SPORT FISH 



Nature has done as well by 

 Alaska's freshwater fisheries as by 

 its marine, and the angler has many 

 excellent fishing grounds to choose 

 from. 



The fresh-water fisherman can 

 try his luck in two kinds of streams. 

 Coastal streams are short and fairly 

 swift, flowing through deep, nar- 

 row, densely wooded valleys, with 

 banks often covered by heavy 

 brush. Their many clear pools and 

 riffles interspersed with numerous 

 waterfalls make a fishing trip beau- 

 tiful and exciting. 



Inland clear-water streams are 

 usually longer. Rising from snow- 

 fed mountain lakes, their upper 

 reaches traverse high plateaus 

 sparsely covered with dwarf wil- 

 lows and alders. The lower reaches 

 are reasonably free of dense under- 

 growth. The large rivers have 

 their sources in glaciers and are 

 silt-laden, but most of their tribu- 

 taries are clear and carry big pop- 

 ulations of game fish, except in 

 waters near cities. 



Alaska's fresh-water game fishes 

 are the rainbow, steelhead, cut- 

 throat, lake, and Dolly Varden 

 trout as well as the grayling, great 

 northern pike, and inconnu or shee- 

 fish. Various colored sculpins, 

 marine and fresh water, are found 

 practically everywhere. In 1931, 

 eastern brook trout were trans- 

 planted successfully into barren 



lakes near Ketchikan, Juneau, and 

 Skagway. 



Salmon — From the sportsman's 

 point of view, marine fishes worthy 

 of consideration are the king or 

 Chinook and the silver or coho sal- 

 mon. These may be caught by troll- 

 ing, spinning, or casting, and both 

 species are widely distributed. 

 They range north into the Arctic 

 Ocean, but appear in greatest num- 

 bers in waters adjacent to the Pa- 

 cific Ocean. 



King salmon run larger and can 

 be distinguished from silver salmon 

 by their actions when hooked. A 

 king generally takes the hook be- 

 low the surface and sounds at once, 

 taking out as much as 200 feet of 

 line, with most of the fighting be- 

 low the surface. King salmon have 

 become an exceptionally popular 

 sport fish, particularly in South- 

 eastern Alaska where this species 

 is the basis for annual salmon der- 

 bies. These are usually held in July 

 under the auspices of the Terri- 

 torial Sportsmen's Association. 



The silver will strike even when 

 the bait or lure is in sight of the 

 boat. When hooked, it makes a fast 

 run of 30 feet or more, breaks water, 

 and leaps several feet into the air. 

 It continues these tactics on the sur- 

 face until played out, and for that 

 reason is regarded by sportsmen as 

 a superior game fish. 



One of the best areas for silver 

 salmon is Southeastern Alaska. 

 Here, behind island barriers, long 

 stretches of protected water allow 

 fishing without hazard. Chatham 

 Strait, the channel dividing 

 Chichagof and Baranof Islands 

 from Admiralty Island, is the finest 

 of these. Stephens Passage, Lynn 



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