Alaska Fly Fishing

Drift Alaska Charters offers fly fishing for rainbow trout, Dollie Varden, and sockeye salmon, which are all native to the Kenai River. We fish the Upper, Middle and Lower Kenai River, depending on where the fish are. The Kenai River hosts two types of Rainbow trout- transient and resident rainbow trout; we target the transient Rainbow trout which is the largest. They spawn below Kenai Lake (Upper Kenai) or Skilak Lake (Middle Kenai) in early May and then work their way down towards the mouth of the Kenai River in search of spawning salmon to eat.

Our trout season starts the first day of August on the Lower Kenai River after both King salmon runs have ended. We follow the Rainbow Trout and Dollie Varden up the Kenai River and by mid-October the majority of the rainbows are back below the lakes where they started. They spend the winter here and spawn again in the spring. It is not uncommon to catch 8-10 lb (18-22”) trout and some even exceed 20 lbs (over 30’).

We use a selection of different flesh flies but the majority of fishing is done with beads of all different colors and sizes which reflect what the trout would normally be feasting on at that very moment. It is crucial to stay on top of the spawning cycle of salmon as it can change daily. That’s why you put your trust in Drift Alaska Charters to keep you on top of the fish.

We supply our anglers with the best fishing gear and tackle. We fish trout using GLoomis GL3 7-weight fly rods with ROSS Evolution reels. The salmon are fished with GLoomis GL3 9-weight with ROSS Big Games reels. If you are not a fly rod fisherman we supply GLoomis ultra light spin rods with Shimano reels.

The Kenai River trout fishery is catch and release only but you can keep the memory of your fish with a photo. Your guide will pull the boat to the side of the river to measure the fish and help you take a picture of your trophy.