Fishing
Yakutat's Main Attraction

Salmon Fishing
During their spawning run, Coho (silver) salmon can be found in all of the major rivers and steams in the area. According to the locals, late in the season they can even be found in stream side ditches. Only artificial lures are allowed.

Most people fish the lower Situk River which has reasonably easy access and heavy runs of salmon especially 2-3 hours before high tide. Other places worth trying are the Lost River both at the Lost River bridge and at the mouth and just about any other stream or swamp that you cross. Unless you have never fished for salmon or are physically incapable of walking and wading don't waste your money on a river guide for the Lower Situk. There is a good trail and wading is easy for the lower 2 miles of the river which is where most of the Silvers can be found early in the season. After shelling out $160 per person, you will find that you are sharing the river with people that spent 30 minutes walking into the same area.

Also worth trying is bridge fishing at Ankau Slough at high tide. Get some herring, a 1 ounce inline weight and bring your polarized glasses. This is sight fishing. You stand on the bridge and wait for a school of unsuspecting salmon to swim into your area of the bridge. You then drop your herring in front of their noses and pray for the best. Landing the fish involves playing it to the end of the bridge and crawling down over the bank to get your salmon. If your bait hits bottom you may even pick up a few tasty flounder.

There are also a number of small streams and sloughs in the area that do not have road access. Hire a guide with a jet boat to access these streams. To reach them you will need to venture out into Yakutat Bay which can get rough. Also, many of these streams enter through a slough system which can get rather confusing. If you are accustomed to navigating rough water, have a good GPS (12 channel minimum) and can read nav charts you can rent a boat and try it on your own - otherwise spring for a guide. Salmon fishing with a guide in the ocean is almost always productive and the limit on Silvers is 6 rather than 2 in the rivers.

Halibut Fishing
A great way to get meat, but not terribly exciting fishing. We did a 1 day halibut fishing trip with the Hooker fleet out of the Yakutat Lodge. The boats are very safe, well maintained and the skippers quite competent. The fishing experience consists of baiting a 16/0 hook with herring or salmon heads, placing the rods in the holder and waiting for the rod tip to bend.

Our trip produced 7 halibut ranging from 10 - 50 lb. for 4 people. Also we picked up 5 ling cod 20 - 40 lb and a Silver Salmon. To minimize competition on the boat, the Hooker fleet splits the day's catch between all of the guests. This seems to work better and engenders more of a team rather than competitive fishing atmosphere. On our trip we each received 33 lb of halibut and ling cod filets. One of the Hooker boats usually brings in a >100 lb. halibut each day and many more on particularly good days. A few 300 lb. fish are caught every season. As with all other ocean fishing, things can get rough out there. Avoid sea sickness - get an ear patch from your doctor before you leave home.

The warm (60 degree) waters of El Nino brought sand sharks (a.k.a. dog fish) to Yakutat Bay a few years ago and they haven't left. With any luck they will leave next year. If they don't, be prepared to fight your way through the dog fish to get at the halibut.