Castuserraticus

Double haul. False casting alone doesn't develop line speed. Double haul = less false casting = fly on the water more and easier on shoulder on a long day

Knots in your leader come from tailing loops (that is - you're line is getting tangled in mid air because the loop is collapsing). There are many causes of this (too much rod arc, not enough power, power at the wrong time, wind,...) and many ways of correcting it. Practicing enough that you learn to control the line path (back and forward cast), and get the feel of how the rod loads is important to aid success and enjoyment. On the water can be a frustrating place to learn. If you're a visual learner look up some of the many videos on YouTube on casting instruction or rent some from a fly shop. Lefty Kreh's book on Presenting The Fly has some excellent descriptions of many different types of casts. All of them are useful in different situations.

Pretty well anything in the Oldman River drainage basin. The cuts in the Bow system outside of Banff have been largely displaced by rainbows and/or brookies. Tribs into the Livingston, Oldman, and Crowsnest all have cutties.

That's the Kananaskis above Canoe meadows - spent a lot of time playing in there. There isn't much water there when the Barrier dam is turned off. There's probably a few finned creatures in the deep pools.

The psychological term is "confirmational bias". Social, intellectual, and financial behaviour is ruled by this. People are attracted to people who agree with their existing belief system. We think that person is smarter because they confirm our beliefs. It's nearly impossible to get an unbiased opinion. I've read scientific papers with strong positions on either side of the global warming issue. I think both extremes are wrong - doing no harm vs the world is ending. Humans have an impact but nature has absorbed much bigger hits in the geologic past and life has found a way.

Did a float from High River downstream several years ago with Bow Waters Canoe Club. The river meanders through a lovely canyon with abundant bird life. Even though it's through farmland it doesn't feel like it at river level. I can't remember where we got out - a bridge crossing. We spent about 6 hours or so including a lunch stop. I didn't see any fish rise that day.

Those are some impressive looking grayling. Nice pics.

Unfortunately, Birchy's program didn't recover anything useable. The data is there but needs more work to recover. Looks like a hardware issue. Had a data recovery specialist in to take the old drive. The computer locked up after taking out the old drive so had to start at 0 again with a system recovery (third time since January). What I've learned: Stand alone for a corporate computer is Russian roullette. Back everything up regularly - one short term and one long term. Don't trust the back-up program - check it. A third redundancy wouldn't hurt. Techies strongly disagree on which hardware is the best. The only way to find out which component is failing is to use the computer again.

40 minutes so far and 20,500 files so far. It's a hard world to be a tech luddite in.

I need a new tech service with people who's first response is not to wipe the hard drive with a system recovery. :$*%&: For the fourth time in the past year my computer locked. This time I felt confident my data would be intact because I'd installed a removeable hard drive and had set it up for automatic back-ups twice a week. After several conversations with the ESL tech, I requested they install a new hard drive and leave the old one in so I could access all my files. I just got it back and it looks like they wiped the old one because all it has is the basic windows folders. They claim they did not touch the old drive but there are about 40GB of files missing. The auto back-up failed in early May and the back-up file can not be read by the program. I had done a manual back-up in January when I first installed the drive so it looks like I'm missing about 6 months of files. This coincides with a really busy time for my company and I'm missing some really important files. If the techs are telling the truth then the data should be on the old drive. Can it be found? There's a free float trip for anyone who can help me recover the data.

I spray the outside and under the brim of my hat with deep woods off. That keeps them away from the head pretty much. I have a fedora style so get protection all around.

I've had good success with a streamer like a clouser or bugger to keep the smaller grayling from hooking themselves. The dry fly is fun because the fish can be so kamikaze. There's no such thing as a bad cast with the wild ones.

Any blonde duck jokes out there?

Ole's Lake had decent fishing when I lived near there. You could try Charlie Lake or Swan Lake for sharks. One Island Lake is famous for huge hard to catch rainbows. I've heard the chironomid fishing can be good there. I remember as a kid seeing huge 'bows cruise the shoreline in the evening after spending the day on the water and getting skunked.

Just switched my wife and kids to Virgin mobile - no system fees or other add-ons. Just $0.32 per minute. You have 45 days to use the minutes. Automaitc top-up means minutes are always there. Virgin to virgin texts are only $0.05.

There's a day use area at Canyon Creek. It's the little valley west of Paddy Flats.

Take lessons thru a flyshop - saves aggravation and time. You'll learn some basic patterns and techniques. They'll often supply a starter kit - think of it like drug dealers providing free samples. It's more expensive and when you're starting out the quality of your flies will suck. It takes a lot of volume to make hand ties cost effective. One way may be to stick to a small variety of proven patterns to limit material purchases but what's the fun in that. There is no 12 step program or support group to help you stop once you get started.

Protective pants over the waders for bushwhacking is an interesting idea. My original neoprene waders were shredded when I walked into a tangle of partially overgrown barbed wire along the Highwood. I always wear wool socks over the boot foot of my wader to prevent wear from chaffing and to prevent grit that inevitably gets in from wearing a hole - a lesson from wet feet. My net is attached to a plastic clip that's attached to a D ring on back of my vest - out of the way and easy to access. The handle hangs down. I just reach back, a quick pull and it's ready to go. Haven't had any problem with it snagging bushes.

None of the smaller creeks and rivers are open until Monday the 16th.

Makes me remember the little lake near where I grew up. Back then, it was a dirt track that was inaccessible 90% of the time. Now it's paved with a developed recreation area.

Ignorance is not an excuse. He does not have a point. Just cause guns and bows are sold within the city limits doesn't mean you can hunt there. They are taking part in a regulated activity and have a responsibility to know and abide by the rules. The onus is on the user. A car dealership does not require you to take a driving test prior to selling you a car. The heavy fines for poaching are an educational tool. They're not going to break anyone but it can sure make them think twice about breaking the law again. I've argued with a person over his contention that marshmallows were not bait. I didn't have a phone at the time to call him in. The CO would have settled the argument. Can you turn a friend in for poaching? Why not - especially if they're habitual? The program is anonymous. Some older guys who wish for "the good old days" do not want to change their ways to adapt to the reality of today's world. I've had this conversation with my Dad.

Ticket is the first step. Then, just like a speeding ticket, they either pay (guilty plea) or court has to convict them. CO has to appear in court to testify if the ticket isn't paid. Judge has some discretion is amount of final fine.

He may have a buff body and a pretty face but the girls still aren't interested. Interesting looking accident of nature. That's pretty well a once in a lifetime catch, eh? Or does Sask. stock them?

My wife has recurring back spasms. The best remedy she found was Dr. Brian Abelson - he's a chiro by training but does pretty well 100% active release now. We've both used acupuncture through Saatcha Health Centre and like it - Jag Johal. Have you tried therapeutic massage? I've gone to a guy at 5th Ave. Physio for various sports injuries. Most massage therapists burn out in less than 5 years due to repetitive strain injuries but Dave has lasted over 12 years because he's 6'4" and real strong. He can usually get everything moving after 3 treatments. He's shown me many pains are referred - the injury site and the pain location are not the same - so it takes a broader approach to actually get relief. It hurts like hell initially but it sure works.

Well I won't be vacationing with you Vic - you're a trouble magnet. I always thought you looked like a wealthy, drug smuggling, terrorist and this confirms it.