Sixmile Creek Fishing Guides
A steep Kenai Peninsula canyon creek above Hope, best known for whitewater but carrying a genuine autumn coho run once flows settle.
Guides on the Sixmile Creek
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About the Sixmile Creek
Sixmile Creek drops off the Kenai Peninsula’s northern divide and runs down a series of canyons to Turnagain Arm near the old mining settlement of Hope. It is better known to rafters than to anglers, and the reason is obvious from the gradient: the canyon sections are continuous whitewater, and for much of the summer the creek is moving far too hard and too coloured to fish.
That reputation understates it. The gauge near Hope reports stage and discharge, and once the numbers come off their summer peak the creek becomes fishable in its lower and flatter reaches, particularly toward the mouth where it opens out before meeting the Arm. This is where the coho fishing happens, and it is real fishing rather than a curiosity. Reading the discharge trend is not optional here; it is the difference between a productive day and standing beside unfishable water.
Coho are the target, running in the late summer and autumn and holding in the slower water and tailouts near the bottom of the system. Pink salmon come through in their cycle years, chum are present, and Dolly Varden follow the salmon and take egg patterns readily. The upper creek holds resident fish but the access is difficult and the water demanding.
Hope sits at the mouth and is reached by a spur road off the Seward Highway, which makes this one of the more accessible pieces of water on the northern Kenai. The drive from Anchorage is short by Alaskan standards. Anglers should note that Turnagain Arm’s tides are extreme and its mudflats genuinely dangerous, and the creek mouth should be treated with that in mind. Alaska regulations vary by reach and season and should be checked before fishing.
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Access
Hope - the settlement at the creek mouth, reached by a spur road off the Seward Highway, with the main access and services.
Turnagain Arm - the tidal water the creek enters, with extreme tides and dangerous mudflats to be respected.
Seward Highway - the main road south from Anchorage, giving access to the Hope spur and the wider peninsula.
Canyon Creek - the main tributary joining Sixmile above Hope, adding flow and its own limited access.
Resurrection Creek - the neighbouring Hope-area stream, the usual alternative and a historic gold-panning water.
Anchorage - roughly a ninety-minute drive north, the nearest city for tackle, guides and lodging.
Kenai Peninsula - the wider region south, with the Russian and Kenai rivers as the larger-water alternatives.
Seasons
Spring: high and cold with snowmelt, generally unfishable, and of interest only for scouting access.
Summer: peak flows through the canyons, dominated by rafting, with pink salmon arriving late in cycle years.
Fall: the window that matters, as discharge drops and coho run into the lower creek and hold near the mouth.
Winter: closed in practice, with ice, low flow, limited daylight and no migratory fish in the system.
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Questions
What is the current flow on the Sixmile Creek?
As of Oct 18, 5:00 pm, the USGS gauge SIXMILE C NR HOPE AK reads 665 cfs. Conditions update every 15 minutes.
What species can you catch on the Sixmile Creek?
Anglers target Arctic Grayling, Chum Salmon, Coho Salmon, Dolly Varden, Pink Salmon, Rainbow Trout on the Sixmile Creek in Alaska.
Where can you access the Sixmile Creek?
Hope - the settlement at the creek mouth, reached by a spur road off the Seward Highway, with the main access and services. Turnagain Arm - the tidal water the creek enters, with extreme tides and dangerous mudflats to be respected. Seward Highway - the main road south from Anchorage, giving access to the Hope spur and the wider peninsula. Canyon Creek - the main tributary joining Sixmile above Hope, adding flow and its own limited access. Resurrection Creek - the neighbouring Hope-area stream, the usual alternative and a historic gold-panning water. Anchorage - roughly a ninety-minute drive n...
When is the best time to fish the Sixmile Creek?
Spring: high and cold with snowmelt, generally unfishable, and of interest only for scouting access. Summer: peak flows through the canyons, dominated by rafting, with pink salmon arriving late in cycle years. Fall: the window that matters, as discharge drops and coho run into the lower creek and hold near the mouth. Winter: closed in practice, with ice, low flow, limited daylight and no migratory fish in the system.
Where are the fishing regulations for the Sixmile Creek?
Regulations change by season and section. Read the current rules on the Alaska agency site: https://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=fishregulations.main