WyomingGeorge

Cover water, never fish the exact same piece twice, fish lots of different water and be patient. Sometimes hundreds of streamer casts are needed to get one good fish. In summer, the largest browns can be in foot-deep riffles. Low light is a major advantage, either cloud or dawn/dusk to full dark. Never give up.

Jayhad, you'll have to declare a fishing emergency. I'm feeling one right now, with no relief in sight.

Good points Jorge. I'm right in the middle on this one, an unusual place for me. It's impossible for jet boats not to be annoying, no matter how courteously piloted. Then again, so what? Multiple piercings and full-body tattoos are annoying as well, but I wouldn't ban them. They're just ways for people to express their individuality and freedom. I have been cut off and poached by discourteously rowed drift boats far more often than by jet boats, including by rowers who almost certainly knew better. But I obviously don't want to ban drift boats. A large proportion of our society seems to be of the view that if something exists, it ought to be government-regulated, and if one or two negative aspects can be asserted, the assertion by itself is proof the thing ought to be banned. There are negative aspects to jet boating. Is that proof by itself it ought to be banned? Jayhad, if I see you hurtling up and down the Bow, crashing through Harvie Passage, spinning doughnuts below the Centre St. Bridge, and shooting rooster tails along the Bowness eddies, I won't rat you out -- I'll drink a toast!

Truly unbelievable. That's some of the best fishy cinematography I've ever watched. Thanks for posting. That made my afternoon!

All of you misunderstand Jayhad. In person he's an incredible pussycat, dispensing fishing knowledge and insight to strangers and stepping out of the way so they can fish. If you encounter him he'll probably lie down on the ground purring and hope for a tummy-rub...before he gives you a couple of free flies and tells you about three great secret spots. The raging lunatic is pure on-line schtick. He's trying to provoke vociferous fulminations from the easily guiled...and it has been a multi-week delight to watch the fun!

Water running down a slope. Sounds eerily familiar, somehow. What could it be from? I've got it: rainfall! Gentleman, once again, from someone who doesn't like jetboats, the kinetic energy from a transient event like a jetboat is a microscopic fraction of the kinetic energy and water displacement delivered by nature, whatever direction you describe it as occurring. Any heavy rain event results in "vertical movement", i.e., drainage, which moves soil, silt, clay and small rocks into the river. Again, you can see it with your own eyes, occurring by the cubic foot and more during heavy rains along any sandy or muddy bank, often from many metres above the water line. There are good arguments against jetboats on the river, especially within the city. But panic over erosion on a river like the Bow just isn't one of them.

I'm not a jet-boater, and I find them annoying. But to opponents, some perspective: it's simple physics that a large river's own hydraulic power is thousands of times that of a jetboat, and the water it moves is millions of times that of a jetboat. The erosion caused by continually moving water that is even slightly higher than normal is obviously -- or it should be obvious -- vastly greater than that of a transient event like a jetboat passing by. The two or more posters who claim that high water happens once a year are mistaken. The water on the Bow rises several to numerous times per year, after every significant rain event and dam release. The erosion caused every time the water comes up even inches is vastly higher than that caused by jetboats. I have been out in normal rain events and have seen the river rise from 120 cm/s or so to 200 cm/s in a couple of hours, at which point the river wasn't just ripping sediment off the banks, it started to cause portions of muddy, rain-soaked banks to collapse into the river, cubic metres at a time. How many pounds of suspended sediment might there have been per cubic metre, hurtling downstream? One would require earthmoving equipment to equal this effect. It seems unlikely a jetboat would suffice. In addition, describing annual runoff as causing an event "once" is misleading. If a given year's runoff lasts four weeks, then we have four weeks of continuous erosion, 24 hours a day. The cumulative effect is substantial. Emotions are high on this one and opinions are strong, but we need to keep facts and physics in mind. Again, this is coming from someone who doesn't really like jet boats.

And the extra super-beauty of the B.C. fishing scene is that you'll always be a single-fly purist whether you feel like it or not! Nymphing with one fly: the dictionary definition of awesome.

Your video had a lot of heart and real charm. One can tell that you guys love to fish. The final brown was breathtaking.

Ripple: Probably the biggest single thing you can do to make the experience best for you, on either river, is ensure that you are here mid-week. Both rivers get busy on weekends, and that can include some grumpiness at the ramps, and some very close cutting in on the river -- both by clueless newcomers and people who know better but do it anyway. I would also classify Friday as part of the weekend, with the number of flex days, etc., that people have these days. If you can fish sometime Monday through Thursday, you'll find dramatically less boat traffic on either river. Regarding the guide, having someone willing to stay out until dusk is absolutely key. Getting behind the flotilla will let you fish slowly and deliberately in key areas, and being out at dusk hunting the giant sippers is simply magic -- going for a 22"+ fish using a small caddis, pmd spinner or even a Griffith's gnat is unparalleled fly fishing and will be a lifetime memory. You'll also be out for the suppertime streamer bite. If you go with the standard random 9-5 guide, you are likely to miss the day's best fishing.

They are both great. The Bow is fickle, it is crowded in summer, and you would need to choose your guide carefully (I've posted before about quizzing them about the length of the fishing day and their willingness to rig multiple rods and do streamer and hopper-dropper fishing as well as worm-bobbering). The Elk is gorgeous but the fishing scene there has some shortcomings. Can you row? If so, there might be some forum members who, if they're around when you visit and are in a generous mood, might let you hop in their boat for free.

FFA: The issue in winter isn't whether a stretch holds good water, it's whether the water you want to fish is iced over. As I mentioned in my last Bow River Conditions report last Sunday, which you can read, the ice is already covering some of the best fishing water below Policeman's, and in other places is making wading treacherous to impossible. As the ice thickens further the walking will become safer, but even more of the good water will be covered. If you go below Policeman's to area opposite the red-roofed white house, virtually all of this area is deep enough to count as wintering water, so if you can cast to it, you have a shot at fish.

You're most welcome. My sources tell me size 16 and 18 flashy mayfly patterns as well as midge patterns such as the snowcone in 18 have been working within the last several days.

Some of my very best Bow River days have been in the second half of October. I've written before about the need to present the fish with a range of large, medium-sized and small nymphs to see what might work. If I nymphed only with a worm and a prince I'd feel naked. You need to make size 16-20 nymphs part of your arsenal, particularly baetis and midge patterns, e.g. copper johns, pheasant tails, zebra midges, etc. In addition, at this time of year you need to hunt actively in varying kinds of water, especially non-summer water -- soft inside bends, the slow side of seams, flats and tail-outs, the quiet water behind drop-offs. Still, even at this time of year, there's likely to be a phase in the day when the aggressive fish move into fast water like riffles and the upper portion of runs. This is also water boatman season, and quite a few Bow River devotees like to slowly strip a boatman back through a quiet pool.

I haven't made it out since the flood myself, but one of my close fishing buddies, who reports accurately and does not exaggerate, said the bankside hopper-dropper fishing in mid-September was stellar, and on one outing he landed 6 rainbows over 20" plus 10 other nice fish. He did say that big and little fish seem to have switched places, catching numerous small fish in what used to be big-fish lies. Take heart, gentlemen! I'll do my best to get out before the end of October and will file my usual long report.

How about the Missouri at Craig, Montana? Drive via Cardston, 464 to Browning, then down to Choteau, total drive about 5 hours from the south end of Calgary, a very quiet border crossing, lovely mountain views nearly the entire way. October is BWO month on the Missouri, so great dry fly action, great nymphing, good streamer fishing. The fly shops rent driftboats for about $150/day including shuttle. Flows are low and the river is very wadeable. Accommodation is generally a bit pricey, but there are many options up and down the river including B&B's, catered houses, all-inclusive lodges, rustic cabins, etc. Fished it with a guide a week ago and it was great from ramp to ramp (although still pre-BWO).

From the way Eagle initially described the encounter, it sounds like Lincoln man wasn't even on the ramp yet, he was telling people they couldn't even go past him in order to launch. Did I read that right Eagle? If so it wasn't just rude, it was downright bizarre. What's it to him if other people launch while he's getting ready? My weirdest similar encounter came last fall at Policeman's, where a young man and his girlfriend decided to spread all of their equipment out right on the ramp, including their deflated raft, and then take as long as they felt like to get every last little bit good and ready, including inflating the raft with a hand pump. They had -- this is the unique part -- orange-coloured coffee mugs which they deployed on the ground like a little arc of pileons, like at a road construction site, so that nobody could get past them or roll over their gear. After they launched, they kept the raft in the middle of the water, and then set about their next phase of careful preparations, and absolutely refused to let me ease my driftboat on past them. When I asked them to shift their raft two feet to the right so I could launch, they got surly. These weren't old curmudgeons set in their ways, but youngsters who evidently thought they're the centre of the universe.

I was in tears the whole time. Thanks for posting, Shimmering Medicine Man.

An inch of rain on powder-dry, cracked ground such as I'm seeing daily northwest of Calgary would result in virtually zero run-off, especially with all the ponds, potholes and tiny creeks low. The land is able to absorb and store a considerable amount of water. If the rain is very intense, there may be a small amount of runoff lasting hours rather than days, hardly enough to fill a reservoir. Very odd on one level, but in keeping with today's religion of risk management, in which the mania of risk avoidance creates damaging consequences for others.

From his posts, it sounds very much as if our member Jayhad is the in-house guru on the Bow's urban reaches. I don't know much else about specific guides on the Bow, but as a frequent customer of guides in other areas I have found that what helps weed out the less enthusiastic, shall we say, is to ask whether the day includes a full eight hours on the water, whether the guide is willing to try all kinds of fishing (i.e., not just nymph worms down the middle of the river all day) and whether, if conditions are conducive, he'll stay out until dark or close to it. When I get too many negative or non-committal answers, I tend to look for another guide or shop. On the flip side, a lot of guides have come to expect relatively casual or even downright lazy or whiny clients who won't adapt, particularly won't fish streamers. If you like to fish streamers, it is worth saying so when you first call a given shop, because a lot of guides love it and don't get many clients who do it. Their enthusiasm often picks up markedly if their clients are willing to fish whatever works, especially chuck streamers. A successful day on the Bow will often require switching back and forth among double or triple nymph rigs, hoppers with 1-2 droppers, streamers and technical dries, plus sometimes wet flies on top of it, and to be ready to switch on a moment's notice.

Hi everyone: Sorry about the delay, yesterday I spent close to 20 minutes writing up the best description I could, and then the dog ate my homework (there was an interruption in Interweb service and my text disappeared). So thanks, Shiny Physician, for posting that description, pictures are indeed worth 1,000 words. The technique I learned is a bit different: --make a loop of string, not a length, using about four feet or 120 cm of string --loop one end around the bend in the hook, holding the other end in your dominant (throwing, writing) hand --do not depress or otherwise manipulate the hook. Instead, crucially, align the hook so the shank lies parallel to the skin (as will be the hook tip, lying beneath the skin) --use your non-throwing/writing hand to hold the hook in that parallel position --using your dominant hand, gently bring the loop to tension, i.e., don't "pull", but simply remove the slack to get a feel for where your extraction hand will be --tell the victim to get ready --the extraction move: still holding the loop of string, move your dominant hand smoothly but quickly all the way to the hook and just as quickly move it back out in a fast in-and-out movement that includes "follow-through", i.e., don't slow down, keep moving your hand past where it was when the string was tense --very likely, you won't even feel any resistance as the hook will fly out of the wound and off into the bushes or against the nearest wall Both times when my wife had a hook taken out this way, she thought the string had broken and the hook was still in place because she didn't feel a thing. Basically, the extractor's rapid arm movement builds up so much momentum that it becomes the equivalent of pulling on the hook as hard as you can with pliers, only the force applied is instantaneous, too fast to feel any pain or for the flesh/skin to be distorted/pulled outwards. A couple of cautions: --use twine/string, not thick cord, rope or anything elastic. Fishing line or stout tippet will work in a pinch --if you're going to do it, then do it -- don't get squeamish or bail at the last second --make sure the victim doesn't squirm or shift -- doing so could bring the hook or string out of alignment --personally, I wouldn't try this if the hook is embedded in or near the eye, or in bone or cartilage --key is creating a single straight line running from the eye of the hook, along the shank, parallel to the skin, and then outward along the tensioned loop of string to your extraction hand -- and then making the extraction move along that alignment. Let me know if any of this is unclear.

There's a fantastic, not-too-difficult and 100 percent effective way to remove flies, barbed or barbless, without any pain. Truly. I was taught the technique by a physician, watched it being performed on my wife, and the same season was given the, um, opportunity to try it out. It worked beautifully, even with me in charge, and I'm a clumsy guy with fumbly fingers. I'm not advocating people fish with barbs, but I have had barbed hooks lodged in my (face) cheek right beside my ear, in my fingers and in my quads, without any help nearby (i.e., not able to use the technique mentioned above), and was able to remove them myself quickly. The pain was intense but lasted only about a second. It was the fear of the coming pain that lasted for minutes -- but that's all psychological/emotional.

Flash: That was a beautiful, almost poetic post. Well said. One small observation about the speed with which fish adapt: fishing on an Elk tributary a few years ago, a stream running beneath two enormous coal mines, a road crew was installing rip-rap along a new bridge deck. There were small through large cutthroat situated in and feeding along boulders that had been placed only one hour before. So I believe that on our beloved Bow, the fish will readily locate the newly created structure. Of course, the fish that have been killed or stranded, and I suspect there are many, won't be adapting, they'll simply be gone. On balance, I'm with the optimists on this one: damage, but not annihilation, and signs of recovery by next year.

We may need to learn to launch Montana-style: wherever you can find a two-track running up to moving water, that's where you drop or retrieve the boat. In Missoula on the Bitterroot there's a "launch" that consists of a flat grassy area and a nearly vertical, 20-foot-high gravel bank. You back the trailer up to the edge, run your webbing line down to your driftboat, then drive forward yanking the boat up the bank and onto the grass, before cranking the boat onto the trailer. All your gear has to come out of the boat first, and when the boat's hull hinges on the edge of the bank there's incredible force on the webbing, so you don't want anyone standing below the boat. But it works. Maybe we'll be able to do similar things up here on the Bow, such as driving as close to the river as possible at Policeman's, and skidding our boats the rest of the way to some new side channel. The tough part will be when the water recedes and new side channels that have punched out the access roads dry out again, then it could be a rather long skid to and from the main stem.

Much of what we call run-off in Alberta is due to rain in our generally damp late spring period. The snowpack just isn't that deep or dense on the east slope of the Rockies to sustain high water flows through snowmelt alone. In most of B.C. and the high mountain areas of the U.S. Rockies, there is a vastly deeper and denser snowpack (but much less spring rain in the U.S. mountain states), so that in those cases the run-off really is mainly melting snow. If you look at the Alberta Environment river basin maps, and bring up the "figure" or graph version of the Bow at Calgary, you'll see that the river typically peaks in early June and holds at that level into early July. That's an average, of course, so most years vary in some way -- like this current rain. When we have a hard, cold rain like this one, which comes down as snow in the mountains, the snowmelt such as it is temporarily shuts down, so what we are seeing is almost entirely rain-related. What does that mean for fishing? True snowmelt would tend to remain sustained for a couple to a few weeks, whereas after a major rain, the rivers drop fairly rapidly. Second, worm and streamer fishing can become very productive, since millions of earthworms are washed into the river, and there are wounded or disoriented baitfish and young trout available to the large hunters. So, big streamers tight to the bank, and worm patterns, especially at storm drains. Several years ago I drifted into a small eddy beside a storm drain, and the boat almost hit a giant brown positioned next to the storm drain, facing the outflow current, i.e., at about 90 degrees to the main river's current, facing away from our approaching boat. He was intently focused on eating the free meals coming out of the storm drain. The river was high, fast, off-colour and rising, but we managed to catch several very large fish with streamers. Fish Tales sells (or used to sell) a "worm cluster" pattern that can be used in these conditions.