I was parked just above the Homer launch ramp the other day when I noticed an antique pickup backing down toward a moored and scruffy-looking 20-foot open skiff.

I was startled because I thought the battered vessel had morphed into a raised flower box and the back-firing Chevy crushed into a metal bale after its cantankerous owner passed.

Rumor had it that the old vet had lost his battle with cancer and had taken up occupancy in his reserved plot featuring a stone epitaph grumpin’ “What the hell are you staring at? I got here first.”

I hadn’t heard from Whiskey Jim since he abruptly stopped traveling from Palmer to drift fish for halibut in Mud Bay and haunt China Poot for reds during the downside days of July.

Back then he looked like he was the nearing the summit of the seventies so when he stopped showing up, I figured he finally anchored in a hospice for Veterans or had flat-lined while ripping on some well-meaning health care provider cautioning him about cigars and Jack Daniels.

Once he secured his boat, he walked over and offered an invite to join him at the cleaning table and later his campsite where we dusted off aging recollections and shared a libation.

It turned out that he had, once again, slammed his allotment of reds, picked up some hefty flats, and popped some great-looking Pacific gray cod.

I asked Whiskey how and where he nailed most of his halibut in The Mud. Simply put, there is no way his reply could be printed here much less in the “Forbidden Swear Words for Marines” rule book.

He eventually gave up a hint when he grouched, “Same place you and I got into ’em many years back in our rear-view mirrors. ’Member when it didn’t take half a morning just to straighten up a day after boating hawgs?”

He then let out a small sigh but never mentioned why he went out solo this time around, nor gave any inkling of being ill.

I returned to see him off the next morning and split a pot of coffee before he rolled out.

After he climbed into his rig, he looked down and I knew this would be his last trip. His proffered hand trembled with palsy and his goodbye handshake lingered.

Then, W.J. was gone roaring north in an explosion of blue smoke and a trace of rust.

I will miss him and cherish the 40 years of memories that he drove so far to will to me.

Time now for the fishing report for the week of July 15, 2024.

Freshwater fishing

Anchor River, Deep Creek, and the Ninilchik River remain open to sport fishing other than chinook.

A nice number of dollies have continued to cruise into these streams.

Should be fair to middling fishing until the water conditions slow their roll from the recent rains.

For fly fisherman, smolt patterns, streamers, and beads are winners. Spinners and spoons are great gear when firing line with spinning rods.

China Poot personal use dipnet fishery was rocking with sockeye through the weekend. Water conditions are starting to back off but are still pretty high.

Fishing should remain decent throughout the week.

Saltwater fishing

Kachemak Bay/Cook Inlet

Halibut

Halibut fishing has remained quite respectable and, with the favorable marine forecast, should be remain the same for the next few days.

Lingcod

Lingcod fishing has been fair to good and should remain so if the seas are favorable enough to make it out to the outer coast to hunt along the coast from the Chugach Islands to Gore Point.

King Salmon

King fishing south of Bluff Point was productive over the weekend. Expect small numbers of blackmouth scattered throughout Kachemak Bay.

Deranged pinks have started to slink into to Kachemak Bay at Point Pogishi.

To avoid them when trolling for kings, try setting your gear nearer to the bottom. Small troll herring or spoons behind a flasher will bring on the strikes along with hootchies and tube flies.

To locate the kings, at any location, try setting your gear at different depths including mid-water column and 10 feet off the bottom.

Sockeye Salmon

As noted previously, sockeye fishing in China Poot was exceptional through the weekend.

Tutka Bay Lagoon was fair but ding-bat humps are starting to stick their snouts into the area. Expect similar conditions over the next week, only more pinks.

Surf fishing

Surf fishing at the tip of the Homer spit continues to offer up an assortment of groundfish including halibut, sculpins, skates, sharks, flounders, and cod and things even the seagulls won’t go near.

Nick Dudiak Fishing Lagoon

It’s probably not worth the effort to fish at the fishing hole this week but go ahead if you want to practice your casting techniques. The kings are history and coho should start to showing up in small numbers maybe in a week or so.

Local Lakes

Want to teach the kiddies to fish? Try the Homer Reservoir located on Skyline Drive. It is a great place to catch Dolly Varden. Yeah, the fish are small, but are fun to catch. The dollies are often found along the shore by the road, or the south shore. Try a variety of very small spinners and spoons. Nymphs and dry flies, such as mosquitoes, can work great when the wind is calm. Good luck!

Emergency Orders

Please review the emergency orders and advisory announcements below in their entirety before heading out on your next fishing trip.

Sport Fishing For King Salmon Closed in Upper Cook Inlet Salt Waters

King Salmon Bag Limit Reduced from 2 to 1 in Lower Cook Inlet Salt Waters

Cook Inlet Sport Fishing Regulation Changes

East Cook Inlet Razor Clam Fisheries Remain Closed for 2024

For additional information, please contact the Homer Office at 907-235-8191.

Nick can be reached at ncvarney@gmail.com unless he’s still trying to figure out why his spinning rod’s reel is frozen harder than a sno cone packed in dry ice.