Alaska to buy fish?

[pookie]

I am planning on going to alaska to buy a large amount of fresh fish. What is the best destination to jump seat to? I am hoping for a destination which the airport is close to town and mostly hassle free. Anyone ever done this?

 

[cargoflyr69]

If you go to Homer, AK you can walk down the spit to where all the hallibut boats offload. Its very commercial there, but you may be able to put a bid in on 100-1000 pounds of fish. How the heck you'd get it home is beyond me. What are you going to do with all that fish?

 

[Goatpilot]

Fly into Anchorage, catch a cab to 10th and M (street/ave?) Seafood Market. Very fresh fish/crab etc and they seal and package it for your flight home or to FedEx. I used them several times to send fish to friends and family in the lower 48 and never had any complaints.
Better yet order it from them direct: http://www.10thandmseafoods.com/

 

[pookie]

I love fish. We get fresh fish here in california but i have heard that alaska fish is the best. THanks for everyone's great input. I have decided to take a week off and my wife and I will go explore alaska together and hopefully bring back some fresh fish. Is it easy to drive in alaska? I know rooms get full fast and it is fairly expensive. I was thinking about anchorage and then driving around to see the outdoors.

thanks once again.

 

[NavajoKing]

there isn't much roads in Alaska really considering the size of the state, but I drove from anchorage to fairbanks and then all the way down to valdez and it was worth the drive. there are cabins you can rent for pretty cheap around.
http://http://www.dnr.state.ak.us/parks/cabins/index.htm
for the fish though you gota go to homer, out on the spit theres a place called salty dog, don't miss it.

 

[fishalaska]

I love fish. We get fresh fish here in california but i have heard that alaska fish is the best. THanks for everyone's great input. I have decided to take a week off and my wife and I will go explore alaska together and hopefully bring back some fresh fish. Is it easy to drive in alaska? I know rooms get full fast and it is fairly expensive. I was thinking about anchorage and then driving around to see the outdoors.

thanks once again.

Pookie,
This thread is right down my alley. I LIVE to fish alaska. I caught a 50 pound King Saturday on the Kenai. I am having it smoked right now. As for flying to AK to buy fish. You will pay about $12 pound for Halibut and $6 pound for fresh Sockeye (locals call them reds). The reds are what most Alaskans consider the thing you would bring to your best friends house if you are invited and asked to bring a dish. It is by far the AK favorite. The problem is they are small (8 pound average with 3.5 pounds of fillets per fish). Purchasing AK fish is not much cheaper than anywhere else, but catching AK fish is a chance of a lifetime. I quit adding up the price per pound when you get all the fishing gear because it will make you have a mid-life crisis. Some people drive fancy cars. I drive an old truck and purchase pristine fly rods. To each his own. The problem is King season ended Saturday. The best season is late June to Mid July. Silvers (Coho) are coming into the streams through late August and rainbows are in the streams now. You will need a fly rod (6-8 weight) to handle the rainbows. They are not small and all catch/release. I warn you up front--it is addictive and if you EVER go fly fishing for steelhead you will act like a crack addict needing your fix. Run away now while you still have a life outside of planning your next trip.
Cheers,
Fish Alaska

 

[fishalaska]

Pookie,

One more thing. If you want the trip of a lifetime it is Yakatat in April or October. Bring your rain gear (24/7). They have a stream just outside which posts some incredible steelhead. I won't post the stream's name, but then a little research will be worth your while. The locals know the gig.

Fish Alaska

 

[socony_air]

goin' fishin'...

Hey Fish Alaska...
I'm taking a bud up to the Kenai in three weeks (Aug23-28). We're from GA - neither of us have ever been up there & are looking forward to an awesome time. I know king's are out of season & I've heard they ended the sockeye season early due to a bad run this year. How are the coho's for eating? I'm wondering how much we'll want to bring back. If you don't mind answering a couple other questions....do you have any suggestions on a Homer or Seward full-day halibut charter? And also can you recommend any relatively quiet camping area on or near the Kenai? We're renting an F250 w/ a camper top to keep the bears off, but would like to stay out of the RV parking lot type joints.
We're jazzed about this trip. Any fishing/tackle/fly/Alaska type info you feel like sharing would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the help. pm me if you like.

 

[fishalaska]

Hey Fish Alaska...
I'm taking a bud up to the Kenai in three weeks (Aug23-28). We're from GA - neither of us have ever been up there & are looking forward to an awesome time. I know king's are out of season & I've heard they ended the sockeye season early due to a bad run this year. How are the coho's for eating? I'm wondering how much we'll want to bring back. If you don't mind answering a couple other questions....do you have any suggestions on a Homer or Seward full-day halibut charter? And also can you recommend any relatively quiet camping area on or near the Kenai? We're renting an F250 w/ a camper top to keep the bears off, but would like to stay out of the RV parking lot type joints.
We're jazzed about this trip. Any fishing/tackle/fly/Alaska type info you feel like sharing would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the help. pm me if you like.

I wish I had better news for 23-28 Aug, but the Kenai will be just about tapped out. The Coho salmon are great to eat. The pink salmon are the only ones locals avoid. The are too soft. The best chance for a good time is a charter out of whittier. This is a little town about 1 hour north of kenai on Prince William Sound. The view is great and the silvers will be ALL over that place. Worst case you will see a bunch of wildlife (otters, etc) Limit 6 per day and they average 8-14 pounds. Nice fish. Homer is always good for Halibut and no need for reservations. Just drive down and the next day you can be on a charter. Seward will offer halibut, but the fish are small due to the location they fish. All of the halibut charters provide all the gear you need and the cost is about 150-175 for the day each. As for camping--lots of places but they fill up in the Summer. reservationsusa.com is the place to make your plan. My favorite little city down there is Cooper Landing. It is very "Alaska".

Cheers,
Fish Alaska

 

[coptercop]

Where to do a Full Day Halibut Trip?

I have used the Deep Creek Sport Shop for 2 trips to AK for halibut. They have a couple of boats, some cabins which sleep 4 and a house that will sleep about 12. Had a great time. Took my son one year and went with my brother 3 years ago. Captain Tim Evers and his wife Jodi ran the shop when I went, but I didn't go last year
Here is the link for them:
http://deepcreekfishing.com/deepcreeksportshop.html
It is in Deep Creek on the Kenai Peninsula. It's about 30 minutes from Soldotna and about 60 min from Homer.
2 years ago my son and another friend brought back 151 # of halibut filets. They will filet it, vacuum pack it, freeze it, and box it for you (for a price of course). You can fish there one day, leave your fish in their freezer and continue on the Kenai for a day or two, or you can take the boxes of filets and take them to the Anchorage airport and leave them in a giant walk in cooler in the terminal and it is treated like checked baggage, you pick it up with a claim ticket on the day of your flight home.