skearns

Thanks for the years of sharing your wisdom Doc...and now no out of province classified water fees for you!

Thanks for the link. That was a really informative read that covers all sides of the dliemma. I am now more educated on the fact that selenium is a natural contaniment in the huge waste rock piles left from the digging that leeches into the environment when exposed to rain and snow. No quick or easy solution

Not sure if it helps but I had some Yeti mugs engraved last year for a golf trip. Got them done at Awards Unlimited trophy shop in Edm.

More great memories made...I too have fond memories from the Tinda as we had many annual trail ride vacations centered from the Bighorn campground in the 80s and 90s. I slowed down the vid to watch that bully come straight up for the take. Well done GBD and River.

Good video, nice fish, outstanding beard Diddy...

If you need horseradish roots and are up near St Albert anytime let me know. We bought this house a few years ago and the previous owner was a fanatical gardener. In fact we had to sod over half the garden as it was too much for us to manage. Last fall my neighbor showed up with a shovel and proceeded to dig up a broad leaf plant that he said was horseradish and two hours later he delivered a couple of jars. I do like horseradish and his is ok however I still prefer the KEG branded horseradish which you can now buy at Costco. Oh and don't get me going on the apple and crabapple trees which are prodigious producers in the fall. I can only eat so many pies and crumbles....sk

I work from home at 80% of the time anyway so my days are not that different. Wife and I haven't left the house hardly in 11 days 'cept to walk the dog around the block ( she, the dog, is recovering from knee surgery) I did get out ice fishing last Saturday and prob again this Saturday ( direct trip no stops). I have been trying to land a Tiger trout at a lake north of Athabasca for 3 years now but all I get are rainbows including some decent sizes. Also got me an underwater camera which is a game changer. Not only does it alleviate the boredom of ice fishing it is really interesting to watch the trout behavior when they do come in for a look see. Might have to drop it into one of those sweet Bow river holes to see what is going on someday. And as a PSA especially for urbanites...do not wait until you have symptoms to self isolate, then it is too late for all those you may have engaged with prior to your self diagnosis. Let's all shut down hard ( excepting essential services) for the next few weeks to negate the communicable capability of this thing so that we can not only save lives of people you will never meet but also allow our health care workers to catch up while they risk their own health to save others. This is not a drill and will be a major point of human history forever.

Interesting discussion...I was thinking that maybe this virus may be nature's way of helping to mitigate our impact on the environment and climate by reducing the population. Between 1918-1920 the Spanish flu infected almost 500 million of a world population of 2 billion ( 25%) with estimated 30-40 million of those dying. So we now have over 7 billion population and while we obviously have progressed in areas of medicine and hygiene we also have much more inter country/continent travel than in the early 1900s. I too have recently crossed the 60 age bridge and am trying to worry about less things and enjoy more of life's simple pleasures. However I do wonder about the impact of the virus should it become pandemic, to my children and their future children as well as the current rate of the mankind influenced climate decay of our planet for the future of our humanity. Now that is a shack nasty of the highest order. Let's get back to our happy place standing in a stream trying to fool trout. SK

Wow...didn't see a lot of backcasts but it sure looked social...and a nice park store...now pass me a cheese ball please...

HI DD, I am a bit larger than you and bought a waterskeeter ( now out of business I think) about ten years ago. It has a frame and 9 ft pontoons and has served me well with multiple bow floats over the years. If you have a truck then it works well to only have to set it up once at the beginning of the year. After I sold my truck it now goes in the trunk of my car which can be a pain, however I can build it ready to go in about 15 mins. Options I would look for a new boat would include: bigger pontoons bigger cargo compartments better rod holder drink holder solid back platform for storage solid foot pegs anchor system ( for lake use only, never in the river) better frame harness system than the Velcro I have. I have never had any near misses safety wise however my brother did get ejected from the same boat on the St Mary's one time after hitting a sweeper so caution when driving at all times. My first few years I didn't use fins and spent the majority of time spinning around instead of fishing. The force fins work well however I have lost a few over the years and now have a mismatched pair. I also use a manual double action pump which would inflate each pontoon in about 90 seconds in my younger years. I usually wears waders unless it is a really warm day and for the last few years have been wearing the inflatable PFD. Enjoy the experience, nothing like a leisurely float down the blue ribbon hauling in the bow footballs.

One of the principal owners ( Adam the trout bum) ) was our guide a few years ago when we booked a day to explore the castle drainage...great guy..can't wait to hit the brewpub this spring.

Heads up out there, my brother was on a guided float on the elk on a windy day during the long weekend. They were successfully working the banks with foam when they heard a large crack, looked up and a 60ft cottonwood was falling directly at the boat. The guide only had time to get in one half oar stroke and the 2 foot diameter trunk hit the river 2 feet behind the boat. My brother was in the rear and was struck by several branches but was not hurt. The back wash from the splash half filled the boat. They figure it may have been weakened by a beaver then fell in the strong winds. Not sure you can prevent or prepare for something like that but just thought I would share as I had never heard a story like that. I did see a video of the aftermath as the tree floated away the three shaken and soaked fisherman were realizing what may have been....sk

Drove through the crowsnest on our way to Montana this past weekend and sadly saw a for sale sign on the Crowsnest Angler fly shop. I guess Vic wants to get more days on the river. Thanks for your years of great service and insight sir. Now I am off to start a crowdfunding campaign to raise the $500,000 purchase price....lol...sk

The Lottery At the breakfast table a man says to his wife, What would you do if I won the lottery? She says "I would take my half and leave you". He says, "I won 12 dollars yesterday, here's $6.00, keep in touch."

Official Ralph Klein identifed eastern bum and creep here, came west from Ontario in '82 when I was 21...a couple of blinks and it is 32 years later , met and married a rural Alberta girl and have now somewhat successfully raised 3 girls 21,19,16 while keeping the tattoos, piercings and pregnancies to a minimum. Now employed as an IT manager in the O & G world . Started flyfishing about 15 yrs ago, mostly on the Bow. Got more serious when my brother moved his family here ten years go and we each got a pontoon boat. He has recently relocated to Kimberley and this year my Bow visits dropped significantly. hard to choose somedays between fishing, golfing and now pheasant hunting season. About four years ago we started renting a cabin for six months ( May thru October) each year on Rosen Lake BC . while the fish are smaller the solitude and challenge of dry flying in a small mountain stream is intoxicating. Have even discovered a few BC gems that don't require the $20 daily ransom. Always like perusing FFC for a few minutes each day when the work and family stress volume is the loudest. Thanks to all for the insight and laughs over the years...and of course to my forever understanding wife of 23 years..and remember if you havn't grown up by the time your are fifty...you don't have to....sk

We just bought a 2008 Acura MDX with low mileage....I think it's nice but can't seem to get some time in it thanks to my wife loving it...did notice it is a solid heavy machine but I guess that's why the ride is so good...mileage is truck like...but Honda's go forever...still have the 2002 Yukon for bushwackin but decided I deserved some luxury before I got too old...too late...

" and no birds sang" is a riveting account of his time in WWII and should be required reading for all students....and of course his frequent appearances on Front Page Challenge for those of us of a certain vintage...at least authors and artists can always be remembered by the media they produced after they leave us...

Great educational thread, I too am putting together a 4 wt setup ( just purchased an Allen Trout II reel now looking at rods). over the past few years I having been exploring smaller creeks both in Alberta and BC and although my 6 wt has sufficed there is an element of overkill. Originally I had reasoned to go for a shorter rod for ease of casting in tight areas, however from all the info posted here that logic seems flawed and nice 8'6 to 9' 4 wt rod will work well for the small creeks and possibly for some dryfly action on the bigger water...thanks FFC

I am in as well and if i lose I am in as well

Hey Rick, I know what there of you speak...I too have tried to balance both recreations over the past few years and this year so far golf has won out. My boat was giving me the proverbial fish eye whenever I grabbed the clubs and walked by it in the garage. And to add to the conumdrum, pheasant season is coming up. Much like you we have a property in the Kootenays where both the fishing and golfing are world class. Let's just enjoy both equally when at play as many others in the world never get to see such special places ....and don't forget to try Wildstone in Cranbrook...incredible golf at a reasonable price ( just close your eyes when crossing the 8 trout streams/rivers between here and there)....sk

When wading I always wear the Redhead wool socks in my boots, great for the winter,spring and fall cold water and bearable during the summer floats...best part is the lifetime warranty, every year I take the holy, stinky pair into BassPro, throw them on the customer care counter from a distance and grab a new pair...no receipt neccesary...

Great shots Doc, we spent our first few nights of married life there 21 yrs ago....Incredible colours in October as well...sk

I ended up working as a bartender ( with no experience, beer and wine only) in the U of C dinning hall within the Olympic Village. Highlights included serving Katrina Witt and trading shirts with double gold winner Matti Nykanen ( perhaps the genus of his male stripper career). Watched Russian figure skating gold medal winners stuffing free chocolate bars in their luggage to take home. Attended events at Nakiska ( great big beer tent) and of course the crazy second last day at COP where three or four wind delayed events all happend the same day. Still have a lot of the coverage on VHS, need to get it over to DVD someday to show my kids how this city rocked for two weeks. Actually bought $3500 worth of Vancouver tix but didn't get any Canada hockey or curling so sold them all and reluctantly stayed home but that looked like a helluva a party ... now Rio, that's intriguing....sk

Having a bit of a conundrum...having never stepped foot in the store ( as stated long way from the NW) and as much as I like a good deal, running down there to get a deal when I did not financially support their dream of running a flyshop seems a little reprehensible...having said that I also realize the more they sell now the less is owed to the creditors....

Check Costco, I got a 43 inch Phillips LED there six months ago for near $400....great vision