Flanked by the Kenai Mountains, their lower reaches verdant with coastal forests, Kachemak is a large bay serrated by many smaller bays including China Poot, Tutka and Seldovia, to name a few. Their mouths promise outstanding fishing for halibut and salmon, their beaches are rich with cockles and razor clams. Those hallmark halibut are abundant in Kachemak's blue-green waters, and each summer anglers from around the globe arrive to battle fish weighing up to 400 pounds. That's a lot of fine eating, but these big flatfish also are worth big money in the annual Homer Jackpot Halibut Derby. Like many visiting anglers, Chaparro enlisted the services of a local charter to catch his halibut.
Charters provide tackle and bait and take anglers to the best fishing spots.
Some provide lunches and, back at the docks, charter crews fillet, wrap and freeze the day's catch, allowing anglers to relax in the afterglow of great days spent on the water. Kachemak Bay also offers excellent salmon fishing. King salmon runs begin in late May and run through mid-August. On the far side of Kachemak Bay, king salmon also may be caught in Seldovia. Located roughly 20 miles southwest of Homer and well beyond Alaska's limited road system, this small fishing town is perched just inside Seldovia Bay.