Sheefish are warriors. They have been known to strip drags, straighten split rings, and crimp down the points on the strongest hooks. Nicknamed "tarpon of the north" the sheefish exhibits the tarpon's bone-hard mouth, large, silvery scales, and an underslung jaw similar to a snook.
The sheefish is also known as an Eskimo tarpon and is the only predatory member of the whitefish family in North America. They are sought after for their delicious white-flaky meat.
On March 28, our group of 4 flew to Kotzebue, Alaska to ice fish for sheefish in Kotzebue Sound under the guidance of Lew Pagel. Lew guides for sheefish during the months of March and April. He operates www.arcticfishingadventures.com. All equipment, meals, and housing can be provided by Lew.
Upon arrival at the Kotzebue airport, Lew was waiting to drive us to his comfortable guest house which would be our home away from home the next 4 days. He said the fishing was slow and the big sheefish have not appeared yet. We had a dream trip with Lew last March where the fishing was nonstop with many 40+ inch sheefish weighing over 20 lbs landed.
On our first day, we found the ice to be over 6 feet, so Lew had to drive the snowmobile back home to obtain an auger extension. Plus, there were 2 to 4 feet of snow on the ice so many shovels were also obtained.
Once ice holes were drilled, we decided not to use the ice tents as the weather was a balmy 20F, so we sat on chairs. ice hole jumping. The action was good every morning until about noon then picked up again around 6pm. Being slightly above the arctic circle the sunlight extends for long hours. For the 4 days our group landed 69 sheefish up to 18 lbs. So, we did much better than expected. The "hot" lures were papa doctor spoons in gold and silver.
Lew does a fantastic job in putting clients on fish. With safety being a top priority, he has the best equipment available. Ice tents are spacious and have ample heating supplies if needed. Snowmobiles are driven to the fishing area and Lew inspects them daily to make sure they are in great operating condition. The meals are delicious. We were treated to some musk ox which Lew harvested. His guest house is perfect to hold 4 anglers.
This is definitely a trip to put on your to do list! Contact Lew ASAP as he fills quickly.
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