushwhacking through the woods. While we do have this option as well on some of our local Steelhead creeks on the Kenai Peninsula, Kasilof Steelhead fishing is a less arduous day, providing amazing fishing at times with minimal physical activity. While Steelhead fishing in Alaska on the Kasilof river you will still fish from the bank at times. There are many great “Steelhead runs” various holes and bars to choose from. Most of these bars can also be a great “swing spot”. This involves casting a Spey rod in order to swing a fly across the current and hopefully getting that elusive grab from a chrome Alaskan Steelhead. The bead pegged above a bare hook floated under a strike indicator is the preferred method for Alaskan Steelhead.
Whether fishing from the boat or on the bank, Alaskan Steelhead frequently will go after this pattern over all others. A day of Steelhead fishing on the Kasilof river promises to provide a great float with “opportunities” at hooking and landing a Steelhead. Your fishing guide will work hard and take the time to ensure your fishing correctly while floating you through some of the best Steelhead water on the Kenai Peninsula. Dress warm, bring your A game and let the guide do the rest and you may be surprised at the possibilities this Steelhead fishery has to offer.
