Has anyone ever fished these rivers? I haven't been able to find out much on the web.

any info?

Try running a search here ... as far as I know they're primarily sockeye / rainbow fisheries, but I don't know much

Except write "Bear Doughnut" on your forehead before fishing!!

Hi Bob!! I did run a search thru all the archives before posting and came up with nada. I was at a auction last weekend and won the bid a 6 day trip with Taxidermy services (he does good work) for one fish or shoulder mount of my choice. I ended up getting the whole package for about half of what it would cost to get the mount done, so the fishing is just a bonus, not the area I would have ever chosen, but fishing all the same.

I worked for a lodge in Tenakee Springs AK and the Bears are quite thick on Chichagof Island and can make for an uneasy day of fishing sometimes. I'll make sure that I take someone along that can't run very fast

Sorry. forgot the link ... Not here!

Here:

http://www.sf.adfg.state.ak.us/statewide/sf_home.cfm

Thanks Bob!! Great Info

I worked as a guide for one summer out of King Salmon. I mostly ran trips for four out of a 22' sled on the Naknek River (that's the one that flows right past the town of King Salmon).

King Salmon has an Air Force base, so jets can land there. There's a few lodges and hotels in King Salmon. The upscale lodges are a base camp for flyouts, and they only fish the Naknek when it's hot. The lower-cost lodges fish the Naknek River, Naknek Lake, and tributaries only.

Some of the guide services are sold as a package deal: 8 hours fishing, 4 hours flight seeing, 4 hours car tour to the village of Naknek and back, and then on to another location or back to Anchorage. You fish when your package says you should, regardless of run timing and regardless of tide. The lower river is tidally influenced, and it's like the Columbia around Woodland - on the outgoing tide you can have great fishing. On the incoming, you won't .

Early in the season (late May early June) there can be good rainbow fishing - spawn and post-spawn. The fish are plentiful but they don't fight much) . Late in the season, when the sockeye are spawning, the upper Naknek where it comes out of the lake can provide outstanding rainbow fishing and they'll fight hard. The river also has grayling and char, but not in great numbers. The lake has fishable char, grayling and rainbows. Some spots are better than others, but I don't remember which.

You can access Brooks falls and Katmai National Park via floatplane (I recommend Branch River Air. I also recommend Brach River for any flight our of King Salmon) or boat from the Naknek river and then onto Naknek lake, into which Brooks River runs. Brooks Falls is one of the premier brown bear viewing sights in the world. At the right time, it's unbelivable to see so many bears - 20-30!!!. At the wrong time it's unbelievable you payed so much money to see a water fall and a bear or two.

The best fishing we had was for silvers in early August. Chinook peaked in early July.

The outfit I worked for was included in lots of tour packages. I often had people who had retired and were taking there ALaska-trip-of-a-lifetime. For most people, they wanted to catch a salmon and then back go to the lodge to brag about it in the bar, and they were happy.

Once, a guy wanted me to run the boat at a brown bear on the bank so he could shoot pictures closer and closer until it ran away. I refused, since three or four other boats were there and watching the bear.

I took one group of four nonfishermen out at the right time, and we boated 14 chinook in their 4 hour fishing package. They happened to be there at the right time. One group of veteran fisherman I took out boated 3 chinook in two 8-hour days. Their package had them on the water at the wrong time.

I can't tell you about the Egegik. I never fished it.

Seasel