alaska shallow salmon spot fishing planet

The lower elevation mountains near the lodge still receive a healthy snowpack to feed the rivers but lack the massive ice caps that dirty rivers in the summer. When mountains are too tall in Alaska they result in huge glaciers and glacial runoff which produces turbid waters. The mainland geography offers the perfect blend of mid sized mountain ranges with thousands of lakes that interconnect with the rivers. The ocean waters of the Bristol Bay to the north and the Gulf of Alaska to the south are teaming with life providing a substantial forage base for Pacific salmon at sea. The prolific fisheries arise from the unique geography of the region. In addition to feeding huge brown bears, the millions of salmon also fuel the growth of massive rainbow trout. The world’s largest sockeye runs are found in the Bristol Bay fisheries. The most common salmon of the 5 Pacific run species is the sockeye salmon (or “red” salmon due to their bright red color just before they spawn). Pacific salmon runs dominate the entire ecosystem. The region is sandwiched between the Bristol Bay to the north and the Gulf of Alaska to the south.

This part of Alaska lies about 200 miles southwest of Anchorage where the peninsula that eventually breaks into the Aleutian Islands begins to separate from the main body of the state.

There are several factors that make the salmon and trout fisheries so supercharged in the Bristol Bay region. The massive salmon runs also result in extremely high brown bear counts offering spectacular wildlife viewing opportunities when fishing. This region is home to the largest pacific salmon runs on the planet which also fuels the growth of huge rainbow trout and char that feed on both the salmon’s eggs as well as their decaying flesh after they die. When it comes to exploring Alaska’s famed fly fishing, the renowned waters of the Bristol Bay area offer the highest density of salmon and trophy rainbow trout rivers in the world. Everything seems to be a little bigger in Alaska rivers, mountains, fish and bears all seem to be supersized.

Alaska shallow salmon spot fishing planet