Photos: Red salmon fishing kicks off in Russian, Kenai rivers

ExpandAutoplay

Image 1 of 22

Tannen Boothroyd, 18 months, gets a look at his family's morning catch of red salmon as dad Dale brings the stringer over while mom Emily keeps fishing on Thursday, June 11, 2015, at the Russian River.

At 12:01 a.m. Thursday, the salmon and trout fisheries opened on the Russian and upper Kenai Rivers. But not all interested anglers were on the river. That's because plenty were still stuck in their cars, waiting for a spot in the jam-packed campgrounds that sit on the bluffs overlooking the Russian, a genuine slice of fishing heaven that just happens to be located within a four-hour drive of well over half the state's population.

"One out, one in," said Jherrod Daniels, one of several Alaska Recreational Management employees staffing a toll booth at the campground entrance.

Daniels said he hadn't let a car into the campground in a half-hour, but that spots would likely start to open once anglers down on the river landed their limit of three sockeye salmon. People just had to be patient, he said. Upon hearing the news, one angler about 20 cars back walked slowly back toward his pick-up truck to wait.

"Where else am I gonna go?" he asked.

Such is the allure of one of Alaska's most beloved fisheries, a road-accessible gem that tens of thousands of anglers descend upon every year in search of what's usually the first big sport fishery of the season.

Early on, the fishing was steady but not hot. Some anglers caught limits, others were skunked.

READ MORE: On Alaska's Kenai Peninsula, it's Russian River roulette