I’ve been lucky to fish for steelhead from Alaska to California but there may not be a cooler venue to do so than in the Tongass National Forest with Chrome Chasers. Sight fishing for steelhead is the best way I know to up your game, as most of the time you’ll see the fish before casting and watch how they respond to the fly. I’ve learned much about Steelhead on my trips there through this observation, as well as the guides’ approaches to presentation. Best of all, you probably won’t see anyone else fishing, and Chrome Chasers has the tides and rivers dialed to put you on the best runs each day. You’ll see “neon blue” tide fish, chromers, and colored-up fish later in the season. Rick and Dori crush the accommodations and the meals- nightly fresh crab and spot prawns are an anticipated treat. If you’re looking for a top-notch steelhead trip, you’ll be blown away by the fishing and the incredible hospitality provided by Rick and Dori.

preconceptions and easily fall into ruts about what they seem to know about this stunning animal. We are all guilty of it, with our certain types of flies, particular colors or materials and methods. Pretty soon we become robots on the river. This trip may not be for everyone, but it is not about how physically difficult it can be, or how technically challenging or unorthodox this method may be, but instead, I would challenge that this trip is mostly for those of us who think we know what we are doing and are set in our ways. This program is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. If you approach it with an open mind and are willing to let go of your preconceptions for just a week, your mind will be completely blown away. Your understanding of steelhead will improve exponentially, as you see with your own eyes the habitual and quirky things that steelhead do with your “fly” in this intimate “cage” within the “pain forest”. You basically see behind the curtain. Rick is trying to protect this very delicate living laboratory. People need to understand that everything they do is from a sustainability platform, He has a very difficult job, of enlightening a select few while guarding this from the masses who would inevitably destroy it.  

Rick, Dori and Chris are an amazing trio, brilliant, tough, genuine, passionate and most of all, just wonderful people. Everyone who pursues steelhead, should be as lucky as I am for picking the golden ticket on this trip.

What Chrome Chasers is doing with their spring steelhead program is truly special, which is why most of their anglers are repeat visitors, myself included.  

The lodge, the food, the boat, the fishing... everything is completely dialed in, and of course, the setting is nothing short of incredible.  Wrangell is already an isolated place, yet once you leave the harbor you still have anywhere from a 30-minute to an hour run to get to that day's creek, and you probably won’t see another boat the entire time.  You’ll anchor, get in the jet-powered zodiac, and rip across mud flats to land on an uninhabited island, then hike up watersheds lined with old growth and soon find yourself sight-casting to steelhead that has never seen a human.  

There is a reason why very few outfits are doing anything even remotely like this - because it’s hard.  But, as with most things in life, difficulty ends up being a highly effective filter.  If it was easy, everyone would be doing it.  

About the fish, they are strong and aggressive and beautiful, sometimes colored up and sometimes two-tone chrome bright with sea lice still on them.  You’ll notice their traits and behavior can vary significantly from creek to creek, which speaks to the power of evolution and the flexibility and resilience that make us love them.  It’s also worth appreciating the expertise that Rick brings to the table with his decades of experience in the region.  It’s not an exaggeration to say that he has probably spent more time observing these Tongass rainforest steelhead than anyone else on Earth, and his knowledge of them ranges from the practical to the historical to the scientific.  Ask him about trying to convince ADFG that these populations actually existed, or his recent experience working with the Wild Salmon Center on genetic sampling.  Rick is the real deal, and his stellar reputation as a guide and also as a steward of these special fish is well deserved.  I can’t wait to come back.

The fellas at Chrome Chasers provide such a unique experience in Alaska! Having grown up fishing for steelhead in Northern California, this was unlike anything I had ever done. Not only was the fishing superb, if one river was blown out or didn’t have fish in it, we were quickly able to make a change and check out another stream. Rick’s knowledge of the islands, rivers, and ocean was top-notch. From dropping shrimp and crab pots in the morning, to running up rivers in jet boats and hiking the most gorgeous rainforest you will ever see, the memories stick out vibrantly. The fish are not always easy, the wading and hiking can be strenuous, but it is well worth the effort for the rewards.

For anyone looking for adventure with more wildlife than people, I would highly recommend Chrome Chasers for your next trip!

I have had the good fortune to fish for steelhead in this area for over 15 years and I didn't start out using Chrome Chasers, but I no longer use anybody else.  The time and effort they have put in, truly understanding these unique fish and their returns from the salt is impressive.  It is the only place I know of where you can watch steelhead arrive into the first freshwater pool of a river, with the high tide.  In fact, they are so fresh, that they really have yet to even start to look like steelhead, as they are still "purple!"

If you truly want to experience the speed and power of truly fresh steelhead, then this is simply where and with whom you need to fish

Rick, thanks for a great trip! I can’t begin to get all of my impressions down, even nearly a year after coming home. I think that any angler with an open mind that truly loves wild steelhead for not only what they are, but also where they live, and is interested in seeing those unique places that steelhead thrive, as well as learning new techniques to fish for them effectively, owes it to themselves to fish southeast Alaska with Chrome Chasers. My mind wandered to the summer run fish of my home waters in the Columbia Basin and the winter run fish of the bigger Oregon coastal rivers as I sat on shore and watched you and Nick dissect the technical drifts of the first pool above tidewater on Mystery River X. It was, and still is, incredible to think that steelhead are able to adapt to and thrive in so many unique places and that we as anglers can adapt our tackle and techniques to suit each environment. Fishing with Chrome Chasers was truly an eye opening experience for me. The fresh crab and shrimp at dinner each night wasn’t bad either!