Love tying flies? We do too. And if you’re anything like us, that means there’s a good chance that you’re tying space is a mess. Sound about right? We thought so. Fret not, no matter how cluttered your tying space is, we’d be willing to bet we’ve seen worse. Trust us, the images of tying…
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Search Results for: houska
5 Common Traits of Great Fly Casters
Most anglers want to be better casters. Whether you’re just beginning or have been fly fishing your entire life, there’s always room for improvement. The greatest casters on earth will tell you the same thing. The greatest anglers on earth will also tell you that casting is not fishing, and thus great casting is not…
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Choosing the Right Fly
Choosing the right fly is important. Having confidence in the fly you choose is even more important. That said, it’s hard to have confidence in the fly you choose, if you’re not selecting flies based on, at the very least, an educated guess. Whoa. Well then how exactly do you choose the right fly? We’ve…
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Happy Halloween
Corpses, zombies, rotting flesh, skeletons.. While that might sound like October 31st to most, that sounds more like August in our neck of the woods. Each summer, towards to end of our season at Alaska West, thousands upon thousands of salmon complete their life cycle, littering the banks in an image that more closely resembles…
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Happy Hump(y) Day
Because after flipping through some of our photos from the summer season, we couldn’t help ourselves but share this photo of Alaska West guide, Greg Houska, hoisting a humpy caught by Joseph Sherley-Dale. Happy hump day everyone! We hope this photo gets you through the rest of work week. More on Salmon Fishing Popper Fishing…
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Spey Rods for King Salmon – Our Favorites
Spey fishing for king salmon is not for the light hearted. It puts rods, reels, lines, knots, and mental toughness to the test. It’s not uncommon for one (or more) of the aforementioned to break, and more often than not, its the latter. However, today we’re not talking about broken hearts, we’re talking about rods…..
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Spey Fishing – Pulsing the Swing (Video)
The “tug” might be the “drug,” but most anglers would agree that a tug that stays attached is ideal. Unfortunately, when swinging flies for salmon and steelhead, that’s not always the case. Quick strikes, followed by an unanswered swing, are common when spey fishing, and can be frustrating at the very least. So what do…
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Spey Casting – Top Three Tips
Whether we’re searching for steelhead on the Dean, swinging flies for kings on the Kanektok, or soaking sculpins for massive Naknek rainbow trout, we do a lot of spey fishing at our lodges. Therefore, as you might expect, we give our share of spey instructions as well, and today we share with you a few…
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Hooligan
Believe it or not, the first anadromous species to enter our river system at Alaska West each spring are known as eulachons, or ‘hooligans’ as we commonly call them. We aren’t positive, but aside from resident baitfish and the occasional rodent, it’s a pretty safe bet that these anadromous smelt are the first major protein…
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Good Vibes Catch More Fish
It goes without saying, but time on the water yields plenty of time to ponder, and one thing we’ve noticed throughout countless days of watching other people fish is that good vibes catch more fish. No, we’re not paraphrasing Thoreau here, or spouting cliches like, “it’s about the journey, not the destination.” On the contrary,…
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