Enchanted Lake Lodge is one of the premier fly out lodges in the world. I am especially fond of this lodge as they are into rainbow trout as much as I am. The lodge has been in operation more than 45 years!
Your adventure starts in King Salmon, Alaska where you will be met by one of our pilots. He will help transfer your luggage to the Van and from the Van to the float plane on the Naknek river just a few minutes away. A 40 minute flight and you will be at the lodge. The next morning is what you have been waiting for:

With schedules set the previous evening everyone knows where they are going, what they need to bring and who they will be fishing with. We will awaken you each morning with a hot pot of coffee on your cabin doorstep before serving a hearty breakfast and fresh made pastries in the main lodge. After breakfast you will have half an hour to get your waders and gear on. At the dock you will meet your guide for the day who will load your gear onto one of our immaculately maintained DeHavilland Beaver floatplanes. Since we are so centrally located the flights are usually only 5-20 minutes long getting us on the rivers quickly. Our planes and pilots are the best in the business making the scenic flights fun, safe and a highlight for many guests.

Set within Katmai National Park on 54 acres of privately owned land, the lodge is ideally located for quick and easy access to the best streams and rivers of the Alaskan Peninsula. Built in 1961 and remodeled from the ground up in 2002 the lodge today provides unrivaled luxury in a remote wilderness setting. With no roads and the only available transport by float planes, the world-class lodge provides the perfect balance of comfort and service with adventure and wilderness.

Enjoy the view from the comfortable furniture while the fireplace warms the room. The complimentary bar is stocked with fine wine, beer and liquor. Relax and recount the day or start planning the next with your guide while appetizers are served. The large window-lined dining room provides a panoramic view of the surrounding beauty while dinner is served by our fine chefs. With a superb kitchen staff and fresh goods constantly brought in you can expect meals that match any fine restaurant.

More About the Lodge

Two decks provide spectacular views of Nonvianuk Lake and the Walatka Mountains on warm summer afternoons. Wind down in our wood stove sauna, hot after each days return. Each private guest cabin is comfortably furnished with private bathrooms, heaters and 24-hour electricity.

We pride ourselves on the amount of personal attention given to each guest. Our guides are the best in the business, and with only 12 guests per week and 6 experienced, professional guides, everyone’s safety and enjoyment are assured.

Lodge Photos

Here is a summary of the season past:

An especially warm spring meant most of the annual salmon fry migration was over by the time the season opened in early June. While the salmon fry fishing was not as good as it had been the year before, the incredible dry fly fishing all through June and July more than made up for it.

The Brooks River stood out as the highlight of the summer, with an unbelievable number of fish being caught daily, even by Alaska standards. All season long, guests returned to the lodge with amazing stories of huge rainbows, first eating dry flies in June and July, then egg patterns in August and September. With fish that were bigger than they had been in recent years, and crowds of other anglers that where smaller, the Brooks was a guest favorite all summer long.

The American was another river that saw especially impressive dry fly action. The hatches improved weekly from the opening of the season through mid July when the salmon arrived. At that point the river became the ultimate walk-and-stalk destination for anglers sight fishing with egg patterns.

All of the streams and rivers of the Kukaklek drainage fished spectacularly, first with streamers, and then with egg patterns. The Big Ku is always a great destination for guests wanting a shot at a giant rainbow, but the river produced especially well this summer. Battle Creek fished amazingly in August and September, with its giant fish uncharacteristically racing each other for egg patterns. And the Moraine once again proved what a special river it is. The combination of huge trout and spectacular wildlife viewing make this river quite possibly the premier fly fishing stream in the world.

After a few down years, the Kvichak River was as good as it has ever been. Fishing for the river’s legendarily giant rainbows was better than it had been in years thanks to a strong salmon run.

As September continued, the already great season seemed to improve even further. The Kulik River turned red hot, with days of fishing that bordered on ridiculous. And just when it looked like the Brooks couldn’t fish any better, guests and guides alike were surprised by how each day of fishing seemed even more phenomenal than the last.

Species

Here at Enchanted Lake Lodge we pursue rainbow trout throughout the year. Of course the salmon provide the lifeline for these rainbows with the early season fry, the ate season eggs and flesh, but we attract like minded anglers that love the elegance of rainbow trout fishing.

With our fleet of planes we can whisk you to over a dozen rivers that all have different timing, different terrains and different wildlife. ELL has one of the highest plane to guest ratios insuring you are the first on the river every day.

Fishing Photo Gallery

Tackle & Gear

Here is a list of the basics you will need for your trip.  Many of our destinations are pretty remote with no chance to buy things on site.

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Fly List

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Packing List

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7-night, 6-day package (Sunday to Sunday) – $9,800.00 per person

JUNE

The season opener in early June is an exciting time with trout hungry after a long winter. Fry, baby salmon from the previous years spawn, fill the rivers. The trout are so aggressive they will chase down these schools of fry providing exciting, visual fishing. On the larger rivers streamer fishing is spectacular, while on the smaller streams traditional nymphs and dry flies are used to match our early season hatches. Sight fishing with dry flies is always popular and productive this time of the year. With so many different fishing styles effective this is a great month for people seeking variety.

JULY

A month of transition, July sees our rivers fill with sockeye salmon while the fry migration comes to an end. With the arrival of the sockeye staggered in the different rivers we have lots of variety. Sight fishing with nymphs and dry flies is spectacular in many places while streamer fishing is still the most effective method on the larger rivers. As the month progresses and rivers fill with salmon we begin to fish egg patterns and explore smaller streams that were devoid of trout before the arrival of the spawning salmon. Like the previous month, July is a great time to experience a variety of options and fishing methods.

AUGUST

This is the month of egg fishing in all our rivers. Trout position themselves below the spawning salmon and eat the drifting eggs making sight fishing possible on many of the shallow runs. With such a high calorie food source available the trout aggressively chase down egg patterns and soon become heavy. The sight of eagles and brown bears gorging on the salmon is common adding to the experience of fishing in August. The combination of spectacular fishing, good weather and viewing salmon runs of indescribable numbers make August a great time to visit.

SEPTEMBER

As winter approaches and the tundra turns bright with fall colors the trout feed aggressively. Fat and heavy from gorging on salmon eggs for weeks, this is a great time to catch a truly huge fish. The salmon die-off as the month progresses but sight fishing with egg patterns is still great. As the salmon thin out and the rivers open up we will start fishing streamers again. With the end of the short Alaskan summer nearing the trout feel an urgency to feed making a big streamer or leech pattern a tempting meal. The weather might be cooler but the beautiful fall scenery and huge fish are more than enough reward.

Please take a look at the  photo and video galleries related to Great Alaska Lodge.

Fishing Photo Gallery

Lodge Photo Gallery

Scenic Photo Gallery

Video Gallery

There are no videos at this time.

Despite the luxury accommodations and service this may not be the best trip for your non fishing friend or spouse. However, if they have some interest in fishing this is the place to introduce them to Alaska. The staff is attentive and details are never overlooked. We can arrange some interesting side trips like bear viewing at Brooks falls, or flight seeing for those who don’t care to fish every single hour of every day!

ARRIVAL

Enchanted Lake Lodge staff will greet guests arriving on the Anchorage(ANC) to King Salmon (AKN) flight around 3 PM. ELL provides the short drive to our private aircraft on the river about 5 minutes from the airport. Once you and your luggage is on board we will fly you directly to the lodge. In an effort to make transportation to the lodge as convenient as possible, earlier arrivals to King Salmon will need to wait for this 3 pm transfer to the lodge. In addition, guests who arrive later in the afternoon or evening will need to arrange for private transportation or pay for a private flight from ELL.

For departure we will bring you back to the King Salmon Airport at around 9 AM for a flight back to Anchorage

AIRLINES

Two commercial airlines serve the town of King Salmon: Alaska Airlines and Pen Air.
Alaska Airlines 1-800-252-7522 www.alaskaair.com
Peninsula Air 1-800-448-4226 www.penair.com

ASSISTANCE IN MAKING TRAVEL PLANS

Should you require assistance with any of your travel plans, we suggest you contact All Seasons Travel. They can be reached by phone at 907-694-8700 or by e-mail at [email protected]. They are experts in Alaska travel, both in-state and transport to, and will be happy to assist you with your travel arrangements.