Sitka – Easy Access by Commercial Nonstop or OneStop Jet From Seattle
- Nonstop flights from Seattle on Alaska Airlines and Delta.
- We greet you at the airport regardless of your time of arrival with a smiling face and an AU sign.
- We help you collect your luggage.
- Our lodge is a short 10-minute ride from the airport.
- Upon arrival, we layout your trip itinerary, daily schedule, orient you to your home away from home, and provide your fishing license, rain gear, and boots.
- Groups of four will get a car for their exclusive use. Groups of less than four will share a car with other groups of less than four.
Your Trip
Lodging
- Depending on our schedule with the next groups incoming and outgoing groups. You’ll spend your last night at our suites or in one of a few very good local hotels. This will all be made clear at the time you book – no surprises.
- The hotel we use is Aspen Suites.
Departure
- On the day you leave, your fish will be boxed and ready for shipping on the airlines.
- We’ll pick you up a couple of hours before your flight time and take you to the airport.
- Our processor will be waiting at the airport with your boxed fish and will help you check-in for your flight home
Tackle
- AU furnishes you with the finest quality tackle, specifically designed for our style
of fishing. - Left-handed reels and Canadian-style single-action reels available on request.
- If you have a favorite rod or reel, feel free to bring it along. Also, if you have
some light tackle or fly tackle you’d like to try, we’re happy to see it. It’s your trip. - All terminal tackle, bait, hook, line, and sinker provided by AU.
Fishing Days
Typical Day of Fishing
- Wake-up call 4 AM
- Enjoy Breakfast: For our guests in AU lodging, you’ll find all the fixings for you to prepare breakfast in your suite – eggs, bacon, cereals, bread, butter, milk, coffee, etc. For our guests staying in facilities not operated by AU that have a kitchen, we’ll put the breakfast items in your unit for you to prepare. For those staying in hotel rooms reserved by AU, we prepare a breakfast cooler that will be waiting for you aboard your boat each morning.
- Vans to the dock depart at 4:50
- Board your boat and head for the fishing grounds at 5
- Full Day of fishing with return to the dock between 2 and 3 pm
- Van returns you to your lodging and we go to work on processing your catch
- Note – By mid-August dawn comes later. Wake-up 5 AM, pickup 5:45 AM, boat departure from dock 6 AM
After Fishing
- Rest and relax in your suite.
- For dinner, you select from a variety of restaurants in town or cook your own catch-of-the-day using your fully equipped kitchen and barbecue grill on the deck.
- Drop by our office with any questions, concerns, needs, or to shop the AU gift shop. We can help you with restaurant choices and reservations.
What to Bring
Packing List
- Sunscreen
- Hat and good sunglasses. (Despite Southeast Alaska’s reputation for rain, the sun can be quite powerful.)
- Bring ample clothes for dressing in layers and a good pair of gloves.
- Note – Fleece clothes keep you warm when you’re very active. Insulating clothes like down or synthetic fill work better for standing out in a cool rain with a fishing rod in hand.
- AU provides raingear and boots
- Pack your clothes in carry-on bags so you can use your checked baggage allowance for your boxed fish on your return flight. Alaska Airlines – Go to alaskaair.com for their baggage allowances and changes.
Sea Sickness
(Please don’t ignore this)
Nothing can ruin your time on the water more than a case of mal de mar, also known as seasickness. Unless you are 100% certain, like beyond a shadow of a doubt, that you aren’t the slightest bit prone, we suggest you visit your family doctor and get medication. Our experience is that over-the-counter seasickness medications are of marginal value. Prescription medications, particularly scopolamine, work well.
You can get scopolamine in the Transderm Patch. The patch has been around for decades and works quite well for most of our customers. You need a prescription, so consult your doctor.