Category Archives: Northwest
Dries For Big Rainbows and Char on American Creek
I live in Montana where trout are king. When I travel to Alaska I usually do so for salmon and steelhead, which I can’t find in Big Sky Country. Oh, I’ve leeched up some big fall rainbows on the Kenai … Continue reading
Posted in Alaska, Spey, Travel
Tagged Alaska smolt, Grosvenor Lodge, Kulik Lodge, Travel Alaska
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Final Determination: Pebble Mine Ruled Out
This is the day we have been waiting for, for more than a decade. Today, the Environmental Protection Agency announced that mine waste would harm the Bristol Bay watershed and effectively nixed its discharge into rivers, streams and wetlands of … Continue reading
Posted in Alaska, Northwest
Tagged Alaska, Bristol Adventures, Bristol Bay, Grosvenor Lodge
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New Sea Run Cutthroat Research
Anyone who’s followed Angler’s Tonic over the years knows that I appreciate sea run cutthroat trout and consider them to be an extremely overlooked fish. Just last year I caught some of the largest sea runs of my life, fish … Continue reading
Olympic Peninsula to Close For Steelhead March 1
This should not arrive as any surprise. Washington State blew up its ability to manage wild steelhead when the 1974 Boldt Decision went into place. Wild steelhead populations declined immediately. Hatchery steelhead production shot through the roof. Tribes destroyed what … Continue reading
Southeast Alaska Steelhead . . . Thanks Alaska Style
Back in April I flew from Missoula to Petersburg, Alaska—my old stomping grounds and the place I was born—and climbed aboard the mothership, the Hawkeye II. The idea was to cruise a portion of the Inside Passage with Thanks Alaska, … Continue reading
Posted in Alaska, Northwest, Spey
Tagged Hawkeye II, southeast Alaska, Thanks Alaska
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New Washington State Coastal Steelhead Rules Restrict Anglers To The Banks
If you want to see a great example of poor fish and wildlife management, you don’t have to look further than Washington State’s Department of Fish and Wildlife. The mess started back in 1974 with the historic Boldt Decision, which … Continue reading
Posted in Conservation, Culture, Northwest, Spey, Washington
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Army Corps Denies Permit for Pebble Mine. Alaska’s Bristol Bay May Be Saved
It’s not over, but the edge in Alaska’s Pebble Mine controversy has definitely swung toward the side of common sense. Today, the Trump administration shifted its stance on Pebble Mine and delayed a key permit that’s essential to the mine’s … Continue reading
Posted in Alaska, Conservation, Northwest, Uncategorized
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You Have To Do This! Last Chance to Save Bristol Bay from Pebble Mine.
I’d rather fish than defend fisheries, although the two go hand-in-hand and you can’t have one without the other. That becomes more evident each day. One of the greatest issues in fishing is the proposed Pebble Mine in Alaska. This … Continue reading
Posted in Alaska, Conservation, Culture
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Fishing the Backcountry? Big Agnes Tent Serves Well
If you haven’t been up in the high country, or far back on a trout stream this summer, you’re running out of time. Realize, some of the best fishing experiences aren’t found while riding down one of the major rivers … Continue reading
Tactics to Catch Steelhead on Bright Days
I was going to wait, and run this post later in July, but I’m starting to hear of some steelhead coming up for skaters on a few Columbia River tributaries and figured, Why not now? Here goes: A lot of … Continue reading