Salmon isn’t just for the Dogs!

We have documented the importance of salmon in our life with sled dogs. (See Blog Post “Fish Snacks” on December 23, 2008.) But, salmon’s not just for the dogs!
Allen holds a Red Salmon

Every July Allen and Aliy head south to the Kenai to catch Red (Sockeye) Salmon and King (Chinook) Salmon in order to add meat to our freezer. Some of our favorite dishes are BBQ Red, King Cakes and deep fried sockeye with hushpuppies.

Kings and Reds are two entirely different fish and require different fishing tackle.

Adult Kings (Chinook) range in size from 33 to 36 inches (840 to 910 mm), but may be up to 58 inches (1.47 meters) in length; they average 10 to 50 pounds (4.54 to 22.7 kg), but may reach 130 pounds (59 kg). The current sport caught World Record is 97 pounds 4 ounces (44.1 kg) and was caught in May 1985 by Les Anderson in the Kenai River. The commercial catch world record is 126 pounds (57 kg) caught near Petersburg, Alaska in a fish trap in 1949. Allen has caught a 72 pound King in the Kenai.

A Red (Sockeye) can be as long as 33 inches (840 millimetres) and weigh 4 to 8 lbs, up to 14 lbs. It has an elongated, torpedo shaped body, with an adipose fin, and a bluntly pointed snout. The fish migrate in “runs” through out the summer. The largest runs in the Kenai are normally in mid July when hundreds of thousands of fish will be in the river at one time. They are so dense at this time that the river will look like it is boiling with fish as they jump and dart out of the water.

Allen will be down on the Kenai for a few more days – so wish him luck!