Hooligan headline Memorial weekend harvests

For anglers who have been wondering about when to catch Susitna River hooligan, this coming weekend and the following week may be the very best fishing of the entire season.

Alaska residents who have a fishing license are allowed to dipnet as many of these small, oily fish as they can use for their personal use. I’ve heard a couple reports already this week that the hooligan are near the mouth of the Deshka River, and from my knowledge of the fish the end of May and very beginning of June has seen peak abundance even at areas far upstream from the Deshka River mouth. For those of us who’ve been king salmon fishing near the mouths of Parks Highway streams when huge numbers of these little fish show up, it can be somewhat of an annoyance in that a person cannot fish without snagging one, two or more hooligan at a time by the mere act of attempting to fish with a hook and lure.

For those using a dip net, giant coolers can be filled in minutes when a large concentration of fish is found. My suggestion, try a few before going hog wild on the things. There are many other types of fish I would personally rather eat. While people netting from the bank at access point along the Susitna River may have good luck, boats provide mobility to cover several miles of river and access some of the better harvest areas easily. For boaters looking for a good spot to fish, look for other hooligan anglers pulled off to the side along the river, check out fishing conditions where you see concentrations of gulls or eagles along the river, and know that bears are also attracted by this abundant, high-calorie and easy-to-harvest food supply.

What do various river water levels mean in relation to king salmon fishing?

An angler fishing on my guide boat asked this question during the past week. To start with, king salmon typically migrate into many spawning streams when water levels are near their highest point of the year. The big fish require more water for protection from predators, and the fish are simply more comfortable in deep and often times murky or colored water. Under such conditions the fish are not only more likely to be present, they are also more likely to strike lures and/or bait in the two places where bait is allowed for king salmon fishing in the Mat-Su Valley.

On large rivers like the Susitna or Yentna, there is almost always enough water for king salmon to feel comfortable swimming toward areas, but up some of the smaller tributary streams where a good portion of the actual king salmon spawning occurs, the salmon may spend a relatively short amount of time. The big salmon may roam about the larger rivers covering miles of water as they become more and more sexually mature, and only then venture into their natal streams. High waters caused by snow or glacier melt or large rain events may trigger movement out of the ocean or large rivers into the smaller waters as well.

High and off-colored water that triggers king salmon migration into a slow moving river like the Deshka can cool water temperatures and trigger more strikes for anglers fishing as the increased stream flow proceeds down river. On larger or faster rivers, big water flow can reduce visibility to the point where the salmon have difficulty finding an angler’s lure or speed up current enough that the salmon find alternate places to rest until the water level once again drops. Many salmon and steelhead anglers have learned that some of the very best fishing occurs after a river or stream rises from increased runoff and then starts to drop and clear up. In my guiding I’ve found on the Little Susitna River that good fishing often occurs even before the water drops, as in water visibility can increase from even stabilization of the stream flow at a high level.

When fishing for king salmon under tough high-water conditions that have not had an opportunity to improve, focus your effort on slower areas where the fish may rest away from debris floating down the river. Try larger, brighter-colored lures or bait (where allowed) to give the salmoon more opportunity to see and attack the lure. Slowing the presentation is another way to give the salmon more opportunity to respond under less than ideal conditions.

E-mail this column at sports@frontiersman.com if you have Mat-Su fishing questions or information readers should know. Andy Couch owns and operates Fishtale River Guides, fish4salmon.com, is a Mat-Su Anglers Club member and member of the Matanuska-Susitna Mayor’s Blue Ribbon Sportsmens Committee.