Our Captains

Captain Chuck Haydu owner and operator of “Kingfisher Charters & Lodge” and (Craig Alaska fishing lodge) grew up on the Kalama River in Washington and has had a fishing pole in his hand since a small boy. He has salt water fished extensively in S.E. Alaska since 1977 and a USCG licenced captain since 1989.

Captain Nils Backstrom came From Stockholm, Sweden to Anchorage Alaska in 2006 via an athletic scholarship to UAA for the sport of ice hockey to attend the University of Alaska Anchorage skating 4 seasons for the Seawolves. At UAA he majored in Business Management and Marketing, graduating in 2010. After graduation he played professional hockey in Europe and Russia for 5 years. The passion for fishing had always been big for Nils and in Alaska he was able to fulfill his dreams. While attending school he met Chuck and Jeanette’s daughter Amanda who he is now married to. Nils started saltwater fishing in Craig in 2007 and has been a part of Kingfisher Lodge since that time being a deckhand on Kingfisher charter boats. Nils received his U.S. Coast Guard captains license in 2015 and has become one of the most dynamic captains in the local area, and his work ethic and ability to bring home impressive catches is second to none.

Captain Braden Harding was raised in Craig growing up with a commercial fisherman for a father. During high school, Braden began commercial fishing as a trolling, long-line, and crab deckhand from Astoria, Oregon to the Gulf of Alaska. He eventually purchased his own commercial power troll permit and boat. Now that Braden is married into the family, he wanted to be home every night with his family, and he now guides for us here at Kingfisher Lodge. Braden brings with him a wealth of local knowledge of the high seas, and a work ethic like no other being a master of organization and cleanliness on his boat. Braden also is Mr. Personality and has no problem keeping guests happy with catching fish and telling stories. The Haydu family and Kingfisher Lodge is a better place with this great captain running one of our boats.

Captain Sean Curry was born and raised in Minnesota, growing up fishing on freshwater lakes in a boat since he was 10 running his own boat, which he says “probably woke up all the residents on the lake each morning” when he was the first one out fishing each day when he could go. Sean played professional hockey signing with the Boston Bruins out of high school, playing in the United States as well as in Europe in his 12 years of professional hockey. Sean has spent the past 7 years in Alaska fishing and guiding on the Alaska Peninsula out of Homer, and now in S.E. Alaska at Kingfisher Lodge. Sean is married to Meggie our 2nd daughter. He brings a great work ethic and passion to our lodge and resides on his boat down at our dock in the summer as such is his passion for fishing.