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The Chena is a popular catch & release grayling stream that runs through the second largest city in Alaska, Fairbanks. It's also the site of the Troutnut's Ph.D. research on juvenile Chinook salmon. There's easy access to good grayling water all along Chena Hot Springs Road for 15-20 miles in the river's upper reach.

Arctic grayling in the 16-inch range are easy to come by, and grayling above 18 are possible in a good day. The better-than-average size and numbers here can be attributed to the catch-and-release-only regulations that have been in place since the 90s. Grayling are very slow-growing fish that can live for decades, and in a river so close to town and with such easy access the population of big fish dwindles quickly if people are allowed to keep them. The maximum size here does not match the monster grayling of Alaska's west coast, but this is as good a grayling fishery as any on the Alaskan road system.

Although the Chena holds both Chinook and Chum salmon, the fishery for them does not match what outsiders picture when they think of Alaska salmon fishing. The river is only open to salmon fishing in its deep, slow, meandering lower miles, where fly fishing, sight fishing, and wading are all difficult. It's mostly the domain of bait and lure fishermen in boats, and the good fishing for them only lasts a week or two as the main pulse of salmon blows through to their spawning grounds in the upper river, which is closed for salmon.

Landscape & scenery photos from the Chena River

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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJun 30, 2007
Date AddedJul 18, 2007
AuthorTroutnut
CameraPENTAX Optio WPi
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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJun 30, 2007
Date AddedJul 18, 2007
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon EOS 20D
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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
View Full SizeView Full Size and Comment (2.6X larger)
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From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
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This nice grayling (about 17 inches) was the lone resident of a deep, practically still-water pool in a low-flow side channel of the upper river. I coaxed it out with a risky sidearm cast into a narrow window under some low-hanging brush, a feat about which I must brag to make myself feel better about my next several attempts at impressive casts, all of which resulted in wading across the river and spoiling the pool to retrieve the fly from a tree. From the Chena River in Alaska.
This nice grayling (about 17 inches) was the lone resident of a deep, practically still-water pool in a low-flow side channel of the upper river.

I coaxed it out with a risky sidearm cast into a narrow window under some low-hanging brush, a feat about which I must brag to make myself feel better about my next several attempts at impressive casts, all of which resulted in wading across the river and spoiling the pool to retrieve the fly from a tree.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
View Full SizeView Full Size and Comment (2.6X larger)
Add
From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 2, 2013
Date AddedJul 13, 2013
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon PowerShot D10
View Full SizeView Full Size and Comment (2X larger)
Add
From the Chena River in Alaska.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJun 30, 2007
Date AddedJul 18, 2007
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon EOS 20D
View Full SizeView Full Size and Comment (2.5X larger)
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Flies and fly tying materials converge on a moose's butt. From the Chena River in Alaska.
Flies and fly tying materials converge on a moose's butt.
StateAlaska
LocationChena River
Date TakenJul 25, 2007
Date AddedMay 9, 2011
AuthorTroutnut
CameraCanon EOS 20D
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