Spring silver surprise

Frontiersman

Local guide Andy Couch has dedicated himself to catching a king salmon during the month of April. Thursday morning, he landed a salmon in April, but his quest to catch a king hasn't been completed.

That's because the salmon Couch caught wasn't a king salmon - it was a chrome silver salmon, a species that doesn't start running until July, and it tipped the scales at nearly 5 pounds.

&#8220I have caught a sockeye in May before, but the earliest I've ever caught a silver is June 26,” Couch said. &#8220I knew right away it wasn't a king. There's no doubt it was a silver.”

Mike Hudson, manager of 3 Rivers Fly and Tackle in Wasilla, weighed the fish in early Thursday morning. He said he's never seen a king caught this early, let alone a silver.

&#8220I would have called B.S. if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, and I'm telling you, it's a silver,” Hudson said.

Couch, who owns FishTale River Guides, has caught a king salmon on May 1 before, and each spring, he tries to catch one in April, which is incredibly early for a species that typically starts running in mid- to late-May and continues through July. Throughout last week, he was at Eklutna Tailrace, using a Flash Trap spinner, which he makes and markets through his guide service.

&#8220I started looking at the tides and figured it is going to be good through Saturday,” Couch said. &#8220I thought I saw a fish roll this morning, but I went up there and fished it and of course, didn't catch it. I didn't see anybody else out there, but I saw some eggs on the beach, so some people are trying.”

Alaska Department of Fish and Game biologists said it's unusual to see coho in local streams this early in the year, but not totally unheard of.

&#8220I think I have heard of two or three being caught up Jim Creek as long as I've been in Palmer, which is since 1981,” said Dave Rutz, the area management biologist for ADF&G. &#8220It's real unusual.”

Rutz said given the fact the fish was nearly five pounds, he's pretty sure the coho has spent time in the ocean as part of a normal life cycle.

&#8220If it had only been two pounds, I would probably guess that it never left the freshwater. But since it was almost five pounds, I'm guessing it had some time in the saltwater,” Rutz said. &#8220Sometimes you see stuff like that. It may be something genetic.”

The fish wasn't fully developed, Couch said, as it didn't have the belly flab that silvers typically have. Because of its chrome color, however, there's no doubt it was a fresh silver.

&#8220It's not the best-looking fish, but it's going to taste pretty good,” Couch said with a smile.

The unusual catch wasn't a secret for long, as it created quite a stir at the fly shop and the fishing community Thursday.

&#8220I'm sure people will be heading down to Eklutna now,” Rutz said with a laugh. &#8220They should remember that it's still a little early, even for kings.”