Fishscape

Awesome guys. Thanks for the info. Paul

Can anyone recommend midge patterns (larva, pupa, and emerger) patterns that work on the Bow? Size and color recommendations as well as fishing tips would be helpful. If anyone has images of Bow River midges that would be a big help. Thank you for your help. Paul

Dude, Go with Patagonia. I prefer the Guidewater, but the deep wading jacket or the SST would be a fine choice as well. Awesome jacket and best warranty in the business. I have shipped back jackets after 6 years that started to leak and they refunded me the full original purchase price. The same with waders.

I often fish a larger (12-14), visible dry fly with a size 18-20 emerger or wet fly behind it, which is not really the point of the post, but seems to work well. I don't know what role, if any, the larger fly has in attracing the fish, but I like to think that it helps to get the attention of the fish, whereas the smaller fly gets taken more often. I am not sure if this is due to the smaller size, or the emerger aspect, or both.

Was it a March Brown (the insect, I mean)? It seems early for Brown Drakes and I don't know if you get them on the Bow.

Thanks for all the tips guys. Crazy BWO hatch on Sat.

I can't seem to find anything in the regs specifically regarding Fish Creek (the creek itself). Does anyone know whether it is open or closed this time of year? Thanks.

No, the gap is very small, as it is a size 18, 2x long, normal gap hook. The distance to the upper fly, a SJW, was about 18 inches, but no bites or foul hooks were on the worm, so I don't think they were going for the upper fly. The fish certainly were stacked along the linear structure I was fishing, and they must have been tight in there, as I hooked 7 rainbows in about 20-30 feet, some of them reasonably large. I do not strike that often, or at randow, however, only when I see the indicator move noticeably, so I am pretty sure they were actually going for, or had already rejected the fly. As I could not possibly anticipate a strike, except by chance (and certainly not 30% of the time), so that leaves me thinking that they had already rejected the fly. Perhaps there is too much slack in my system and I cannot sense the strikes until too late?

I have noticed a large percentage (~ 30%) of foul hookings lately while I am nymphing (2 fly set-up, floating line, all on point fly, #18 PT nymph). Mostly belly or chin. Anyone know what this signifies? Basically, I think I am striking too late. Can anyone enlighten me so I can avoid this distasteful situation?

Yeah, I've noticed products from Howards Hackle smell strongly of mothballs. It dissipates in time though. About 2 years time.

I know this topic has been beat to death around here, but I need some friendly advice from those more experienced than I. In short, here is the state of things. I currently have two rods, both cheapies. A 2-piece, 9', 6 wt. Redington Redfly 2 (part of a kit that was my first gear), which I hate, and a $100, 2-piece 8 ft, 4 wt. TFO signature rod, which I love compared to the Redfly 2, as it is shorter for small creeeks and more sensitive and fun to fish. I suspect there may be more out there for me, so I have lined up to try the following rods, all in 9 ft, 4 -piece, 5 wt. - Sage Z-axis, Sage VT2, St. Croix Legend ultra, and TFO TiCr. I am looking forward to the shoot-off. Anything I missed? I would like to stay under $400-500 if I can, and am looking for an all-round rod that I can use for the Bow and similar-size rivers (Maligne, Atha-B, Clearater, Red Deer, etc.). Basically, for everthing but small creeks, where I use my 8 ft, 4 wt TFO, or maybe a sweet little 7', 2 or 3wt Sage TXL, if I can convince the wife. I don't fish streamers much or with sinking lines. The rod will be mainly for nymphing and fishing dries with casts in the 30-60 ft. range. I am no distance champion. I considered a longer length, maybe 9' 6" or 10" for added line control while nymphing and to help on lakes, but think 9' may be more versatile when brush is involved. I would say, based on my limited experience, that moderate or moderate-fast rods suit be better than fast ones. I know ultimately I have to decide myself, based on what feels right and what my particular needs are. Still, I would be interested to hear what people's "go-to" rod for the Bow is and what they use it for. Thanks.

What is your best San Juan worm pattern or variation for the Bow? Thanks.

Can anyone recommend good fly fishing literature? Not how-to books, but the kind of book that you will return to again and again. The kind of book you take on trips to read during down-time or during the winter before bed. If you had to pick one book about fishing, this would be the book. I have read a lot of John Gierach and I like his work, but I'm sure I could find better. I heard once that this guy lived a long stretch of time on a river somewere (Montana?) and kept a journal. Anyone know of this book? Whenever I fish somewhere, I like to spend a solid week or more on a stretch of river, during all times of the day and in all weather to really get to know the river. Not just where the fish are, but what the daily rythm is. I like to get a feel for a place. Philosophical is good. What do you recommend?

Sounds like some rod snobbery going on. I picked up a 8' TFO 4wt, 2 piece for $100 on boxing day a few years ago and it's my go-to creek rod. It casts better than every rod I have tried, including my buddy's $800 rod.

check this link out: 8 wt. fly rod shoot-out http://www.yellowstoneangler.com/FlyRodCom...isNativeRun.asp update: http://www.yellowstoneangler.com/8.weight....ni.shootout.asp

Thanks for the tips. I'm off to the park to see how on casting.

I've been practicing my casting lately, and I've noticed that often that my line will hit the water before my fly will. Or that the cast seems overpowered or something and resembles a tuck cast. If I decrease power, it does not solve the problem. How do I get the fly to turn over properly and land gently on the water without a belly forming in my line which splats on the water before the fly and leader? I can get tiht loops while false casting, but when it comes time to lay it down on the water, my problems begin. I also can't seem to shoot line properly, and the problems may be linked. I'm using a 6-weight, 9' carbon fibre rod with a DT floating line and a 9 foot tapered leader, not that it matters much. Any advice or suggestions?

What are barrel swivels? Anyone know where you can get flat tungsten sheets online? I was wondering if using unweighted nymphs and using split shot or some other weight to get the line down may make for a more lifelife action in the water. What I mean is that the nymph will be more affected by variations in the current and behave more like a real nymph than a heavily weighted object that bumps along the bottom. Something to think about.

Thanks for the input. I was aware that Antron is a tri-lobal yarn, but I'm wondering if Sparkle Yarn is different than Antron and if it is more effective in holding air? From photos I have seen, the texture appears to be more crinkly than the Antron yarn I have.

Anyone know if Antron is the same as "Sparkle Yarn" specified in Gary LeFontaine's Deep and Emergent Sparkle Pupa patterns? I'm finding Sparkle Yarn hard to find compared with Antron, S-Lon, Z-Lon, etc. If they are different, does anyone know where you can buy Sparkle Yarn online with shipping to Canada? While I'm at it, anyone know which colour combos workbest for these patterns on the Bow and other central AB rivers? Many thanks. T-S

I got my Patagucci on the webspecial page of the Patagonia site for 50% off not long ago, which put it at about 200 bucks. Waders and vests were also 1/2 off. Good deal. Nice chest pockets for boxes, handwarmers, waterproof cuffs.

Thanks for all the replies. the fact is I don't get the chance to get out on the river as much as I would like to experiment, so when I do get out I like to catch the odd fish. That, and I'm curious too.

The poll on how people carry their gear has got me thinking as to whether to check out a chest pack, maybe with a detachable backpack. So I started going through the gear I consider essential, and just with fishing gear (hemostats, net, leaders, tippet, corkies, split shot and soft weight, flotant, clippers, and fly boxes) it comes to a fair amount, without even water, a few snack bars, maybe a camera and a rain jacket or gloves on cold days. I have 3 SA System X fly boxes (1 for Mayflies/Caddis emergers, duns, spinners, 1 for terrestrials and stones, 1 for streamers) and then about 3 small plastic boxes for nymphs (my river box, my lake box, and a miscellaneous box). That's 6 boxes in total, although I may leave 1 or 2 behind for a day on the river. Just curious as to what other people are carrying out there and how they organize it.

I've started tying my own flies lately, and I'm wondering whether impressionistic or realistic flies are most effective, especially on fished-over areas like the Bow? I've seen some of the Oliver Edwards patterns and they look like really cool patterns, like his Beatis nymph and Rhycophilia larva. There is also this online store, Perfect Fly's, that has incredibly realistic patterns available. What I'm wondering if long-time tyers can comment on what the fish prefer. I heard somewhere that flies are designed to catch fishermen, not fish. I'm wondering how impressionsitic I can be in my tying versus trying to exactly imitate the natural. I'm thinking that maybe imitating the behavior of the natural as closely as possible may be more important than the pattern. Any ideas?

I'm new to the Bow and I'm wondering what the dominant types of baitfish are downstream of the Weir. Actually, if they differ on the upper Bow, that would be useful to know too. I'm guessing the success of patterns like the Bow River Bugger have a lot to do with this. Anyhow, I am trying to decide what to stock my box with in terms of streamers. Also, do some types of streamer patterns work better at different types of the year? I have heard that streamers are the most effective pattern during the turbid run-off period. What about techniques? I have heard that really working the banks hard with huge streamers, splashing them hard and making lots of noise can be effective at times with browns? Thanks for the info.