Heimdallr

Sounds lovely. That's pretty much what I went through to get a place in Sylvan Lake except it was even worse because I am a young single male with long hair. Chances are I'm going to be holding bizarre seances and drinking the blood of innocents while smoking crack.

Sounds cool, unfortunately I'll be at a concert that night and I've been pretty busy lately finishing school. Perhaps in the summer considering I might be moving to Calgary.

If that was a seriously reply I think that's pretty cool. I find cryptozoology very interesting. As for myself, my other hobbies would be music (I play a bit of guitar, own a lot of albums, and go to a ton of concerts) and I am also in the process of getting a Bachelor's degree in English (Done next month) and thus I'm a bit into reading but mostly into writing. Can't wait to enter the job market in these glorious economic times...

Haha, me too.

I find there's just something so intimate about walking a small stream alone with no one around.

And thus concludes my 2009 season. I'll probably still make a trip or two to Stauffer and the Bow when I grow really desperate. For the most part, sadly, I'll be waiting for next spring.

I spent most of October hitting a small meadow stream for some Bulls and Browns with a decent amount of success. Some really good memories puttering along by myself taking in the solitude of a mountain trickle. Good times.

I've always thought spiders had really cool eyes and that guy has some great pics of them.

In principle I agree with the idea that we should have all the numbers, facts, and figures before making any decision. The problem with that is so much time and money is spent in collecting all the required data and organizing it and drawing conclusion. It is no doubt a step that cannot be ignored, but as with anything it becomes expensive and frustrating so I can see why some might want to just skip the facts and run with what seems to be happening. Unfortunately, no system is perfect, but it sure would be nice to see quick and effective results sometimes.

That second pic just says it all doesn't it?

Beauty Browns! Thanks for sharing.

I think you should keep the spotting, but I like the idea of it being black and white or just two-toned in general because then it is easily adaptable. You could put it in rainbow colouring or brown colouring so people have the choice or do things like different colour logos on different colour shirts. Simplicity makes it very flexible. Definitely keep the spotting and detail though.

I definitely like this one the best so far.

Sweet video. Makes me want to hit the Bow!

I think this brings me to October and I have no doubt missed a few trips. October is already shaping up to be a decent month so I think I'll give it it's own topic. Nothing too amazing this year, but a lot of fish, a fair bit of decent sized ones and tons of new water explored. I've definitely enjoyed it.

I revisited the North Ram on the 22nd and had just as good if not a better day with the largest fish hitting 20". I woke up and my glands were swollen and my head hurt. I had a fever. My girlfriend finally passed her diabolical illness onto me. But it was one of my fishing day and there was no way I was letting a little sickness get in the way. Especially after what a good time I had on the Ram last time. I actually missed a trip at the end of August where I took my Mom to the Bighorn River and to a small Cuttie stream. It was nice to actually have a photographer with me for once.

On September 10 I visited a beautiful little meadow creek teeming with Cutthroats. My next Adventure was on the 13th to the North Ram where I had a blast hooking into fat as hell Cutties. The biggest of the day was an 18" hog of Cutt.

On July 17 I hit up Birch Lake for some Brookie action and was not disappointed. I kept this one for the pan. It tasted a bit muddy, but hell, it was the heat of the summer. On the 25th I went hiking the South Ram with my girlfriend and manage a couple of Cutts and a Brown at Elk Creek on the way home. The month of August, looking back, seems to be mostly inconsequential other than a brief afternoon trip to Spring Lake again. Looking back it seems my adventures didn't really pick up until September. No wonder it didn't feel like I got enough fishing in. Unfortunately, I was away from home working a lot and sometimes that's just how she does I guess. I hit the Bighorn River on September 1st and manage to hook into some decent Cutties for the Bighorn averaging around 14".

Well, as I've actually begun to visit this board more and more the last month or so I figure it's about time I had something to contribute. After spending the last several days writing essays I figured it was finally time to make my first trip out on April 16. Armed with my Darth Vader Pez Dispenser, a mix CD, and the obligatory fishing gear I hit Hansen's Reservoir and Stauffer for a fishless first day. I then spent June mostly fishing on Sylvan with nothing really of note happening. At the end of June I went camping with a good buddy of mine and we fished the Clearwater and Phyllis Lake...again with nothing really spectacular. This is starting to sound terrible isn't it? At the beginning of July I was up in the Peace Country visiting my parents and going to my cousins wedding so I checked out Spring Lake near Hythe a few times. I also found this large dying Rainbow covered in some kind of tumors.

Wow, awesome pics man!

That's what it's all about! Looks like you guys had an awesome day.

After reading all the posts in this topic and thinking about it some more I can definitely mirror some people's feelings that once guides are licensed and are paying to guide and to use the waters that they will gain more power or political capital than the average angler. I would definitely hope this would not be the case, but I could see it happening. It is definitely a point worth considering.

You clearly didn't understand what I meant. Unregulated fishing was an anecdotal metaphor for an unregulated industry and the inability for business and people to regulate themselves. I also never said capitalism ruined the world or caused the world's problems. I merely said that unregulated free market capitalism doesn't work, which is something that history has proven over and over again in the same way that real communism doesn't work.

I think it's fairly obvious that guiding is a business and should have the same kinds of rules, regulations, and enforcement as any other. Unregulated free market capitalism has been proven wrong and dangerous in so many instances it is a wonder that people will still flat out cringe at the idea of any form of regulation even if that simply means creating certain standards a business must operate by. It's like having a river that has absolutely no regulations and saying that people will practice a reasonable amount of catch and release and use barbless hooks, and minimize handling of fish simply because they fish there and, most likely, would like to continue to do so. I think we've already seen how that scenario works and it is the same with the use of any other resource. The invisible hand doesn't work. People, for the most part, are selfish and destructive and will maximize their own immediate benefit if at all possible.