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Welcome to Tanaku Lodge
Alaska's finest fishing adventures
If you are considering vacationing to Alaska in search of spectacular wilderness scenery, abundant wildlife, awesome sport fishing success and Alaska's finest lodge services, then Tanaku Lodge should be at the very top of your 'short list' of desirable Alaska destinations. Dennis Meier and Jim Benton have earned reputations as Alaska's best lodge operators by focusing on how to best satisfy their clients demands and desires for a quality Alaska vacation package. They leave nothing to chance (except the weather), by hiring the best lodge and guiding staff; purchasing and maintaining the best equipment; and creating a unique lodge atmosphere that makes each guest feel special and valued. Afterall, according to co-owners Dennis Meier and Jim Benton: "Our customers comfort and fishing success is our single minded focus!"
In truth, one would be hard pressed to find a finer lodge operation in all of Alaska. When you come to Tanaku you will be delighted by their professionalism and 'down home' hospitality! A recent interview with co-owner, Dennis Meier, left me very impressed with his approach to managing an Alaska lodge catering to family and corporate groups, ranging in size from 4 to 30 anglers. "Paying close attention to important details makes the difference between delivering either a passable or a great trip. We want all of our valued guests to leave very happy and hopefully they will keep Tanaku in their future Alaska vacation plans! That's our goal and we enjoy working hard to accomplish it! It's what we refer to as "THE TANAKU DIFFERENCE "
My first trip to Tanaku Lodge was an executive retreat in 1998. Dennis and Jim's staff were incredebly responsive.The folks at Tanaku were focused on each individual's needs and did everything possible to accommodate our group. The lodge is great, the food fantastic, and the crew very friendly. Many of us have since been back a second time, and this July will be our third trip.
David West
Vice President, Marketing
Arrow Electronics
Vacationing to Elfin Cove Alaska is just what the doctor ordered; especially when one is escaping the madness of city life in the lower forty-eight. Those vacationing here, truly relax and renew themselves while savoring natural wilderness beauty unlike anything they have ever experienced!
Our small rustic Alaskan community harkens back to a simpler, slower, less stressful time in our county's history when people were more tightly linked to nature and more fully dependent on their strong backs and resolute wills to fashion a lifestyle from the vast and unspoiled American wilderness.
With the exception of a few unobtrusive, lightly populated communities dotting the rugged coastal regions; our area is still pristine and characterized by invigorating clean air, huge runs of ocean-fresh salmon and halibut, abundant wildlife and lofty glacier packed peaks.
It's the perfect back-drop for any avid angler's ideal fishing adventure!
Once our guests enjoy a small bite of our wonderfully free and unfettered lifestyle along with our area's majestic wilderness scenery, abundant wildlife and unbeatable fishing action; they hunger for more and make Elfin Cove and Tanaku Lodge their preferred Alaska destination! You will too!
We look forward to hearing from you and hope to meet you soon!
Call us soon to reserve your preferred Alaska sport fishing dates.
Here's to your future fishing success at Alaska's favorite fishing lodge - Tanaku Lodge.
Dennis Meier and
Jim Benton, owners of Tanaku Lodge
Property Offers:
Open:
May - October / year round etc.
Maximum capacity:
i.e. 25 guests
Meetings
yes/no capacity
Location:
Mailing Address: Tanaku Lodge | P.O. Box 72 | Elfin Cove, AK 99825 | USA
Minimum stay:
Only 5 Days & 6 Nights | 4 Days & 3 Nights | 3 Days & 3 Nights packages available
Deposit:
yes/no how much/policy
Reservations:
Phone: 800-482-6258 | Local: 1-907-239-2205 | Fax: 1-907-239-2253
Outside the US: +1-907-239-2205
Payment:
Credit card, PayPal etc., cash / Payment policy
Transportation:
Pick up service / no pick up service
Airports:
should be the most reasonable ones
Rates:
range from US$3495 - to US$4295 per person 3 - 6 night packages
Currency converter
*2012 prices may be changed due to future price level increases; especially with regards to fuel costs.
Memberships:
Let others know that your quality is assured through memberships in certain associations. Please provide a logo, if we don't have it already.
Website:
Location:
View location on map click here
Tanaku Lodge is a traditional structure with an all wood interior. The mixture of cedar and pine, Alaskan art, vaulted ceilings, wood burning stove, and our wonderful lodge staff, combine to create a cozy lodge atmosphere that invites relaxation.
Our lodge and private cabin cater to up to twenty-five guests. Each bedroom suite features two full-sized beds and either a shared or private bath.
Our wrap-around windows and outdoor decks provide you with excellent views of Elfin Cove and the Fairweather Mountain Range. The views are truly awe-inspiring. On a clear day it would seem like you could reach out and touch the snow-capped mountains. Our air is so clean and invigorating, and our lifestyle so uncluttered and free-spirited, our guests feel relaxed and renewed within a few days and at the end of their vacation, find it difficult to leave our sportfishing paradise.This unique wilderness environment provides the perfect setting for 'hoot and holler' hard-core fishing groups, or intimate family gatherings.
If you want more information about the 'Tanaku Difference', make sure you check out our lodge services menu selections. There you can access our 'Dining', 'Rooms', 'Recipes' and 'Staffing' sections. The 'Recipe' page is a special resource for anyone hunting for a wonderful way to prepare their ocean-fresh salmon, halibut, cod and trout fillets and steaks.
- Download our small brochure
- Download our large brochure
- Smoking policy
Planning a vacation can be an exciting and challenging time. What to bring? How to travel? What's the best time to travel?
All these questions need to be answered to properly prepare for any trip, and vacationing to Tanaku Lodge is no exception.
Our Weather
Summers are mild, with temperatures between 50 and 65 F. Expect a mixture of sun and occasional rain. The weather is variable and any month can produce a string of sunny days, so make sure you bring layers of clothing to 'dress up or down' depending on the current weather conditions.
How to Pack
Fifty (50) pounds of luggage is the maximum per person the float planes will allow without incurring additional charges. We suggest packing your gear in duffle bags for easy storage and handling.
How to Travel
The only airline servicing Juneau Alaska is Alaska Airlines with connections made through Seattle's Sea-Tac Airport. We've provided links (on your left) to various airline websites to aid you in determining which airline is most appropriate for making your journey to Seattle.
We will arrange your float plane reservation for the trip from Juneau to the lodge.
Since our trips start first thing on Saturday, we suggest our guests spend Friday night in Juneau, Alaska's Capital City. Visit our 'Hotel/Motel' section via the link (on your left) for our short list.
Our trips typically start early on Saturday and our guests depart at 10:00am on Thursday.
The flight from Juneau Alaska to Elfin Cove is an exciting and scenic adventure! You'll enjoy viewing humpback whales, mountain goats, rugged terrain, unspoiled snowcapped mountains and glaciers and numerous islands while you fly to our tiny Alaska village. Enjoy the flight!
What to Bring
- Rain gear
- Hip boots (if you wish to stream fish)
- A medium weight jacket
- A warm sweater
- Slippers for lounging around the lodge
- Camera with lots of memory
- If you want to fly-fish, bring your own equipment.
- Sun screen
- binoculars
What's Not included
- Airfare to and from Elfin Cove, Alaska
- Fishing License
- Hard Liquor
- gratuities
- Fly-fishing gear
We look forward to sharing our exceptional sportfishing resort with you and your family, friends, or business associates.
There are certainly lots of good times and fantastic fishing action to look forward to!
Breakfast
Every morning starting at 5:00 a.m. we have piping hot fresh coffee and a continental breakfast for your enjoyment. Fresh sliced fruit, homemade pastries and breads, bagels, English muffins, scones, assorted juices, yogurts, and a variety of cereals. We also have home-style oatmeal available that can be topped with raisins, brown sugar, chopped pecans, and sweet cream. See details
Lunch
Each day we pack your lunch. We fill your lunch box with an assortment of deli sandwiches, snacks and desserts. See details (Special requests are available.)
Appetizers
Mixed fresh green garden salad
Locally grown assorted lettuces and vegetables. Choice of homemade dressing consisting of creamy herb vinaigrette, or balsamic vinaigrette, blue cheese, or ranch dressing. Classic Caesar dressing topped with croutons, fresh Italian Parmesan cheese, and anchovies.
Soup of the Day
All our soups are home made from scratch by our chef. Tomato basil, clam chowder, onion & cheese, beef barley, chicken noodle, vegetable, or seafood chowder
Entrées
Our chef will prepare a different selection for you daily. You will have an alternate choice if you do not want the selection. See details
Desserts
The Tanaku Lodge has a wonderful selection of desserts for your after dinner pleasure.
See details
The Owners
Dennis Meier
Dennis grew up in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. After graduating from college Dennis went to work for Marriott Hotels and Resorts for over 15 years. He worked in Minneapolis, Chicago, Vail and then in Portland, Oregon with Marriott. Dennis was Food and Beverage Director for many years and then Director of Operations. Customer service training with the staff was one of his responsibilities. In Portland he met Susan, and a few years later they were married.
Susan Meier
Susan grew up in Issaquah, Washington. After Susan graduated from Washington State University, she went to work for Marriott Hotels in Irvine California and then Portland, Oregon. She was responsible for the front office and then the reservation sales department. While growing up, Susan spent several weeks a year with her family on their sailboat traveling the Inside Passage and various areas of Alaska and Washington. They finally decided that Elfin Cove was a perfect area to spend most of their vacation time since the area had a super abundance of fish moving through the passes and was close enough to the ocean so that fishing would always be strong, so her father bought a lot and built a cabin.
Susan and Dennis would go up each summer and either commercial or sport fish with her father and her brother Jim. Eventually they fell in love with the area and decided to buy Tanaku Lodge and leave the corporate world behind them. Dennis and Susan Meier have three children that come to Elfin Cove during the summer months. You will notice Haley, Hayden and Hannah down on the dock fishing or in the water swimming. They love to catch fish and play with starfish. They also like to see the fish you caught before they head home in the evening.
Jim Benton
Jim has been fishing and exploring the waters of Southeast Alaska since 1980. He first came to Alaska as a small boy with his father to explore the land where his ancestors spent much of their lives. Jim's great grandfather was a miner during the gold rush years traveling all over the state and his great grandmother was the first school teacher in Dutch Harbor. After falling in love with Alaska Jim began fishing for a living and has done so for the last twelve years. Jim guides daily and may be one of your captains during your stay.
Christy Benton
Christy joined Jim in 1993 and continued to chase salmon, halibut and blackcod throughout Southeast Alaska. Christy took to the wilderness lifestyle and proved to be a competitive and productive fisherman. You may see her around the lodge, but she now spends most of her time raising a family.
Jim and Christy eventually settled in Elfin Cove. After many long Alaskan winters they started a family.
Jim and Christy are delighted to raise a family and own a business in the wilderness of Alaska. In 1995 Jim and Christy partnered with Dennis and Susan Meier to own and operate Tanaku Lodge. Susan Meier is Jim Benton's sister, so you can see it truly is a family owned and operated business.
The Captains
Captain Garry Bruce
Captain Garry grew up in the mild climate and protein rich waters of Monterey Bay, CA. In these waters is where he first began honing his salmon and halibut fishing techniques. He has also spent many days chasing tuna in the outside waters, which is one of Captain Garry's other favorite species of fish to chase. Garry has followed his passion of fishing from the glacial waters of Alaska down to the warm water currents of South America for marlin and sailfish. Garry now lives in the small town of Yreka that is tucked into the various mountain ranges and beautiful country of Northern California.
Garry loves living in this area because it allows him the opportunity to follow one of his other great passions in life, hunting. Garry has been with Tanaku Lodge since 2007 and has spent time working on the water with every other captain in the fleet. Captain Garry's vast knowledge and blended techniques of fishing the Pacific, combined with his easygoing personality, ensure an Alaskan experience you will not forget.
Captain Joe Calandra
Captain Joe has been guiding for the Tanaku Lodge in Alaska's south east since 2005. Joe, a native of Long Island New York, brings his knowledge of chasing Tuna, Fluke and Striped Bass to the Alaska coast.
Joe runs the twenty six foot Osprey, powered by twin Yamaha engines. He has traveled and fish all over the globe and brings his fishing experience and personality to the Tanaku Lodge.
"I first went to Tanaku Lodge in 1997 on my honeymoon. I was hooked on Tanaku almost as quickly as the halibut I caught. I returned several times and recommended the lodge to anyone interested in fishing ALASKA. It's funny how things work out."
-Capt. Joe Calandra
Captain Johnny Koons
Johnny started working for Tanaku Lodge in the summer of 2005. After working as a deckhand for three summers, he acquired his captains license and has been running a boat ever since.
His love for fishing started as a kid in Texas, trying to catch anything that could swim. He loved catching all the different species that Alaska has to offer, but above all he loved the Action. Johnny likes to get all of the clients on board the boat involved, and his favorite way to do that is a little thing called combo fishing! When he can, he likes to sit in one spot where you have the opportuity to catch a 30lb king salmon and a 200 pound Halibut, and everything in between.
"It can get crazy and hectic, but it is a whole lot of fun and a whole lot of action." "Tanaku lodge has the best guides in the business and I was fortunate to be able to learn under them. Learning different knowledge and skills from guys that have fished these waters for over 20 years gave me an opportunity to take what they taught me and adapt it to my own techniques."
Captain Mike Nichols
Captain Mike has been fishing out of Elfin Cove since the existence of the Tanaku Lodge. Mike's knowledge of Alaska extends well beyond fishing. He takes great pride in giving the guests of Tanaku the "full Alaska experience".
During the off season Captain Mike is a guide for Steelhead in Oregon and Washington state.
"I talk with the guests each day about what they want to do that day. Whether it is sight seeing, or fishing for a particular species of fish. I want to do what they want. There will always be plenty of fish to catch, but what makes the difference is the whole experience. We will stop and watch whales, sea lions, and sea otters. Pods of killer whales and humbpacks grace our waters. It's really thrilling to watch them!" Capt. Mike Nichols
Captain Rogger Paddock
Roger acquired his southeast Alaska fishing experienced from his years as a commercial fisherman.
He is an expert on King Salmon and caught these beautiful fish up to sixty pounds. Roger has also has many Halibut catches over the 200 pound rage under his belt.
"I use whatever fishing methods and techniques that prove to be effective on any particular day. Herring, plugs, secret lures... You have to be adaptive to the conditions. What works one day, may not work the next. I just enjoy catching fish!" Capt. Roger Paddock
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Languages Spoken
| Dutch | English |
| French | German |
| Italian | Portugese |
| Polish | Russian |
| Spanish | Swiss |
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Targeted Species
Catch the big guys
Chinook Salmon (King)
Largest Salmon
This is the largest member of the Salmon family and ranges in size from 10 pound adolescents to over 60 lbs slabs. Kings are available year round with optimal fishing conditions from early May into June. If you enjoy feasting on your hard-earned catch - Kings are at the top of the culinary list with its deeply flavorful flesh.
Link
Pacific Halibut
If you have a hankering for BIG CRITTERS from the DEEP - these flatties will give you one hard-fought battle you will not soon forget! It may be advisable to 'hit the weights' and get pumped up like Arnold before taking on these heavy-weight game-fish. I have personally handled 450 pound halibut, but monsters landed larger than 300 pounds are uncommon. Don't get me wrong - they are out there, but probably, due to their longevity, have learned to avoid the hook. Every season Halibut in the 300 pound class are landed in our area. I personally prefer 'butts' in the 50 to 100 pound range. In my opinion, they simply taste better. While they are known to be bottom-feeders, that is somewhat of a misnomer, because they will chase pink salmon into the shallows at the mouth of rivers.
Link
Coho Salmon (Silver)
You will find a great abundance of this frisky fish when they begin to invade the outer strait in July; providing lively sport fishing action well into September. Coho range in weight from 6 - 18 pounds during the season, with lunkers topping 20 pounds.
Whereas Kings tend to feed greater distances from the surface water; cohos feed nearer the surface. They are a very acrobatic fighter. In terms of eatability - they are very delicious and add color to any plate with their rich, red flesh.
Lingcod
One of the most awesome monsters landed from our waters is the ancient looking Lingcod. While not the most attractive game fish, they, in my opinion, provide some of the best eating around. Lingcod range from 10 to 80 pounds. The average is around 20 pounds. You will find these ungainly creatures along the rocks and reefs of Cross Sounds and the Alaska gulf coast.
Link
Pink Salmon (humpy)
Though relatively small, when compared to their bigger cousins (ranging between 3 to 6 pounds), pound-for-pound, these feisty game fish will provide willing anglers with fishing action they won't soon forget! The waters of southeast Alaska are teaming with these scrappy salmon starting in early July. They are best catch on light line to give them an opportunity to showcase their boundless energy and amazing speed.
Link
Location Activities
And nearby activities within short distances.
Summer
Winter
Horse Activities
Barriere Free Features
Amenities
Wildlife Viewing
Transportation Services
Other
Nearby Attractions
Within 5 km / 5 minutes
Within 15 - 20 km / 15 - 20 minutes
Within 20 - 50 km / 20 - 50 minutes
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