King Salmon fishing on Kodiak Island Alaska

 King Salmon fishing in Alaska
Spring is coming but it seems a little late this year. The weather has been calm and cool so far.
With a few kings caught this year we are on our way to a good year of fishing.
A few days ago Al  Z. pulled in this 62 lb king Salmon while fishing with his long time friend Ralph M.
This was his second king of the week and the biggest of the year for Kodiak Adventures Lodge. 
Other than sharing time with Ralph, Al came here with one goal in mind.
To cross off something on his bucket list.

He had been trying to catch a King Salmon over 50 lbs for quite a few years with no luck. Up until now he was only in the high 30s. When this king hit he knew it was the one and we all watched for over 1/2 hour while he fought this trophy. It did what they always do. Peel out lots of line and then circle the boat. When we did get a glimpse of this power house it dove under the boat and took the rod tip into the water.
(nothing like a  quality US made Lamiglas rods) 
Al played it like a pro and soon the fish was in the net. It took two of us to lift the net into the boat and i was relieved to see this huge fish laying quietly in the net. You never truly relax until the fish hits the deck though as I have seen kings tear open new nets. With the King in his arms, Al was all smiles. It is always a great feeling when you can help someone fulfill a lifelong dream. 
By next year at this time Al will have this King mounted in his office and it will give him something to talk about other than work.
The best part was that it was a white meat king. Shelly cooked up some of it to make a cracker spread and it was great. It will be some of the best Salmon on his table for several months. And I walked away with $5 in my pocket, winning the bet on what kind of meat the king was.   
By the end of the week Al and Ralph were already talking about Kodiak Alaska 2013.
Kodiak has that effect on people.!!! It makes our job here at Kodiak Adventures Lodge fun and that is the way we like it. 
Good friends , great food and awesome fishing. It could not be any better.

Salmon fishing in Alaska

Sam's first King of 2012

After  a few days with no luck trolling we decided to concentrate on Halibut fishing. Once we put some fish in the freezer we took a few days off and got some much needed work done around the lodge.

The boys decided they had worked long enough and they were ready ot get back to looking for some fish. Samuel loves Halibut fishing but was out voted. King Salmon fishing it would be.

 Shelly, James and Samuel had agreed that I would get to reel in the first fish, and we headed to our favorite spot for these beautiful trophy fish. After a short boat ride we arrived at the spot and soon Shelly realized she had left the other 3 Lamiglas salmon rods leaning up next to the tackle shed. OOPS!!!!

Well so much for doing a boat and gear check before leaving the dock.

We put some terminal tackle on the one rod we had without much enthusiasum and started our run. In less then 5 minutes we heard the line pop and the reel was soon singing our favorite song. Line was spinning off  the reel and it was time for action. Sam quickly jumped in front of the rod and was playing the fish before anyone else could even get close. (so much for dad getting to catch fish today!)  

Sam played this King salmon with lots of advice from all aboard., Being so predictable, it circled the boat. TWICE!!!.

 Passing the rod to me and then back again so we could get around the motors it made its second go around. James killed the engines to keep the props from ruining a great day ( At 16 years old he is already better then most deck hands in their 30s) .

This 32 lb would end up being Samuel's biggest King Salmon so far.  Later I was thinking how luck my boys have it. How many kids grow up on a remote island with their nearest neighbor 26 miles away ? Most guys never see any salmon that big on the end of their pole even after fishing 20 -30 years.   Here on Kodiak Island this is not uncommon.  In fact most people who have fished here know how big the King salmon can get.  

Well after what seemed like an epic battle with this "energizer bunny" we were all pleased to see it roll over and give itself up.  We knew we would be eating good tonight. 

Everyone was so excited that we decided to make just a few more passes and then head for home. 

Once at the dock we were all playing our favorite dock game. Guessing if it was red or white meat.

With one slice of the knife it would not only be the first king of the year but a prized white meat one also.  

With the grill fired up only an hour after the fish swam its last run Shelly worked her culinary magic and we all soon eating the best dinner God ever graced a table with.    I could not dream of a better day.