Rick Matney guides seasonally in Montana as well as other destinations such as Hawaii and Southeast Alaska.
Alaska Steelhead Fishing
Rick is the Captain at Chrome Chasers Lodge based in Southeast Alaska. There, he, his fellow captain and his wife Dori host guests for week long trips of guided wild steelhead fishing for 5 weeks in April and May.
Chrome Chasers Lodge offers a unique opportunity to fish for wild, native steelhead in a remote setting. We guide on 13 different rivers and streams that each has a unique character. From mid-sized glacial rivers with broad runs and tail outs, to tiny, steep, rain fed creeks, the diversity of environments we fish allows us to provide each angler with a truly unique steelhead fishing experience.
Chrome Chasers Lodge takes only 4 guests per week to limit fishing pressure. Guests will fish different streams each day. Over the course of our season we rarely fish an individual stream more than 6 days. This ensures that the fish have the best opportunity to move through the system without unnatural disturbance. It also ensures that our anglers have the best shot at fresh, undisturbed steelhead – the kind that eat flies best! Second, we are a 100% Catch and Release fishery. We fish only single, barbless hooks. Many times we fish only a single fly rig to minimize the possibility of tangling or inadvertent foul hooking on the dropper fly if a steelhead shakes free of the top hook. We use tackle suited to not only presenting flies effectively, but also landing fish as quickly as possible.
Alaska Fishing & Foraging
Chrome Chasers Lodge offers guests for the Alaskan Immersion trip where 4, 5 or 6 guests book the whole lodge for their group. They spend a week fishing and foraging and experience all the wildlife and beauty of Southeast Alaska. They learn the satisfaction on playing a first hand role in acquiring the food for meals throughout the week and taking home fresh harvested seafood at the end of their stay.
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.
Mushroom foraging opportunities are available up every stream we fish and varies depending on when in August or September you visit. Guests can put down the fishing rod and scan the nearby trees, downed logs and forest floor for mushrooms. The most common species are golden chanterelles, yellow foot chanterelles, chicken of the woods, king boletes, and hedgehog mushrooms.
Hawaii Bone Fishing
Hawaii on the Fly offers the best flats boat guide service in Hawaii for world-class bonefish. Hawaii On the Fly has been rated as one of the world’s top ten for bonefish over 10 pounds by IGFA. You will be sight fishing for the biggest bonefish of your life on the island of Oahu with Kenny and his guides.
When in Hawaii, Rick works primarily on the island of Oahu with Captain Kenny Karas, the owner of Hawaii on the Fly. Guests book a day of flats fishing targeting bonefish. Depending on the tydes, guests will be walk wading or fishing from a flats boat.
