Alex Belonga with Straits On the Fly, Custom Flies, and contributor to Deneki Outdoors gives us some insight and things to consider when tying flies. Alex started tying flies after he received a fly tying vise for his birthday. Since then, he’s been all in. After posting some of his work online, He’s been noticed…
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Alaska West
Fish Diaries: Want To Be a Better Angler? Start Journaling
Many of us have had written in diaries as a kid. But let’s face it, it is hard to be still and collect thoughts, let alone write them down nowadays. We are inundated with distractions and bombarded with email, text, and the internet. Shoot, you probably got distracted a couple of times while reading this…
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Fly Tying: Pot Bellied Pig
What seems many years ago now, I booked my first steelhead trip in British Columbia. Having asked my good friend Brian Niska what sort of patterns I would need for the trip, he gave me several colour combinations rather than patterns. So I decided to do those colour combinations in an Atlantic Salmon pattern style…
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Deneki Chronicles: Spey Casts You Need to Learn
When it comes to Spey casting, everyone has their “go-to” cast. Your go-to cast is probably the first Spey cast you learned, and since you got good at it, you’ve built confidence, you stuck with it. We get it. We’ve been there too. The reality is mother nature, and the river itself can put you…
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Featured Photographer: Matt Vaughn
The fly rod and reel don’t make the fly angler, but the person behind it does. The same is true for photographers. It’s not the camera, but the person behind it. Fly Fishing and Photography go hand in hand, and many professional photographers who fly fish more than appreciate coming to Alaska for the opportunity…
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Alaska King Salmon: Go West
Prized for its size, power, and ability to put on a hurtin’ on any angler, King Salmon is one of the most coveted game fish in the world. During Prime Weeks at Alaska West Lodge, you have the opportunity to land this prizefight. Lucky for you, there are still Prime King Salmon Weeks available. Don’t…
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Fly Tying: Perpetrator
The perpetrator is developed initially for Steelhead in the PNW. Since then, this uber buggy fly has been adapted for trout, either nymphing or with trout Spey. The smaller profile and lightweight make for good use with small rods and get big fish to perpetrate. With many color options, this fly is very adaptable for…
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Deneki Chronicles: Spey Casting and Hand Position
Brian Niska’s series of spey casting tips continues today, with some great discussion on hand position. This is one of our favorites! Reduce Fatigue and Increase Speycasting Performance with Proper Hand Position Proper hand position will enable you to utilize the larger joints to develop power for the speycast, thereby reducing fatigue and increasing casting…
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Alaska West: Bucket List
Did you know the term “bucket list” didn’t exist until the 2007 movie The Bucket List, starring Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman? Don’t believe it? Google it. If you’re convinced you have used the expression “bucket list” before then, you’re probably wrong. Even the brains at Oxford English Dictionary agree it was “popularized by the…
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Deneki Chronicles: Spey Fishing for Trout – Tactics
In this week’s Deneki Chronicles we revisit Spey Fishing Tactics for Trout, specifically patterns. Give it a read before your trip to Alaska to tag some Big Rainbow Trout. Trout spey tactic #427: Put the wood to ’em. Photo: Cameron Miller In the past couple of weeks we’ve covered why we think you should…
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