If you are a fishing guide there might be no quicker way to go from hero to zero than messing up a net job on a client’s fish. But if you fish enough and you have to use a net to land fish you are bound to screw it up now and then, no matter…
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Alaska West
Gear Review: Vedavoo Rod Quiver
Destination fishing for fly anglers is awesome. If you have never fished waters where you have to fly to get there, you should do it. It’s a hoot. For those of us who have done it once, twice, or multiple times, you know packing correctly is a burden. You spend a lot of time debating…
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Save Bristol Bay Guide Ambassadors
Save Bristol Bay Guide Ambassadors share season recaps with Trout Unlimited The team at Deneki Outdoors is committed to conservation, especially in the places where we operate and take you fishing. For our lodges in southwest Alaska, that commitment is personal and we’ve consistently partnered with groups like Trout Unlimited who have been working with local businesses and communities to fight the…
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Guide’s Corner: Rick Sisler
“Wyatt Earp,” “Mr. Clean” “Crash” “Sizzler” are all nicknames for our current operations manager at Alaska West, Rick Sisler. With over 16 years of guiding experience, Rick is an integral part of our team at Deneki Outdoors and the foundation at our Alaska West Lodge. Rick first moved up to Alaska via Oregon after high…
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Visualizing Sink Tips
In the world of Spey casting making sure you’re using the right sink tip, let’s be honest is confusing. There are a variety of lengths, sink rates, density, and style of sink tip, and trying to match the right sink tip, to the river your fishing and your own preference can be a daunting task….
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Guide Speak Glossary: Alaska West Edition
In our second edition of Guide Speak we visit Alaska West on the Kanektok. The Kanektok is many a fly fisherman’s mecca, or summit, so to speak. It’s also a place that makes coming up with new fishing oriented words and phrases quite easy due to the intense focus on fishing and lodge life. With…
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Indicate or Not to Indicate, that is the Question.
Regardless of how you feel about strike indicators, there is no doubt that a strike indicator will help a new fly fisher catch more fish by visually learning current speed, reading seams, and gauging the depth of the water. However, if you’re not careful, the strike indicator can develop into a crutch for a new…
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Deep Thoughts on Landing Nets
Landing nets just don’t get the deep thoughts and contemplation that may be given to other parts of a fisher person’s arsenal. That’s unfortunate since you are using that net to either catch and release or catch and harvest fish, and both of those activities should be done with the utmost care and forethought. If…
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Guide’s Corner: Ben West, Alaska West Head Guide
Unfortunately, I have only known Ben since the spring of 2019 when I came back to Alaska West as Operations Manager. It had been 7 years since I left Alaska West and for the most part, the crew was entirely new to me, but something about the attitude of this staff made it seem as…
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Timeless Tip: Remove a Wind Knot in your Leader
It’s inevitable. If you do any sort of casting your leader or tippet will eventually fall victim to a wind knot that will weaken your line. If you’ve ever lost a fish because your leader snapped at a wind knot, we know the feeling. Now, if you’re lucky enough to find a wind knot near…
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