Fishing?

[sarahruth23]

Ok, I have tried searching but I can not get the search feature to work on this board! Has anyone else had this problem? I've looked through several pages, but finally I gave in and decided to post my question. Here it is:

 

We are going to be on Radiance of the Seas August 3 - 10. My dad (50) would like to do a fishing excursion while we are gone. We will be in Skagway, Icy Strait Point, and Ketchikan. (and Juneau, but we are whale watching with Capt. Larry there). He's not particular about what kind of fishing he does, although when I asked him if he preferred halibut or salmon, he said probably salmon. We are willing to do independent vendors or a trip from the cruise line. Any suggestions?

 

Thanks a million!

Sarah

[Quilting_Cruiser]

Ketchican is the "Salmon Capital of the World" and has great fishing! I went on a charter when we were there in 2001 and caught five salmon! We're in the process of planning excursions for our cruise this August and salmon fishing is right there at the top of the list. It was a great day!

 

Cheers!

Jayne

 

:D

[CanCanCase]

Early August, Juneau will be in the middle of the coho run, and there are typically fish everywhere. All of the independant fishing charters in Juneau leave from the same harbor as Capt. Larry, so a co-booked set of excursions might save some ground transportation time.

 

Hoonah (Icy Strait Point) will be good for salmon fishing that time of year, and if the Federal and International fisheries boards don't get too restrictive this year, halibut fishing should be great in Hoonah as well.

 

-Case

[sarahruth23]

Thanks so much for your help! Did either of you go with a company that you really liked?

[sarahruth23]

Thanks so much for your help! Did either of you go with a company that you really liked?

[sarahruth23]

Thanks so much for your help! Since Dad is going whale watching with us in Juneau, I don't think that he'll want to do two excursions in one day. Do you know of any companies that you would recommend in Ketchikan or Icy Strait Point?

 

Thank you!

[greatam]

Just a heads up: Shipping the fish home can get very expensive. Here is a list with average prices for Alaska. Could be a little more or little less, but any way you look at it, it is not cheap. http://www.welovefish.com/seafood-processing.htm

 

And quite a few people posted last year that they did not get their fish in Icy

Strait Point for two or three months after they got home, even though their credit cards were charged on the day they went fishing. Check out some of last year's Icy Strait Point posts to verify this.

[CanCanCase]

I can't recommend a "favorite" that I've been fishing with, since that would be some pretty blatant self-promotion!

 

I've heard good things about F.I.S.H.E.S. in Hoonah, and there are a BUNCH of quality charters in Ketchikan.

 

As for the processing, you'll have better results getting fish home if you're fishing in a larger port city like Juneau, Sitka or Ketchikan. The commercial processors in those towns are better equipped to process your sport catch. Here in Juneau prices will vary from $.25 to $.50 per pound for filleted and frozen processes, and up to $2.00 or $3.00 per pound for smoked fish. Note that your 30# King salmon will likely yield only 10-15# of fish when processed. Also note that the bulk of the cost is in the FedEx shipping to get it home. If you're not cruising and can take fish home, checked baggage on airlines is the most popular method. If there's any delay, however (like the rest of your cruise) it will need to be shipped home via FedEx... that's spendy any way you look at it. The last time I shipped a computer from NY to CA it cost more than the last time I shipped fish from AK to CA.

 

A lot of my clients have taken to fishing for the excitement and fun, then shipping home a 5 or 10# sampler box of commercially caught fish from the processor or fish market.

 

-Case

[Quilting_Cruiser]

:D Having seen some of CanCan's posts, I figured he wouldn't be able to recommend himself! LOL! But, I can say I've seen a number of posts from him on this board and he's very helpful--personally, I'd sign up for a charter with him. :)

 

When I fished in Ketchikan it was through Knudsen Cove Marina (it was a ship's excursion) and we had a GREAT time! I have no one to compare them with, but I was pleased. There were only three of us on the boat and the other two also caught a few salmon--one King and the rest were Coho.

 

I had half of my salmon filleted and half smoked and shipped home FedEx. As I recall it was about $80. It was worth every penny because I was able to remind my family several times throughout dinner that I had caught the salmon in ALASKA! ;) I was able to select the day I wanted the package to arrive at my home and it was right on time--it was delivered by an envious FedEx driver!

 

Cheers!

Jayne

[Quilting_Cruiser]

BTW, Case, what is your company? Do you have a Web site?

 

Thanks!

Jayne

 

:)

[sarahruth23]

Thank you all so much! (And I apologize for my TRIPLE post - apparently I am not quite as computer literate as I like to believe I am :) ) I have just one more question...should we book a trip before we go or will it be pretty easy to show up and find someone to take us?

[CanCanCase]

BTW, Case, what is your company? Do you have a Web site?

 

Thanks!

Jayne

 

:)

Hi Jayne!

 

http://www.AlaskanMarineAdventures.com should answer your questions.

 

-Case

[CanCanCase]

Thank you all so much! (And I apologize for my TRIPLE post - apparently I am not quite as computer literate as I like to believe I am :) ) I have just one more question...should we book a trip before we go or will it be pretty easy to show up and find someone to take us?

Early August is busy fishing season. I'd book something in advance. Start calling and talking to folks now... you don't have to book quite yet, but since this seems to be a high-priority for your Dad, you don't want to take a chance on missing out. I know in Juneau there are days when you literally can't charter a boat at any price if everyone is booked already.

 

-Case

[CanCanCase]

EDIT: Double post - with only one click! Is it just me, or do these boards seem to be slowing down a bit lately?

 

-Case

[fsdj1097]

We fished with Capt. Dan Leathers in Ketchikan in 2005. I would highly recommend his charter service.

 

Here's a link to his website : http://www.northpacificcharters.com

 

Look at his Photo Gallery and then choose 2005 and then May 26, and you will see our catch.

 

Capt Dan is very professional and will customize the charter to meet your needs.

[Dream Fish]

Icy Strait Point and all of Hoonah had a problem with getting fish shipped out last summer. Due to those problems most charters are looking for other options this summer and will not be using the same processor. Any port that you do not have a charter booked prior to your arrival I would suggest getting off the boat as soon as you can to find someone. In Hoonah you can book in advance with Mike at the Galley (907-945-3777) he books bear and fish/whale charters through independent guides there.

[alaskandude]

I would check out True Alaskan Charters in K-town for halibut and salmon. I know they do a combo trip for cruise ship guests.

[Stacym]

This will be our third trip to Alaska, we fished in Ketchican once and because of timing we choose Skagway for the second trip both times we caught fish, but the best was a ship tour that we booked out of Skagway

it was a sightseeing trip with airplane, whale watching and halibut fishing all combined, when we returned to Skagway from Hoonah we flew through Glacier Bay what a trip! We saw whales caught so many halibut that my arms got sore and the flight, my HB gave the pilot a $100. bill he was so excited! This was a tour that Princess sold for Chilkoot Charters. My HB has talked to the captain on the boat we was on and it sounds like they will have two boats in Hoonah this year.

 

He asked him why they gave the tour up that we had been on, He said that 9/11 caused insurance problems for the Cruise Lines and they could'nt sell it with out the insurance. :(

 

Anyway they will let us know as we get closer to the season, I think we will fly out of Juneau this time! and fish with Sweet Dreams.

 

As for locals in Hoonah Royal charters, Lucas Clark and Fishes are the best boats there! These guides was working for Chilkoot Charters when 9/11 happened taking over flow for the ships, Lucas is the cute one!

 

Stacym

[sea_u_onboard]

We booked our fishing in Ketchikan through Ken with Northern Lights after several rave reviews on this board - http://www.ketchikanfishing.net/

 

We are going the week of July 4th and the salmon will be running then. Not sure about when you are there.