Angler's Alibi Lodge - Alaskan Fly Fishing only “SURE THING”?

There is obviously no such thing as a “sure thing” in destination fishing options on a global point of view- but we truly believe we are getting close!  The key is to have options and options abound at Angler’s Alibi Lodge!

No one wants to get burned by bad weather or a “blown out” river on a trip of a lifetime. I know firsthand! Last year I spent a full week in remote British Columbia and only had ONE half day of fishable water and not only was it remote – it was also very expensive! Oof!  Wind can have the same effect on saltwater destination trips with pristine flats that suddenly look like a muddy ocean!
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However, we feel that our secluded location in Bristol Bay on the Alagnak River gives us what we think is as close to a “sure thing” as you will find in the entire state of Alaska!  Let me explain.

Many Alaska fishing lodges have days with no fishing because they simply cannot fly out to fish or there is too much wind or fog to fish their “home river”.  It happens. However, our location from June through September provides boat access fishing to over 60 miles of our remote river - so when flying out is not an option we can always find a secluded area to fish our home river.  Our “home river” is the Alagnak and it not only gets runs of all 5 species of salmon - but life changing trophy trout and grayling within a short boat ride in any kind of weather.  Even better, we can always zip back to the lodge for a hot lunch in front of a roaring fireplace.  The Alagnak can take a lot of rain and remain fish able.  In my 30+ years of guiding on it I have never had one day where our river was too dirty to fish or too high to wade.  This is a huge benefit considering the large financial and time investment one makes when flying all the way to a remote location in Alaska.

We only take a small number of anglers every week in July and August (12 guests), and this allows for a more personal schedule with our guide staff, and we alternate guides daily to keep the chemistry fresh with both the guests and guides.  It’s truly a win/win and one of the many things that keeps us with a 85% return rate of guests.  Additionally, there are lots of upgrades in 2025! We are adding 6 genuine log cabins with full bathrooms.  These cabins will all have views of the river, large, covered porches, heat, and endless hot water in the showers.  Our custom handmade sauna is a short walk from all the cabins as it sits centered below them with a large window view of the river and is a popular pre-dinner gathering spot – especially when the temperatures start to dip.   Trust me, there is nothing like a wood fired sauna to warm up after a cold day of fishing!

Also new in 2025, we are hosting weeks with an 8 guests maximum AND unlimited fly-outs for the week with our own Beaver float plane at the dock! This is huge!  Two weeks in June and most of September we will be a full-on fly-out lodge for a cost that is the best value in the industry.  We do not pride ourselves on a wine room or what kind of high stem wine glasses we provide for our guests but instead want to appeal to the more hardcore anglers that would like to do this kind of trip but don’t want to break the bank doing it. Our meal program is on par with any of the lodge’s that are in the $15,000 plus for the week range!  Ironically, we fish the same waters they do!  We have been doing these flyouts for over 30 years and have established not only the exact location of where, but more importantly the when to go for peak fishing.   With a guide staff that has a combined tenure of over 90 years in the Bristol Bay region, we can confidently say we have the most talented and tenured guides employed.  And, if our guests simply cannot fly due to a low cloud ceiling or high winds - we also have jet boats at the dock ready to target our own river for true trophy trout.  This is something we have started doing the past several Septembers when the silver salmon run begins to wane, and the rainbow trout are as big as they will get for the season!
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We hope the new changes will create additional clients that feel more like “family” after several seasons of annual trips to Angler’s Alibi.  Hope to see your next summer!

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About the Author

John Perry grew up in Michigan on an island called Grosse Ile, in the mouth of the Detroit River and Lake Erie. It was here, surrounded by great fishing and waterfowl hunting that John developed a passion for the outdoors. John moved to Colorado to chase trout in the summers and ski patrol in the winters. John had the privilege to start guiding for Angler’s Alibi with his fly fishing mentor TR Rafferty the second year it was in business. He left a head guide job in Colorado to pursue bigger and better fish.