Outdoors & Recreation

Fishing the Little Su

Story and Media by
Kalb Stevenson
Media by
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Written by
Kalb Stevenson

There is something liberating about floating atop a river that meanders through miles of untouched wilderness.  For the common man or woman, the cares of the 9-5 work week and the stress of maintaining a household seemingly evaporate upon launching a vessel over flowing water. Yet, in this liberation, travelers ironically submit themselves to whichever path the river leads, as it rushes, flattens, bends and ultimately directs all vessels to their destination. 

In Alaska, river travelers float not only for the sake of the voyage, but for the opportunity to engage in world-class fishing.  Rivers serve as a conduit through wilderness, transporting anglers through fishes’ natural habitat, providing opportunity for the coveted catch.  The stream provides habitat for fish diverse in size and kind, as well as the insects and other morsels they require to survive.

Recognizing Your Opportunity

For most people, finding the time to engage in a multi-day float trip is rare, so many prefer to combine the scenic beauty of Alaska with their best opportunity for the strike. The Little Susitna River offers this as a fun and relatively safe experience that will provide some lasting memories. And perhaps best of all, the launching and pull-out points of the ‘Little Su’, as it’s called, are easily accessible by road, and not far north of Anchorage and Wasilla. 

The Little Su is a fly fisherman’s paradise but is also quite welcoming to the spinning rod. It is home to all five species of salmon, as well as rainbow trout, char, and grayling. Depending on when you go, there are also possibilities for opportunistic hunting of big game species, such as moose, black bear and brown bear, or small game, such as spruce hen or waterfowl. Floating the Little Su can be a perfect three-to-five day canoe adventure on relatively calm water.

King (Chinook) salmon are presently down in numbers around the state, including the Little Su, but state biologists and scientists are working to boost their numbers. Kings can still be caught in the Little Su in June before the sockeye, pink and chum salmon arrive. Come late July and August, silver (Coho) salmon move up the Little Su in full force. Like silver bullets flying through the water, silvers school-up in deep holes, stopping briefly to rest before continuing upriver to their spawning grounds. Spawning Coho are found throughout the Little Su well into September, although they become blush and less edible later in the year. Rainbow trout are present throughout the stream in good numbers and are fatter than ever in the fall from gorging on salmon eggs all summer long. The trout love to hug river bends under cut banks and trail behind schools of spawning salmon to target their eggs. 

Sense and Sensibility

Try to recall the last time you were in a place where it was so quiet that you couldn’t hear a sound. This is a common occurrence when canoeing the Little Su. The drops of water rolling off your paddle into the stream might as well be thunder cracking. In many calm areas of water, it’s a spectacular stillness. In summer, there is the smell of fresh green spruce in the cool morning air. In fall, there is splendor in the yellow and brown autumn stage of deciduous leaves reflecting off the river water in the afternoon. At night, crackling campfire and the smell of fresh salmon on the fire is a welcomed fragrance to all. 

Bend after bend, turn after turn, the Little Susitna River meanders through the serene, isolated forests of the Matanuska-Susitna Valley from the Parks Highway access point in Houston to the Burma Landing pull-out about 30 miles outside of Wasilla (access is attained via Knik-Goose Bay and Pt. McKenzie Roads). It’s a relatively easy float that starts at a moderate pace and slows to a crawl by its end. There are one or two hairy spots that require some skillful paddling to stay dry, but nothing an alert first-timer can’t handle in most years. Canoes, rafts, and kayaks are generally suitable for these waters. 

To be practical, be sure and tie down your fishing rod and supplies, bring your rain gear, and pack warm waterproof clothing in case the weather sours. Conditions can be hit or miss with either warm temperatures and clear skies, or the unwelcomed freezing rain. The rule of thumb in Alaska is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best, but to always count on some rain.

For this float, you’ll definitely want to have chest waders or hip boots handy to maximize your reach into good fishing spots. And do not forget your polarized sunglasses to aid in sight-fishing. They are absolutely key to finding schools of fish holding at various depths in the water column as you float downstream. Once you detect a school holding in a deep column of water, pull off the river and attempt to induce a strike.

Trigger the Strike

In spring, dark-colored wet flies, such as black wooly buggers, work well for inducing a strike from a rainbow, and gold spinners with a hint of black can be effective for hooking small char. In late summer and fall, an arsenal of streamers and flesh patterns (ranging short to long and from pink to tan and white) are very handy to have aboard. An egg-sucking leech should already be taking up permanent residence in your fly box if you’ve fished in the state for any period of time. But perhaps the best trout-slayer of them all is the single bead pegged on the line above the hook with the edge of a toothpick. An assortment of beads in different colors and sizes are sure to be the best bet for drifting along the canoe or flipping out from shore.

When salmon are found to be schooling through the Little Su in large numbers, it is possible to ‘floss’ them in the mouth from the bank with good success by drifting a weighted line – but remember that all species, except for sockeye, will strike – and strike hard.  A Vibrax cast across the river and reeled in at a moderately-fast pace can easily do the trick for inducing a strike. In most years, baiting for silvers is allowed after the first week in August.  A nice presentation of cured salmon eggs is a good way to trigger action when it is drifted low past a group of aggressive silvers.

Unfortunately, this float trip will not allow you to stock up on your supply of silver salmon fillets. Although each person is allowed two Coho per day, only two are allowed in possession - a regulation that requires fully processing and freezing your fish before they are no longer officially in your possession. However, this won’t stop you from eating fresh salmon off the fire every night! Rainbows are also two per day and two in possession, but only one of these can be 20” or longer. It’s good stewardship to release most of your rainbows and keep the fishery healthy. 

In summary, the Little Susitna River is easily accessible from the road system and great for both beginners and advanced fishermen. It’s a relatively isolated stream that offers great fishing and lasting memories for a one-of-a-kind float trip. 

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Fishing the Little Su

Outdoors & Recreation

Author

Kalb Stevenson

Kalb Stevenson is an experienced biologist and fisherman and a long-time Alaskan. He is the owner of Axiom Environmental LLC., a consulting company based in Anchorage, Alaska. Dr. Stevenson has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles, agency reports and popular press pieces in the areas of fish and wildlife ecology and environmental science. He enjoys spending time with family and friends and fishing around the state.

There is something liberating about floating atop a river that meanders through miles of untouched wilderness.  For the common man or woman, the cares of the 9-5 work week and the stress of maintaining a household seemingly evaporate upon launching a vessel over flowing water. Yet, in this liberation, travelers ironically submit themselves to whichever path the river leads, as it rushes, flattens, bends and ultimately directs all vessels to their destination. 

In Alaska, river travelers float not only for the sake of the voyage, but for the opportunity to engage in world-class fishing.  Rivers serve as a conduit through wilderness, transporting anglers through fishes’ natural habitat, providing opportunity for the coveted catch.  The stream provides habitat for fish diverse in size and kind, as well as the insects and other morsels they require to survive.

Recognizing Your Opportunity

For most people, finding the time to engage in a multi-day float trip is rare, so many prefer to combine the scenic beauty of Alaska with their best opportunity for the strike. The Little Susitna River offers this as a fun and relatively safe experience that will provide some lasting memories. And perhaps best of all, the launching and pull-out points of the ‘Little Su’, as it’s called, are easily accessible by road, and not far north of Anchorage and Wasilla. 

The Little Su is a fly fisherman’s paradise but is also quite welcoming to the spinning rod. It is home to all five species of salmon, as well as rainbow trout, char, and grayling. Depending on when you go, there are also possibilities for opportunistic hunting of big game species, such as moose, black bear and brown bear, or small game, such as spruce hen or waterfowl. Floating the Little Su can be a perfect three-to-five day canoe adventure on relatively calm water.

King (Chinook) salmon are presently down in numbers around the state, including the Little Su, but state biologists and scientists are working to boost their numbers. Kings can still be caught in the Little Su in June before the sockeye, pink and chum salmon arrive. Come late July and August, silver (Coho) salmon move up the Little Su in full force. Like silver bullets flying through the water, silvers school-up in deep holes, stopping briefly to rest before continuing upriver to their spawning grounds. Spawning Coho are found throughout the Little Su well into September, although they become blush and less edible later in the year. Rainbow trout are present throughout the stream in good numbers and are fatter than ever in the fall from gorging on salmon eggs all summer long. The trout love to hug river bends under cut banks and trail behind schools of spawning salmon to target their eggs. 

Sense and Sensibility

Try to recall the last time you were in a place where it was so quiet that you couldn’t hear a sound. This is a common occurrence when canoeing the Little Su. The drops of water rolling off your paddle into the stream might as well be thunder cracking. In many calm areas of water, it’s a spectacular stillness. In summer, there is the smell of fresh green spruce in the cool morning air. In fall, there is splendor in the yellow and brown autumn stage of deciduous leaves reflecting off the river water in the afternoon. At night, crackling campfire and the smell of fresh salmon on the fire is a welcomed fragrance to all. 

Bend after bend, turn after turn, the Little Susitna River meanders through the serene, isolated forests of the Matanuska-Susitna Valley from the Parks Highway access point in Houston to the Burma Landing pull-out about 30 miles outside of Wasilla (access is attained via Knik-Goose Bay and Pt. McKenzie Roads). It’s a relatively easy float that starts at a moderate pace and slows to a crawl by its end. There are one or two hairy spots that require some skillful paddling to stay dry, but nothing an alert first-timer can’t handle in most years. Canoes, rafts, and kayaks are generally suitable for these waters. 

To be practical, be sure and tie down your fishing rod and supplies, bring your rain gear, and pack warm waterproof clothing in case the weather sours. Conditions can be hit or miss with either warm temperatures and clear skies, or the unwelcomed freezing rain. The rule of thumb in Alaska is to prepare for the worst and hope for the best, but to always count on some rain.

For this float, you’ll definitely want to have chest waders or hip boots handy to maximize your reach into good fishing spots. And do not forget your polarized sunglasses to aid in sight-fishing. They are absolutely key to finding schools of fish holding at various depths in the water column as you float downstream. Once you detect a school holding in a deep column of water, pull off the river and attempt to induce a strike.

Trigger the Strike

In spring, dark-colored wet flies, such as black wooly buggers, work well for inducing a strike from a rainbow, and gold spinners with a hint of black can be effective for hooking small char. In late summer and fall, an arsenal of streamers and flesh patterns (ranging short to long and from pink to tan and white) are very handy to have aboard. An egg-sucking leech should already be taking up permanent residence in your fly box if you’ve fished in the state for any period of time. But perhaps the best trout-slayer of them all is the single bead pegged on the line above the hook with the edge of a toothpick. An assortment of beads in different colors and sizes are sure to be the best bet for drifting along the canoe or flipping out from shore.

When salmon are found to be schooling through the Little Su in large numbers, it is possible to ‘floss’ them in the mouth from the bank with good success by drifting a weighted line – but remember that all species, except for sockeye, will strike – and strike hard.  A Vibrax cast across the river and reeled in at a moderately-fast pace can easily do the trick for inducing a strike. In most years, baiting for silvers is allowed after the first week in August.  A nice presentation of cured salmon eggs is a good way to trigger action when it is drifted low past a group of aggressive silvers.

Unfortunately, this float trip will not allow you to stock up on your supply of silver salmon fillets. Although each person is allowed two Coho per day, only two are allowed in possession - a regulation that requires fully processing and freezing your fish before they are no longer officially in your possession. However, this won’t stop you from eating fresh salmon off the fire every night! Rainbows are also two per day and two in possession, but only one of these can be 20” or longer. It’s good stewardship to release most of your rainbows and keep the fishery healthy. 

In summary, the Little Susitna River is easily accessible from the road system and great for both beginners and advanced fishermen. It’s a relatively isolated stream that offers great fishing and lasting memories for a one-of-a-kind float trip. 

No items found.

Author

Kalb Stevenson

Kalb Stevenson is an experienced biologist and fisherman and a long-time Alaskan. He is the owner of Axiom Environmental LLC., a consulting company based in Anchorage, Alaska. Dr. Stevenson has authored numerous peer-reviewed articles, agency reports and popular press pieces in the areas of fish and wildlife ecology and environmental science. He enjoys spending time with family and friends and fishing around the state.

Author & Media

Kalb Stevenson

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