MT is correct Shee fish or Muskrat calls them Coni. They look like a tarpon and get river monster size. They are on their way back out to the ocean after spending the summer in the river. They are skinny now and not good eating. Kind of like a spawned out salmon. These will be dog feed. They come back from the ocean nice and fat staring around March. They are good eating then.



I keep an ample supply of both seal and whale when I can.

This is my snack tonight. Poke Herring.

That different than Canada, in the Mackenzie Delta Conni feed at the crek mouths and there meat gets good and solid. We mainly catch eating Conni by jiggling with stick and string. Makes good fish patties.

That's interesting Muskrat. Your Conni must be fresh from the ocean. Ours come in mostly during break up. Right after the ice goes out you can set net in flooded willow in the high water and load up with nice big fat ones long as your leg. I always wanted to try fish them with a rod and real and see if they bite.

The Yukon river is almost 2000 miles long, the ones that came in the spring and ran up it to their spawning lake, are just returning in the fall and early winter going back out to sea, noticeably skinnier. The meat is very mushy now I cant even give one away. Maybe fish patties like you said are the way to eat them then. Some are used for Agutuk here.

Thanks to all for your replies . smith

I haven't yet acquired the taste for frozen fish and seal oil. I do love me some moose dry meat with bear grease!

We catch sheefish in nets, but at times can do pretty good catching them at the mouth of a tributary. They are fun to catch with a rod and reel!

Yukonjeff we don't eat the mushy ones, only three ones with solid meat. I caught 4 with lots of worms. My brother said those are the best ones means they had been feeding at that creek long time. Most firm meat.

And here I was gonna send you a small jar of seal oil!!

The older, larger Shee spawn up rivers and return, the small, immature ones stay in our Kobuk delta and in the brackish Kobuk and Selawik lakes.

When we get them in our nets, they are on the bottom mesh's, so I figure they cruise the bottom.

Hey, long time no post here, but always a good read.

Caribou, biggest sheepish pics I've seen are always from Kobuk Lake ice fishing in April, maybe early may.

Martentrapper, here is a big shee and also a pike caught out of same hole 20 minutes apart on Kobuk lake April 7th a couple of years ago by the wife. As usual, she out fished me that day..

Caribou, what village you from? I work for Denny M out of Kotz. Do lots of electrical work in all the NW villages.

Awesome Steve. Who did you borrow snogos from to get out there?

I have a house in Noorvik, Trailblazersteve, a couple of my kids live there, we have a room locked up awaiting our return, someday around Xmas.
Your pictures look like you were fishing near the mouth of the little Noatak, or the other side, Napaktuktuk.

Heres me a month or so back, trying for Sii and Tomcods.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GKHjR6iAFw4

Last spring on Kobuk Lake;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqjHYjxI2iM

A couple older pix;
[img]https://hosting.photobucket.co...920&height=1080&fit=bounds[/img]

[img]https://hosting.photobucket.co...920&height=1080&fit=bounds[/img]

Caribou-Fished out by Denny’s dad Louie who lives out there full time. 10 miles out of Kotz. Work with Charles Lee and Jesse C. Spent a fall out in Noorvik a few years ago wiring the 6 new houses being built. We also went down river a hour and wired a lady’s cabin, think she owns a store there in Noorvik. Noorvik- beautiful but wild place lol. Also did houses in Shungnak, Buckland, Ambler, Kiana. Think Shungnak is my favorite so far. They have trees lol. And great people. Currently we are doing big projects, schools and clinics out of Nome and Bethel. Shishmaref, Eek, Nightmute and Wales. Interesting working the different villages. All with great people. But man, Noorvik, that one was a wild place lol.

Martentrapper- the company I work for is based out of Kotz. We have housing, trucks, equipment and sno go’s. But I do ship my own out every once in a while so I got my own “wheels”. Thinking about running the local race this spring and doing a little fishing.

caribou- just watched your videos and realized who you are. I visited with you while in Noorvik lol. Hope all is well with the fam!

I'll have to see yer face, trailblazer, and it'll come back to me....LOL! I never mind having visitors, they are few and far between.

For the last few years theres been a 'social media advisor' attached somewhere in my work contracts, so I dumped all social media outside of 1 gun forum, ( They are not very 'big' on guns) one Constitutional rights forum ( Hollywood has a problem with understanding that Hahhahah!!) and just posted Youtubes, mostly, when were not "working' .
The latest contract as no supervisors, so I decided I could participate here again without Hollywood wack jobs, fact checkers and anti's overlooking my every post.

Got a few friends in Shish. Have done a little hunting around there. Be sure and get out to Serpentine Hot Springs if your working in Shish. Depending on where the NW arctic bou herd ends up in winter there can be some awesome wolf hunting around Shish! If your still working there come spring..............Bear hunting!!

Man you guys are killing me with the sheefish pics! That fish has been at the top of my list for a long time. Need to make a trip out northwest to fish for them someday in the future.

Caribou I am sure having someone looking over your shoulder and dictating your life has to get old but I bet the money makes up for a little of it. Keep up the good work and good luck out there this winter!

Well, if anyone is serious and wants a few days of world class Sheefishing, jigging through the ice, you best come in April.
Thats when its starting to warm up a bit, the light is 24 hours and camping in a tent is easy.
We catch sled loads then.

We own property thats at the mouth of the Emonacov channel of the Kobuk River.
The property is bisected by both the river and the Arctic Circle.
Its due east of Kotzebue's Baldwin Peninsula.
Somebody who wants a few days of fishing could put a tent there if they didnt want to camp on the lake its self.
We let anyone camp there. There used to be quite few a people , but now only a few. The young folks want to sleep at home in a bed, I guess.

Someday, Im gonna put a cabin or two there for fishing's sake.

The hottest Shee fishing is about a mile out from there in Spring.
Later, in a boat with rods, at that mouth during and a little after Break up is when the egg fat Shee move into the river and go up to spawn.
During Summer, the immature Shee hang out at the rivers mouth and are caught on rod and reel or in smaller mesh nets.
In winter, we run 7 inch mesh nets under the ice for big ones.

Life is always better when no one is looking over yer shoulder.

Thanks for the trip ! Good pictures and video ! smith