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Tangle Lakes - Delta River - Alaska Canoe Route - Day 2

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A fresh day, almost too hot out, and it smelled fishy at the outlet of the last lake into the Delta River proper. I broke out my little spinning rig, tied on a yellow Rooster Tail (I had already swapped out that nasty treble hook for a single, clinched the barb too) and promptly caught 5 Grayling on my first 5 casts. It was too early in the day to keep them for dinner, thus the single clinched barb hook.

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It's not too far down the river before we hit the portage trail, which wanders through this very cool notch, where you have to paddle across a small lake, before the trail drops 100' in the last couple hundred yards. The BLM does a fantastic job of maintaining it. I started wondering about two of my buddies (I hadn't paddled with them before) as they tandem carried their red canoe by the carry handles, awkwardly, not on their shoulders, and were floundering along. I offered up, shouldered it, and finished the carry the proper way, which was much easier than watching them.

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I use a removable thwart for portaging.

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This is what we were portaging around.

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The beach below the portage is a gorgeous little place, snuggled amidst some dramatic rock outcrops. Next time I'd like to camp there and spend some time fishing, exploring the falls, climbing an outcrop to check out the view. It would have made for a long first day and ya' just never know if someone will have pitched camp there before you.

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The portage marks the start of several miles of rapids. The BLM calls them class III, at this level I'd say easy II, not too much maneuvering and there was always a channel to get through without scraping. Quite nice actually, or so I thought.


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So far so good .......


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Oops. They managed to find the only two big rocks in this one rapid, broached sideways, leaned upstream and wrapped it. Fortunately it was TWO rocks because if it was only one they would have broke that boat in half. At the put in, my buddy asked me where my z-drag kit was. "Ah, I wasn't planning on bringing it" "Just throw it in, you never know" maybe actually he did know as he had paddled with the red canoe buddies before. "Nope, that kit is like ten pounds of dead weight in my boat" "Ok, if you bring it I'll carry it on the portage". Well, them's fighting words, so I brought it along, and it even helped with my trim into the headwinds on the lake, and, of course we needed it. The boat came off without too much finagling nor any real damage beyond a good crease in the royalex and we were on our way.

It would have been a real trial had they broken that boat. There was absolutely no way out of there on foot, they make movies out of attempts like that would have been. No place for a float plane to land and even nearest site for a chopper evac was a mile back up above the portage. We did have an Inreach and a satellite phone but I'm really glad not to have to use them. An evac would have cost a pretty penny as well. We gabbed about being able to put 5 big dudes and their gear into one double and one solo, but that would have been asking for even more trouble.

Glad I brought the z-drag and know how to use it.


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The rest of Day 2 was a joy. The Delta through here is mostly a meandering quickwater stream running through a valley surrounded by mountains. I love just watching the gravel bottom float by. We saw eagles, beaver, mergansers and moose. Camped on an absolutely perfect gravel bar, caught two grayling for dinner and released as many more as I wanted to, just perfect. Living the life.

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You have to search to find a better TR. .
It matters when routes are a long way from help. Some of our big western rivers are near roads, and sometimes we even can stop in a town and buy beer and ice.
But a lot of them are in the middle of nowhere. You retrieve your boat and try to fix or it you start walking.
 
A Winner !

I was in Alaska late August, 2001. Our group (4) flew up to camp and fish out of a rental van. I was the only canoer, and Salivated over the rivers ! Thanks for the trip report !

Jim
 
I still have Grayling in the freezer from a paddle on the lakes to where you caught yours last September. But ... I haven't continued into the river on any of several solo camping/paddling trips to the Tangle Lakes/Denali Highway.
Brad
 
Every old timer in Alaska told me that I should heat the bacon grease or butter in the frying pan prior to catching a Arctic Grayling. They lose firmness, texture and taste rapidly after being caught. The only ones that I liked to eat after some time out of the river are some that a friend pickled. The guy that gave them the Latin name after the herb thyme had a better nose than me, I have sniffed of a bunch of Thymallus Arcticus over the last four going on five decades, none had a whiff of thyme.
 
Very nice trip report and photos, Monel. You were lucky not only because it was a double rock pin but also because the water was so shallow there.

Now, to an old whitewater guy, it would be very interesting to watch a boat run the portaged rapid into that T-bone foam trench. That's why god invented kayakers and colonoscopies.
 
At that water level you'd need full body armor and a face guard if you value your teeth!
 
"just perfect. Living the life." I'll say. Very enjoyable read.
 
Nice report and photos. That notch you portaged through is very scenic... nice country!

On your Z drag, is that a progress capture pulley, or do you have to maintain tension on the working end until you need to reposition the Prussic knot on the standing end?
 
I used to spend a lot of time in Alaska mostly working. On a trip to the Interior I fell in love with a river about every two days. I have never fished in Alaska except for chasing large salmon on the beach while wearing waders. I have never run a river either, but I love the place and I am due for another trip soon. I am thinking about renting a small motor home and fishing the Kenai R.
 
I used to spend a lot of time in Alaska mostly working. On a trip to the Interior I fell in love with a river about every two days. I have never fished in Alaska except for chasing large salmon on the beach while wearing waders. I have never run a river either, but I love the place and I am due for another trip soon. I am thinking about renting a small motor home and fishing the Kenai R.

The small motor home is the way to go up there. If you aren't tied to lodging reservations you have the flexibility to go where the fishing and or weather are more favorable. If you are between salmon runs on the Kenai you can go north first and hit the kenai on the way back. If you get a high pressure system over the interior that would be the time to go to Denali National Park, which I recommend. Some local knowledge could go a long way in getting the most out of your trip.
 
Thanks Al. I have been to the Interior and seen Denali. I liked the country north of Fairbanks a lot.
This time I want to just be there and not travel around all the time.
I worked on a mine site in the bush east of Ketchikan. Tough country with 150 inches of rain but I will never forget it.
 
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