Now is the Time to Plan Your Alaskan Fishing Trip!

When it comes to salmon fishing, the winter season isn’t going to herald much success. Generally, the most prolific salmon runs for all of the popular species tends to take place between May and October—this is when you’ll find the Kings, Reds, Silvers, Chums and Pinks surging through the runs en masse. From November through March-April, however, it can be slim pickin’s, even for the best of the best anglers. The season just isn’t right!

Just because the salmon aren’t swimming during the winter season doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be thinking about an Alaskan fishing trip, however! In fact, this is exactly the time of year when you should be planning your next angling adventure. Even if you’re not going to be dropping allure until August or September, now is the time to start planning. Why? Take a look:

• During peak salmon season, expedition spots fill up fast, which means if you’re not proactive in booking, you might find yourself pushing your dream trip off for yet another year.
• Planning your Alaskan fishing trip now means giving yourself ample time to save and prepare, so that when the time finally does come to hop on a plane and explore the waters of Alaska, you’re ready to adventure without any setbacks.
• Booking an expedition now means giving yourself time to research everything involved in your trip and prepare yourself for an optimal experience. Whether that means reading up on the best salmon fishing techniques or learning more about Alaska’s natural wilderness, you’ll be a more informed fisherman when your trip finally arrives.

Planning ahead when it comes to something as exciting and worthwhile as an Alaskan fishing trip means making the most of that experience in all of its forms and, more importantly, it means avoiding things that could bring your experience down.

So, what exactly should you be doing right now, while the salmon are out of season? Take a look at a quick checklist of things you can and should be doing to prepare yourself for an affirming trip later in 2016:

• Contact Phantom Tri-River Charters and reserve your spot on one of our expeditions. Make sure you define how long you’ll be in Alaska and what dates you want to fish! Don’t forget to take off of work, too!
• Start saving or allocate the money for the trip as soon as possible. Remember, this is going to be a relaxing, exciting vacation—you don’t want to put yourself in debt to get there!
• Check to make sure your gear is stocked and that you have everything you’ll need to fish the prolific Alaskan waters. Replace any gear that might not survive the trip!
• Read up on salmon fishing if you’ve never done so before and get to know some of the local watering holes in Alaska when it comes to fishing salmon runs. For starters, read up on the Kenai River, Denali National Park and Bristol Bay.

After you take care of the above few things, you’ll have to play the waiting game until the salmon runs start to become plentiful again. Don’t worry, though—your patience and foresight will pay off when you’re sitting on a boat, having the time of your life with your lure in the water!