SkwalaStonefly

Does anyone out there have info on whether small creeks flowing through private land are public and accessible, as are rivers? I believe that they are (unless the land owner has special provisions in their deed), but would like to see it in writing somewhere but have not found a source for this.

Nice catch Lornce! When shall we go?......

The hearing in Calgary Court of Queen's Bench is to begin Tuesday, Jan 19 see https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/court-coal-peter-lougheed-sonya-savage-david-luff-1.5876772

I was out fishing down south yesterday and found a wireless remote shutter release on the river bank. Looks great, clean and dry, so I don't think it was there for more than a few days. If your remote shutter release is missing let me know (PM me) where you were and the make and model and we'll get it back to you. Skwala

I must admit to being stunned by Jayhad's post on using a jet boat on small streams and that more are coming. Now we won't be able to fish in peace and quiet even on small streams. I would much rather have barbed wire running across the stream than have jet boats on it. Funny how things can change in a day - I now like the idea of barbed wire across creeks. Maybe I'll start volunteering to help ranchers fence across streams running through their property

During early season creek fishing it seems like I am encountering more and more fences across creeks. I thought this was illegal, but I don't actually know the land laws on this issue. I thought that the collective wisdom on the forum would be the quickest way to get educated on this. Is fencing across a creek legal? Can it be done to keep livestock from escape? Are creek bottoms public land in Alberta? Is there a size limit (do they need to be navigable?). If not legal, who does it get reported to? Encountering barbed-wire in a stream is not pleasant, especially if you don't see it.

Yes, I know the spot Lornce. For the upcoming season I will deliver a fly to the perfect location with a small drone

Study shows precipitous decline in population of adult rainbow trout in Bow River Trend could jeopardize Calgary’s world-famous recreational fishery, University of Calgary scientists say See https://www.ucalgary.ca/utoday/issue/2018-11-26/study-shows-precipitous-decline-population-adult-rainbow-trout-bow-river

A few years back a friend with a drift boat and I spent a day learning how to handle it with Jim McLennan on the Bow. We had a great day learning and of course fishing. Not the cheapest way to learn, but probably the best.

Very Cool Lornce. I look forward to seeing it when the white stuff finally retreats and the rivers thaw. What other treasures do you have hiding in that Man Cave?

Hardy has been bought by Pure Fishing. I needed a replacement part for a Hardy reel a few months ago. I called and spoke to a receptionist (sounded more like an answering service rather than the actual company) and also left a message on their web site. Took about a week before I got a response. I finally got what I needed but it was anything but fast and I shudder to think of how long it would have taken if I had to ship them the reel or a rod. To their credit, they did send the part by courier so things did move fast at the end. Maybe just growing pains for a new company, but not what I would have expected from Hardy. I will think twice about buying Hardy again, in spite of loving the reels I have from them. The experience was very different when I broke a rod tip and called Sage. I spoke directly to someone who helped to get the repair moving immediately.

Almost perfect - the only thing missing are the "old ladies".

I had a few photos I wanted to post and thought it would be a simple chore to just paste a few files of less than 100 kb. However, even that simple operation did not work and after almost an hour of trying, shrinking, changing file format, etc, I just gave up. Posting photos on this site is pretty pathetic, which is too bad as there have been some amazing photo posts and I'm sure we are missing many.

Proper use of a wading staff to cross fast rivers - it can make a big difference: Put the staff in your UPSTREAM hand. You will then be leaning your weight upstream into the staff. Should the staff slip, the river will help to hold you up. If you put the staff in the downstream hand you will be leaning in the same direction as the current and if the staff slips the combined force of the current and your weight, in the same direction, will likely result in a bath, or worse. Using the approach above means that you need to switch which hand you use when crossing the fast stream, depending upon whether upstream is on your left or on your right. Safe wading!

Maybe we should back up the train here for a minute. All the Alberta municipalities I am aware of require dogs to be kept on a leash except within specified off-leash parks. Here is the listing from the Mountain View County by-laws: 3.03 (a) No person who is the Owner or Keeper of any Dog shall permit such Dog to run at large within the corporate limits of the County. So, if you are out fishing with your dog running loose, you are really no different than poachers, people who ride ATVs through the river or those who camp where they are not allowed to. The above actions are all a result of people choosing not to obey by-laws. This is not about whether your dog is well-behaved so you don't need to obey the law. It's about obeying the laws where we live. We don't get the option of picking and choosing which laws apply to us. As good citizens we are responsible to obey ALL the laws, including the ones that we don't like, whether that means not fishing when the streams are closed or keeping our dogs on a leash.