Workin’ the little rod on the Arolik. Photo: Cameron Miller UPDATE: Thanks for checking out this post in 2009. By 2012 spey fishing for trout had changed a bit, so we put out this post with an update on spey and switch fishing for trout as of 2012. Feel free to read on, though! We’ve…
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Spey
Spey Fishing for Trout, Part 1 – Why
Dec Hogan covers the Arolik, bank-to-bank. Photo: Cameron Miller Over the past few years, spey casting has become the method of choice in most fisheries around the world that involve presenting swung flies to anadromous fish. On the Kola Peninsula, and in Iceland, and on the Hoh River and in Tierra Del Fuego, anglers chase…
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Managing Running Line – 3 Simple Tips
Neat, tangle-free loops. Photo: Cameron Miller At Alaska West and BC West, we do a lot fishing with spey rods. There are a bunch of reasons that we like spey fishing – line control, less fatigue, the pure enjoyment of making a good cast, and the ability to cover a lot of water. Spey rods…
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Making T-14 Tips
“And then you color the front loop with a black Sharpie…” Photo: Cameron Miller When we fish the Kanektok and the Dean for kings and steelhead, most of the time we’re fishing Skagit-style spey lines with tips made of Rio T-14. T-14 is a very versatile material for constructing sinktips used when Skagit casting. The…
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Why We Like Spey Casting
An angler covers a lot of water without hurting his shoulders. Photo: Cameron Miller When it comes to fishing for kings on the Kanektok, or fishing for steelhead on the Dean, we really like Spey casting. Spey rods are getting a lot more popular these days. That being said, we hear from a lot of…
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Sage 8134-4 Z-Axis
Similar but different. Last year Sage released the 8129-4 Z-Axis spey rod, and it quickly became a popular choice for anglers looking for a powerful, versatile rod in a somewhat shorter format. In case you’re not familiar with Sage’s nomenclature, 8129-4 translates to “8 weight, 12 feet 9 inches, 4 piece”. This year Sage released…
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Steelhead Rig Roundup
Gear matters. Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve done a series of posts on how some expert steelhead anglers rig themselves when they fish two-handed rods for steelhead on the Dean River, our fishery at BC West. For a few different outlooks on steelhead fishing and a lesson in rigging two-handed rods, have a…
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Adam Tavender’s Steelhead Rig
Adam Tavender with some Dean chome. Photo: David Lambroughton Adam Tavender has been a part of Nakia Lodge on the Dean River since 1993. In early 2007, we at Deneki Outdoors had the good fortune to ‘take the torch’ from Adam and his wife Judy, and we now run the lodge as BC West. Having…
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King Rig Roundup
Kanektok Kings – an embarassment of riches. Over the past couple of months, we’ve posted the two-handed rigs of six guys who spend a lot of time at Alaska West swinging flies for king salmon. There’s a wealth of information, and a wide range of opinions, in these posts. If you’re headed to Alaska West…
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Ed Ward’s King Rig
This is the first picture ever taken of Ed when he wasn’t casting, or holding a chrome anadromous fish. Photo: Cameron Miller Ed Ward has been called many things. ‘Jedi knight’, ‘Zen master’, ‘Buddha’ and more all apply to Ed when speaking of anadromous fish, particularly when two-handed rods are involved. Ed is one of…
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