bcubed

I had better luck getting a seat replaced from them then I did getting an email replied to from WM... I'd take a good hard look at the Assault X in the trading section. I have the XX and would probably prefer to go for the X now, if I didn't occasionally have a second person with me

I'd wait for the fishing expo. Most major brands will be there so you can see them in person. Take a look at the Scadden Assault as well

I'd fill it up, get a spray bottle with water and dish soap and look for where the bubbles are comjng from

Eastern rises is probably the best fishing flick put out in a very long time... Plus no AEG 'woe is me' bs

Good to hear!

Only works for goretex material (Simms) I believe

Unless you're seeing consistent rises, from here till April it's nymph time... If you're seeing a fish working on midges on top, then throw a dry. You'd probably raise the odd fish throwing blind right now, but pretty doubtful.

Likely midges at this time of year

Personally, kool aid is pretty wasteful as you're paying for something like 95% flavoring, 5% dye. Rit is also a dye mix, so again hard to be consistent I'd get some Jacquards Acid Dye (shuttleworks just south of Calgary carries it). Comes in a ton of colors, is very inexpensive and one small bottle will last you pretty well a lifetime. You can also be far more consistent when doing future dying, as you know the exact portion of dye being used. I've dyed many hundred polar bear patches, and have had great results using Jacquards. Id expect snowshoe to be similar. I use a large pot (not a good one), and a instant read thermometer. You don't want the water to get too hot as you'll ruin the hide. Id rather dye at 140F for longer then at 160 for longer. I've got most of my recipes down and typically doing the bath between 20-60 minutes, depending on how deep of a color I want. As Doc said, wash them well before hand. The biggest thing is the acid. I'm not shy about using a lot of vinegar as it's not strong enough to damage the fur, and is the only thing that sets these dyes. I put the acid in the bath about halfway through Biggest thing is take notes so you know what worked and didn't in the future

Just do some moderate trolling... He always seems around when I need a slap on the wrist

Born in BC but moved here by the time I could start remembering. Been fly fishing for nearly 20 years (not bad for a guy in his mid 20s). Got way more into it through high school and university. Worked in a fly shop and guided through university. Now a "real" job doing Environmental Consulting work. Really spend all my time trying to get out west for steelhead fishing...never enough time

I just bought an integrated 300 gr ultrafast sink tip, and cut the tip back to 12 feet long. Anything longer is going to be too long to be effective at manipulating your line, especially since the rod is shorter. I don't like looping sink tips on single hand rods as you can feel the hinge when you're casting. I'd also say that 95% of my fishing is using the floating line that comes with the Bass rod. No sinktip is going to beat 5 or 6 split shot at the eye of the fly. It will handle any bull trout if you know how to pull on fish. The rod has a very strong butt end, so make sure you make the rod do the work. Bulls are hardly renowned fighters, so all you have to do is know how to apply pressure. Odds are you'll be fishing pretty heavy leader, so just reef on em. There was a lot of guys using that rod (and the 330 gr Largemouth) as a Baby Tarpon rod. You'll be fine.

Personally, swinging on smaller waters is a bit of a time waster in my mind. I'd rather walk 5 km of water, and fish to aggressive chasing fish, rather then swing through 1km of water in the same time. For the most part, the fish in the smaller streams are going to be constricted to pretty specific areas, and one cast per spot will work. There are also enough fish around that you don't have to hope that there is a fish in a run. Odds are, there is, and odds are that fish will come to the fly if it's in the vicinity. Personally I like throwing streamers to the other bank, and stripping them directly cross current at a pretty good rate. I want that fly being perpendicular to flow. Shows the most of the fly to the fish, and definitely creates commitment on their end. You'll also move way quicker, and therefore show your fly to more fish. Don't 'trout strike' by lifting your rod tip, strip through and don't raise your rod till the fish is on. It is getting a bit late for this type of streamer fishing, but you'll still have enough water temp until the rivers are closed that these fish will come to the fly.

Spey rods are really really shitty at one thing in particular, and that is stripping. I've done a LOT of bull trout fishing (and a ton of Spey fishing)!and most of my success for them has been while stripping. Spey rods are truly unwieldy when trying to use them to strip flies back in, especially if you're trying to do it at any reasonable speed.. Good for swinging, not ideal for stripping. Considering that the elk really isn't that large, I think you'll be frustrated if you're stripping for them. Also, to be able to toss a good size bull trout fly (say a Chuck and Duck), you're going to need in the range of a 600 gr skagit, especially if planning on using a sink tip. When I was in Mongolia, the Spey guys are fishing similar fly size and tips are using 9-10 weight speys, with 700-750 gr skagits (and no, it's not just due to size of the fish) to be able to turn over the flies. Spey fishing comes down to one thing, and that is mass turns over mass. To compare it to steelheading, most steelhead flies are a lot smaller and certainly less heavy than most effective bull trout flies. Personally I bought one of the Sage Smallmouth Bass 290grs. They're built to turn over big bass flies, and have no issue putting a 300 gr sinktip on when I want to get really deep. Short height helps with overhanging trees, etc. also a great pike rod. Whichever way you go, improving your casting will improve your success over any gear change

The Orvis dropper boxes are pretty well exactly what you're looking for, and are good boxes

Bow should be shut above 22 to avoid the whole situation of trying to avoid redds. But NIMBY for losing a couple months of fishing on a small stretch of river. Scel, when I was assisting on the Elbow Riv redd survey a few years ago, there was one patch that was probably 40 redds all together. Only so much good terrain for them to spawn, they'll make it happen where they can

And try to resist targeting bulls! They are already doing the dance (and have been for a while)

Considering how most boatmen legs are approximately as long as the boatmen body is long, those seem like overkill, but easy enough to trim if they don't work.

Think you're not looking enough, I've seen cormorants for as long as I've fished the bow, from Glenmore to Carseland . Maybe they're getting bigger numbers due to the otter population...

It's fine, but not comparable to a proper lake boat by any means. I just use my raft now if I'm doing pike fishing and stand on the seat. Let the wind push me around

Lotsa loons in BC are trained to hear reels squealing and typically show up in a big hurry

ya i was wondering when someone would get him out! Good job pete. Im impressed with David's Gray apparent interest/understanding of it

I would never recommend a drift boat for lakes. I have used mine (a LP) for lake fishing numerous times, and they are hell, plus damn dangerous in a big wind. I hate taking my drifter in lakes, and rarely bother anymore. Not worth it They're comfy, but super inefficient in lakes.

Can't blame them after the flood last year!

Works especially well when it looks like it's raining with the dimples hitting the surface. Best when it does that, then a second later a fish crashes the surface