Grizz

Amen, you can do quite well on the that river from shore/wading. There are only a few places for access but it can be quite productive sometimes. There was another good spot in Trail that was on the river near the car dealerships across the bridge. More caddis action there too! Don't neglect that river out of hand due to a lack of a boat!

Clive, That reminds me of the poor little girl who got attacked/bit by a Muskie in ON a number of years ago! I think she was 2 or 3 years old and in the water by the side of the family dock. I can just see it now - "Honey! I'm takin the kids fishin!!"

You weren't fishing with a buddy who might have put a couple of drops of glue on your rod when you weren't looking before you stuck it together? Were you? **I second the Knee approach outlined - been there done that many times - worked 90% of the time!!

If you have an old pic, or if there's any distinguishing marks, let us all know, or post the pic. That way, if we see it, it might trigger our memory of this thread, then we can all collectively hunt the guy down and shove the rod up his butt! Truly that sucks man!!!!

That's hilarious! Throwing rocks... I remember doing that on the playground when we were fighting. What a farce... Can't really dump on anyone's approach though, been there myself and lost my temper with some bozos on numerous occasions. My favorite has always been, instead of hurting the guy, I push or throw him in the river...usually cools him off pretty quick (either that or he comes storming out after you angry as hell and full of mistakes).

You used to be able to purchase a fishing licence right at the park gate on your way into the park in the comfort of your own cushy car seat. You could stop in the "Arsehole of the world" (aka Hinton) and get one too.

LOL! I had a woman ask me if "Attention" was french for "Elk" - all the other signs were bilingual...just about died laughing over that one. What was that about the passport?

I was guiding on Maligne one day with a couple of Americans. When we started out it was a beautiful day, by the time we got to the other side of the narrows (about 7 miles by electric motor), the weather, as it so often does in the mountains, went to *hit rather quickly. Cold and a few flakes of snow,etc. The one guys stated "It seems to be much colder at this end of the lake" to which I replied, "Well, we are much higher up at this end of the lake". He nodded in agreement since it made so much sense, the other fellow chimed in behind him with words to the effect of "Well duh!". About 20 seconds later they got really really quiet for a while... LMAO! Lots of others, but I loved that one in particular.

I just bought a Tak G series (the EG523SC natural finish), how do you like yours? I heard the new ones out of the new Chinese factory are mostly baked because in China, to save money with air conditioning some idiot started opening up the workshop doors! For those of you who don't understand this, the wood is seasoned at a certain humidity and built afterwards. If you open the doors on a hot muggy humid day in China all that wood warps quickly creating problems in the final product. If your G series is older an made at the Korean factory - you should be safe and your box should have all the qualities of that line. I really like the sound out of my 523 but had a bit of a fret buzz on the low strings near the nut. Some work fixed it up but my luthier must have fallen asleep on the B string dropping the action a VERY wee bit and ground too low, now I have a buzz only on the B string...grr! A new nut can fix that right up - but sheesh! Anyway the tone is really nice from that guitar for the cost. Very comparable to some much higher end guitars - nice MOP and Abalone inlays too for that price. If you want to get into a new guitar for a cheap price, don't neglect these Art & Luthiere guitars out of Quebec. A buddy of mine bought the natural finish cedar top model and I was VERY impressed with the tone coming out of it. Further, because it's built/seasoned in Canada - no worries with a humidifier, etc. for the first 5 years or so. Damn fine product for the price IMHO. Other good models with bang for the low buck are, as mentioned: Seagul, Takamine (the Jasmine series is MUCH better since they upped the quality now - old ones are *hit though - stay away), and the A & L as I mentioned. Also, bear in mind that, IMHO, the Yamaha is likely the most underrated guitars on the market. Like all guitar shopping, PLAY THEM ALL!! One guitar of the same make and model can sound quite different from the next so sift through the same model guitars til you find one that...well, just feels right in your hands (sounds good too!). Then ensure that is the one you buy and not another from a box in the back somewhere. Also, ENSURE!!!!!!!!! that upon purchase when they tell you they'll set it up that it's set up by a REAL technician/luthier and not some sales guy slapping some strings on it as so often happens. A real luthier will adjust the truss rod to fine tune the neck (DON'T let anyone other than a trained tech do this either!), adjust the action (using mathematics in conjunction with the guitars design, string gauge, etc.), check even fret heights etc. It's always worth the extra money (always!!) to pay a good luthier to fine tune your guitar. A new guitar takes about 5 years to "break in". If you buy it and store it properly (in the case w/ humidifier) and don't play it, after 5 years you still have a new guitar - not broken in. Playing it (playing it in) takes a few years and the vibrations will "set in" the wood from playing. This further enhances the tone over time to improve it. That's why sometimes you pick up an old guitar and go "HOLY *hit - does this sound good!". You can spend as little as 100 bucks (not advised) or as much as tens of thousands on a guitar. Beware used guitar shops - if you don't have the eye to gauge neck warps (hard to see), loosened braces on the inside, or other such guitar wounds you could be in for a long haul. Some used guitars just need an experienced luthier to operate and fix em up real nice. Gotta be really careful though! I've found some guitars hanging in used shops for a thousand dollars and based on their injuries realized they were worth about 50 bucks (broken/separated braces, lifted bridges, etc.). The bridge of the guitar, aside from the neck, is one of the most critical spots, as the sound is generated and transferred at the bridge (through the saddle). A good solid, tight bridge can often carry a pretty shitty guitar. Tuning pegs/machine heads, nuts, saddles (not the bridge), strings, scratches, finish, frets, etc. are all just lipstick and rouge. Basically the electric windows and radio in a car - I'd rather buy the engine. Distinguish between the two - learn how the engine works - then you can pick wisely from a used rack of guitars. Waaaaaaaay too much info for most folks on the board I'm sure. Sorry I got carried away. Best of luck and if you're learning - stick with it! Like fly casting, it takes years to get to that point where you feel like you actually have any skill whatsoever (In my case it seems I'll never get there...!). When you do, it's worth it.

Yeah, but you can't feel the strike....

I also have fished Whiteswan many times over the years and will attest and second pig's post (every word). He is BANG ON!Trolling has always been a waste of time for me on that lake. Often I don't even bother with a boat. You can wet wade out and if you can cast a fair distance you can nail some REALLY NICE fish! Mind you like so many mountain lakes it can shut off very quickly. I've spent weeks up there where everyone is trolling their butts off and only one or two fish caught each day, using almost word for word pig's post, I've been in the teens from shore with my numbers. If you want visitors to your campsite - that will do it...sheesh! Best of luck - it's a beautifil and underrated lake IMHO! Canal Flats is a dive, but hey...you can't have it all. P.S. Watch out for skunks! LOL!

You might get screwed by the runoff situation. Native Rainbows your best bet is the Atha-B (river not the bar...haha) within the park. Outside you're looking at other river systems entirely for natives. Bulls, your best bet (without giving away any secrets) is the Athabasca River again. There are other places but they are VERY susceptible to over fishing and I won't give those away...sorry. Mind you if you had the time to explore and were sure they were open...you might find them on your own. So if the river cooperates - your best bet is to fish that. I wouldn't bother with the Miette River. Check the status on other rivers in the area (yes, Maligne is closed). Snake is likely silted and low down has never been a big producer of fish. Whirlpool might get a few fish but pretty clear fast water without much fishy food so it's only a bit better than the Snake. I'd spend 90% of my time fishing Malinge Lake, or Beaver, or Moab, Valley of the Five lakes, or other lakes in the area that are open for fishing. There are some very large bulls in the Athabasca if you find a good spot and hit the right lure/fly. Maligne Lake, if you've never fished it is defiantly worth it. A good guide is not wasted money on that lake as you can sometimes get into days of fishing where you lose track of the number of fish you've caught. Some days like any lake though (to be fair) are a bit of a bust or only a fish or two. A good spring day of fishing on that lake has resulted in literally dozens and dozens of quality fish (brookies and rainbows) in a day. The lakes on the bench are likely close to devoid now due to limited stocking (unless you count Cabin where fishing is now allowed in season). Alternately you might consider crossing into BC and fishing some of those waters in Robson Park - don't forget a BC license though. If you're in doubt phone 780-852-5650 and talk to Lorne or Brenda for information on guided trips/boat rentals, etc. Best of luck to you.

Latex gloves or condoms work too with more of a flat finish to the back.

I believe there is a sub-species difference between the two provinces too. One is S. malma malma the other is S. confluentious (spelling error?)

IMHO yes it is overkill. I've chucked 6-7" bunnies and egg-heads on 3/0 stainless for years with my 7wt sage. I'd rather work a bit harder loading the rod and have some fun than hook the fish and fall asleep fighting them... To each his own I guess. 15" IS a long bunny! Bear in mind that a particularly well know fly fisherman was known for tying a key (yes, a KEY!) on the end of his 4 wt and casting it - just to make a point that you didn't need a heavier rod to fish streamers for trout. The part that makes you *hit yourself is that he kept it in the air - I always wondered what would happen if it caught his rod tip on the way by....

Doesn't matter where you caught it, it's a trophy cutt anywhere. Nice score on that one!

I heard the Pacific Ocean is petty good but you should keep it quiet! (ha ha - someone punch me!). There are a number of opportunities within the Greater Van area. You can try the salt, some of the rivers, or numerous lakes in the vicinity. It's all about the travel time really. When you say Greater Vancouver...how greater? 1 hr? 2 hrs? 20 mins? Where are you starting from? 20 mins from New West can be much longer from West Van.

12??? Just how big are these pike you're after and can I have the name of the lake? Stick with a 7 or 8 (6 if you feel you need a challenge).

Cats are great!!! I love em! Nothing beats a challenge! www.airsportdirect.com/acatalog/WebleyHurricane.html

You're joking right?

For a big picture kind of examination of an area, don't neglect Google Earth. Ensure you select the 3D option and set you vertical exaggeration to it's maximum. You can email all of your placemarks all to me!!!

Just how backcountry are we talking? I know of a fair bit of productive rarely fished waters - but it's not "day hike" kind of stuff. PM me and I might have some tid bits for thought.

Yes, you can rent aluminum boats, canoes, or freighter canoes (much more stable, longer and more stable but needs an electric motor-can't paddle them). You can rent from Currie's Guiding (in town), or Maligne Tours (at the lake). It can be good all summer, like everywhere it has its dog days. June is usually fabulous. Cheers!

Geez I can't believe no one mentioned Maligne Lake yet... Average brookie runs about 1 1/2 lbs. Third largest brookie in the world came from the lake (on display in Hinton). And a veritable plethora of fishies! Some of the brookies will run several pounds. I've seen them caught up to 7 in the past (visually seen them caught or caught them myself). Not to mention a beautiful setting! Or... just fly into Fortress and knock em dead!

Check out Silver Springs if you get a chance. The fish in there are mind blowing!