Flyout Trip #2 (Straight to Heaven on Earth)
After a day 3 that didn’t produce us any king salmon but did produce me a couple of naps on the boat, Joe and I had a conversation about our planned 2nd day of fishing for king salmon earlier the day before. I think to both of us it was pretty clear that the kings just weren’t in the Kenai quite yet and a few days weren’t going to make the difference during our timeline. When you are travelling on a bucket list with someone it is pretty great to go with someone who is willing to change plans on a dime and spend a few extra bucks to literally go from having an unproductive day to (and I’m not kidding here) literally having the greatest fishing day of your life. Because that’s exactly what Joe and I did. We called up our friends at Alaska West Air and asked if they had any other openings for flyout trips and they said they did to Crescent Lake. We were in! We let Jeff know our change of plans and he was good with it so we confirmed our booking.
After we had such an incredible time on day 1 with our Wolverine Creek flyout, Joe and I were like giddy little kids to wake up and go on our Crescent Lake flyout. The folks at Alaska West Air had told us on the phone it might be a little early for Crescent Lake to be good but we were good either way. Even without catching a single fish, we knew we’d love going and just being out there in the remote areas. Little did we know what was in store for us with the fishing.
The guys that went with us on the trip were a great bunch of guys. They were a family that was doing their annual trip together. They even got in on the Jaycen love. It was really pretty incredible to run into people throughout our trip that were doing the same thing as Joe and I. Making the most of life and taking these trips that mean so much to them personally and doing them with the people they value in life. I think that was one of the best things about Alaska was just how happy people were to be together in this place. It was a dream come true for them.
Ok, onto the fishing. Our guide got us to hop on the john boat and we started rounding corners to where we were fishing through some of the most incredible looking scenery that Earth has to offer. The pictures we took are really amazing but there is nothing like being immersed there. Our fishing spot we went to was where the river spilled out into the lake from a shoal around the corner from where we stationed. We had been told on the way out there that they had not to that point in the year had success catching the sockeye in the lake but he had said the timing was about right for it to heat up. Using our lining technique we learned in day 1, we started fishing towards where the water rounded the corner and right away it was GAME ON! Fish after fish, we just had the time of our lives catching one after another. They were jumping, pulling, going absolutely berserk cast after cast. We were able to catch some great chromers and hit our limit probably quicker than I’d want but that is a hell of a complaint for me to have. Really…it was sick how good it was.
But the good times were not over quite yet. Our guide ran us back to the place the sea plane dropped us off at and they started cleaning the sockeye we caught. That was going to take them a while so in the interim, they gave us some rods and had us fish the bank nearby for Dolly Varden and Lake trout. We were using some light tackle spinning rods on 6 lb test so we caught a few Dolly Varden that were pretty fun but then Joe as able to hook into a good size Lake trout that ran him all over the place. Joe played the fish just right and after a great fight was able to land a beautiful fish. Shortly thereafter I was able to lay into one and just had a hell of a time playing the fish as it ran all over the place. Honestly it was my favorite fish I caught in Alaska. The fight was just so much fun and being able to play the fish during the fight was what people that love to fish live for.
I’m telling you right now. Joe and I have talked a few times about our day in Crescent Lake and we truly believe that it is going to be near impossible to top that trip in our lives (we sure as hell are going to try). It was just that good! From the experience of the flyout, the beauty of the environment, the quality of the guys we fished with, our guides who were cool as hell, and the fishing which was just ridiculous. It’s one of the most perfect days I’ve ever experienced in life and most definitely the most perfect as a fisherman to this point. That’s saying alot.
