At Alaska West, we have the pleasure of closing out our season with truly prolific runs of silver salmon. Silvers get under the skin of many of our guests due to their strength, acrobatics, and willingness to grab a fly. However, contrary to popular belief, there are times when silver salmon are reluctant to eat…
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Alaska West
Painting Beads for Trout
Targeting trout with beads might be one of the most debated techniques in our sport. Whether or not you find it fly fishing in the purest form or not, the truth is they work, and work well! Our Western Alaska Rainbows depend on the abundant, and highly nutritious salmon eggs throughout the season and there…
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Nice Fish, Eric
Eric Neufeld is one of a whole bunch of Alaska West alumni done good – he’s currently the Pacific Northwest sales rep for Simms, Winston, ECHO, Airflo, Umpqua and Nautilus. Whew. Back in 2007 he made a visit back to camp as a guest, and he caught a whole bunch of king salmon. Here’s one….
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Kyle Shea’s King Rig
As a guide at Alaska West, Kyle Shea gets to swing flies for king salmon in during his downtime. Here’s his rig of choice! The Summary Echo King 9130-4 Ross CLA # 7 Airflo Skagit Compact 660 The Detail 250 yards of 30 lb. Dacron backing, wrapped 4-5 times around the spool and tied with…
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Picture Perfect
It’s a picture that looks like a painting! Perfect virgin gravel on the Kanektok River at Alaska West, circa 2004. More Cool Pictures from Alaska At the Ready Go Make Babies We Have Liftoff
Slow Your Swing Down First
When you’re swinging flies for steelhead or salmon, there are times when ‘the perfect swing’ doesn’t elicit the response you were hoping for. We’ve all been there, right? Perhaps the presentation goes unnoticed through the bucket, or you feel the slightest hint of a grab, but no fish to follow. Your first thought might be…
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Have You Ever Seen a More Heavily Spotted Trout?
Check out the lower jaw, the leading edges of the fins, the eyeball for goodness’ sake! This has to be one of the most gorgeous rainbow trout we’ve seen at Alaska West. More Beautiful Alaska West Trout Really Rad Rainbows CSP with an Early-Season Dandy Photo Contest Winner
Cotton Swab Tube Flies
We fish a lot of tube flies at Alaska West, especially when targeting fish on the swing. While there a lot of different tube materials out there marketed by various fly tying companies, when you tie as many flies as we do over the course of the season, sometimes the cheapest option is best. Next time you are…
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Kyle Shea’s Nymphing Rig
Have you noticed lately that a bunch of the posts on our blog have been tagged ‘Kyle Shea‘? That’s because Kyle has been writing a bunch of posts lately! Kyle cut his teeth fishing and guiding for trout and salmon in his home waters of Maine. He now spends his summers guiding on the Kanektok…
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Nice King, Whitey
Spey fishing for king salmon is in our blood at Alaska West. Here’s Michael White with a Bush era king salmon – part of a session that could best be described as ridiculous. Nice king, Whitey. More on King Salmon at Alaska West Stand Your Ground King Salmon Mini Gallery Adjusting the Swing