Chrome Chasers is a lifetime experience to fish the Alaskan frontier for feisty steelhead. You will be sight fishing with nymphs and swinging streamers to large steelhead in pristine Alaskan waters. These steelhead average 8-15 lbs, but get as big as 20 lbs! With access to 13 different streams there is no shortage of great water to fish on this journey. The trip is not for the faint of heart. It is a true Alaskan wilderness adventure!
Contact Front Range Anglers Adventure Travel Manager Rob Kolanda for additional information and to BOOK!
When you BOOK with FRA Adventure Travel you never pay more for our services as we work for YOU and the Lodge!
INFORMATION
About Chrome Chasers Lodge
The Chrome Chasers Lodge was built on the top of the hill, next to Mount Dewey trail and offers breathtaking views out every window. Gaze up the Stikine River from any of the 5 bedrooms on the Northeast side of the house. Views of Wrangell town and the bay below can be enjoyed from the kitchen, dining room and formal living room. The deck wraps around the entire house with 5 different access points including off the kitchen, formal dining room and 2 bedrooms.
After a day of traversing the forests and streams, you can enjoy watching the sunset over the ocean and watch the occasional ship come into the harbor. The most delicious seafood dinners you may ever eat will be prepared in the kitchen, drenching you in gourmet smells as you relax and enjoy a drink. You can share your stories from the day with your fellow fisherman as the crab and shrimp that was pulled up from the pots on the way home becomes your centerpiece for dinner, (and part of breakfast too if you like!). Everyone can eat at the large dining table that seats up to 10.
Mt. Dewey trail borders the property and guests have a personal access point to the boardwalk hike just past the wood shed.
An outdoor fire pit on the north lawn can be a gathering point for everyone in the evening under a starry sky, roasting marshmallows and relaxing with friends and family.
This home boasts an amazing chef’s kitchen with views and plenty of room for several cooks. A propane Thermador cooking range and Sub refrigerator are the workhorses. The kitchen sink looks out over the town and has 3 sink tubs. There is also a small hand-washing sink on the island.
The formal dining room seats 8 comfortably. There are two living rooms. One offers a quiet place for guests to converse and enjoy the view of the town. The central living room is furnished with power reclining furniture as well as a Smart TV.
There are 4 guest bedrooms, each furnished with a queen bed. The fourth bedroom has both a queen and twin bed for more bed space. In addition to the master bathroom, there are 2 full bathrooms and a half bathroom off the dining room.
The Chrome Chasers Lodge is within walking distance of downtown, just a half mile from City Market. The house is set on the side of the hill and offers more privacy than any other residence within town. It is at the end of the road and at the top of the hill and there is no street noise.
Make Chrome Chasers your adventure getaway.
General Itinerary
Sunday Morning Arrivals: You will be picked up from the airport in a four-door, silver Ford pickup with a topper by your guide Rick Matney. It is less than a 10-minute drive from the airport to the house. You will be shown to your rooms where you may drop your bags. Those in the party who have not gotten a fishing license online will be taken by Rick to get that right away; usually a 30 minute round trip. We will vacuum seal those as soon as you have them. They will need to be with you at all times. Lunch will be ready for you at the house as soon as you return from getting your license.
Sunday Afternoon: After a warm lunch, we will have everyone suit up into layers of warm clothes, (don’t forget the rain gear and extra clothing; a good idea at all times!). You will need to bring along your newly sealed fishing licenses. Rick will drive your group down to the dock where the boat, The Chrome Chaser will be waiting with pots, ropes, and buoys for setting crab and shrimp pots for your week of harvest. For the next 3-4 hours, you will set and drop crab and shrimp post in various locations near Wrangell. Most every day some of these posts will be pulled up, emptied of the crab or shrimp that are caught in them and re-baited to be dropped down to the seafloor again for another harvest the next day.
The Chrome Chaser is a 33-foot boat with an enclosed cab and enough room to seat 8 people comfortably. It has a table for 4 in it, and a stove for keeping everyone warm after the cooler wet days of fishing. Depending on the time after setting the pots, how tired everyone is after traveling, and how eager the group is to fish, there may be some members of the party who would like to briefly hike into a close local stream to see if there are any fish in it to cast at for an hour or so.
Coffee is ready at 5:30 a.m. and breakfast is usually at 6:00 a.m. Lunches will be made every morning before breakfast. We will get your lunch preferences and make sandwiches according to your liking. There will also be snacks such as apples, granola bars, and fresh-baked cookies. Please let us know upon your arrival if you have any dietary restrictions. Dinner gets started at about 5:30-6:00 and is usually ready by 6:30 to 7:00. There are some later evenings, however, if the travel in the day to a stream is a lot farther. The next 5 days will be spent exploring Southeast Alaska and chasing wild steelhead. There are many sites to see on the ocean including whales, sea lions, sea otters, etc.
If tides and timing permit, we will have the chance to troll for king salmon. Those wishing to target kings will need to purchase a king salmon stamp. We will need to do that on Sunday you arrive when you purchase your fishing license. During the week of harvesting seafood, we will vacuum seal and freeze any unneeded seafood for you to take home at the end of the week. (This makes the wife happy!)
Departure Day: Saturday morning we will split up and pack the frozen seafood in waxed and insulated seafood boxes for your trip home. You will need to declare the contents of the box at the airport. Depending on your flight time out, we can also fish near Wrangell for those on the afternoon flight out of town. We also have the option of sightseeing the town and visiting Petroglyph Beach.
Lastly, we do have wifi at the lodge as well as cell service. During the day when you are out on the water and up the streams fishing you will not have cell service. Your guide, however, will have a satellite phone for emergencies.
Spring Steelhead Fishing
2023 Availability
May 7-13th
2024 Availability
April 7-13th * April 14-20th * April 21-27th * April 28th-May 4th *May 5-11th
***Anglers with strong physical abilities is a MUST**
You hike several miles a day over treacherous terrain and cross streams regularly. The fishing days of Monday through Friday are long and physically demanding. It is important anglers are up for the physical challenge.***
During your week of steelhead fishing with Chrome Chasers you will fish 5 full days on islands around Wrangell Island.
On your arrival day, Sunday you will be picked up from the airport by Captain Rick Matney. The airport is less than 10 minutes to the Lodge.
We will get fishing licenses online for anyone who has not yet purchased them.
After a warm lunch on Sunday, we will suit up into layers of warm clothes, (don’t forget the rain gear and extra clothing; a good idea at all times!). The boat will be waiting at the dock with pots, ropes, and buoys for setting crab and shrimp pots for your week of harvest. For the next 3 hours or so, you will set and drop crab and shrimp pots in various locations near Wrangell. Most every day some of these pots will be pulled up, emptied of the crab or shrimp that is caught in them and re-baited to be dropped down to the sea floor again for another harvest the next day.
Our boat is a 37 foot boat with an enclosed cab and enough room to seat 6 people comfortably. It has a table for 4 in it, and a stove for keeping everyone warm after the cooler wet days of fishing. There is also a bathroom on board as well as a stovetop for hot chocolate or coffee.
Depending on the time after setting the pots, how tired everyone is after traveling, and how eager the group is to fish, there may be some members of the party who would like to briefly hike into a close local stream to see if there are any fish in it to cast at for an hour or so.
Every evening, dinner gets started at about 5:30-6:00 and is usually ready by 6:30 to 7:00. There are some later evenings, however, if the travel in the day to a stream is farther.
Coffee is ready before breakfast, and we normally serve breakfast at 6:00 a.m. The next 5 days will be spent exploring Southeast Alaska and chasing wild steelhead. There are many sites to see on the ocean including whales, sea lions, sea otters, etc. Lunches will be made every morning before breakfast. They are fairly simple. We will get your lunch preferences and make sandwiches according to your liking. There will also be snacks such as apples, granola bars, and fresh baked cookies. Please let us know upon your arrival if you have any dietary restrictions.
During the week of harvesting seafood, we will vacuum seal and freeze any unused seafood for you to take home at the end of the week. (This makes your friends and family happy!) Saturday morning we will split up and pack the frozen seafood in seafood boxes for your trip home. You will need to declare the contents of the box at the airport. Depending on your flight time out, we can also fish near Wrangell for those on the afternoon flight out of town. We also have the option of sightseeing the town and visiting Petroglyph Beach or the local museum.
We have WiFi at the lodge as well as cell service. During the day when you are on the water and up the streams fishing you will not have cell service. Your guide however, will have a satellite phone for emergencies.
If you have any questions prior to your arrival, don’t hesitate to call or email Rick or Dori.
We are excited to fish with you soon!
Fall Fishing and Foraging
2022 Availability
September 4th – 10th * September 11th – 17th
2023 Availability
July 30 – August 5 * August 6th -12th *
August 20th – 26th * August 27th – September 2nd * September 3rd – 9th * September 10th – 16th
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Chrome Chasers’ week long fishing and foraging trips are packed with fishing and foraging opportunities and can be custom catered to the desires of the group as a whole.
Each day anglers take the big boat to fish a variety of streams on the islands around Wrangell for Silver Salmon, Sockeye Salmon, Pink Salmon, Chum Salmon, Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout and Dolly Varden. Fly fishing or conventional tackle rods are both available for guests. While fishing along the streams, anglers have the option of foraging for mushrooms to bring to the table at the lodge. Chrome Chasers guests will also have the opportunity to ocean fish for both king and silver salmon, halibut, as well as bottom fish, regulations permitting. Crab and shrimp pots will be set at the beginning of your stay to harvest shrimp and Dungeness Crab throughout the week. Back at the lodge, Captain Rick will prepare the fish and foraged food for the evening meal. If anglers are interested in doing cooking classes after the day of fishing and foraging we can make more time for those by spending less time fishing. Guests are welcome to enjoy appetizers and cocktails while the meal is prepared or get more involved with the preparation. It depends on what the group wants to do.
Chrome Chasers offers either a fishing focused experience or a fishing, foraging, cooking and preserving experience. We can spend more time on either fishing or the combination of fishing and harvesting, preparing and preserving. A large cedar smoke house is where salmon, halibut and clams can be smoked. We have a pressure canner as well as a large chamber vacuum sealer. What is not consumed at meals will be either smoked and canned or sealed and frozen for guests to take home.
THE FISHING
At Chrome Chasers, you will fish the streams of remote islands around Wrangell Island with fly rods and conventional tackle. The fish species you will have the opportunity to catch are Silver Salmon, Sockeye Salmon, Pink Salmon, Chum Salmon, Cutthroat Trout, Rainbow Trout and Dolly Varden. Chrome Chasers also fishes the inland passages for Silver Salmon, King Salmon, Halibut and other bottom fish.
FORAGING
Mushroom and berry foraging opportunities are available up every stream we fish each day. You can put down your rod and scan the nearby trees, downed logs and forest floor for mushrooms. The most common species we find are golden chanterelles, yellow foot chanterelles, chicken of the woods, king boletes, shaggy manes, and occasionally black trumpets.
HARVESTING
Each day we pull up Dungeness crab and shrimp pots from the ocean floor for delicious seafood dinners. During low tide, there is the opportunity to go to the beach and dig for butter clams and cockles. Blue berry and huckleberry bushes line the streams and the berries can be found in abundance in the forest near the Lodge. The tart berries are delicious on ice-cream or in pancakes for breakfast.
Travel Details
Alaska Airlines is the only airline that services Southeast Alaska. You will want to look for flights that will arrive in Wrangell on Sunday, April 19th and that depart on Saturday, April 25th. There are two flights per day that arrive and depart from Wrangell island. It does not matter if the clients arrive in the morning or afternoon flight on Sunday, April 19th. On April 25th, the departure day, we will not fish. Most people prefer to fly out on the morning flight as there is not a lot going on that day. If it works better to fly out in the afternoon on the 25th, there are several activities to take part in around the island. The museum is awesome, and many people really enjoy going through it. There is also the Petroglyph Beach to visit, however, that only takes about an hour. Within walking distance of the house, there is a short boardwalk hike up Mount Dewey.
Flights out of Seattle will have one-stop before Wrangell. The early morning Alaska Air flight stops in Ketchikan. If anglers depart from Seattle in the early morning around 7:00 a.m. and arrive on the morning flight to Wrangell, they will briefly stop in Ketchikan. Passengers going to Wrangell will stay on the plane as people going to or from Ketchikan get off and board. Morning flights arrive to Wrangell at about 9:40 a.m.
Anglers who fly out of Seattle after 7:00 a.m. will stop in Juneau for a brief layover and change planes. They will arrive in Wrangell in the afternoon at about 3:35.
Travel Insurance
Front Range Anglers recommends all anglers to have Medical Evacuation Insurance- we recommend Global Rescue, and we HIGHLY recommend Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance. FOR ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE CONTACT: KIM D’[email protected] – 617.459.4200
CLICK HERE TO VIEW FRA GENERAL TERMS & CANCELLATION POLICY
Trip Insurance is strongly advised & recommended!
Terms & Conditions
We recommend travel insurance to protect your travel investment.
What’s Included:
Six (6) nights lodging in Wrangell, Alaska
Five (5) days of fully guided fishing and foraging (two anglers per guide)
Possible arrival and departure days based on itinerary
All meals including lunches, appetizers, and snacks
Water, coffee, tea, and soft drinks
Use of fishing equipment, flies, and terminal tackle
All airport transfers
Sightseeing, cruising, crabbing, and shrimping
All fish processing including commercial vacuum sealing, freezing, boxing, and delivery to the airport
What’s Not Included:
Flights to Wrangell, Alaska
Alaska fishing license ($45) and salmon tag ($15 – $45) as of January 2022
Alcoholic beverages (purchase in Wrangell for the whole trip)
Gratuities for staff and guides
Fuel Surcharge ($500 – $700 depending on fuel increase amounts)
CANCELLATION POLICY: (Please Read) Chrome Chasers will refund a portion of your deposit or payments depending on when you cancel your trip package. All cancellations must be given in writing to Dori with Chrome Chasers.
- Cancellation outside of 90 days – 50% refund of deposit and full refund of final payment. 50% of the deposit may be carried forward to another trip the following season, subject to possible price increases.
- Cancellation 30-90 days prior – No deposit refund and 50% refund of final payment received or 50% of total trip price carried forward to another trip the following season, subject to possible price increases.
- Cancellation within 30 days – No refund of deposit or final payment.
- On cancellation notices less than 90 days, partial 75% refunds/transfers may be made IF suitable replacement is provided by the customer.
Travel Insurance & FRA Cancellation Policy
Front Range Anglers recommends all anglers to have Medical Evacuation Insurance- we recommend Global Rescue, and we HIGHLY recommend Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance. FOR ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE CONTACT: KIM D’[email protected] – 617.459.4200
CLICK HERE TO VIEW FRA GENERAL TERMS & CANCELLATION POLICY
Trip Insurance is strongly advised & recommended!
TRAVEL PROTECTION
The only emergency response service that will rescue you from anywhere in the world.
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