DOLLY VARDEN

Most nonresident fishermen who come to the Kenai River are intent on catching salmon or big Rainbow Trout. Consequently, Dolly Varden have not received the attention they deserve here. To be sure, sportsmen target the Dollys in other watersheds, but the salmon and trout are so abundant in the mighty Kenai that the Dolly is sort of an afterthought here.

This relative lack of attention has been good for the Dollys of the Kenai. Most of those that are caught are released to grow bigger and fatter, and ever more beautiful. Really big Dollys, running six to seven pounds, are not uncommon here.

Be sure to mouse click on the picture to the right which will make it expand to its full size. I want you to get a better look at this gorgeous buck Dolly. This is a trophy in my book, even if it is just a medium-size one. Note his irridescent orange-pink spots, orange belly, and white stripes on the fins. In the spawning season, there is no prettier trout anywhere than a buck Dolly in all his spawning colors, in my opinion.

This great fish has been treated with contempt in the Lower 48, and has been pushed to the brink of extirpation there. Commonly referred to as the Bull Trout in the Lower 48, there used to be no bag limits, and fishermen would throw them up on the streambank to rot. They were regarded as trash fish competing with the Rainbow Trout for food and habitat. We now understand how wrongheaded this thinking was.

Fortunately, many Alaskans are more enlightened as to the true quality of the Dolly Varden, and adequate protections have been set up here in Alaska to ensure the long-term viability of this gorgeous fish.

Dollys are voracous feeders, and strong fighters. Small Dollies are outstanding table fare. Many people prefer their very firm, pale pink flesh to that of salmon. I personally only keep one or two per season, and those are ones that have been deeply hooked and most likely would die anyway. But they are always welcomed for dinner in our house.

But the true value of Dollys is their beauty. To catch one and be in awe of their exquisite form and color, and then to let it slip back into the water to go on and live its life cycle out in this primal river is a true joy. Like the Rainbow, Dolly's need to be protected from overharvest. They grow slowly, and can easily be overharvested. Thankfully, they are plentiful in the Kenai River. I hope they always will be. And I hope you catch a gorgeous buck Dolly, so you too can marvel at them, and marvel at the pleasure of releasing such a fine creature to live another day.