Memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day and it's time to remember all veterans who have served and protected our country so well. Personally, it was nice for Jane and I to thank a young couple who traveled all the way down from Eileson Air Force Base (near Fairbanks) to spend their weekend with us on the Kenai.  Thanks again, Bryce.

I'm sure the followers of this blog are waiting for a fishing report. Well, it's definitely underway.  I wish I could say, "my client caught this..." but all the information I have right now is second hand. It all came from trusted sources, so, here we go. The saltwater fishing has been good for all species, a little better for halibut than salmon.  The Anchor River king run has been improving every day and the strength of the run is ahead of last year.  The Kasilof River is fishing well for as many restrictions that are in place (several guides I know have been getting at least 2 kings a day).  And for me, the best news is the Kenai River king counts are the highest they've been in 5 years. My fingers are crossed that the trend continues to go up.  If so, I like our chances of actually fishing in June.

Skilak Lake Overlook

My time this past week has been consumed mostly by maintenance on the cabins. I like to be preventative rather than having things breakdown during the peak of our season.  When I wasn't doing cabin stuff I did spend a lot of time with friends.   Jane and I did get out to enjoy a hike with El Capitan Todd on Saturday. Other than a little rain on our way back, (and that was kind of refreshing considering how dry we've been) it was good to be out recreating Alaska.

Todd decided we were going to hike Skilak Lookout trail just off of the Sterling Highway.  It's a moderate four mile roundtrip hike. The elevation change is around 800 feet.

This trail was more remote than the trail we hiked earlier in the month. The first twenty minutes we encountered many raised platforms which conveniently kept our shoes dry. After that, the trail became more narrow and hardpacked.

This view was the highlight of the hike for me. This is where the Kenai River dumps into Skilak Lake. It is known as "The Canyon" and it's the least accessible part of the river.

Our timing on this hike was good for viewing wild roses. They were in full bloom.

Hard to find an easy segue way for the next topic of this post, but all I can say is fire bad, morels good.  The wildfire that happened last year between the Kenai River and Skilak Lake has created some of the best, most accessible morel mushroom picking in years.  It's been a popular place for locals to be this spring. And from what I gather, it should be really good for at least another year.

My neighbors' Rusty (pictured above) and Charlie have been the go to experts for finding these tasty fungi.  If you've never had morel mushrooms sauteed in butter and garlic, you've missed out on an incredible treat. Many of the easy spots have been picked clean, but if you're serious about going, drop me an email and I'll let you know where to go (I don't want everyone in the world to know all the secrets). 

A final comment to close out this post. We've been busy with the cabins and spending time with many friends.  Debbie Dreyer is here for three weeks.  Eric and Holly Taylor just arrived for the summer. My son Mac and his girlfriend Rachel came down from Anchorage for the weekend. And I can't overlook my old buddy Todd coming down to hang out and hike.  If that isn't enough socializing, whenever there's been an NHL playoff game we've been having neighborhood barbecues. Thanks goodness for nearly 19 hours of daylight!

See you next week.




Beaver Creek Cabins & Guide Service