Hawgstoppah

wow. That's on the bucket list for sure

What Jayhad said to a tee. Also, you can find those same types of water and nymph... but instead of 7 or 8 or 9ft under the indicator use 2 to 4. Maybe a big sjw and a stone or leech pattern, something they'll be likely to see. Like others, I personally find this to be the BEST time of year to get into the fish. From now through about mid July should offer up the best fishing of the year. Cheers,

Posted at 1:59PM max? I hope you're just taking a break from slaying browns man! Happy bday edit: LOL I just realized my post is days off. I guess he was to busy on his bday to reply! Ha!

The Bow itself should fish very well in early to mid July on stonefly dry fly. You'll have to get up really early and walk some banks, but the fish will be there. Look for banks that have stoneflies sitting in the grass, or where you see the big bugs on the water. There should be some splashy / scary rises near shore as well. Fishing the Forestry Trunk road would be a good book to help you explore the mountains, lots and lots of nice water SW of Calgary and also west of Rocky Mountain House as well. The Oldman itself from the "gap" to hwy 22 would probably suit your need for a bull and a cutt quite nicely, as both species are decently frequent in there. The Castle river also has a good number of bulls and holds cuts. I could give you a bit more specific information if you require it, by PM. cheers

Great pics, again!

Sounds good to me Rick. I'd love to see the Crow closed March 1 to June 1st or 15th as well. I merely suggested Police as a measure of protection - a "buffer zone" if you will - from where most of the browns in my own observations, have gone to spawn which seems to be the hwy 2 bridge and upstream. Reducing pressure on them at a vulnerable time would be great. I've also suggested for years a closure from Police downstream to MacKinnons during the rainbow staging time. Help our fishy friends out. People are going to fish where there are fish (myself included) but if regs and science back up reasons to stop, then I am sure we can all find other locations. Mac to Carseland is pretty freekin good in late fall for rainbows, let's leave the future of the Brown trout fishery to do their thing is all I am saying

Maybe the time is coming for fall closures in city limits, perhaps Police and up, where a good number of the browns go to spawn. I've seen people fish for browns sitting on their bloody redds in fish creek park. It would be a start into protecting the browns we all love, and lets face it... as much as we'd like to be selfish and keep fishing... this has got to be about the fish and not our fishing needs or desires for once.

Sometimes that blowout can be the best fishing of the year. Look for slack inside bends with slow water. You normally don't even have to fish deep, a couple stones 3 and 4ft under an indicator fished close to shore in the slowest part of the river will do just fine if she's blowing mud. (as long as there is about a half foot of vis this normally fishes very well)

Looking at this thread one thought goes into my mind. As through our lives we gain more and more equipment and find it all useful, I wonder if in the end it will just be countless trips with our one favorite rod, and our favorite places to use it as the days of our lives grow longer and the sunlight starts to fade on our last remaining fishing trips.

In my opinion and from what I have witnessed, those fishing a softer rod or bamboo with similar slow action, are extremely accurate in placing a cast just exactly where it was intended to go, whereas those fishing a faster rod tend to need more drifts over a fish to get the "right" one. Just an observation though, and not a statement. Cheers

wow! all I could think of was I hoped they warned everyone downriver!! Not sure if you'd have time to recognize the threat and get out of there if you were out ice fishing or something.

Normally lose at least a couple 2 fly rigs to the bottom... Some days it seems like I cant lose a fly and others it seems like my box isn't going to last the day, as I snap off my 20th fly of the day.

I have caught cutts in places where the strain is 100% pure, that do NOT have slashes every now and then, so I'd say your fish certainly does exhibit classic cutthroat spotting giving it a really good chance of having cutt genetics in there somewhere.

Loved it!

Just dreaming of steelhead .... thanks for starting this one off Dustin. I hear the world Steelhead and my thoughts immediately turn to foggy river early dawn... ripe with anticipation of the first pass through a run.... bears on the riverbanks, the smell of rotting salmon, and the screaming reel after a heart pounding take.

Now that you have cut your teeth on the Bow the montain streams should be decently easy for you... just half size your bow river nymphs system, or go dry fly I love the Browns on the Bow as well, more than anything myself!

blood soaked rainbows.... hahahaha classic....

Responsible ATV users are also going to end up suffering from what is going on in the Oldman & Castle drainages too. Here we are worried about barbless, when every Tom, Dick, Harry, Billy Bob, Cletus, is going to be driving through a closed (to fishing) river on the May long weekend tearing up riverbed our precious little Vanna White's are being born. I think a ATV tire on top of an egg or just hatched 1cm fry is a bzillion times more harmful than a barbed hook will ever be to it! And for the record I use barbless and will continue to do so, but I am not going to force that opniion on anyone, and if my kids come fishing and start getting frustrated I WILL ask if they'd like to try one with a barb.

LOLOL post of the year award goes to.........................!!!!!! LOLOL

haha pack the van. I'll get a job driving log truck or something, let's rock and roll no more excuses.

Policeman's Flats is not too far out of town as well. Walk upstream of the parking lot to the first long run and the riffle at the head of it and usually you can at least **** chat with a few folks fishing the area who probably have an idea of what they are doing. It helps to watch folks who are catching fish too. Good luck out there!

I'd like to retire someday up in the Skeena system but I know my wife wouldn't go for it. The closest Walmart to Terrace is in Prince George last time I checked. She'd skin my hide if I dragged her out there for some fish, so I'll have to be happy with the Alberta version of steelies...

Well in looking at it as a whole combination of things for the rookie into perspective, I think, for the newcomer who is a member of this forum, who has hundreds of folks who would probably show him the ropes a bit, I stand by my statement. Calgary is #1. If it's just BIG fish you need to introduce you and hook you to the sport... yeah no place like the BC Coast, for sure. Left my heart out there in 2009 and I haven't got it back yet ...

I dont think there is a better place in Canada, than Calgary to get a start into the sport! Enjoy!!

I don't understand how it all happened but I imagine the Alberta Fisheries Regulations... is a statute or act of the Province of Alberta and therefore only pertains to Alberta.