KnotLikely

I fish a 3300D on my XP 6wt and a 2540 on my SPL 4wt. The 3000 series is heavier than the 2500 series, though I feel the setup balances fine, and I haven't had any problems casting all day with the 3300D. The 3000D series are rock solid bullet proof reels that you'll have for the rest of your life. That said, Nautilus would be my second choice. If you're looking for a super light reel, and not too concerned with drag, check out the 3300 click & pawl. A buddy of mine and his wife own 6wt Z axis rods with the green 2560's it's a sharp looking setup with the green blank of the Z axis and the green frame of the reel. Basically, you can't go wrong with any of the Sage series reels, or with a Nautilus.

I have a GL3 9' 6wt 4 piece that I use as a travel rod. It's chucked big weighted nymphs, streamers, and small dries. For $100.00 it's a steal. It's a bit fast, not as fast as a Sage XP, but definitely faster than a DS. It's a great nymphing and streamer rod though probably not the ideal dry fly rod. That said, you could do a lot worse for $100.00.

I tried the Redington CPS waders when I was looking to replace my Wardell's. I went through 3 DOA pairs, all with leaks at the foot/leg seam and the 5/4 ply seams the first time I tried them. I figured the CPS had similar specs to the Simms G3 Guides, but after 3 DOA pairs from the factory I returned them for a refund, shelled out the extra bucks and purchased the G3 Guides. Like I posted before, the G3's were great for about 6 months, but are leaking at multiple seams. I've since had Springbrook repair my Wardell's. I think you have two options with waders: 1: Shell out some cash for a really good pair of waders and hope they don't leak. 2: Give in to the fact that all waders leak, and spend accordingly so that you are at least comfortable in a good fitting pair until they leak.

I used to be a Simms fan, but my G3's have let me down after not even 6 months of use. Leaks in the crotch, the seams where the foot meets the leg on both legs, and one on the seam where the 5 ply joins the 3 ply. I'll probably be going back to Wardell, as I had 4 years out of my last pair.

I thought so to, but I've found that even with a factory barbless hook like the Partridge SHR series, I've yet to have a fly slip off when tied to the shank. I used to go eye to eye until a conversation I had with Wetduck and Bhurt. I think my hook ups "might" have increased, and my tangles have decreased going shank to shank.

I fished the crow yesterday, and landed some energetic rainbows, a few white fish, and ldr'd a bunch of others. The rig that worked best for me was a 9' straight fluorocarbon leader to a BAW and a dropper of a flashback pheasant tail, or a copper john. Look for a foam line, work a nice slow drift through it and on the sides of it, and you'll be rewarded with some of the prettiest rainbows you'll find anywhere. It was also good to meet a few of the guys from the board on the Crow and the Oldman, hope you guys all did well on a freakishly non-windy day in the pass.

PM sent

Seagaur is great stuff, but hard to get here. Try Maxima fluorocarbon from Wholesale or P-Line from Fish Tales

I second that, Zap-a-Gap, epoxy, hot glue, E-Z shape, Tuffleye...I hate them all. If you're not getting material that you don't want stuck to it, stuck to it, it's getting stuck to you, your tools or your bench. Though out of all of them, I think Tuffleye is probably the best to work with.

I used to get upset when I saw posts with pics that clearly would show a location. It's a reality, and it's not going to change. I choose not to do it, and that's all I can do about it. I share my favorite runs with others, and others have shared theirs with me. I've met guys like you Rick, and others that I'd be happy to share water with any day. I also have given in to the fact that on many days those runs will be taken, and that they will not be offered and I'll be hiking to some place new, or a place where I know there are fish, but maybe not as big, or maybe not as many. ...You can't, but I know I'm more likely to help the guy who asks a few questions like "I'm doing this and I've tried that, and not getting into any fish, can you take a look at my setup?" than a guy who's posting on here looking for directions to whatever the latest hot spot is.

Looks good, I'd tie the wing a bit longer to 1/2 the length of the tail, and like pacres says, size up the hackle, that's just to make it look pretty, as for function, I don't think the fish care, so put that one in the box.

Is this board contributing to the number of fisherman in Calgary? I think it has Rick. Sure the population has increased, but the number of anglers that I see on the banks where we often run into each other has increased disproportionately over the past year. I've been walking or fishing these banks for about 10 years, and would rarely see another angler there, especially in the winter. Now, if we get a nice day during the winter you can guarantee that the productive runs are taken, and not just on weekends. Many authors would talk about how the Bow is not good learning water, but with the wealth of knowledge and posted locations on here, success to new anglers is coming quicker, the angler who would have given up because of failure or mediocre results in the past is not, because he or she is achieving that early success, not necessarily a bad thing, but it is increasing numbers, and I think this board has a lot to do with it. Although this board may have contributed to the increase in number of anglers, I think for the most part it's done a great job of educating people on river etiquette. If I run into another angler, and if he or she is a member of this board, I would find it hard to believe that they wouldn't ask if I'm heading up or down, and if I don't mind that they skip ahead, or just move up or down to some other water, though often, you'll end up inviting them to fish the same run, and having a good BS session together, and learning from each other. That said with the increased numbers of anglers, you're also more likely to run into an a$$hat, many of whom use this board for the wealth of information that's on it. I've voiced my feelings on posting locations before, and have taken a bit of heat and mocking for it. Posting locations is especially relevant in the winter when fish and therefore anglers concentrate in certain locations so while the Bow is big water with plenty of locations, during the winter, it is like a collection of many small streams and should be treated with the same respect you would a fragile creek. I think you need to pay your dues, but when you see the same backgrounds in shots time after time, it doesn't take long before you go back to that spot and see there are 3 guys already there. If you're an angler who only has a few hours to get out and get some fishing in during the week, pretty good chance you're going to the spot in the photo, where guys were pulling out 20+ inch rainbows and browns all day on SJW's and size 18 prince nymphs fished on a 6 ft straight flourocarbon leader to a swivel with a single BB split shot....can't really blame the guy for making the most of the short time he has available to him. There's also a changing demographic, it's not just the 30 + married guy with 2 kids and an 8 -5 job that can only get away for a few hours on the weekend. Just take a look on the reports, and you'll see many anglers out weekdays when most of us shmucks are caged in our offices. The demographic is also getting younger, as you can see by the poll on student anglers. So not only are there more anglers because of migration, the sport and this board is also attracting a broader demographic. Good or bad I don't know, but this board has definitely had an affect, and with that a responsibility to protect the resource that it is promoting, which I think it has all intentions of doing, and it has shown through it's actions i.e. river clean up, education on fish handling, encouraging the reporting of poachers etc. Increased numbers are here to stay and I'm sure will only get worse, so be prepared to do a little extra walking or driving and explore some new water.

The simi-seal leech has been very productive for me lately. I usually tie them without a tail, and a bit thicker of a body, a red wire rib, and a round red bead for the head, though I don't think the colour of the bead matters much as the red wears off quite easily and the silver underneath seams to work just as well. As far as standards go, maybe the tail should be a bit longer, and the body a bit thicker, as far as the fish are concerned, I don't think they care, and you'll have'm on the end of that thing the first time you fish it. Try blending the UV ice dub in with the burgandy body as it makes for a bit of sparkle in the body. I usually blend up a mix of burgundy, black, purple, and various ice dub colours including copper. Olive and black versions of this fly have also worked well for me in still waters.

Loon's Stanley Ice Off product is actually a paste, so you gently smear it on to the guides. I un-string the rod and use a soft rag, to apply it to the guides. I then pull out all my fly line, apply a little more paste to the rag, and run the line through the rag and the paste as I reel in the line under light pressure. This cleans your line, and coats it with the paste. I've done it this way for awhile, and haven't noticed any negative affects to the line, guides, or the rod finish.

I'm pretty sure most of the pastes are silicone based, but I'd say stick with something like Loon's ice off paste that you know won't damage your line. If you're using an ice off paste or not, it's always good to clean your line. The less dirt and debris that's on your line, the easier it will shed the water instead of collecting it.

You're right in that there's more surface area to the line, but there's less surface area that actually makes contact with the guides. Apparently in a SA test that continuously runs lines back and forth through a set of guides under tension, Sharksin causes less wear than a traditional line. As for cutting your fingers, a wrap of duct tape or sports tape will solve that.

About 5 times in 15 years. Twice on the Oldman, once on the Crow, once at a stocked pothole lake, and once driving through a check stop setup in the castle area on a cold day near the end of the season. They were checking hunters, so the CO was a little shocked when we said we released everything. Once he took a peak in the truck and saw the gear he chuckled. Guess he didn't expect anyone desperate enough to be fishing on a freak'n cold day that late in the season. Never been checked on the Bow.

Ross is always a good choice. Not sure that their entry level reels have the same unconditional warranty, Brent could probably answer that. I've been fishing a couple of G. Loomis Venture reels for the last 3 or 4 years on my go to setup, and they've been great. I also fish Ross CLA, Tioga magnums, Orvis Battenkill and Mach LA, and a Reddington and all are great reels but for less than $125.00 you can't go wrong with a Venture.

Perhaps in conjunction with organizations like TU, we need to look at something like the Freshwater Fisheries society of BC http://www.gofishbc.com/whofunded.htm "The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC (FFSBC) delivers a range of technical and professional services needed to support both recreational fisheries and fish conservation and restoration in B.C. In 2003 the Province introduced a new dedicated fee funding model. Under this funding model 100% of dollars collected from licence sales is used to support sport fisheries service delivery. It was further established that conservation and restoration of wild fish populations would be supported by General Revenue rather than licence fees."

They should be increased with the extra revenue being returned to fisheries, and not lost in general revenue. I'd also like to see changes that require testing on species identification, regulations, ethics. Perhaps tiered licensing where catch and keep pay one license fee, and catch and release pay another. Maybe even a lottery and or stamp system for the more fragile streams.

Does anyone have any information about the development taking place on the floodplain in Cranston slightly upstream and across river from the new Pine Creek wastewater treatment plant?

I never insinuated that Hullswood was a 'secret' spot, though it is a spot that does receive significant pressure; productive or not, that depends on the angler. I've received plenty of help from others, including many from this board and for that I'm very appreciative. I'm also glad to return the favour. I just expressed my concern over exploiting areas for anyone who reads this board to see whether it be Hullswood, Southland, the Crow, Castle etc. When an angler calls a flyshop, and asks for directions that's information given to one person, and eventually a handful of his/her buddies. When you post on here, you're advertising to the masses. I've fished in areas where anglers are lined up by the dozen and feel very fortunate that we don't "yet" have situations like that on Alberta waters, even for anglers like myself who for the most part can only get away on weekends with the rest of the masses. Thanks everyone for your opinions. This Saturday I'll be in the area of, Latitude = 50.9037, Longitude = -114.0136 Lat = 50 degrees, 54.2 minutes North Long = 114 degrees, 0.8 minutes West ...if you see the guy with the red hoodie, stop by and say hi.

I like Toolman's approach, but after this there was another post from a different member giving quite specific directions to a spot that already receives a significant amount of pressure, especially in the winter. I agree the sport should be promoted, but I also think that you should have to pay your dues and do a little homework before being spoon fed directions to a very productive spot. Especially one that is already heavily fished, but then maybe these spots are just being used as 'sacrificial lambs' to keep people away from the holes that haven't been exploited...just my thoughts.

I'm interested in getting everyones opinions on blanket postings of specific fishing locations. This board is all about providing info, helping out other flyfisher's etc, but maybe I'm greedy. I cringe every time I see a posting that provides specific details of a location for everyone to see. I think it's great to help others out, but I also think people should have to do a little research for themselves before getting spoon fed answers. It's one thing to suggest Policeman's, or Fish Creek, or offer to take someone out for an outing, it's another to say, park here, walk down this path until you get to this bend across from the dead spruce, walk straight out, and fish this pool. ...your thoughts!

I own Sage, G-Loomis and TFO rods. I'll take my Sage rod's over any of the other two, or the Scott, Fenwick and Orivs rods that I've tried. In fact I'll take my Sage DS over the pricier G-Loomis GL3. Any of you G-Loomis fans want to buy a G-Loomis GL3 4-piece 6 wt so that I can replace it with another Sage?