Angling Abroad: Yukon's wayside grayling
Teslin River in this Canadian territory holds fish yards from your truck
And while the dead of winter may not be the most forgiving time to fish in these frigid surroundings, it's a perfect time to plan an angling trip in a fair-weather season.
And when you do, Arctic grayling should most decidedly be on the agenda.
Grayling are so much fun. Get a dry fly near one and it darts to the surface and eagerly attacks. Sometimes it jumps out of the water and strikes from above. I get a surge of excitement just from the spectacular take.
Usually if you can drive to a fishing spot, it gets a lot of pressure and fishing isn't very good. Not so in the Yukon Territory.
With an area larger than California but a population minute in comparison (just more than 30,000), the fishing pressure is not great and you can find very good roadside fishing holes, including alongside the Alcan Highway.
Grayling, Northern pike and other species are there for the catching just a few yards from your parked vehicle.
I was surprised by the lack of people and the few cars and campers driving along this highway when I visited.
My fly drifted lazily on the water on the Teslin River. I had seen a fish rise and knew my fly was about to drift over where it was feeding. A fish jumped a half-body length out of the water and took the fly.
I lifted the rod to set the hook and the fish was on. For the moment I had outwitted a grayling. I suppose I shouldn't be too smug; grayling (Thymallus arcticus) aren't highly intellectual beings; they are abundant and easy to catch, but just seeing it take a fly is a thrill.
The grayling is one of the most plentiful fish in northern Canada and Alaska. I landed the fish; we took a couple of photos and I set it free.
In the northern latitudes, grayling are plentiful, making them an attractive catch over a wide range of Canada and Alaska. They congregate in schools so, when you catch one, you can usually catch several more.
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Most people will whiz through the Yukon Territory on their way to Alaska but good flights to Whitehorse and rental cars there open up this area to a visitor with only a few days available to fish. I was a guest at Inn on the River, an elegant lodge on the Teslin River about 2 miles off the Alaskan Highway, just north of Johnson's Crossing. The facility has canoe and boats with outboard motors for rent. The lodge has an outdoor hot tub and a Jacuzzi in each room and serves elegant dinners; your spouse will love it. You can camp or make other accommodations and fish the Teslin River. But don't think every Yukon river, stream and lake is full of fish; they aren't. But ask locally and you can find the waters that promise the best returns. Local sport shops or even gas stations along the Alcan Highway usually have anglers who can direct you to hot spots. You need a fishing license but many stores have them for sale. If you are fishing in a national park, you need a national park license. For information and reservations at Inn on the River call 867-393-1932, visit www.exceptionalplaces.com |
I targeted the Teslin River at Johnson's Crossing, southwest of Whitehorse, with my fishing partner Doug Hewitt, and we each caught about 10 grayling in 90 minutes.
We started by rowing a canoe up the river about a mile from the inn where I was staying and beached our canoe on a small island. First we fished the riffles with a beadhead fly and caught a couple of fish.
We saw fish rising below the riffles so changed, in succession, to a royal Wulff, black gnat, yellow humpy and parachute and all were eagerly taken by these fish.
Mosquitoes also are great fly patterns, because a lot of these pesky bugs buzz about. Oh, and remember your insect repellant.
No. 14 dry flies are a good size here. These flies are bigger than the natural bugs, but the fish eat them with relish.
Whichever pattern you favor, select a fly that floats well and will continue to float even after being mangled due to repeated takes by grayling.
We were fishing less than a mile downstream from Johnson's Crossing, a very small town on the Alcan Highway. You can rent a boat or put your own small boat or canoe in at a launch site at the Johnson's Crossing Bridge, then drift or motor down to this fishing area or to others along the way.
The current was not swift and we were able to make good progress paddling our canoe along the shoreline staying out of the main flow.
And, of course, we pulled enough grayling out to make the trip a great success.
Ray Rychnovsky is the author of three books: "California Guide: Great Saltwater Fishing," "The Troller's Handbook" and "The San Francisco Bay Area Fishing Guide." The titles can be purchased at your local bookstore or through the publisher, Amato Publishing, at (800) 541-9498 or by visiting its website.
