Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Guided Fishing
Kenai River sockeye salmon fishing is probably the single most popular recreational activity on the Kenai River. With upwards of 150,000 fish entering the river daily on peak days, anglers come from all over the world to enjoy fishing for these freezer-filling fish. Pulling a deep red Kenai River sockeye salmon fillet out of the freezer for dinner in the middle of winter will make you long for the coming summer’s annual salmon run.
Sockeye salmon are some of the most sought-after fish in Alaska and the world. The Kenai River boasts one of the largest runs of sockeye salmon in terms of both sheer volume and physical size. These are some of the hardest-fighting fish anywhere. And when you’re in the middle of the run limits come easy. Kenai River sockeye average 8-12 lbs on the Kenai River but are a bit smaller elsewhere in the state. We’re going to teach you how to target these fish so you can do it on your own but also give you some insight into tips and tricks we use as well on our guided trips.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Combo Fishing
Full Day & Half Day
July 1 - July 31
Aug 1 - Aug 20
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fishing
July 1 - Aug 20
Our guided Kenai River sockeye salmon fishing trips are probably our most popular fishing trips.
Sockeye salmon are known for the bright red color their bodies become during spawning time but in the ocean and for several days to weeks after these fish enter the rivers they are still dime bright. The Sockeye Salmon is known by many different names, the most common being red salmon, obviously, but they are also called, kokanee salmon, blueback salmon, redfish, and summer sockeye.
When we teach people to sport fish for sockeye salmon it usually begins with a lot of disbelief, and then amazement when outing after outing ends in limits of fish for everyone. It doesn’t always go that way (that’s why we call it fishing and not catching), but if you understand the nuances of the sockeye salmon run, the personality of the fish, and the proper technique, all of which we’ll tell you about below, and teach you about on our guided trips, you’ll catch sockeye.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fish Counts
The first and most important thing to consider when sockeye fishing is to show up when the fish do! We make this the first and most important point on all of our specific salmon fishing pages and it’s particularly true in the case of the sockeye salmon – for reasons we’ll discuss later.
There are actually two, or depending upon your perspective, three runs of sockeye salmon that pass through the Kenai River. One run spawns in the Kenai River in July and two runs pass through the Kenai River but are headed for the Russian River and other tributaries of the Kenai River.
Specifically, the peak days for each of those runs would look like this:
- Russian River Early Run: June 14 – July 8
- Russian River Late Run: July 28 – Aug 24
- Kenai River (Late) Run: July 11 – Aug 19
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Behavior and Biology
Spawning sockeye salmon are notoriously hard to get to strike a lure or bait. Occasionally we can get one to take a strike at a Kwifish or Spin-n-Glo but it’s a very rare event. The theory behind why these salmon are so docile when compared to kings, silvers, and pinks is related to their diet. Sockeye salmon, unlike other species of Pacific salmon, feed extensively on zooplankton. They are not the hunters and aggressors like kings, silver, and pinks. And this is the theory as to why they are so difficult to strike our wiggle-warts, worms, and other traditional baits and lures. That and they are on a mission – get to the spawning grounds!
Catching double-digit weight sockeye is common during the late-run Kenai River sockeye salmon run. The late-run Kenai River sockeye salmon are definitely a few pounds larger than the early-run sockeye salmon headed for the tributaries of the Kenai River through June. The average size of these fish is about 6 to 10 pounds and we’re happy to boast that the International game fish association world record was caught right on the Kenai River, on August 9th, 1987 weighing in at 15 lbs 3 oz.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fishing - Methods
When we fish for Kenai River sockeye salmon we’ll be using a power boat to move up and down the river in search of the fish. On some years, it doesn’t matter where you stand, where you start, or what you’re using. At other times, we have to work a bit harder and having a boat is a huge help. These fish definitely come up the river in groups or waves. You can literally see the action go from slow to non-stop and then back to slow. That’s okay, once we find them, we know where they are going and can move up river where they are headed.
We use the boat to go up and down the Kenai River, but once it’s time to fish we get out of the boat and stand in approximately knee-deep water since these fish like to travel in the slower moving water near the banks.
We use a technique that goes by a variety of names such as flossing, lining, flipping, plunking, and the locally named Kenai flip. Essentially we are exploiting 2 things about these fish. The first is the sheer numbers that enter the river, which we explained above, and the second is the fact that they come up the river extremely close to the bank in the shallower slower moving water. So, we know when they are coming and we know where they are swimming. Now what type of equipment should we use and how do we catch them?
You can read more below about gear and terminal tackle but we’d really like to point you to a video done by Scott McLean at the Alaska Department of Fish and Game on How To Fish For Klutina River Red Salmon. Scott’s description of gear and technique is exactly the same as we use on the Kenai.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fishing - What To Bring
We will provide nearly everything you need on our Kenai River sockeye salmon guided fishing trips. Since we’ll be standing in the water you’ll have already been fitted with comfortable chest waders and boots. The Kenai River is a glacial-fed cold river, so we recommend dressing in layers beneath the waders. This is especially true for your feet if you have a tendency of getting cold feet.
In addition to waders and boots, and your rod, reel, and tackle we’ll also provide you excellent instruction and net that powerful fish! The only thing you’re absolutely required to bring is your fishing license. If we’re not King fishing that day you won’t need a king salmon stamp.
Here are a few things you can consider bringing in order to make your fishing with us more comfortable:
- Fishing license & king salmon stamp if needed
- Clothing appropriate for the day’s weather. This may need to include warmer clothes for the morning, and t-shirt’s in the mid-afternoon, and rain pants and rain jacket by late afternoon. Seriously, Alaska weather can change dramatically throughout the course of the day so please do a careful review of the predicted weather and plan accordingly so you can be comfortable.
- Sunscreen
- Hat and Gloves
- Sunglasses & eye protection is need sockeye fishing more than any other type of fishing we do
- Lunch, Snacks, and Drinks. Adult beverages are allowed.
- A waterproof cell phone case is always a good idea. We don’t expect your phone to be dropped in the water, but rain is always a possibility
- A great attitude! No one wants to catch fish more than us! We’re in this together.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fishing - What To Expect During Your Day
Our full-day sockeye salmon trips start at 6:30 AM and either leave from Centennial Campground boat launch or at Eagle Rock boat launch. When you arrive, we will be waiting for you, the gear will be ready to fish, and we’ll be ready to go.
Kenai River sockeye fishing is done while standing in the river in waders and boots. We will have checked with you the day before, if we had not already, to make sure we had comfortable chest waders and boots for you. After quick introductions and a license check, we’ll be ready to head out. It won’t be mo
It’s usually no more than a 5-10 minutes boat ride to where ever we’ll start fishing for the day. Most of our fishing will be done between river mile 10 and river mile 30 (The lower Kenai River and middle Kenai River) so that we can use our powerboats. The Upper Kenai River is drift boat only. Restroom facilities are no more than a few minutes away at any given time and we do like to encourage bathroom breaks every 2-3 hours. Our full-day trips are from 6:30 AM to 2:00 PM.
You can expect that we’ll be professional, friendly, passionate, and great people to spend the day with. Whether you’ve fished all over the world or never fished at all, we’re always excited to share what we know and learn what you have to share. And you can expect 100% of our effort all day.
What Are The Chances Of Catching A Kenai River Sockeye Salmon?
Honestly, pretty darn good. What are the chances of catching limits of Kenai River sockeye salmon? Honestly, between July 14 and August 20, pretty darn good! Aside from pink salmon, sockeye salmon are the most abundant fish that migrate up the Kenai River each year.
The late Kenai River sockeye salmon run starts officially on July 1 and on average we’ll count almost 6,500 fish crossing the sockeye counter located at river mile 19 that day (RM 19). We typically consider about 20,000 fish a day to be the start of really good fishing. On July 5, of 2020 there were already 36,000 fish a day entering the river. It just goes to show you that every day is a different day.
However, on most years the late Kenai River sockeye salmon run will cross the 20,000 fish count mark around July 14th and once it does, it’s only uphill from there. As we get a little further into July, in most years limits come easy from here until about August 12th.
As they say in the finance world, past performance is no guarantee of future performance. And, this is fishing. But we can tell you this. If the fish are in – we’ll put you on them.
Kenai River Sockeye Salmon Fishing - Do We Need A Guide?
Generally speaking, the short answer is yes. Yeah, I know, like you didn’t see that coming right? But there’s an explanation. You don’t need a guide for Kenai River sockeye salmon fishing the same way you do for Kenai River king salmon fishing, but you should still get a guide for at least 1 day. And Ideally, your first day, and please read on for an explanation of why.
Look we get it. Guided fishing is expensive and few of us can afford to pay for a guided day after day when we’ve already spent thousands of dollars on airfare, rental cars, lodging, and food. But there is good news.
There’s a technique to catching Kenai River sockeye salmon and please believe us when we tell you, anyone can learn it. We teach hundreds of people to do it every summer – from 10-year-old kids to professional anglers. And it’s incredibly helpful to get out with a guide where we teach you how to fish for them, how to rig your gear, how to do the “Kenai Flip” or flossing technique, and how to net them. Our goal is to get you proficient enough that you don’t need a guide anymore – at least for sockeye salmon fishing. We’ll even give you pointers on what to expect on each day of your trip, where you should go fish, and some great hiking and fishing spots. We’re happy to do it. We’re Alaska Boat Rental & Guide Service! We have all the equipment for you to rent to save you thousands of dollars.
We really like people to get out fishing with us on their first day. The reason for this is that the techniques that we teach you can easily be learned in a day and then you’ll have the equipment, knowledge, and techniques you need to fish for sockeye salmon throughout the Kenai Peninsula for the rest of the days you’re in Alaska. Whether that be the dock outside your AirBnB, the hike into the Russian River, or anywhere else on the Kenai River or surrounding rivers.
And lastly, at least one day on the world-famous mighty Kenai River is in order. It’s a completely different experience boating around on the water between sockeye holes than it is driving around looking for fishing spots.
