# Bucket List Trip



## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Tomorrow night my son, my brother and a niece will be boarding a plane and headed to Alaska. Probably the one place on that I have wanted to go to more than any other. I have traveled a bunch but have never made it to Alaska until now.

We will be spending the first few days around Anchorage and might do a little halibut fishing. On Monday we will board a float plane and fly into a lodge on Lake Creek below Mount McKinley. We will then spend the next week fishing salmon and a day on a lake going after northern pike. 

Right now I feel like a little kid.


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## LOAH (Sep 29, 2007)

Have a great time and remember to charge your batteries.


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## Bscuderi (Jan 2, 2012)

LOAH said:


> Have a great time and remember to charge your batteries.


+1 I need fish porn!!!


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## GaryFish (Sep 7, 2007)

Have a GREAT trip. Catch the heck out of 'em!


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## bowgy (Oct 10, 2007)

Are you sure you want to do this? It is very addictive, like Lays Potato chips, ya can't eat just one  

I went year before last for the first time and have another trip booked for a year from now, next July.

You will have a great time and make some great memories.


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Got back on Sunday and still kind of recovering from the trip. I will post some fish porn later on. I took about 2200 shots and narrowed down the best 600. If Alaska is one thing it is photogenic.

We spent the first day around the Cook Inlet. The next two were on the Kenai Peninsula and the final 7 days was on the Yentna River and it's tributaries. The rivers were high and the Cook Inlet was in the middle of a gill netting session when we got there. We did manage to limit out on a half day of halibut fishing and caught salmon every day. In total we caught what I counted as 126 fish and missed at least another 200.

Species caught included Silvers, Pinks, Chum and King Salmon, Halibut, Rainbows, Dolly Varden, Northern Pike and White Fish (caught one that weighed between 6-7 pounds, just a hog of a whitefish) The largest Chum that was released was about 25 pounds. The average silver was around 7 pounds with the largest being 13 pounds. The Kings that we caught were out of season so they were netted and released without even pulling them up for a photo. They were on the smaller side for Kings though averaging about 8-10 pounds. My brother pulled in a Northern Pike that was 34". We never did weigh it though. It did vacuum pack well. The pinks were all in the 10-12 pound range and put on a good fight. We did keep one of them to eat. They are typically canned but my son wanted to eat one pretty bad so we processed a fat male that he caught.

Came home with 140 pounds of salmon (kept just about all silvers) and 40 pounds of halibut. All in all it was what I would call a life changer for me. A trip that I will never forget nor will the family that I was lucky enough to share it with. We all want to go back. Quite honestly I could see myself living there...........the wife however.....no.......probably not going to happen. She will be joining me next time though. Missing the Mrs. is not so fun.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Cooler than the other side of the pillow!!

No reds?

Be sure to post all 600 pictures.


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

The reds were spotty as could be and the guys flossing for them spent hours standing and waiting for a 5 to 10 minute spree of combat fishing. All of the guys that were targeting them left with far fewer fish than we did. We just didn't feel that it was worth it on this trip. There were guys coming back to the lodge day after day that were empty handed while we were limiting out day after day and then fishing for pure sport.

An ultra light with a salmon on the fighting end makes for a great battle.


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## StillAboveGround (Aug 20, 2011)

Looking forward to the pics...


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Well......lets see how these do. I have not figured out the best way to resize photos yet.[attachment=0:2gjbvl5j]Not Small.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=1:2gjbvl5j]Another Bridge Traveled.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=2:2gjbvl5j]Docked.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=3:2gjbvl5j]My Future Drive Way.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=4:2gjbvl5j]The Clouds are on Fire.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=5:2gjbvl5j]Chicks dig Fishing.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=6:2gjbvl5j]Halibut.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=7:2gjbvl5j]Little Bull.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=8:2gjbvl5j]Two Silvers.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=9:2gjbvl5j]God did This.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=10:2gjbvl5j]Boar.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=12:2gjbvl5j]A River Runs Through It.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=13:2gjbvl5j]A Male Pink Salmon (Humpy).jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j][attachment=14:2gjbvl5j]A Fishing Hole.jpg[/attachment:2gjbvl5j]


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Here are few more....no way all 600 pics are going up.

[attachment=0:1qbsvvr6]Northern Pike.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6][attachment=1:1qbsvvr6]Mount McKinley.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6][attachment=2:1qbsvvr6]Flossing.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6][attachment=3:1qbsvvr6]Nice Morning.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6][attachment=4:1qbsvvr6]Another Fishing Hole.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6][attachment=5:1qbsvvr6]Homer Marina.jpg[/attachment:1qbsvvr6]


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## sawsman (Sep 13, 2007)

Man, I miss Alaska. Thanks for sharing. Looks like you guys had a great trip!

Enjoy. :EAT:


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## Bax* (Dec 14, 2008)

Oh man that looks like you guys had a great time! Hope them fishies are tasty


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

I love it!

Uh, 594 more pics to go.


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## Caddis-n-Cutts (Sep 28, 2007)

Glad to hear you made it back safe. Good looking pics, but we are still waiting to see the rest of them.


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## LOAH (Sep 29, 2007)

What a cool trip! Very nice photos too.

Looks like a great time.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

I feel your pain on the Mrs blocking your relocation....I just keep thinking to myself that I could convince her if I just managed to get her there! Great looking fish!


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

I told her that she could suntan 20 hours a day. There was an ocean. Beautiful mountains. Wildlife. I told her that Alaska had it all........then she asked:

"Palm trees?"


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## drsx (Sep 8, 2010)

Oh hell yea you lucky dog!!!! That's on my bucket list too! I'm uber jealous! Thanks for sharing.


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## ibfishing (Jul 25, 2012)

Awesome Photos - thanks


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## scott_rn (Sep 11, 2007)

Mr Muleskinner said:


> I told her that she could suntan 20 hours a day. There was an ocean. Beautiful mountains. Wildlife. I told her that Alaska had it all........then she asked:
> 
> "Palm trees?"


We're gonna have palm trees one of these days - global warming.

Nice photos muleskinner, glad you had a good trip.


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

Palm trees? Well that is an easy fix! She seems to have said nothing about them being either REAL or LIVE! So just rustle up a dead one, or buy a fake one and presto!
If only it were that simple....


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## Mr Muleskinner (Feb 14, 2012)

Yea I already have the half real/half fake one at the house that came out of the old mall downtown. It fools everybody.............except the wife..........she knows............yep..........she knows everything.


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## LOAH (Sep 29, 2007)

Mr Muleskinner said:


> yep..........she knows everything.


 -_O-

Don't they all?


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## martymcfly73 (Sep 17, 2007)

LOAH said:


> Mr Muleskinner said:
> 
> 
> > yep..........she knows everything.
> ...


SHHHHH! Too much has been said already. :O•-:


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