Alaska Trip Help (updated with trip report pics)

[AZ RANGER]

I am planning a trip with my son for his 12th birthday around August 1st this summer. The budget is going to be pretty tight but the main goal is to fly fish as much as possible. So far my plan is to fly in and rent a suburban or similar vehicle that we can sleep in the back of to save on lodging. I would love to do a float trip for a few days but that gets expensive pretty quick. I have heard that walk in access to some of the rivers can get pretty crowded.

 

I am looking for any advice on where to go, things to do or see, suggestions for gear, anything really that would help with the trip. I'm probably going to fly into Anchorage but i'm open to other parts of the state too.

 

Any Alaska experts on here?

 

Thanks

 

[Green Bullet]

take it with the grain of salt, but i was in alaska last year on a guys salmon and halibut fishing trip....and that time of year fly fishing isn't where it's at to catch fish. you're either snagging reds or back trolling for kings. if you want to hit alaska and catch the king/red run then that is totally cool and can be done on a pretty tight budget (less airfare and car rental which will cost you at least two grand i reckon...plus food, plus the cost to ship your fish back to AZ) there are plenty of spots to shore fish on the kenai or russian (or you can ask a guy to drop you on spots and pick you up for cheap) and you'll get into the reds/sockeyes assuming the run is good....as you said it's kind of combat fishing...but when they're running as long as you have a spot on the water you can catch em.

 

you can get a guide and go for kings but that'll probably cost you a few hundred per person per day (probably more like $400+). you can also get on a halibut charter and even though it's only two of you they will group you up with others (we had 8 fisherman on our boat including 2 outsiders)...i don't recall exact costs but you're probably looking at a few hundred there as well.

 

if fly fishing is what you're after i bet there are a bunch of better options in colorado where you won't blow $1200 on airfare.

 

i have a 12 year old son as well and i honestly wouldn't take him to alaska until he's in his teens due to the investment....but more importantly, i wouldn't put him through a camping type scenario for an extended period of time that far from home because that gets kind of old after a while (a nice shower and shitter is priceless).

 

bottom line, even doing alaska cheap will run you close to three grand per person all in. If you're going to do it, save up the money and do it right....it truly is an amazing experience and i definitely will be going back (it's kind of an every 3 year deal in my opinion vs every year).

[pwrguy]

I've been up there a couple of times. DIY fishing is pretty limited in my experience. Anywhere there is fish that you can drive to will be wall to wall people. The best experiences up there are with guides and boats and airplanes and like Green Bullet said $350 to $500 per day per person. Much better budget options in the lower 48. I had a friend that used to go up there on a regular basis to fly fish but they would fly to some remote place and stay in a lodge for 5-7 days and spend like $5000 each

[trphyhntr]

since were talking OP out of going to alaska i say go to cabo and fly fish roosters

[Zeke-BE]

Been there and loved it!! But I agree with all the comments. I went up for just one all day fishing trip charter. With airlines, charter, rentals, shipping, it was a min of $2000( plan on almost 850-1000 dollars a day by the time the trip is over). There really isn't alot of back roads like they have in the lower 48. My whole drive from Anchorage to Seward (3 hour drive) I swear I only saw maybe 5 dirt roads off the side. Its thick and wet. I would try other places like said above. Maybe save a little more and make it an awesome trip.

[Non-Typical Solutions]

 

1993 wedding anniversary celebration!

Knew a friend who knew a friend and we stayed in a dive trailer on Kodiak island! Drove all 36 miles of road on the island! Fished coves and chartered a guide for halibut! Had a blast! $120 bucks for the day!

Probably out dated information but dang your question brought back some great memories!

[AZ RANGER]

Thanks for the info guys. Keep the suggestions coming. I was hoping to be able to park and hike a couple miles in to get away from the crowds but maybe thats not realistic.

I didnt envision Alaska being wall to wall people. That sucks.

As far as camping with the boy goes Im not worried about shower and shitter issue too much. My son is pretty outdoor hardened and will feel right at home. And we may grab a room here and there if needed.

 

If I were to budget a little more to make it an awesome trip and get further into the backcountry does anyone have suggestions on the best way to do this or outfitters to use. A 3-4 day float trip would be awesome.

 

We really want to do Alaska but we may resort to the lower 48 or Cabo haha.

[PRDATR]

Sent you a PM

[Green Bullet]

Don't forget the bears! We had them 20 yards from us eating salmon working their way up a creek. The pic of hte fisherman in line gives you a sense on what it's like on the kenai...except plan for triple worse lol. We had a boat drop us off each day in an inaccessible area so it wasn't bad for us.

 

We absolutely crushed it on halibut...we had a 500+ pound stringer.

[Latestartchase]

Pm sent

[tomharveyb]

$1300 will get you flowin in from Anchorage to a river within an hour flyong time. Includes flight, pickup, camp gear. You buy license and get to Anchorage. Great way to get away from crowds but is very weather dependant. Too much rain- high,fast water. Too little rain and you're dragging your raft half the way. Done it 5x and had some great trips and some where water was way too high and fast.

[AZ RANGER]

Don't forget the bears! We had them 20 yards from us eating salmon working their way up a creek. The pic of hte fisherman in line gives you a sense on what it's like on the kenai...except plan for triple worse lol. We had a boat drop us off each day in an inaccessible area so it wasn't bad for us.

 

We absolutely crushed it on halibut...we had a 500+ pound stringer.

The bears are definitely on my mind not sure how I feel about that yet. I keep telling myself its like the way people not from Arizona freak out about rattle snakes when in reality they are not that big of a deal.

 

I have no desire to combat fish like in the last pic looks awful. After talking to another member Im strongly considering a trip in September to target rainbow rather than salmon. I really dont care so much about the salmon runs as I do just having a cool Alaska experience. Big rainbows would be awesome.

Thanks for the reply

[AZ RANGER]

$1300 will get you flowin in from Anchorage to a river within an hour flyong time. Includes flight, pickup, camp gear. You buy license and get to Anchorage. Great way to get away from crowds but is very weather dependant. Too much rain- high,fast water. Too little rain and you're dragging your raft half the way. Done it 5x and had some great trips and some where water was way too high and fast.

This intrest me a lot. Do you have more info on the specifics?

Thanks

[tomharveyb]

 

$1300 will get you flowin in from Anchorage to a river within an hour flyong time. Includes flight, pickup, camp gear. You buy license and get to Anchorage. Great way to get away from crowds but is very weather dependant. Too much rain- high,fast water. Too little rain and you're dragging your raft half the way. Done it 5x and had some great trips and some where water was way too high and fast.

This intrest me a lot. Do you have more info on the specifics?

Thanks

 

google alaska float trips-lots of fly in outfitters, our best trip was the Taluchalitna River and we used

Sportsmans Air Service. The $1300 is per person.

[AZ RANGER]

Cool thx