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Les Anderson's World Record.

One of the rare photos of longtime Alaskan and resident of Soldotna, Les Anderson (in orange rain suit) admiring his catch while a friend holds it up for photos. This picture was taken in the early afternoon and after the fish had been officially weighed on a certified scales at Echo Lake Meat Lockers. The official weight in the record books is 97 pounds 4 ounces. The fish was not weighed until several hours after it was caught and Fish & Game estimates that due to evaporative weight loss, the fish may have broken the hundred pound mark if it had been weighed promptly after being caught. Every year we suspect that a potential new world record may run up the river as there are fish hooked that are so large and incredibly strong that they have never been landed. Should one of our guests land the next world record, there won't be any problem getting the fish promptly weighed, witnessed and certified.

Today, the world famous Kenai River is one of Soldotna’s big attractions and Les' amazing record catch is on display in our Visitor Information Center.

More world records have come from the Kenai River than any other river in the world!

The Kenai river is the greatest sportfishing river in the world. An unbelievable number of wild salmonoid spawn in her tremendously fertile waters every year. Some of the most noted species which naturally occur within her waters are king salmon, silver salmon, red salmon, pink salmon, arctic char, dolly varden char and rainbow trout.

Each spawning female salmon lays between 4000 - 7000 eggs before dying and allowing her carcass to decompose to provide essential nitrogen nutrients for future generations. Each year approximently 1 - 3 million salmon spawn in her waters . Each season these spawners invest or bury within her gravels approximently 5 - 15 billion eggs.

These eggs lay dormant all winter as they wait for the coming spring thaw. Depending on environmental factors the survivors will wiggle their way out from beneath their gravel shelter and enter the rivers cycle of life. Millions of new salmon will then begin to compete for survival and the right to do the same as their parents before them.

These returning generations of salmon will then enter the finest sportfishery in the world as returning surplus stocks are then harvested each season. The waters of the Kenai river are among the most fertile know to man. Each year millions of salmon end their cycle of life within her fridge glacial waters. Each of these deaths contribute a small part to the essential nitrogen required to allow her cycle of life to continue.

The Kenai rivers total nursery capabilities presently are unknown. Official run records go back to around 1900, only legends go before that. Those legends tell of salmon runs all year long, with light runs in the winters and heavy runs in the summers. It is very possible that we have not even begun to see what the Kenai river is able to sustain. Her turquoise green waters conceal countless generations which have lived and died within her. Present runs are only the end results of thousands of years of only the strongest surviving. It is very possible that she is the best producer of salmon on earth. The question is "are we the best fish managers on earth?"

The Kenai river is the greatest sportfishing river in the world and it is our duty as good resource managers to allow her natural cycle of life to not only continue, but to continue to expand to her natural limits.

Fishing The Kenai River

If Alaska is known for it's vast wilderness and abundance of northern wildlife then the Kenai river in Alaska is known for it's absolutely awesome salmon fishing opportunities. The Kenai River is one of the most sought after Angling destinations in the world. Geographically the Kenai is situated on the Kenai Peninsula which is located in the south central part of Alaska. The Kenai River is approximately 132km (82) miles long and runs west from Kenai Lake in the Kenai mountain range into the Cook inlet of the Pacific Ocean near Kenai Alaska. The Kenai offers ample angling opportunity.

Kenai fishing has a reputation among sportsmen everywhere as some of the best fishing in the world. Located in beautiful south central Alaska, the Kenai Peninsula is home to, of course, the world famous Kenai River and is dotted with many secluded lakes and ponds perfect for Kenai fishing. The area has many varieties of salmon, dolly varden, rainbow trout, black bass, arctic char, sockeyes, and many other kinds of fish. A Kenai fishing trip is the key to a real Alaskan adventure vacation.

In 2004 Field & Stream magazine named this area North America’s number one fishing hotspot, and for good reason. The Kenai River has been home to many record breaking and noteworthy catches. The world record King Salmon catch that topped the scales at just over 97 pounds was caught by Les Anderson, a long time Soldotna, Alaska resident, while Kenai fishing. It was several hours before the fish was officially weighed and recorded and many fish and game experts have agreed that the King Salmon was probably well over 100 pounds when he was caught. Soldotna now holds an annual King Salmon Derby, and the next person out Kenai fishing who catches a King Salmon larger than Andersons, will also win $50,000 from the town.

Not only does the area boast of much natural beauty and many record breaking catches- it has an unusually long fishing season as well. This not only makes Kenai fishing popular among anglers but helps keep the Kenai Peninsula from overcrowding, so you can enjoy the famous Alaskan solitude while on your Kenai fishing trip. With the popularity of Kenai fishing, it should be of no surprise that you will find many options to make your fishing trip one to remember.

It's not uncommon to hook Kenai Kings so big and strong on that you'll never even get them close enough to see them before they've broken your gear and taken off with your hook. Landing fish in the 30 - 50lb is quite commonplace and I would expect you could catch several in that size.

While fishing for Salmon on the Kenai River you will be in some of Alaska's most beautiful country and the views will be outstanding. It wouldn't be considered unusual if you spotted a few soaring bald eagles, some bears, caribou or moose. And If you're really lucky maybe you'll spot the elusive wolf as he silently slips through the trees along the rivers edge. In the spring, Beluga whales will travel as far as a mile upstream from the mouth of the river to feed on schools of spawning Hooligan fish.

Kenai River Facts

The Kenai River is a large 80 mile long glacial fed river that starts in the Kenai Mountains in southcentral Alaska.The upper river flows from Kenai Lake through a mountain pass and the Kenai Canyon to Skilak Lake. This section of river is in the Kenai National wildlife refuge and is home to large numbers of trophy rainbow and dolly varden trout. Two runs of Sockeye ( red salmon) along with Coho ( silver )salmon also return & spawn in the upper Kenai River. At the confluence of the Russian River & Kenai River is the most popular & productive Sockeye Salmon sport fishery in the world.

Kenai River Salmon

Family:
Salmonidae (Salmons)

Genus and Species:
Oncorhynchus tshawytscha

Description:
The body of the chinook salmon is elongate and somewhat compressed. The head is conical. The color is bluish to dark gray above, becoming silvery on the sides and belly. There are black spots on the back and on both lobes of the tail. While five species of salmon occur along the Pacific Coast, over 99% of all salmon caught in the ocean off California are either chinook or cohos. Chinook and coho salmon can be distinguished by the color of the lining of the gums at the base of the teeth. In chinook salmon, this lining is blackish, while in cohos it is white.

Range:
Chinook salmon occur from San Diego, California, to the Bering Sea and Japan. Generally, the fishery begins off San Luis Obispo County, California, and continues north.

Natural History:
Chinooks and all salmon are anadromous ­ that is, they spend part of their life in the ocean and then enter fresh water to spawn. The adults spawn principally in large river systems, primarily from the Sacramento River system north. At spawning time, male chinooks turn very dark and usually have blotchy, dull red splotches on the sides and develops a hooked nose. Most all chinook spawn when either 3 or 4 years of age but some, predominately males, will spawn at age 2. These precocious males are called jacks, chubs or grilse. Some rivers have large chinooks that do not spawn until 5 or 6 years old. Sacramento River female chinook salmon produce an average of 6,000 eggs each. This, however, is an unusually high number since female chinook salmon from other river systems normally average only 3,500 to 4,500 eggs each.

Fishing Information:
In the ocean, chinook salmon are fished principally by trolling dead bait or artificial lures. Occasionally, live bait will be used while still-fishing or drift-fishing. Chinook salmon normally stay well beneath the surface of the ocean, usually 40 to 250 feet or more and a heavy weight or downrigger is necessary to keep trolled bait at the desired depth.

Other Common Names
king salmon, Sacramento River salmon, spring salmon, black mouth, Columbia River salmon, tyee.

Largest Recorded
4 feet 10 inches; 126.5 pounds.

Habitat
Pelagic Environment

Kenai River Salmon Species

Chinook:
The biggest of the five species is the Chinook, or King salmon, which in Canada are also called Springs, Tyees (when over 30lbs), and Smileys (when over 20lbs).
Normal migrating Chinook spend from three to seven years in the sea before returning to their native river to spawn. Chinook have been reported to grow as big as 100lbs, but the majority of returning fish are under 30lb. Returning migratory Chinook are normally caught close to structure, that is, underwater ledges, shelves and pockets that hold baitfish. If you start fishing before light, you can fish near the surface, but as soon as the sun hits the water, you'll want to start presenting your lures deeper if you're targeting Chinook.
Some hatchery-raised Chinook are purposely kept in net pens and delayed-released into the saltwater. These fish never migrate far out to sea, but stay resident to coastal waters. These are the fish we fish for in the winter, and these are called blackmouth. Blackmouth are normally from five to 15lbs, and a 20lb'er is a trophy. Blackmouth are normally found right on the bottom, (within 10-15 feet of the bottom), at around the 120 foot depth.

Coho:
The Coho or Silver salmon look similar to Chinook, except they are normally smaller. An important distinction is that Coho have white gums at the base of their teeth, while a Chinook's gums are black. Coho usually live about three years, and grow exceptionally fast in the third year. They range in size from four to about 20lbs. The Washington state record coho set this year was around 25lbs.

Returning coho are not as structure-oriented as Chinook, and are normally found in more open water than Chinook. Coho are caught primarily in the top 50 feet of water, and close to the edges of tide rips. If you find bait on the edges of tide rips, and troll a lure near the surface, you will catch coho.

Sockeye:
Sockeye salmon normally live about four or five years. Sockeye are also called Red salmon. They are usually between 4 to 7 pounds, but can grow bigger. Sockeye normally only come from river systems that have freshwater lakes as part of the system. The Lake Washington sockeye run is a good example of this. Many anglers will tell you that it's hard to hook sockeye in salt water and impossible to hook them in the fresh water, but we'll show you that this just isn't true... you can have great success catching sockeye, and they are, in some opinions, the best tasting salmon.

Pink:
Pink salmon are also known as Humpies. Pinks only live two years, and are about 4-6 pounds, sometimes larger. Pinks In Puget Sound, the majority of the pink runs happen every other year on the odd-numbered years. When the humpies are in, they are easy to catch. They also taste good, but it's important to clean them immediately and care for them correctly.

Chum:
Chum salmon are also known as Dog or Keta salmon. Chum salmon live three to five years, and are normally 10 to 15 pounds, sometimes larger. In most Puget Sound waters, the chums are the last fish to return to the rivers to spawn.

Economic Impact of Sportfishing:
Almost 60% of Alaska's fishing occurs within the 3 Cook Inlet Boroughs and involves approximately 250,000 participants.

Recreational fishing (salmon and halibut) in South Central Alaska generates $532 million in revenue each year and supports 6,100 jobs producing $171 million in income.

Recreational Salmon fishing in Upper Cook Inlet generates over $290 million in revenue and supports over 3400 jobs, producing $95 million in income each year.

Historical Kenai River:
The Kenai Peninsula was first occupied by indigenous cultures in approximately 6,000 to 8000 BC.

The first evidence of intensive Salmon fishing is from the Riverine Kachemak Culture in 1000 BC with the use of drift nets made from braided Spruce roots. They were targeting Sockeye in the Kenai and Kasilof Rivers.

The Dena'ina, a nomadic caribou hunting tribe became sedentary on the Kenai, harvesting Salmon on the Kenai and its tributaries in approximately 1000 AD.

The Russians settled in the Kenai Peninsula for the trade of fur in the mid 1700's. In 1797 a battle erupted between the Dena'ina and the Russians, from wich the Dena'ina were victorious. Historians estimate that there were only 10 to 12 Russians in Russian America at any one time.

In 1838-39 a Smallpox epidemic spread, killing nearly one half of the Dena'ina population.

In 1882 the first commercial canneries came to the Cook Inlet.

In 1918-19 an Influenza epidemic spread throughout the Dena'ina tribe killing another half of the remaining Dena'ina, and a substancial number of non-Dena'ina.

1923 the first guided sportfishing trip took place on the Kenai River.

May 17, 1985 the day fame found the Kenai, Les Anderson landed the World Record 97lb 4oz King Salmon affectionatly refered to as Mr. Smiley.

The Sustainable Fish:
The escapement goal for the early run Kings is between 5300 and 9000 spawners. The escapement goal for the late run Kings is between 17,800 and 35,700 spawners.

The Kenai River is a sustainable fishery, meaning it survives solely on management of the fish. There are no hatcheries to support the numbers of fish that return each year to spawn. The management of the fish and the numbers of fish that allow for such a phenomonon to continue in todays world. At present time there are only 3 or 4 rivers in the world where the Salmon population numbers are sustainable.

Other Wildlife:
mongst the numerous species of fish and birds native to the Kenai Peninsula, are the bears. There is an estimated 3000-3500 Black Bears on the Kenai Peninsula. Although there is not a figure published for the estimated number of Brown Bears calling the Peninsula home, the population has been described by biologists as "healthy".

There is an estimate in excess of 7000 moose that take refuge on the Kenai Peninsula.