Fish like a Norwegian
Salmon… King, Silver, Red, Chum and Pink. Halibut as big as we are We had these tasty fish on the brain as we headed to Knutsen Cove Marina in Ketchikan, Alaska to meet with our charter captain and crew. Mike had already made big promises to folks back home to bring back lots of filets and smoked salmon (starting with one he made to my mother) so the pressure to perform was on.
Ketchikan bills itself as the “Salmon Fishing Capital of the World.” It really is one of those “end-of-the-earth” locations with no roads in or out of town. The only way to get there is boat, plane or cruise ship. We came in aboard the Norwegian Pearl, so our lodging was set, but locals advise that if you plan this trip yourself and can’t find lodging, the reason is that many charter captains pre-book the best deals for their guests, so check with him/her.
Ketchikan is the southeastern most city in Alaska, and located on Revillagigedo Island, named by Captain George Vancouver in 1793. The name Ketchikan comes from the Tlingit name for creek, and served as a fishing camp for Tlingit natives before the town was established in 1885 by a fellow named Mike Martin. It was famously known for its brothels during the first half of the 20th century, for a red-light district known as Creek Street with brothels on both sides of the street. While the government is the biggest employer, fishing and tourism is the real industry of the town. In addition to being the “Salmon Capital of the World,” Ketchikan has the world’s largest collection of standing totem poles.
We had tried to book our charter directly with advice from friends – and also Trip Advisor – but every great captain was pre-booked through the cruise companies. With 4 cruise ships in town, we wondered how great the experience could be. Would we get stuck with novices who got seasick? Did we really want to get on a bus to God-knows-where with 100 fellow passengers at 6 am? Would it be real or a Disney-like experience when we had come so far? But with no choice, we took our chances through Norwegian and booked with Action Cruise Adventures.
We had had dinner with our ship’s captain, Captain Gunnar, the night before our charter. He and Mike swapped fish stories, and he told us he had a special day of fishing set the next day. We were secretly envious knowing that – given the fact that he visited this port every week – he had a top secret spot unknown to the tourists. What would our charter be like?
Total score! Our Captain Kevin Beck with Action Adventure Charters has owned his boat for about 18 years and gets rave reviews on Trip Advisor and from the locals. We liked him from the get go and the excitement started to mount as we left the bus behind and headed for the docks. And who did we find in the dock shop as we picked up our coffee? Our own Captain Gunnar, of the Norwegian Pearl, who was headed out of the same marina for his charter! This was a really good sign.
More good karma when we saw the name of Capt. Kevin’s boat: Dream Catcher. This is the name of the charter boat owned and captained by our very own Captain Stu of Coastal Angler Long Island who runs ad sales on Long Island, as well as his own charter and summer fishing camp for kids.
As we headed out we took care of business: Salmon fishing license? Check. One day of non-resident fishing was a reasonable $20 for all over the age of 16. Liability waiver? Check. Want us to process your catch? Sign this with your credit card info, will discuss later. Check. We started to get to know our companions, 3 veteran fishermen from Charleston, NC who had left their wives aboard the ship for a day of shopping while they had a day on the water chasing Alaska salmon. All signs pointed to a great day.
As we headed out of the harbor the views were fantastic. Snow-capped mountains, uninhabited islands, humpback whales blowing nearby, Alaska at its most beautiful as far as the eye can see. As we left the harbor Capt. Kevin set out 4 lines, two outriggers and downriggers. He chose the local favorite lure, a rubber contraption called a “hootchie” (seriously) with a reflector to catch the curious salmon’s attention. Due to algae bloom in Puget Sound to the south, they were having a late season. We were anxious, could we possibly come all of this way and get skunked?
Within minutes we had a strike. Our companion Dale stepped up to land a beautiful silver salmon, about 12 pounds. To our delight he told us that we could have any salmon they caught that day – score again!
Unlike our last bucket-list fishing trip (to Honduras) it was a great day of catching. The salmon were hungry and Capt. Kevin made it almost too easy, setting the hooks with grace. The sun came out and it was glorious! As humpback whales spouted around us we fished in glory, swopping fish tales with the gentlemen from Charleston (avid readers of Coastal Angler Magazine in their own market.)
We even caught sight of Captain Gunnar’s boat and he and Mike exchanged hand signals on who had caught the most/ biggest/baddest fish. In the end, much to the gentlemen’s chagrin, Lisa caught the biggest salmon: a 15 pound beauty of a Silver. Girls rule when it comes to fishing.
The excitement did not let up. We started getting very picky, releasing all but the most beautiful, mature fish. Within the 4 hour charter we landed 12 beautiful keeper salmon. Two silvers, 1 coho, 7 pinks, and to our surprise, 2 sockeyes which you don’t usually catch in saltwater. What a haul.
As we headed back to port happy, making the invite list for the salmon bake we plan when we get home. As we docked, Kevin took care of the paperwork to immediately process the fish (we smoked the pinks and fileted the rest) and arrange for transport back to the east coast.
If you want to reach Captain Kevin Beck with any questions contact him at captbeck@kpunet.net and tell him that his friends Mike and Lisa from Coastal Angler sent you!
