Fishing in Alaska via Alaska Airlines First Class
Jul 23, 2016, 12:03 am
#32
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
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And away we go! We caught a break today as we were spared a 3am wake up. We were scheduled to meet our charter captain at more civilized for fishing 6am and at relatively close Anchor Point. This translated into only a 4:30am wake up call and a 5:15am departure from our cabin. Cool low lying valley fog on the drive south.
Mrs. SFO777 heading from the parking lot to the launch.
But first, a little detour to the luxurious boat launch restrooms. LOL.
And our boat for today, Alaska Gamecatcher and captain Eric. Pretty cool way to launch using a tractor.
About an hour later we were some 25 miles offshore with spectacular scenery all around.
Time to get ready as our deckhand Josh preps the bait.
SFO777Jr reeling in his 60 lb. halibut.
And Mrs. SFO777 proudly next to her 60 pounder.
The morning's catch, ranging from 55 lbs. to 70 lbs.
Josh filleting our halibut on the way back to shore.
Great orca show on the way back.
And the launch tractor bringing us up.
From Anchor Point, we headed down The Sterling Highway to a nice rest stop and viewing area near Homer.
Back at the cabin after a long day, we enjoyed happy hour and then some of the morning's catch. Amazing.
Mrs. SFO777 heading from the parking lot to the launch.
But first, a little detour to the luxurious boat launch restrooms. LOL.
And our boat for today, Alaska Gamecatcher and captain Eric. Pretty cool way to launch using a tractor.
About an hour later we were some 25 miles offshore with spectacular scenery all around.
Time to get ready as our deckhand Josh preps the bait.
SFO777Jr reeling in his 60 lb. halibut.
And Mrs. SFO777 proudly next to her 60 pounder.
The morning's catch, ranging from 55 lbs. to 70 lbs.
Josh filleting our halibut on the way back to shore.
Great orca show on the way back.
And the launch tractor bringing us up.
From Anchor Point, we headed down The Sterling Highway to a nice rest stop and viewing area near Homer.
Back at the cabin after a long day, we enjoyed happy hour and then some of the morning's catch. Amazing.
Last edited by SFO777; Jul 27, 2016 at 9:00 pm
Jul 23, 2016, 12:14 am
#33
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
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Thank you Madone59.
Thanks very much wrp96.
Thank you very much AKCuisine. Wow, what a shame about the fire. I think we saw the beginning of it on our way north on Sunday. Hopefully, it's out by now without too much damage.
Thank you HawaiiTrvlr. We loved Humpy's and would love to go back on our next trip.
Thanks very much BA5E. The Denali scenery from our small plane was just amazing. Mostly windows and an up close view. Great experience. ^
Thank you mad_atta. The flight seeing tour is a wonderful way to see spectacular Alaska scenery.
Thanks mkjr. On a sunny summer day, it is an awesome sight. Winter snow and wind must be something to behold there.
Thank you so very much Seat 2A. What a wonderful part of the world you call home. We were so fortunate with the great weather we had last week. She didn't quite make the 70lb. level but 60lb. was just right. 
Thanks UAL250. Have to agree. Alaska is just spectacular.
LOL. Yeah, I'm sure I'll better thoughts of AS when we board our CDG-DUB flight next month.
I'm so glad you were here in Alaska last week when the weather was fine and the road south of Anchorage was open, SFO777. Since the weekend we've been dealing with the #McHughCreekFire just south of Anchorage, in the Chugach National Forsest between Potter Marsh and Indian.
Yesterday the Seward Highway was down to 1 lane with pilot car guide. Traffic was backed up from Potter Marsh all the way to Huffman in South Anchorage, with reports from many travelers that it was taking up to 3 to 4 hours to get from Anchorage past the blaze and down to Indian, a jaunt that would normally take less than 30 minutes.
The fire is currently estimated at 500 to 600 acres and is just over a mile from the nearest Anchorage subdivision. Our thoughts are with the families who may be in its path.
Yesterday the Seward Highway was down to 1 lane with pilot car guide. Traffic was backed up from Potter Marsh all the way to Huffman in South Anchorage, with reports from many travelers that it was taking up to 3 to 4 hours to get from Anchorage past the blaze and down to Indian, a jaunt that would normally take less than 30 minutes.
The fire is currently estimated at 500 to 600 acres and is just over a mile from the nearest Anchorage subdivision. Our thoughts are with the families who may be in its path.
I am glad you got to eat one of my favorite restaurants ever: Humpys. When I used to travel to Alaska for work and vacation, I always made sure I stopped in for their halibut and chips. Their Alaska King Crab cakes were pretty good too. Next time, include Mooses Tooth Pizza. Can't wait to see some fish pictures coming up.
What fab photos of the scenery from your little plane, and it made it better by being a lovely day. The food at the lunch restaurant looked jolly good, could almost have reached out and tried it all. Loved your little 4 night place of stay, even had a kitchen, bet not much was cooked on that stove. Enjoy the rest of your trip and look forward to more photos.^
damn. that looks like a scene out of TWD.
nice photos. the ones of the glaciers carving the adjacent mounts up are awesome as are the crevasse's....it is remarkable about how docile the glaciers can look from up high until you get closer and closer and see, hear and feel their power!
nice photos. the ones of the glaciers carving the adjacent mounts up are awesome as are the crevasse's....it is remarkable about how docile the glaciers can look from up high until you get closer and closer and see, hear and feel their power!
Great pics and commentary, SFO777! I particularly liked your flightseeing shots. The scenery more than makes up for the uncomfortable seats and lack of service on those little planes!
Nothing but rain here in Denali National Park all week long - this after temps in the 80s last week. Here's hoping you and MRS. 777 have a memorable fishing trip amongst the bears. I look forward to seeing a picture of MRS 777 cradling a 70lb King. Good luck! ^^
Nothing but rain here in Denali National Park all week long - this after temps in the 80s last week. Here's hoping you and MRS. 777 have a memorable fishing trip amongst the bears. I look forward to seeing a picture of MRS 777 cradling a 70lb King. Good luck! ^^
LOL. Yeah, I'm sure I'll better thoughts of AS when we board our CDG-DUB flight next month.
Jul 25, 2016, 7:19 pm
#39
Join Date: May 2015
Location: San Clemente, CA
Posts: 165
Great report..I can't believe I saw a picture of Mrs. SFO using a porta potty ..I wonder if that pic will make it into the Christmas newsletter 
Nice catch on the halibut..my favorite fish. Given that you are near by, it might interest you to know that apparently you can catch halibut of the San Clemente pier and you don't need a license for it.
Nice catch on the halibut..my favorite fish. Given that you are near by, it might interest you to know that apparently you can catch halibut of the San Clemente pier and you don't need a license for it.
Jul 27, 2016, 2:29 pm
#43
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: MIA
Programs: AA EXP (AC), DL G (SC), Bonvoy LTP, & IHG AMB
Posts: 1,798
First no PDBs on Alaska? Then no PDB from Bill and Beth? LOL!
I've only been to Anchorage, but did enjoy the Crow's Nest at the Captain Cook Hotel, if only for the fact that they knew what a kir royale was. Enjoy and thanks for sharing!
LOL!I've only been to Anchorage, but did enjoy the Crow's Nest at the Captain Cook Hotel, if only for the fact that they knew what a kir royale was. Enjoy and thanks for sharing!
Jul 27, 2016, 8:58 pm
#44
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
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Posts: 21,600
Salmon Fishing on the Kenai
Another early morning as we left the cabin at 6:10a for our 6:30a rendez-vous with our guide Ben at the Tesoro station north of Soldotna.
Mountain woman Mrs. SFO777 checking out provisions. LOL.
We headed out for the 20 minute drive to beautiful Skilak Lake and the mouth of the Kenai.
Bundled up for the 15 minute cruise out to the river.
Our wonderful guide Ben.
A happy fisherman with her 1st salmon of the day!
We caught our 3 per person limit by around 10:30am and then head to shore where Ben filleted the salmon.
Salmon eggs from just one salmon... apparently more than a million eggs from each.
Seagulls waiting for lunch.
And going crazy when any fish parts are thrown their way.
Stopping for a little BBQ on the way back to the cabin.
Another early morning as we left the cabin at 6:10a for our 6:30a rendez-vous with our guide Ben at the Tesoro station north of Soldotna.
Mountain woman Mrs. SFO777 checking out provisions. LOL.
We headed out for the 20 minute drive to beautiful Skilak Lake and the mouth of the Kenai.
Bundled up for the 15 minute cruise out to the river.
Our wonderful guide Ben.
A happy fisherman with her 1st salmon of the day!
We caught our 3 per person limit by around 10:30am and then head to shore where Ben filleted the salmon.
Salmon eggs from just one salmon... apparently more than a million eggs from each.
Seagulls waiting for lunch.
And going crazy when any fish parts are thrown their way.
Stopping for a little BBQ on the way back to the cabin.
Last edited by SFO777; Jul 29, 2016 at 9:02 pm
Jul 27, 2016, 8:59 pm
#45
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Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Denver • DEN-APA
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Posts: 21,600
Fly Fishing... or not.
Another early morning and we are off on a 45 minute drive to Alaska West Air and our fly out fishing experience, or so we thought. We arrived at 6:20am and 3+ hours later we were still there as weather at our destination had socked in the lake.
Killing time.
Hip waders for everyone. Mrs. SFO777 is not so sure about this one.
Nothing to do but wait and explore the area. SFO777Jr and I headed down to the sea plane dock.
Our plane.
Yikes, not sure Mrs. SFO777 is going to like this.
LOL, that looks comfortable.
Back at the base, the four of us conferenced about what to do. While the pilot anticipated that we would be able to maybe take off within an hour, we decided to bag the trip, mostly because we had no control over our return. We would be stuck there for 6 hours once we got there, like it or not. We'd already been up fpr 5 hours. So... we headed back towards Soldotna but satisfied Mrs. SFO777's McDonalds fix, or at least tried to. The Kenai McDonald's was quite possibly the worst Micky D's in the world. 45 minutes for food to appear after order.
Mrs. SFO777 and I spent the afternoon relaxing in the cabin while SFO777Jr and (hopefully) future Mrs. SFO777Jr headed out for trout fly fishing. Our last night, we decided to go Mexican!
Senor Pancho's is a great family owned restaurant with the most colorful decor we've seen in a long time.
The food was really good, although they don't have liquor license. Oh well.
Another early morning and we are off on a 45 minute drive to Alaska West Air and our fly out fishing experience, or so we thought. We arrived at 6:20am and 3+ hours later we were still there as weather at our destination had socked in the lake.
Killing time.
Hip waders for everyone. Mrs. SFO777 is not so sure about this one.
Nothing to do but wait and explore the area. SFO777Jr and I headed down to the sea plane dock.
Our plane.
Yikes, not sure Mrs. SFO777 is going to like this.
LOL, that looks comfortable.
Back at the base, the four of us conferenced about what to do. While the pilot anticipated that we would be able to maybe take off within an hour, we decided to bag the trip, mostly because we had no control over our return. We would be stuck there for 6 hours once we got there, like it or not. We'd already been up fpr 5 hours. So... we headed back towards Soldotna but satisfied Mrs. SFO777's McDonalds fix, or at least tried to. The Kenai McDonald's was quite possibly the worst Micky D's in the world. 45 minutes for food to appear after order.
Mrs. SFO777 and I spent the afternoon relaxing in the cabin while SFO777Jr and (hopefully) future Mrs. SFO777Jr headed out for trout fly fishing. Our last night, we decided to go Mexican!
Senor Pancho's is a great family owned restaurant with the most colorful decor we've seen in a long time.
The food was really good, although they don't have liquor license. Oh well.
Last edited by SFO777; Jul 31, 2016 at 10:52 am