Vagabond

X2I been outta town working since flood,first time to Mallard Point post-flood yesterday....Wutta difference!! Lotsa water coming down back channel,it's a bit wider and alot deeper then ever,no way I could cross the heavy water at MP/top of Poplar Island where the channel begins(where it was normally ankle/shin deep).I'll predict the back channel will fish better than ever in the future,guessing the volume of water coming down it has at least doubled?

Interesting observation Taco,I wonder if brookies are less tolerant of siltation? I worked on a stream rehab project back east years ago,and the major concern was heavy siltation caused by intense clearcutting in the this particular watershed.I was under the understanding that trout,in this case native eastern brook trout,suffer from a fatal gill infection when they are exposed to excessive silty runoff.At the time,in fact,until just now I assumed that applied to all trout,but now im wondering perhaps if brookies are in fact more susceptible to this infection and generally less tolerant of heavy runoff for extended periods,whereas the native cutts may have evolved to tolerate these conditions?

Was at Mallard Point cpl days ago to check out the carnage....gate is locked with lil yellow sign stating "Area closed due to hazardous flood conditions blah blah blah......." That said,in my short ten minute return trip from end of Canyon Meadows to remains of Douglasdale pedestrian bridge,I encountered 1/2 dozen cyclist,2-3 dog walkers,and a handful of others walking? So wtf??Is it just the parking area that's closed??

Understood,but that's why I said "other problem areas as required" as well.Not just the FTR,but easy access roads where people are prone to set-up party towns......it's such a gong show down along the Liv etc.....maybe if it took some effort to find a log haul road that wasn't graded to park an RV,most of the weekend warriors would opt for more BMW friendly environs?

I guess I'm looking at it if there was no camping allowed within 1km of FTR other than in designated campgrounds,that it would help eliminate the hoards of RV parks that spring up every weekend?

How bout "NO CAMPING WITHIN 1km of FTR" and/or any other high traffic/problem area as may be necesary......similar to the 1km rule on Powderface Trail for instance??

Not sure if this has been mentioned,but Mallard Point is now Mallard Island,the back channel on the Canyon Meadows side of river now begins 100m above the pedestrian bridge,both approach ramps to the bridge are completely washed away,

Me too!!......first grayling that is...... 3 firsts for me last week actually,first fish on new 3wt,which happened to be my first ever grayling,then in same hour first Athabascan rainbow......'twas a good evening!

Well said Flash. I read a comment in a topic here(can't find it now?)wherein somebody(?) predicted "epic" fishing in the not to distant future?? I wasn't here for the last flood,only in CGY for a few years now,but.......from what I've heard,we will lose a year class of trout....understandable.As for the "epic",trying to wrap my head around that?Is it because alot of bug life got washed away,and they will be less selective?Orrrr....for as much talk as there's been of fish being washed away,wouldn'tit be possible that just as many fish have been washed down INTO the Bow from all the mountain tribs??

Drove over the RD in Sundre this afternoon coming home from RMH....KRAZY!! Man it was raging,news crew and citizens all taking vid,then before I got to CGY heard on radio they were evacuating 2700 peeps from east Sundre.... Clearwater wasn't "as bad" but lotsa debris coming down,Prairie and some smaller creeks up that way not too bad at all,just dirty?

EXACTLY!! Would it make a difference if he parked said 5th wheel on Racehorse for the entire season like members of this very forum do and offered it up for rent when he wasn't there? Maybe those that are so appalled with the "abuse of their tax dollars" should get together and pony up $600/mth from May-Sept to ensure 100% occupancy on at least one camplot in Dutch Creek PP? Assuming that he is actually paying the $20/night camping fee(which admittedly might be suspect if he in fact does work there?)then what business of anybody elses is it as to who actually occupies said trailer on any given night?it's no different then if he rents it from his home and the renter tows it to DCPP or anywhere else for that matter,especially given the fact that there is thousands of sq km of provincial wildlands from one end of the FTR to the other where it's a camping free-for-all. Reporting him to CRA??Talk about getting your panties in a knot over nothing,WOW!!If this isn't the epitome of petty jealousy,I don't know what is? Hmmmm....kinda ironic how my last sentence is almost identical to the topic title?

Would anybody here care if it was parked at some obscure pothole in the middle of the balda$$ prairie,or is it only offensive because it's advertised as Dutch Creek?Would it make a difference if it read "27ft fifth wheel for rent,willing to deliver to Dutch Creek PP or surrounding area,etc,etc...."??

Princess Auto has a bit more low tech but functional solution for this.As best as I can I describe it,it's a set of two telescopic "antenaes" with magnetic bases that resemble small driveway reflectors?Stick one on top of your ball and the other on top of the hitch coupler.Telescope both antennae so theyre visible above your tailgate and simply line up the reflector targets when you back up.

At the risk of coming across as argumentive,I beg to differ,and would suggest that is what the line mfrs would have you beleive.In my experience,its simply not true. I've been building my own type 6 sinktips for many years in various lengths from 6'-20',and using them on SH rods with WFF lines ranging from 4wt-8wt,as well as spey rods with both Scandi and Skagit heads,and have never had any significant issues with casting them quite nicely.If there is any hinging at all,it's minimal and only apparent at the most extreme ranges that I would expect a given rod weight to perform well anyhow,for instance,trying to chuck a 18' sinktip 70+ ft with a 5wt.....certainly not enough of a concern for me at least to warrant buying specialty lines and extra spools for all my reels,not to mention the nuisance of carrying said extra spools when I can accomplish the exact same thing and more with a few tips of various lengths and/or sink types coiled up in a pocket.I can quite comfortably cast a 12' type6 tip 60-70ft without issue,and aside from that,if in fact there was to be a wee bit of hinging.....who cares?Its not like I'm trying to present a #18 EHC to a selective brown,I'm swinging a streamer that's gonna tighten up almost immediately after landing.

I think the size difference from one extreme(tiny kids) to the other(huge kids)might be more significant in Bantam?At the peewee level,you get the odd kid that is quite big,but I think they are more close to being "near" the same size?In Bantam though,you'll get kids that havent yet hit their growth spurt being thrown to the wolves so to speak with essentially grown young men in some cases,and the extreme between smallest to biggest kid on the ice can be substantial.I think the hitting should be kept in peewee,at least at the elite levels?Maybe not in house leagues or "B' level where they havent even mastered the fundamentals and some can barely skkate let alone hit,but at the "A",2A,3A etc....I'd rather see them learn how to protect themselves against 100lb peers at that age then throwing a 90lb kid onto the ice with 160lb,14years young men in Bantam and have them get clobbered? Tough call as to when is the "right time"....but they gotta learn sometime?

Save yourself a ton of $$ and just pick up a sinktip or two,attach to your floating line with loop to loop connection. If I'm reading this right,isn't that somewhat contradictory?On one hand you agree with jayhad on getting streamers down,and in the next sentence your saying to nymph the upper levels of the water column?Or are you saying to nymph the shallows tight to shore?Sorry,just a bit confused?