My Fish Tale

[Smokin Don]

Sparky and TSquare made me a little green with envy seeing their fish photos and it brought back some good memories of fishing. Six months after we were married in 1966 I was in the USAF. They sent me to a remote site in Alaska for a year and I couldn’t take my wife.

I spent most of 1967 and some of 1968 there. To ease the pain of being separated from my new bride it just happened to be King Salmon, Alaska. The site is located in King Salmon on the King Salmon River. It is about 16 mile upriver from Nek Nek which is on Bristol Bay. The river run another 16 mile where it dumped into Nek Nek Lake.

It just happened to be a pristine salmon river with four species of salmon and trout making yearly runs to spawn, Chinook, Coho, Sockeye, and Pink, the natives called them King, Silver, Red and Humpies. It is still one of the most pristine salmon rivers today. Probably because the only way in is to fly or by boat in the summer.

It was a radar site and we had some interceptor fighters there on alert. I think though the main mission in the summer was to run a fish camp on Nek Nek lake. They flew in Air Force brass and other dignitaries to fish there. We were not allowed there if there was anyone there of importance. They had their own staff there during the summer to cater to the big wheels. They did run a boat dock in King Salmon where we could rent boats to use on the river.

Two of my buddies were fishermen so I bought fishing gear and we spent most of our off duty time during fishing season on the river fishing then in the club drinking beer and talking fishing!

A few of the men had their wives there, flying them up on their own and lived in homes, Quonset huts, left there from WWII, in King Salmon. After talking to my wife, I found a half of a cabin on the river that was available to rent. My wife was able to get a month off from her secretarial job at Wright Pat AFB in Dayton, Ohio. She flew up for the month of August and our first anniversary. She even had the top of our wedding cake dry iced and brought along. It cost me $300 to rent the cabin, bedroom, small kitchen and a small dining living room. It was about two miles from the site; most of the time I got rides from two civilians that worked on the site but a few times I did walk.

That was some fun fishing, you really didn’t have to know how to fish, you just caught fish. We could check out lockers in a freezer on the site to store your fish. By August I had plenty of fish saved for when my wife came. My largest salmon was a 47 pound King I caught from shore and I think took about an hour to land. My next was a 16 pound Red and the largest trout was an 8 ½ pounder. The big salmon I froze then cut into steaks. I was able to scrounge some Crisco, flour, sugar and seasoning from the mess hall. We got tired of fish so went to town one Saturday and bought a one pound canned ham for $14.

I had planned on getting discharged when I left Alaska after 8 years in the service. They wanted my wife to stay and work as a secretary and my Captain said he could get me on as a civilian electrician at the site. My wife is not an outdoor type. When we went outdoors we had to wear bug nets and tape up our sleeves and pants. They had an insect called white socks; that bit and was like a sand flea. The itch would drive you crazy.

The fishing season was about over when my wife got there and she was not catching any fish. My two fishing buddies said let’s take her up to the fish camp. So on our anniversary day we took her there and went out in boats. We caught fish and my wife got a red salmon about 4 or 5 pounds but had to throw it back the season was over for reds. We did get some nice trout.

My wife and I were in one boat and my two buddies were in another. All of a sudden my wife started to cry & I said what’s wrong, she said I gotta pee. I said I’ll go to shore and you can go behind the bushes. She said NO! So I hollered at my two buddies and said we have to go back to the site. Fishermen hate to quit when they’re catching fish!

That evening we had a party at the NCO club for our anniversary. There were about a dozen guys and a couple of wives. We all had T-Bone steaks and some Champaign.

I hated to see the time come for my wife to leave. I wanted to stay but knew my wife would not enjoy it and I probably would be dead by now from alcoholism. The only thing to do in the winter was go to the club and bars!

A few years after we moved here, 1973, in Wapakoneta we read where Congress had investigated the fishing camp in King Salmon and closed it down.

Fish from most rivers in Ohio is not fit to eat and the few lakes close by are not good fishing. I have not done much fishing since Alaska; that spoiled me.

If you read all this, thanks for letting an ole man reminisce!

Smokin Don

[Pam Gould]

Smokin Don..the best fish around here are at Lake Amanda. The water is so clear and my hubby and his best friend used to fish it out. Best bluegill around..dinner plate sized. He closed up 11 years ago, I used to camp out there, but he let's people fish but your supposed to turn them back in.  It needs fished out , hasn't been since we left..all small stuff right now. It's a shame.
Mighty fine walleye and perch on Lake Erie, have friends thst have boats up there. Pam  .☆´¯`•.¸¸. ི♥ྀ.

[teesquare]

That is a great story Don! I really enjoyed that. I remember a few summers as a kid - we would go to northern Manitoba - north of Flin Flon and La Paz - where pavement had disappeared perhaps 200 miles earlier - and fishing and camping. Unbelievable how good fishing can be up there....

[ACW3]

Talk about reminiscing...  This brought back memories of my fishing trips with my Dad when he was stationed in Iceland from 1960 - 62.  Up there you had to "rent" the rivers or lakes by the "rod-day".  Some places had boats that you could also rent.  But I seem to recall wearing hip boots and wading along the shore of the rivers and lakes.  If you slipped (and you always did), you got wet and the water was really cold.  Those old surplus military wool pants and shirts sure soaked up the cold water fast!!  We caught a lot of trout, char and the occasional salmon.  My Dad was able to fly to some of the remote radar sites on a military helicopter and fish for sea-run brown trout.  I was not allowed to fly to those locations.  We used to go to a place called the Security Camp.  At the Security Camp were several connected lakes that the US Government leased for recreation for all the military and their dependents.  As a scout I always enjoyed going there for fishing trips and camping.  Fishing was always good.  Cooking up fresh fish while camping--what a memory.  I hope to be able to give my grandson some memories like this.

Art   

[Old Hickory]

Beautiful, great memories and good fishing.  My wife and I spent a week at a lake camp (Welesly ) probably not spelled correctly, about 200 miles North of Whitehorse, Yukon territory.  The only way in was to fly, and that was fun too.  We caught lake trout and pike every day with bank fish cooks that were wonderful.  My largest trout was 26 1/2 #, my Wife cought a 24# pike. What a great vacation.  You brought back some wonderful memories, thanks.

[sparky]

that was a great story smokin don.  my 1st date w/ my wife was fishing at del valle lake near livermore, ca.  she couldn't believe we were starting a date at 4:30 in the morning.  she ask where are you taking me at 4:30?  you'll see.  she was shocked when we pulled up the the lake.  she never fished before.  one time on the eel river we drove down the the river and it was pouring down rain.  we put our line in the water and i sat next to my pole in the rain (sheets of rain) like a hard core fisherman.  my wife sat in the truck.  it would stop raining and she would get out and have a fish on.  she caught 5 big steelhead and salmon.  i got none.  i was soaked all the way down.  she laughed so hard (see, she is mean) because i had to sit in the back of truck on the way back to the hotel because i was so wet i would have soaked the inside of the truck.  i will never forget that day.  my wife brings it up at holidays.   :'(  we've been fishing together for over 30 something years.  thats funny.  we have a fishing date this weekend up in the hills at the lake.   

[RickHH]

Good story Don, I too enjoyed the Salmon fishing up in the Strait of Juan DeFuca...

[Keymaster]

Awesome Story, Thanks for sharing.

[teesquare]

that was a great story smokin don.  my 1st date w/ my wife was fishing at del valle lake near livermore, ca.  she couldn't believe we were starting a date at 4:30 in the morning.  she ask where are you taking me at 4:30?  you'll see.  she was shocked when we pulled up the the lake.  she never fished before.  one time on the eel river we drove down the the river and it was pouring down rain.  we put our line in the water and i sat next to my pole in the rain (sheets of rain) like a hard core fisherman.  my wife sat in the truck.  it would stop raining and she would get out and have a fish on.  she caught 5 big steelhead and salmon.  i got none.  i was soaked all the way down.  she laughed so hard (see, she is mean) because i had to sit in the back of truck on the way back to the hotel because i was so wet i would have soaked the inside of the truck.  i will never forget that day.  my wife brings it up at holidays.   :'(  we've been fishing together for over 30 something years.  thats funny.  we have a fishing date this weekend up in the hills at the lake.   

That story proves a theory of mine Sparky:
"The family that fishes together......probably has a guy in it that smokes the fish and makes great ribs and BBQ".....

[Sandman]

Good story Don! Pam I did't see you were from Lima. I wondered how you knew about lake amanda.

[sparky]

that was a great story smokin don.  my 1st date w/ my wife was fishing at del valle lake near livermore, ca.  she couldn't believe we were starting a date at 4:30 in the morning.  she ask where are you taking me at 4:30?  you'll see.  she was shocked when we pulled up the the lake.  she never fished before.  one time on the eel river we drove down the the river and it was pouring down rain.  we put our line in the water and i sat next to my pole in the rain (sheets of rain) like a hard core fisherman.  my wife sat in the truck.  it would stop raining and she would get out and have a fish on.  she caught 5 big steelhead and salmon.  i got none.  i was soaked all the way down.  she laughed so hard (see, she is mean) because i had to sit in the back of truck on the way back to the hotel because i was so wet i would have soaked the inside of the truck.  i will never forget that day.  my wife brings it up at holidays.   :'(  we've been fishing together for over 30 something years.  thats funny.  we have a fishing date this weekend up in the hills at the lake.   

That story proves a theory of mine Sparky:
"The family that fishes together......probably has a guy in it that smokes the fish and makes great ribs and BBQ".....

thanks why your the wise one obi-won.  your so smart. 

[fishingbouchman]

Proposed to the wife after she caught her first halibut. Went to Alaska to a fishing resort and her first halibut was about 55 lbs.  she was trying to hold it up and my dad was taking pictures when I proposed. She didnt know if she should smile for the camera or take the ring. Then spent the honey moon in cabo and use that fish for the avatar.  600 lb black marlin. 5 hr fight and the wife thought I was dead. She stayed back and went to meet me at 3 at the dock when the boat got back. But took 5 hrs and we didn't hook it until 1. The people at the docks told her they dropped me off at noon because I was sea sick. When I got back she didn't believe me until I pulled out the camera. Two of my fav stories and all had to do with tho old ball and chain.

[Smokin Don]

I enjoyed a lot of good fish tales here! Thanks! Don