REDS ARE In

[fishkid]

This past weekend the Sockeye (red) salmon have been flooding into the kenai river by the hundreds of thousands. in two days we had half a million fish pass through the fish weir. Hammer knows this just ask how many fish he got with hook and line....But when ur a resident you can put that pole down and use what real men use Dip nets. These things are 20 feet long and can have a legal hoop size of anything up to 5 feet in diameter. The limits are 25 reds for the head of house hold and then 10 for every other person in the house. the first tide we netted 44 and the second tide we netted 28. dont have any pics of the fish as we were cleaning them as we caught them.

thats about a 10 to 11 pound red in the net i got

the week before this we hit the kenai a few days after the half million came in with or rods and got our limits also. after i got my first limit and broke a branch off a tree tied mono to it and started flippin and rippin. I ended up gettin my second limit with that method which was funny because all these people come up and pay hundreds of dollars for a guide and i am on the shore catching all these salmon with a stick hook line and sinker. red season will be over in a week and a half then on to silvers (coho)!

with the deadly stick pole

[smeese]

Pretty sweet, but resident or not, I would not feel too manly dipping fish out of the lake with a net.Where is the challenge?

[pushbutton]

Would think shallow hand harvest, spearing, and netting would be fishing's "truest forms". Just enjoy it in whatever form it may be by whatever the norms are for that particular area. One of the best fishing experiences i have each year is running around in the feeder creeks inlets with my young son netting carp and suckers! He thinks it is way cooler than sitting out in a boat with one line fishing for walleyes

[smeese]

Not criticizing, just my norm.....

[Judge Smails]

Sockeyes are filter feeders, which means they don't hit anything. Hook and line fishing for reds is based on your ability to cast a hook into the fishes mouth, feel it, and set it without snagging into another part of its body.

Dipnetting for them is like bobber fishing with a 30 lb bobber, you need to be in the right place at the right time with the right equipment and then you have to lift a huge heavy net out of strong current before you club your dinner. Its a lot of work, but very fun. + Bonus flounders if you're in the right place.

It was kinda weird to me at first, but after seeing it firsthand (especially from a boat) I thought it was sporting, entertaining, and a lot of hard work.

[fishkid]

first its not a lake and second come up and try it and you will have a different opinion about dip netting. there is ALOT more work that goes into in then your "normal" fishing. I assume you have not been up to alaska fishing for red salmon.?

[traveler]

I have...plenty. I'm sure the dip netting reds is challenging and a lot of work, I've watched them setting up by the bridge on Kalifnorsky beach road. But I love to fight fish, and reds are just wild on a line (as you know now) I'll stick with the rod and reel thanks:)

[Powerstroke]

Well I'm sure when you rely on your fishing for food and not just sport, the the dip net is a means to an end that happens to provide a different angle on fishing.

SOme people think trolling is unsporting. Everyone gets their own opinion, but please don't criticize others.

[Sherpa]

Nice pics Fishkid. Dipnetting is fun stuff. I wish I could still do it. I tried it a couple times when I was way younger. I remember my dad almost getting pulled into the copper river when he netted a big old king. Thats pretty funny catching salmon with a stick. Can't say I've tried that. Pretty impressive. I shot you a call today and left you a voicemail. I'm back up and looking to do some fishing. I might go out to Jim creek in the next few days. Not to sure where is good right now. We flew across cook inlet to check things out at the Kustatan yesterday and didn't have any luck. Still kind of early I think.

[Down Deep]

I watched some people net reds a couple of years ago. I wish I could have tried it. I must say that I think having a sockeye on the end of a line attached to a rod and reel is a lot more appealing to me.

[spivak]

I'd dip net if I had the chance. Did plenty of sport fishing up there in the 90's. I remember taking the Kenai River ferry across on the last ride of the day and spent the entire night fishing on a nice bend down the river by myself. The reds wore me out. Got a little creepy by myself over there during the deepest twilight. Don't know if I'd do that again. Friends that are up there love to rod and reel fish but when it's time to fill up the freezer, and get the family production line going for their winter's fish, they're dip netting.

[fishkid]

ya ur crazy stayin over in the confluence over night by your self there are so many bears down there. So far the me seeing a bear percentage every time i go down there is 100% lol

[Jim Uran]

Awesome story and pictures!!! I need to make it up there someday