Fishingaplacehardlyanybodyeverfishesmakesfishinga
wholedi erentsport.
Andeven inAlaska, goodfishingholesaccessiblebyboat
orfloatplaneattractcrowds—orwhatpass forcrowds ina
statewithmore than730,000 inhabitants inaspacea third
thesizeof thecontinental48.Buthelicopters landeasily in
placesnosanefixed-wing jockeywouldevenconsider.
“Therearea lotof lodgesanda lotof tra
c,”Millersays.
“Withahelicopteryoucanhavewatersbyyourself,which is
whypeoplewant tocome toAlaska.”
Justa fewminutes’flight fromMiller’sTalaheimLodge
in the tracklesswilderness80airmilesnorthwestofAn-
choragearehundredsofmilesofgin-clearstreams teeming
withseveralvarietiesofsalmon, rainbow trout, arcticgray-
ling,northernpike, andothergamefish thatgrow to trophy
sizewithouteverbeingo eredafly.Thecombination is
addictive,he testifies. “Onceyougohelicopter,”Millerprom-
ises, “you’llnevergoback.”
Andheli-fishingo ersmorethanjustphenomenalscenery,
solitude,andtherealistichopeofspendingmoretimecatching
thanjustfishing.Thespeedandverticaltakeo and landingof
thehelicoptersusedforbackcountryoperationsmeanyoucan
fishalldayinaspotmilesfromthenearestbedwithouthaving
tospendthenightcamping.
MikeOvercast,whoownsandoperatestheTordrillo
MountainLodge,whichat15milesaway isconsideredanext-
doorneighbortoTalaheimbyAlaskanstandards, sayshis
heli-fishingtourscanbesetuptodropguestsataspot inthe
morningandpickthemup intheafternoon.They’llbebackat
the lodge inplentyoftime foragourmetdinner,withsoftbeds
atevening’send.
Helicoptersalso letanglershitseveraldi erentspots for
brieferperiodsoverthecourseoftheday.Thismeansaguest
canfishrivers, lakes,andtheoceanonasinglevisit.Withouta
helicopter,experiencingthatmuchvarietymighthavetaken
several tripsoverasmanyyears. “Themoretimeyouspend in
helicopters, themoreyouunderstandtheyaretheultimate for
entrytothebackcountry,especially inAlaska,”Overcastsays.
Inaddition toAlaska,heli-fishing isavailable inBritish
Columbia,whererotating-wingaircraft takeguests tofish
forsteelheadonCanadianrivers;NewZealand,where the
biggestfishare foundhighup in themountains; inChile’s
Patagonia; andon thesalmonriversofRussia’sFarEast.
Asageneral rule, though,helicopterswillnot takeyou to
fishingholes thatyoucanget tobyothermeans, suchasby
boatorfloatplane.Onereason isthecost. “Nothing involving
helicopters isgoingtobecheap,”observesJimKlug,ownerof
Montana’sYellowDogFlyfishingAdventures,who includesa
fewdozenheli-fishing junketseachyearamongthethousands
ofotheranglingtourshebooks.
Talaheimcharges$6,800peranglerforatypicalweeklong
visit, includingdailyhelicopterfly-outfishing.Aweekwander-
ingwiththeNomadsoftheSeasis$10,000.AtTordrillo,adayof
SPREAD:
© JIMKLUG-YELLOWDOG FLYFISHING ADVENTURES; INSETSCLOCKWISE FROM TOP:
© TALAHEIM LODGE& AIR TAXI;
© JIM KLUG-YELLOWDOG FLYFISHING ADVENTURES (2)
SUMMER2013
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