Whistler

Slideshow will be taking place on Friday night at 8pm at a FFC members house in the SW. I only have two spaces left so if you are interested send me a pm thanks and look forward to seeing some of you on Friday night. Brian

It looks like we may have a location to show this on Friday night, depending on the level of interest. Please pm me or call 604-905-9694 if you would like to attend. Brian Niska

I am in Calgary for the rest of the week teaching speycasting during the day but with some free time at night. I just returned from doing slide shows(Chinook Salmon and Steelhead) at the conclave in Lethbridge on the weekend. If anyone is interested I have a slide show featuring some great Chinook Salmon Flyfishing shots from BC and Alaska. I also have a Steelhead presentation that is instructional and has photos from all over BC. Was thinking about putting on a slide show one evening this week but would be looking for someone or somewhere to host it. If anyone has ideas or suggestions please shoot me a pm or call my cell at 604-905-9694 Brian Niska

Still have some space for private lessons on Wednesday as well as 2 spaces in Fridays group class and 4 spaces left for Saturday. Call my cell 604-905-9694 if you would like to join Brian Niska

Pieroway Fly Rod co Whistler Spey Series ..just got the new prototypes and have to say they are pretty sweet. Will be teaching in Calgary all week, let me know if you want to come out for a cast

just got back from Terrace-Spey school on the Skeena and Kalum rivers. Will be heading out to Alberta later in the week and wanted to finalize my teaching schedule. I will be in the shop all day Monday and Tuesday. Please call 1-888-822-3474 to reserve your space in thye clinics or to book private casting lessons. Brian Niska

leaving for Terrace on Sunday. (Anyone want to come fish for Steelhead and Chinook Salmon). Still have space in the schools as well as some slots for private lessons on Wed 5th and Thurs 6th (Tuesday is sold out now). I will be in the shop all day today and only reachable for the rerst of the week on my cell 604-905-9694and sporadic email. Brian Niska

The sinking leader (65grains) is a little heavy for such a light scandi head. You will find that the rig will cast better if you shorten the leader and thus lighten the burden that the scandi head has to turn over. Also the front end taper of the compact scandi is very light and better fished as a dry line. You will find increased casting performance byt shortening the front of the head though not too many people are comfortable cutting 8-12" of perfectly good line off of a sweet new fly line. Other less painfull tips would be to keep your fly size small and your leader short-under 40". If you want technique help I will be doing some schools and private lessons in the Calgary area the first week of May this year. good luck with the casting, Brian Niska

As some of you already know I will be out in Alberta from April 30th - May 8. I am doing some demos and lessons in Lethbridge at the start of the trip.I will be in Calgary from May 4-8 doing both private and group lessons. The Spey Clinics are scheduled for Friday May 7th and Saturday May 8th. Loop pro staffer and local legend Maxwell Robinson will be assisting me with both of these classes. Price will be $150 + gst and class size will be limited. These clinics will start at 10am and run until around 5pm. I will be available for private lessons(single hand and spey) throughout the day on May 4, 5 and 6th. Private lessons are $60+gst per hour or $40+gst per person per hour for groups of 2 or 3. Please give me a call at 1-888-822-3474 if you require more info or would like to reserve your space. I can also be reached directly on my cell at 604-905-9694. looking forward to getting out on the water with you guys Brian Niska bniska@whistlerflyfishing.com www.whistlerflyfishing.com

yes the cork takes a little getting used to but tends to get better with use. I still have lots of AEG 590 rods in stock $250 + tax for rod alone and $500 + tax when paired up with an evotec and $600 + tax when paired up with an evotec and loop opti stream line also have a sweet deal on a Loop opti creek #3 set up awesome rods for the price

just got back to Whistler. Had a great time at the expo this year, it was really nice to see people that I hadn't seen since last year. Now to repack the shop tomorrow, though all that fresh snow on the mountain is tempting a late start at the shop. Thank you to everyone that stopped by our booth and a special thanks to Max for working super hard in the booth. I will be out again in the first week of May for anyone looking for private casting lessons and doing some spey classes with Max and Frankie. thanks agaihn to everyone thatcame out and stopped by our booth, especially those that took advantage of the Loop package deals we had on sale. In regards to that I have a few combos left so will probably extend this sale till the end of the week. Stay tuned to the sponsor announcements for more details. thanks again, Brian

really enjoying the show this year, esspecially the warmer weather. If anyone is interested I am doing a speycasting demo at 11am today. Lots of good deals at the Whistler Flyfishing booth including 30% off on Loop evotecs and a ridiculous combo price on the sweetest Trout combo at the show (590 aeg rod/evotec 5/7 and loop optistream line) we screwed up and didnt bring enough flexfit hats so if you are after one this year try and stop by soon as I think we will sell out sometime before the end of today. Max has promised to bring his photo disc today so our slideshow today will have some local representation to go along with all the shots of Steelhead and Chinook Salmon. If you are interested in travel be sure to ask for one of our new destination school brochures I look forward to seeing you guys later today or sometime tomorrow at the show Brian Niska

I will be teaching spey schools with Maxwell again this spring. Check out the sponsor announcement section for more info: 2010 Spey Schools Stop by our booth at next months fly show for more info Brian

it is no prob to get loops wet as the drag is completely sealed. What rod is this going on?

Jerry French, guide at Alaska West and all around fantastic individual

The Loop 7120 multi bridges the gap between heavy Trout and light Steelhead(ie Bulkley) and Salmon(Coho/Pinks) perfectly. Brian Niska

Get your new spey set up from Canada's Speyfishing Specialty shop, Whistler Flyfishing has been specializing in Speyfishing for over 10 years. Choose from western Canada's largest selection of two handed fly rods from a variety of manufacturers including LOOP, SAGE, ECHO, CND and AMUNDSON. We put together great deals on spey combos and always guarantee our rod/line match. We are offerring 2 new special deals to Flyfish Calgary members on all spey purchases till the end of the year. Purchase any new speyrod from our selection and receive a free 1.5 hour casting lesson with Bow River spey icon Maxwell Robinson. Purchase any new spey combo(rod/reel/line) and receive a half day on the water Bow River spey school with Maxwell. FREE shipping with this promotion! we can get in stock items to Calgary within 2-3 days For more information please call Whistler Flyfishing at 1-888-822-3474

happy to let you know what is possible and not to fall into the trap of thinking you are limited by your gear.

not being difficult, just correcting you that's all . Scandi heads are similar lengths to skagit lines and are typically associated with touch and go casts. It is true that skagit lines are heavier than scandi lines but touch and go casts really arent that difficult with proper technique and a little bit of practice. If you are having trouble with these casts I will be out again in the spring and would be happy to spend some time with you. Brian Niska

Multi's are silent the evotecs make a subtle clicking sound. Brian

loved the story Al, took me right back there to the Kanektok. Can't wait till next summer, love that place.

don't kid yourself, the Loop multi 6/9 is the reel to perfectly match this rod. Lots of capacity and the same g3 drag as the evotecs and optis. The reel is heavy enough to balance the rod and small enough that it won't look ridiculous like putting a 9/10 reel on a rod this small. PM or call me if you want more info or have any questions Brian 1-888-822-3474

no actually it is very easy to do all casts with skagit style lines though most associate sustained anchor casting with Skagit lines. just to be difficult I will also add that a sure fire way to develop bad habits is to cast a line that is too long for your rod ie 65' head on a 12' rod Brian

which switch? how long?

Neil, I think that the fees charged are a small price to pay for the privelidge of angling for wild Steel. The number of Alberta plates I see on our classified rivers leads me to believe that others are ok with these fees. It does bother me that we charge fellow Canadians the same fee as out of country anglers. The Thompson Steelhead angler is wired a little different than other fishers. I don't think any of these folks will cease to care,or show up for that matter, due to the continuation of these fees on the Thompson.