rusty

I've fished BH a lot every year since 2005. The fishing now is the worst I've seen it for fish size. I don't think a fish has been posted that is definitely over 20" on here at all this year. Still good numbers though. I think the big fish are heavily predated by pelicans and catch and release mortality is higher than people think. I also think that triploids will solve both of these problems. The triploids we catch in BC often prefer to feed in deeper water - I wonder if we'll see similar behaviour in BH.

Excellent....

What sort of depth are we talking about here? I've seen what I thought were redds in 1' of gravel like those pics, but doesn't it freeze right to the bottom in those places?

Unreal Max - those are some wicked shots. What's that red reel?

The Flames' problem the last few years is that they just don't step on their opponents throat when they have the chance. They've sure looked a lot better of late...here's hoping they keep it up. And man oh man, do I LOVE Bertuzzi in the flaming C!

Sage lines are made by Rio and I don't really like them. I picked one up for my 390XP out of the bargain bin and it just doesn't shoot as nicely as a lot of the other lines. I'm tellin ya - Airflo Freshwater Tactical. Only way to fly.

5 in a row baby!!

Yeah...if there's any team that knows about the point for the OT loss, it's Edmonton!

Awesome deal. Take it for sure.

Great post - thanks Brian.

fishinmagician - when did you fish the Alagnak? Upper or lower? Were you guided?

There is also public access around the HW confluence as you'll see on google earth. Don't mess around with many other places though - I know plenty of guys who've run into trouble crossing private land and trespassing is not cool. When private land is involved, either get permission from the landowner or walk in from an access point. Breaking the law shows a lack of respect for landowners and all your fellow anglers. I'm sure most of us know of spots that used to be accessible by the public that are now shut down because of abuse.

Don't forget that sink rate has a lot more to do with density than weight. A #16 czech-style caddis pupa will sink like a stone, but it weighs a lot less than a moderately weighted #4 bugger (which would sink a lot slower).

I just pack the 4 piece rods in my check-in luggage.

That is awesome! On the fly too...cool. Guaranteed he'll remember that for a long time.

As far as I'm concerned the nicest reels for the buck are the Nautilus. They make a 12S and 12DD which are both deadly spey reels. You can also potentially pick up a good deal on a Bauer MX6.

A few of those sturgeon jumped, and it was amazing. Need to figure out how to tie a realistic roebag imitation.

Here are your pics Paulie; you've gotta surround the http:// all the way to the .jpg with like this (no spaces): [ i m g ]http://photos.blahblahblah/blah.jpg[ / i m g ] You want to link to the larger pics too instead of the thumbnails.

Spent two days last week down on the Fraser system with PAV and another buddy. Fishing was awesome. Caught three species of Pacific salmon (chum, coho, and sockeye) and got to fish for chinooks too. We even got out for sturgeon one night and I gotta say...whether or not it's flyfishing, it is something else to get pulled on by the largest freshwater fish in the world. Just an unreal experience. We hooked a fish 8' long that we fought for a half-hour before he snarled us in something on the bottom. We had Curtis from Great River and John from Bent Rods and both guides were awesome. Curtis is a really good flyfisher and John is a sturgeon guru. Would recommend either of them. All in all I'm ashamed that I waited until I was in my late 20s to fish the Fraser system.

Awesome.

Wicked pics man...we're heading there in three days. Were you guided?

Policeman's Flats is one of the best spots on the whole river, regardless of how hard it gets hammered. I fish it really regularly (over 30 days a year) and cannot believe the number and size of fish so close to where you can park. I also cannot believe how so many people down there are fishing the wrong water with the wrong techniques. The only difference between the pounded spots and the less known ones is the solitude, not the fishing. 10% of the guys catch 90% of the fish on the Bow. Get out for a day with Max, spend some more time watching and learning to read water, and you'll be in that 10% before you know it. There are plenty of places around here with low traffic, tough access, and excellent fishing - but you'll have to find them the way most of us did.

Sweet pics Wes. I'd love to boil off the skull of a big pike and put it on one of my endtables.

Conor, If you need gear let me know...I've got a 1090-4 Xi2 and a #10 Nautilus CCF that you're welcome to borrow.

I watched that beating from the hotel bar in Sherwood Park and have to say...it got awful quiet around there in an awful hurry. Sure it's only preseason, but it sure looks like Edmonton could use some d. Should be good on Friday.