the "Unforgiven"

So far July has been as jammed packed as you can get it. When I am not flipping the lodge, greeting new guests/saying goodbye to old, cooking, making lunches and shopping I am going FISHING every chance I can get. Which happened the day after the 4th of July weekend.

It was the most beautiful day yet. A little foggy near land where they launch the boat near Deep Creek. It is really cool how they do it. A loader backs the stern of the boat while on the trailer into the water til the jet engines are started for take off to the fishing grounds. NO DOCK!

Everybody climbs on board up the ladders. With us this trip with Capatain Frank and his deckhand Charlie were my boss Jimmie Jack and his wife Rosy, 2 guests at the lodge from Brazil who are filming a documentary on Alaska and me.

Here is Jimmie Jack pulling up an 100# halibut all caught on camera.

Jimmie Jack ruled the boat that day with the 2 biggest fish when he added a 70 pounder to the box as the last fish caught. My two were much smaller like the one at their feet.

We couldn't have asked for a better day to be out on the water fishing Cook Inlet.

This is the Brazilian reporter talking to his cameraman while holding the halibut. Quite dramatic but it makes for good tv.

The end result! Also if you check out ktuu-channel 2 in Anchorage Jimmie Jack is featured in this weeks fishing report. GotoAk.com from the home page and look for the fishing report. Pretty cool!

Creative Alaskan Cooks

Fresh Halibut with Spaghetti. Don't knock it til you try it.

My Fish Story

Woke up this morning at my usual 3:30 am and made breakfast and lunch for everyone going out King fishing. Had a couple of checkouts I was working on when Jimmie called and said there would be an empty seat on Adams' boat at 9:30 if I wanted to fill it. About 8 I started getting sleepy because I've gotten into the habit of taking naps in the morning after I'm done cleaning the lodge. I thought I would lay down for an hour and woke up at 10:30. I called Adam and he said he was right out front of Riverbend and to call when I got there and he'd come ashore and pick me up. So, I took my time getting ready. Took a shower and made me a lunch.

I finally arrived at Riverbend about 12:30pm. Shortly after I boarded the boat it started raining pretty good after drizzling all day. Nothing that rain gear can't handle and being from Valdez I'm used to fishing in the rain.

After an hour or so of fishing with not even a bite for the four of us anglers I pulled out a small snack bag of Swedish Fish I make up for the fishermen's lunches. I offered some to my fishing mates who politely declined. I popped one in my mouth and one in the river to the fish gods. Next thing you know my pole is bending and I've hooked an infamous Kenai King. The work had just begun. I stand up and start reeling while listening intently to what the guide is telling me to do. Keep your pole up! Let the fish go when he's taking line! Don't give him any slack! Twice I got him to the boat and as soon as he saw the net coming at him he took off again. The third time Adam was able to scoop him up. At that point he spit out the hook but luckily he was caught.

We took pics, put him in the box, punched my king stamp and everybody (but me) went back to fishing. Your only allowed one king per day/2 per year sportfishing on the Kenai. My fishing mates then asked me for some Swedish Fish. One for their mouth and one for the river. Too bad it didn't work for them like it did for me.

Now I can say I've sport caught all 3 Alaskan King Species. The Copper King, the White King and the Red King. After almost 30 years in Alaska!

My Red Kenai King weighed 40 pounds and was 45 inches long. Gutted and headed he (it was a male) dressed out at 30 pounds of meat. I gave the head to a native friend for her to make Fish Head soup. I dropped my fish off at Ed's Kasilof Seafoods (http://www.kasilofseafoods.com/) for processing.

All I had to do was show up and fish.

Thanks Jimmie Jack and Adam! Your the best of the best!!

Fish for Fun

One of Jimmie Jacks guides, Adam, was out fun fishing today on his day off. Thats what fishing guides like to do on their time off. He took a buddy out with him on the drift boat and his buddy caught this 65 pound Kenai King!

As soon as I heard I rushed down to the river for a photo op.

Paul was there to skin it for mounting after measuring the big fish. 53 inches long with a 30 inch girth. He held it up for me to get my picture taken with a BIG Kenai King.

A 1000 kings came through the sonar day heading up the Kenai River. We will see more of these big fish landed this week.

Monster King

Mouth of the Kenai River as seen from the bluff with Alaskan dipnetters busy in the distance.

Check out this good fishing story: Monster Kenai king caught for a Kodak moment

First Kasilof King

Little king salmon disected, inspected (male) and made into the first fresh sushi of the season.

Going Halibut fishing in the morning!

Fish ON

I get to go sport fishing! And theres a damn good chance I'll catch a fish. God knows how BIG. Fish to me used to mean work. Slammin' Salmon

Still does now that I'm working at a FUN fishing lodge. Road access right on Cook Inlet in between the Kasilof and the Kenai River.

A good job for the FishTaxi!

Stay tuned for pictures.

Making Bank

Got a job down on the Kenai for the summer working at a fishing lodge as a cook/housekeeper. I'll make a hearty breakfast and put out the makings for a fishermans lunch. Which is cool cos they can put mustard on their own sandwich if they want to. Then I will clean, shop and swim. Another cool thing is I don't have to make them dinner. They go out to eat at local restaurants as this lodge isn't remote. My cell phone and wireless internet will still work.

The job starts the 18th and goes til Labor Day Weekend. I got 2 more swim pass days at the Wasilla pool. I'm leaving here Friday and driving down to Soldotna and staying with a friend til I start work which includes room and board. Which is great timing. Just cashed my last unemployment check and my rent here is up.

Heres to a great summer of fishing and making bank!

Favorite TV Show

Fat Fish

I like how this guy filletted fish. I have done his way before with pinks but never with Silvers.


Silvers are in Port Valdez.

The Womens's Derby is this weekend.

Women's Silver Salmon Derby
August 9, 2008
1st Place: $1,000 cash and $500 in goods

Big Fish Story

Photo courtesy Homer Chamber of Commerce

John Calvert managed to haul in a 279.6-pound halibut Monday to take the derby lead. Landing the barn door ended an overnight charter early as the captain raced back to Homer.

I normally don't post about the Homer Halibut Derby but I thought this fish story was great. Here is an excerpt:


The boat's 11th halibut had just been landed, and one of its eyeballs had been knocked out and just sat there on the deck. So Bondioli's deckhand dared Calvert to eat it. The deckhand told Calvert it was good luck to eat halibut eyes.

"Are you kidding me?" Calvert asked the deckhand.

Calvert swallowed the eyeball whole. Chewing it, he said, apparently doesn't work.
About an hour later, Calvert had himself a monster fish and, later that night, $1,000.
Coincidence?

"That stuff just maintains superstitions," Calvert said.

So is he a believer?

"True or not, I'm going to be eating another eyeball before I go fishing (today)," he said.

Full story below.

Who eats halibut eyeballs? This guy does

So the next time you go halibut fishing eat an eyeball and land a big fish.

Lush life On Prince William Sound

Lush life on Prince William Sound

Marc Lester takes the fast ferry Chenega to Cordova last week during all that rainy weather that is plaguing Prince William Sound.

Hasn't stopped the fish from biting too much as Fairbanks man lands 207-pound halibut, takes derby lead
David Gatch of Fairbanks became the first angler to bring in a derby fish of more than 200 pounds in Southcentral this year, with a 207.2-pound flatfish he caught between the lips Monday to take the lead in The Valdez Halibut Derby.

David Gatchs' barn door knocked out Ben Ponting, of Tonsina, posing with his 147.5-pound halibut in the summer-long Valdez Halibut Derby big halibut. Ponting, who recently moved to Alaska from Oregon, caught the fish June 8, 2008.

Photo Courtesy of the Valdez Halibut Derby

Valdeezzz...at the Pumps

Balmy in Valdez. Everybody was whistling around town with a high temp of 28 degrees above zero and no wind. Until they needed gas, groceries and spirits.

The price we pay to live in prime snow/fish country.

A Beautiful Fish

When I head north to Fairbanks this winter for a home ALASKA NANOOK hockey game I'm going to get a tatoo. My sister and I both are. By the same guy who did this beautiful fish tatoo. I'm just going to get a little fish tatooed somewhere on my body. Like my wrist or hand.

Chronic MUD

My camera went for a ride on a 4wheeler. Got these pictures back after the quad got stuck in some chronic MUD! The big, mud, paw print in the middle is that of a bear. Most likely the mama blackie and her cub seen on the mountain side.

Today was cold, to me, and rainy to everyone. Turned on the heater in my truck today for the first time and in my house tonight for a bit. Just to take the chill off. So much for the last day of July.

I missed this in my Derby update yesterday after reading in the Anchorage Daily News this morning that a 340-pounder takes Valdez derby lead. The #328 pound halibut drops to 2nd place then. Big fish in Prince William Sound.

Otoliths

By now everyone has seen or heard the Associated Press story about the huge mother shortraker rockfish, caught by the trawler Kodiak Enterprise some 2,100 feet down, south of St. Paul Island. Since taking possession of the old mother fish, biologists have measured, photographed, poked and probed. By removing the middle ear bone — called the otolith — the researchers were able to count the growth rings and estimate its age at between 90 and 115 years.


I searched the internet for a picture of the otoliths of this humongus fish to no avail. I would like to see how big they are. The above pictured otoliths were from maybe a 15-20 pound max snapper. (Which are shortraker rockfish.) I call them snapper because thats what they look and taste like. To me they are the chicken of the sea. I like them better than halibut. The above pictured halibut otoliths are from maybe a 60-80 pound flatfish. I always thought it was interesting that the Rockfish otoliths are way bigger than the halibut otoliths compared to size wise of the actual fish.


Another interesting tidbit about Rockfish is since they are caught so deep in the water the pressure from bringing them up to the surface causes their stomach to expand out their mouth and their eyes bulge. This makes for a pretty disgusting looking fish but not the ugliest fish in the deep blue sea by far. Their skin is a bright orange color. Like I said, Rockfish are very tasty, too.


All fish have 2 otoliths. They are for balance and buoyancy. They also make nice earrings when cut out of the fishes head. Salmon have little dainty ones. I'll get a couple this summer and show you. I'll also make some earrings out of the above pictured otoliths.