No Place Like Nome | 2024

Overview

Anyone who has Fly Fishing Fever knows how the excitement builds leading up to a big trip. I was nearly out of my mind prior to No Place Like Nome in late June. 

And with good reason. The Niukluk River holds an incredible volume of Arctic Grayling in all sizes and colors.  The river is wide and crystal clear.  Our fishing guide is Tom, a wonderfully funny, skilled and kind lodge owner with a long history in Nome and White Mountain. His co-owner is his super wife BJ. We can count on some incredible Alaska native dishes while staying at the lodge.           

Fishing is amazing!!! I need to find a new word for amazing. The river current isn’t overly fast and the places we fish offer shallow wading and plenty of prime holding areas for Grayling.

Day-to-Day Report

Day 1

Today was our first day of fishing. We started on the bank near the lodge, just testing out casting techniques.  Then we loaded the boat and headed to the incredible Fish River. We fished several promising spots along the way and soon found happy Grayling that would not stay off our flies. There were places where the water was so clear and the sun angle just right that it was like fishing in an aquarium. I learned a lot about fish behavior watching multiple refusals of my fly. Lol.

We had lunch on the boat and a wonderful dinner awaited us back at camp. We had baked salmon à la BJ. This was an unbelievable encore to the prior night’s musk ox spaghetti. I could get used to this life. We have 2 1/2 days of fishing in front of us, and I am ready to cast like Brad Pitt.

Day 2

We are well above Council in an incredible spot on this clear river. Extremely green low rolling hills surround us, I’m overwhelmed by yugen and landing fish.

I broke out my homemade Morrish Mouse pattern and Bam Bam Bam. Hit after Hit after Hit. I gave up my hot mouse spot to one of our anglers and she is now knocking it out of the park. We had one grayling at 21 inches and another at 20. These are the only ones we measured - at least so far. It’s an incredible day here in the Nome area.

Well, we fished at Musk Ox Creek then again at Reindeer Creek. Both were just lovely. I had some fun with the Wiggle Bug Fly, but had to cut it off when a fish ate it too deep. We stayed at the last spot for a long while because the fishing was so darn good. The fish were smaller, but stronger due to the strong current. We are now on our way home at 6:30 - we are well above Council so it’s going to take a while. BJ will be waiting for us with dinner. She knows to keep it warm.

Everyone caught many, many fish today.  It was really incredible.  The weather today was cooler with no bright sunshine. I think it will be warmer tomorrow.

Day 3

Today began with a hunt for pike. Big pike in wild remote Northwest Alaska. The stuff of legends. The pike hole is just a short ride from our cabin lodge. Our rods were set with steel leaders for toothy creatures.  Per Tom’s instructions, our flies are mostly red bunny strips with some white and lots of flash. Of course, with barbell eyes to get them down in the water column right in front of the noses of those ferocious creatures.

We took turns fishing from the bow and stern. There was a tiny learning curve to get the casting technique down and soon the fight was on. We cheered each other’s hook-ups and had great fun catching, landing and photographing these prehistoric looking fish.  

Most of the morning was spent at the pike hole. From there, we ventured upstream to several promising spots. We caught many, many Grayling, even some on mouse pattern.  We had lunch on the river, and we are back home 20 minutes earlier today than normal. Everyone is so worn out from catching and catching and catching these beautiful grayling.

Showers are underway as we relax from a long day. The host/wife is making dinner and this will be our last evening here on the river. It been such a wonderful trip meeting new people and catching more fish than most people will see in a lifetime.

Day 4

On our last day, everyone was up early for breakfast and ready to go for a half-day of fishing. We started at “the island“.  Catching was prolific because water levels had dropped a little overnight. Tom asked if we wanted to move somewhere else and was met with five hardy NOs!! We stayed in the spot to finish out our wonderful time on the Niukluk River.

Then it was back to camp reluctantly. We had lunch and finished packing. The drive back to Nome was memorable with sightings of a muskox herd and a marathon-running moose that would not leave the road.

Fond farewells at the airport and we were off to our homes with tired arms and happy hearts.