The Kenai River was black with bodies.

So many at times, it was all Steve Eachon and his sons could do to keep up with the fish practically flying out of the river.

"They were just pulling them in every cast," said Patti Eachon.

Good time for a family reunion, too.

Steve and Patti Eachon of Coeur d'Alene met with their four sons in Kenai, Alaska, July 19-22 and hit upon what was considered one of the largest sockeye runs ever.

"They say there's like six miles of solid sockeye coming up out of the ocean," Steve Eachon said.

According to the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, the latest estimate for the Kenai River sockeye run is about 6 million, down a bit from the first projection of 6.7 million issued July 22.

That would rank anywhere from fourth to sixth for returns dating back to 1968. The all-time record for the Kenai River sockeye run is about 9.4 million in 1987.

The Eachons, Steve, along with Ben, Brandan, Andrew and Chris, cast their lines, while mom Patti watched, enjoyed and took pictures. Simply put, it was glorious.

Their most arduous task was releasing the ones they accidentally snagged.

"You can only keep ones hooked in the mouth," she said.

For the first two days, the limit was three sockeye per person. Because the river was thick with so many fish going through, it was raised to six.

"They were very successful days," Patti said. "We happened to be there at the right time."

It led to one of the most memorable fishing expeditions ever for the Eachons, a family that loves the outdoors and spending time together.

"It was like a memory trip," she said.

Patti, born and raised in Anchorage, suggested the outing as a family reunion before the sons diverge for school or work.

Andrew, 29, operates a health insurance business in Portland.

Chris, 27, is an X-ray tech at Kootenai Medical Center.

Ben, 24, graduated from Boise State University last year and will be attending Le Moyne College in Syracuse, N.Y., to study physical therapy.

Brandan, 20, works at Castaway Fly Fishing Shop in Coeur d'Alene and recently finished the carpentry program at North Idaho College.

The parents, Steve and Patti, are equally busy operating Western Tree Transplanting in Rathdrum.

"The kids are all ready to go off their ways, so it's hard for us to get together," Patti said.

But the idea of three days of fishing reeled each of them in. Who would turn down such a proposal?

"It was something we wanted to do one more time," Patti said.

Once they arrived at the Kenai River, they settled in on a sandbar and began casting.

With scores of sockeye rushing past, they quickly landed their quota each day, fish after fish weighing from eight to 12 pounds. They had never experienced anything like it before and likely never will again, said Patti, whose picture of her sons and husband with their day's catch ended up in the Anchorage Daily News.

The photo shows five smiling Eachons and 30 sockeye.

The best of times.

Even the weather, warm and sunny until midnight, cooperated.

"You don't get that very often," she said. "

They filleted the fish, divvied up the catch and headed their separate ways.

The "reds," Patti noted, are good eating.

They will return to Alaska, she hopes, next time in search of king salmon.

Until then, her pictures tell a wonderful story.

"It was a pretty special time," she said.