That should be a great trip! We outfit a lot of Goodnews floats and invariably hear back about how awesome it is.
For fly line in August on your 8 weight I would recommend a weight forward floating line that can handle large flies. Rio Grand, Airflo Galloup Nymph/Indicator are two that are very good and cast well on a wide range of rods. A sink tip is occasionally helpful for silvers, especially on the lower end of the river, but you can likely get away with a 5 foot Polyleader in Fast Sink.
For the switch rod, depending on whether you are running a head system or one-piece line, a floating line will get a lot of the work done. Particularly for bead fishing. You may use some sink tips if you plan to swing flesh.
One other note, if you have a 9 foot 6 weight, this is an excellent rod for trout on the Goodnews. You may want to keep 3 rods strung up. One for silvers, one for swinging leeches/flesh, and a third with an indicator and bead rig.
For flies, it would be helpful for me to know what week in August you are floating. Let me know and I can make a specific list for your trip dates.
Should be great!
Helpful info above. Thank you. We will be floating the Goodnews and putting in on August 18th and taking out on the 26th. Any flies you can recommend would be appreciated. Thank you.
If you would like any recommendations or need help with what gear to bring, reach out to Mike Cole. He can help get you squared away for your trip. mike@alaskaflyfishinggoods.com