Rivers, Sloughs & Lagoons

Coastal Lagoons & Sounds

The Open Coast

Inshore

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  Sheefish — Hunts smelt and whitefish in the silty main channels; troll or cast big flashy spoons and large streamers deep along the seam between current and slack water.GearLarge flashy spoonsBig streamersMedium-heavy combo

  How to ID

  • White to silvery body with no spots or other markings at all
  • Very large scales
  • Lower jaw projecting beyond the upper jaw
  • Mouth full of small, densely packed teeth

  Tell it apart: A big unspotted silver fish with very large scales and a lower jaw that juts past the upper — a broad whitefish has the opposite, a small down-turned mouth under a blunt head.

  Easily confused with: Broad Whitefish

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  Arctic Char — Stages in brackish lagoons behind the barrier beaches before running up; small bright spoons and shrimp-colored streamers worked along the channel edge on moving water.GearSmall casting spoonsShrimp-pattern streamersLight spinning combo

  How to ID

  • Light spots on a dark background
  • Sparse pink to red spots on the back and sides, 15–20 below the lateral line, each LARGER than the pupil
  • Slim caudal peduncle and a noticeably forked tail
  • Leading edge of the lower fins is typically white
  • Spawning fish are usually gold, orange, yellow or rose, and only rarely red

  Tell it apart: Fewer and larger spots, a narrow caudal peduncle and a deeply forked tail mark an Arctic char; a spawning male also carries a much smaller kype than a Dolly Varden's.

  Easily confused with: Dolly Varden

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  Dolly Varden — Shares the lagoons and lower rivers with the char through the short open-water season; beads, egg patterns and small spoons on the current seams.GearSmall casting spoonsBead rigsLight spinning combo

  How to ID

  • Light-colored spots on a darker greenish body — the inverse of a trout
  • Many small spots, each SMALLER than the pupil of the eye
  • Relatively thick caudal peduncle and only a slightly forked tail
  • Spawning males develop a distinct kype, red-black-and-white bellies, black gill covers and bright orange to red spots

  Typical: 12–24 in

  Tell it apart: Spots smaller than the eye's pupil, a thick caudal peduncle and a barely forked tail separate a Dolly Varden from an Arctic char, which has fewer and larger spots on a slimmer peduncle behind a deeply forked tail.

  Easily confused with: Arctic Char

• 
  Arctic Grayling — The most dependable fish up here; sits in clear tributaries above the silt line and rises to a dry fly or a small spinner drifted through the head of a run.GearDry fliesSmall inline spinnersLight fly rod

  How to ID

  • Large sail-like dorsal fin with a scalloped edge — unmistakable
  • Dorsal fringed in red and dotted with large iridescent red, aqua or purple spots
  • Dark back; sides can be black, silver, gold or blue depending on the stream
  • Sides of the body and head freckled with black spots
  • A black slash on each side of the lower jaw

  Typical: 10–12 in at maturity

  Tell it apart: Nothing else in Alaskan fresh water carries that huge sail-like dorsal fin, fringed in red and spotted with iridescent color.

• 
  Northern Pike — Lies in the warm shallow margins of tundra sloughs and lake outlets all summer; big spoons and wire-leadered streamers along the weed edge.GearLarge spoonsWire leadersHeavy spinning combo

  How to ID

  • Elongated body and head with a broad, flat, duck-bill snout
  • Light bean-shaped spots on a darker green-to-olive background
  • A single soft-rayed dorsal fin set far back on the body
  • A mouth full of sharp teeth that are constantly replaced
  • Color tracks the water — light green from clear lakes, much darker from a stained slough

  Typical: Fish up to about 20 lb are common in some Alaskan rivers and lakes

  Tell it apart: The duck-bill snout and a single soft dorsal set far back, over LIGHT bean-shaped spots on a dark body — there is no similar fish in Alaskan fresh water.

• 
  Broad Whitefish — Feeds head-down on snails and insect larvae over soft bottom; tiny baited hooks fished right on the deck, with a very light touch on the take.GearSmall bait hooksSplit shot and floatsUltralight combo

  How to ID

  • Body very broad from back to belly compared with other whitefish — the source of the name
  • Blunt head with a very small, slightly down-turned mouth adapted to feeding off the bottom
  • Elongated body covered in silvery scales
  • Deeply forked tail and an adipose fin
  • Belly white to faded yellow; cheeks may carry brownish spots, and the fins are dark

  Typical: about 500–600 mm (20–24 in), 4.5–11 lb at maturity

  Tell it apart: The small, distinctly down-turned bottom-feeder's mouth under a blunt head is the tell — a sheefish has a large mouth with the lower jaw thrust forward.

  Easily confused with: Sheefish

• 
  Chum Salmon — Piles up at the river mouths in July; bright green and chartreuse hardware fished close to the bottom, with fresh fish fighting far above their reputation.GearBright casting spoonsInline spinnersYarn flies

  How to ID

  • No distinct spots on back or tail
  • Silver at sea; spawners show purple/green vertical 'calico' bars
  • Whitish tips on anal and pelvic fins
  • Narrow caudal peduncle (thin tail base)
  • Large, often white-rimmed pupil/eye

  Typical: 24–28 in, 8–15 lb

  Tell it apart: A spotless back and tail combined with a thin caudal peduncle and white-tipped anal/pelvic fins separate chum from spotted pinks/coho and from spotless sockeye (use gill-raker count to split chum from sockeye).

  Easily confused with: Pink Salmon, Coho / Silver Salmon

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  Pink Salmon — Short even-year run through August; small pink spoons and jigs cast into the schools holding off the river mouths.GearPink casting spoonsSmall pink jigsLight salmon combo

  How to ID

  • Large oval/oblong black blotches over the entire tail AND on the back
  • Very small scales (smallest of any Pacific salmon)
  • Bright silver at sea; smallest, most slender Pacific salmon
  • Spawning males develop a pronounced humped back

  Typical: 18–25 in, 3–5 lb

  Tell it apart: Big oval spots covering the WHOLE tail plus the tiniest scales of any salmon clinch a pink; coho spot only the upper lobe and chum has no real spots.

  Easily confused with: Coho / Silver Salmon, Chum Salmon

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  Coho / Silver Salmon — The last run of the year, along the surf line and lagoon entrances in September; cast spoons from the beach or work a skiff just outside the breakers.GearCasting spoonsInline spinnersSalmon spinning combo

  How to ID

  • Black mouth interior but WHITE/gray gums at base of teeth on lower jaw
  • Spots on back and on the UPPER tail lobe only (lower lobe usually clean)
  • Bright silver sides, blue back; broad caudal peduncle
  • Moderately forked tail

  Typical: 24–30 in, 8–12 lb

  Tell it apart: White/gray gums (against the black mouth) with spots confined to the upper tail lobe mark a coho versus the king's black gumline and fully spotted tail.