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Message: <blockquote data-quote="wjschmaltz" data-source="post: 213094" data-attributes="member: 6150">I got pretty limited experience but I guess I can share what I’ve learned over the last several years.  First off, Hillary Clinton should have hired whoever is in charge of tourism in Homer as her election manager.  Homer is very underwhelming and is all hype.  Far from the “Halibut Capital of The World.”  Maybe the sucker tourist capital.  There are some fun things to do on the spit, but the fishing is subpar.  If you just want action and are fine with catching chicken halibut and black rock fish all day, it is OK.  We've done this and anytime you can catch tons of fish it is a blast; just a waste when there are so many other options IMO.  Gotta run a LONG way to get into big halibut and yellow eye/ling cod.  The only fishing trip out of Homer that excites me at this point is fishing for winter (feeder) chinook in march while setting for crab.  That one is on the list for the next couple of years. If you are in Southcentral Alaska and just want to catch halibut and want a really good shot at a 60lb fish and a decent shot at a big un, I say head to Ninilchik area.  I fished with Mr. Seamands out of there and I hooked into a 125lb fish (cook inlet charters).  My wife has fished 3 other times out of there and they always catch at least a couple of fish over 60lbs (Ninilchik Charters).  It’s a good price and a really quiet part of Alaska.  As a bonus, the boat ride is short as well.  However, you will not get the scenery here.    [ATTACH]31213[/ATTACH]If I would have to choose a place in southcentral, I would go to Seward.  Every time I am on the docks there, I am very impressed with the catch.  Haven’t fished a charter there, but I plan to this summer.  Fished for coho out of a private boat and it was red hot.  Best chance for a yellow eye and ling cod (which is what is next on my list) is out of Seward.  Plus, the coho run can really be phenomenal starting in mid-July up through September.  Long boat rides to get to the feeding grounds however.  I will be fishing with Millers Landing this summer, but there are plenty of quality outfits there. We did Kodiak in September 2018.  The rock is one of my favorite places on earth!  The coho fishing was unbelievable.  I mean seriously unbelievable.  GIANTS and fast action!  The halibut fishing sucked, but we were there towards the very end of the season.  I think it could really be good in August when the halibut are still around and the coho are just arriving.  They just won’t be as big then.  The coho bite was so good that we couldn’t even get our lures down to the Chinook.  Road system freshwater fishing is pretty decent as well.We caught 30 coho in a couple hours all right around this size on our last trip to the rock:[ATTACH]31214[/ATTACH]Cordova intrigues me as well as Valdez.  I’ve seen some really consistent stuff from both of them docks that make we want to give them both a try.  I tried to get in with Orca Charters in Cordova a couple years ago but they couldn't book me last minute.  Someday soon hopefully.  Plan to go to Valdex Labor Day 2019 so we will see how the budget aligns.  I also don’t have any experience in the SE panhandle yet.  Heading to Juneau over Memorial Day so maybe I can change that.  If I was only allowed to do one trip up to Alaska and I was going to fish saltwater and freshwater, YAKUTAT!  Largest average size of halibut by a long shot.  In fact, most boats usually don’t even catch their one fish under the size cut off.  We fished there towards the end of the season in 2017 and average halibut size for the boat was about 80lbs.  We didn't catch anything under about 40 lbs.  Coho were swarming everywhere, it was just nuts.  Go in July, catch some giant halibut, more coho than you can eat, and then float the Situk a couple times for Sockeye, Dollies, and Pinks.  Yakutat is special.  The only thing is that it can be lacking in saltwater variety.  When we went, there were so many dog fish on the ling cod fishing grounds that it would have been a waste of time.  There are also several outfits there that rent out boats.  You can go with a charter to learn the ropes one day and then fish from your own boat the next.  There are no bad fishing spots there.  Pack the snake charmer if you’re going the DIY route, you’ll need it. [ATTACH]31215[/ATTACH][ATTACH]31216[/ATTACH]ANY QUESTIONS!?!?!?</blockquote>

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