Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, salmon sometimes bite early. But, if you don’t hit the hot bite right away, fear not. They are just as likely to bite later. We leave early to maximize your time on the water while getting back by about 2 or 3 in the afternoon so our crew has time to process fish, clean up the dock, refuel boats, prepare for the next day, and still be in their living quarters in time for dinner.

Yes, if you have group consensus, but we still need to be back by 2 or 3 pm in order to get the shoreside work done.

We fish saltwater and, much of the time, on the open ocean. Salmon fishing method is mooching, which means hands-on. You hold the rod, you feel the bite, you hook the fish, you reel it in. We also fish for halibut and rockfish. You can fish for all species over the course of every day you fish.

This depends on your preferences. We reliably catch halibut, rockfish, and lingcod from our first trip in May until our final trip in September. As for salmon, we catch primarily kings in May and June. The silvers begin to mix with the kings some time from mid-June to mid-July. By mid-August we are catching mainly silvers which get typically get larger as the season progresses. So, if you’re king focused – May and June. Looking for a mix? Early July through mid-August. Hunting for the 20-pound silver (very rare but fish in the mid to high teens aren’t) aim for late-August and early September. The regulations have some impact on salmon keeping. If you’re focused on kings to eat, you might find more liberal regulations in May and June, which is the case in 2018.

Yes. We’ll be waiting for you with an Angling Unlimited sign and a smile. Our staff will help you claim any checked luggage, load it into our van, and drive you to our suites. Once there, they’ll orient you to your suite, get your licensed to fish, provide your rain gear and answer all your questions.

Check out this page for more information on what’s included in your trip package.

We guarantee that our captains are highly skilled, that our tackle is high quality and well maintained, our bait cut for the perfect spin. In short, we’ll be 100 percent ready for any and all opportunity. Because our method is hands-on, some of the results will be up to the angler. Has anyone ever fished with Angling Unlimited and not caught a fish of any kind? In a word – No.

We provide an informal meal at our tent event on one night of your visit. On the other nights you’re free to explore Sitka’s restaurants or prepare a meal in your fully equipped kitchen with a barbecue on your deck. Grill your catch of the day at your suite or head out on the town – or mix it up. If you’re looking for a sit-down dinner provided by Angling Unlimited each night, we don’t do that.

Lots! Check out this page for some ideas and suggestions.

The North Pacific is under an abundance-based management regime. This affects us mostly with king salmon and halibut regulations. In a nutshell, the managers derive abundance estimates for the upcoming year and adjust the regulations to assure that we stay within our allocations and don’t overfish. You can find the 2018 regulations on our website here. 

Yes. We have our own in-house processing facility right on our dock. As soon as your fish is landed it’s cut to your preference, washed thoroughly, and vacuum packed. It then goes straight into our freezer and by the time you go to sleep it’s hard frozen. The quick trip from cooler to freezer assures maximum freshness when you open a vacuum bag of fish months later at home. Properly cared for, vacuum packed fish is very hard to distinguish from fresh even 6 or 9 months later if kept in a good freezer.

Here is a list of suggested items to pack!

Link??

Yes, but we suggest that you contact FedEx regarding price to ship and the cost of next day delivery from Sitka. In most cases, it works better for you to travel with your fish by checking it in as luggage. If you have a long layover in Seattle, there is a facility that will hold your fish in a freezer for a reasonable fee. SmarteCarte: https://www.smartecarte.com/products/baggage-storage/

We employ hands-on methods where you hold the rod, feel the bite, and hook the fish. 99 percent of the time we’re mooching. Some anglers like to jig, but that’s the exception, not the rule.

We do, but we need to have a slot to accommodate a single. We can’t fill an entire slot with one person and then try to fill in around him or her. Single anglers can end up fishing on a boat with 4, 5, or 6 other anglers.

The maximum allowed by law in Southeast Alaska is six. At Angling Unlimited, if a group of 4 books the boat, we won’t put anyone else on with you. If you want to put 5 or 6 on the boat, we can accommodate that.