Located in the remote Alaskan bush, Painter Creek Lodge is 400 miles south of Anchorage on the Alaskan Peninsula.
This place is legendary for its large trophy Arctic char population and their appetite for little fuzzy mouse-like creatures, called voles.
It seems they regularly dine on these hapless mousie things that somehow find themselves balls deep in char infested waters. There are very few things that get my heart pumping more than the sight of a large char waking behind my mouse fly! There is something very badass about a fish that eats small mammals for dinner.
It’s early fall here on the peninsula and the opportunistic char have made their way all throughout Painter Creek to eventually spawn, but for now, they’re fattening up on highly caloric foods like salmon eggs, sculpin, and voles.
If you’re a trout-setting maniac like me, you’ll have to practice patience when swinging your fly because char miss the fly – a lot!
You have to wait until you feel the fish before setting the hook. You don’t want to be the meatball in the fly line spaghetti if you don’t connect.
Photos courtesy of Gulf Coast Fly Fishing and Lisa Lowman. Check Brad out at gulfcoastflyfish.com.
https://flylordsmag.com/single-post/2018/06/04/lybalakh-in-search-of-giant-arctic-char/
https://flylordsmag.com/single-post/2018/02/12/photo-essay-fly-fishing-sitka-ak/
https://flylordsmag.com/single-post/2018/05/07/kundzha-unsung-heroes-kamchatka/
Last Updated on April 1, 2024 by Jared Zissu
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