Fishing in Ketchikan (7/1) or Skagway (6/29

[Flredhead]

Family cruise on the Zuiderdam on June. 13 year old, 71 year old and an iffy 9 year old want to go fishinj. We have 8 hours in Ketchikan but have Totel Poles, Great Lumberjack show and possibility of Ketchkan Ducks for the remaining 7 people.

 

 

Skagway is 13 hours in this port. Train rides do not appeal. Would this be a good place for a fishing tour since we are in port longer. Suggestions for non-fisher would be appreciated.:D

 

Recommendation on Boat fishing tours in either place would be most appreciated. If you have a link or prcies that would also be important the most important this is quality of the trip. Any fish they catch we want cleaned and shipped home to remember the trip.

[Marie321]

We've fished several times with Ken of Northern Lights out of Ketchikan and have always had a great time. We've always shipped the fish home. Ken makes it easy. Here is a link if you decide to fish in Ketchikan.

 

http://www.ketchikanfishing.net/

[itravelak]

This is not even close. Ketchikan is a much better fishing port. We have gone with Rick at Explore Alaska Charters that last few years. We have had a blast every time we have gone. Rick has been helpful in finding other good boats for us when we have had large groups.

[P.A.]

We would be interested in getting more info on fishing tours. Only problem is we get into Ketchikan at 6am and leave at 12:30pm. This limits the tours we can take.

 

Any suggestions? Thanks!

[cruisin 07]

Went with Northen Lights in early May. On the way back to the dock he through out one small fish we caught to feed the local eagles off the back off the boat. Got this pic.

[P.A.]

Went with Northen Lights in early May. On the way back to the dock he through out one small fish we caught to feed the local eagles off the back off the boat. Got this pic.

 

That is a cool pic! I sent an email to Northern Lights to see if they could accommodate our times but have not heard back from them yet. Were you happy with that tour company and did you catch anything? Thanks!

[cruisinzoe]

We used Northern Lights 4 years ago and will be using him again this summer. He was great to work with. We caught a lot of salmon, and he took care of shipping everything home for us.

[klingoncruiser]

As other have said, Skagway is NOT a fishing port. It is at the end of a long Fjord and the fish don't come in until late in the season. Ketchikan is much better for fishing.

[Sanpan]

Crusinzoe, thanks for the information. I am also conisdering a fishing trip in Ketchikan but for mid-September. Do you think the fishing would still be decent around that time??? Does Northern Lights pick up at the cruise docks? Were they dependable in getting you back on time?? Thanks everyone for your input:confused:

[cruisinzoe]

Sanpan, we were there in July so I don't know about September. I'm sure Ken would be able to tell you. He is very honest about what you can catch at what times. He pulls his boat up right near the ship and we met him on the dock then walked to his boat. Very easy. He is very dependable. I highly recommend him.

[Marie321]

Ken will definitely be able to tell you what type of fish will be running at what time. We've been with him twice. SUPER dependable! He will give you his cell phone number and will pick you up right at the pier.

[GRBlizz]

Another option in Ketchikan is Dan with North Pacific Charters. I am pretty sure all the charter boats are geared for the cruise ship schedules, and the fishing boats leave right from the place where the cruise ships dock. So you will be fine with the hours you have.

 

We caught 7 salmon last June, and kept 4 to ship back, a total of 22 lbs. Captain Dan also "called" the eagles for me to shoot - in our case, he did it by throwing mackerel bait for them. Here are our pictures.

 

[Marie321]

AWESOME picture!!!!

[P.A.]

Another option in Ketchikan is Dan with North Pacific Charters. I am pretty sure all the charter boats are geared for the cruise ship schedules, and the fishing boats leave right from the place where the cruise ships dock. So you will be fine with the hours you have.

 

We caught 7 salmon last June, and kept 4 to ship back, a total of 22 lbs. Captain Dan also "called" the eagles for me to shoot - in our case, he did it by throwing mackerel bait for them. Here are our pictures.

 

 

Thanks for posting the awesome pics! That is amazing...the eagles! I can't wait! We are fishing with Northern Lights tours in Ketchikan so we hope we can get some shots like you did.

 

I am curious, you mentioned you kept 4 salmon, just wondering, how much that cost you to ship back, and out of 4, how many fillet's did you get out of that? I sure hope we catch something and the waters are not rough. You know with this winter everyone has had, there is no telling!

 

Thanks for sharing!

[GRBlizz]

They make the salmon into 1-lb. fillets (approx). We got 23 of them. They are individually flash-frozen and sealed in thick plastic pouches. They are sent via Fed-Ex to your home. Picture of how they showed up below.

The captain of your fishing boat will make all the arrangements, you just have to sign some papers on the boat, and give them a credit card. You also tell them when you want them shipped, in case you aren't going straight home.

 

Cost - I am going on memory here, but it was like $85 for the Fed Ex and $1+ per pound. My total was in the $110-$120 range, which I considered a bargain for wild salmon (not counting the cost of the cruise and excursion, of course:))

 

[P.A.]

They make the salmon into 1-lb. fillets (approx). We got 23 of them. They are individually flash-frozen and sealed in thick plastic pouches. They are sent via Fed-Ex to your home. Picture of how they showed up below.

The captain of your fishing boat will make all the arrangements, you just have to sign some papers on the boat, and give them a credit card. You also tell them when you want them shipped, in case you aren't going straight home.

 

Cost - I am going on memory here, but it was like $85 for the Fed Ex and $1+ per pound. My total was in the $110-$120 range, which I considered a bargain for wild salmon (not counting the cost of the cruise and excursion, of course:))

 

 

That is awesome and exactly what I needed to know. The price is what we were expecting. Just looked at the price of Salmon at Sam's this weekend and it was $8 a lb. So approx $5 a lb sounds great, plus I'm sure it's much more fresh.

 

We are so looking forward to our fishing tour, but we don't want to rush June. March has come way too fast!!

 

Thanks again for the info. :-)

[Putterdude]

I would choose Ketchikan over Skagway for fishing hands down. I can recommend Strike Zone Charters, Luke Stamm and his father, Louis, have fished all of their lives out of Ketchikan and Louis now winters just a few doors down from me here in AZ. link

[Sanpan]

Sanpan, we were there in July so I don't know about September. I'm sure Ken would be able to tell you. He is very honest about what you can catch at what times. He pulls his boat up right near the ship and we met him on the dock then walked to his boat. Very easy. He is very dependable. I highly recommend him.

 

 

Thanks so much. We booked with Ken for September. He said that silvers are active at this time. So looking forward to our fishing trip. Hope to ship some salmon home. ;) Thanks for the extra vote of confidence. He was great to talk with and very helpful.:D

[itravelak]

Went with Northen Lights in early May. On the way back to the dock he through out one small fish we caught to feed the local eagles off the back off the boat. Got this pic.

 

 

 

You might not want to post this. It is illegal to feed the eagles, especially with a sport caught fish.

[gatewaygirl]

We have fished with Rick Collins at Explore Alaska Charters twice. He was born and raised in Ketchikan, and has a ton of experience fishing. He is a super guy and we our family has loved fishing with him! http://www.explorealaskacharters.com I believe is his website. You can contact him directly also..:)