Summer in Alaska - It's All About the Fish

Fishing, whether it be commercial or sport, is probably the main topic of conversation in Alaska from about May through August.

Five types of salmon come into the rivers of Alaska - Chinook (Kings), Sockeye (Reds), Coho (Silver), Pink (Humpies), and Chum (Dog or Keta). They travel from the open ocean up the Kenai River (other rivers also, but the Kenai is in our town and is the largest in this area) to their spawning grounds located in many small rivers and creek beds.
The next two weeks are the height of the sockeye (red) salmon run in the Kenai Peninsula. This place is inundated with tourists, both from Anchorage and from other parts of the US and the world, and everyone is hoping to make a catch or two!
The fish have begun to enter the mouth of the river, but it is several miles from here, so it takes a day or so to reach this point. Right now there is more fishing than catching, although I did see a few nice ones heading for the coolers.
Catching or not, it was a beautiful day to spend on the river!