headscan

I think either Burnsmead or Southland would be best just because of the bridge access. There may be people fishing at either one, but who knows, maybe they'll be interested in the two-handed sticks. Besides, once it's decided I'm sure that everyone on the board who isn't interested will avoid the area that day.

Thanks for the offer Nathan, but I'm in Calgary so it would be a bit of a drive to get it done. Guess I'll get it done at one of the local glass shops. Hadn't really thought about any warranties or guarantees on it so I'll avoid the mall parking lot ones. Thanks guys.

Anyone ever had windshield chips filled? Good, bad, useless? Also is there a difference between the ones that set up in mall parking lots and getting it done at a glass shop? I have a few chips that could turn into cracks next time the car is up on a lift or the temp fluctuates a lot.

Washrooms, but they were still closed for the season last weekend. Not sure when they reopen them. There may or may not be picnic tables around, because to be honest I've never looked for them.

If you want to do it so that you can do both river left and river right, then Burnsmead is probably the place to go since it has a footbridge like cheeler mentioned and pretty straight banks so everyone can see. On the weekend the current there wasn't too fast but still enough to wash your line downstream. Mind you, this could easily change between now and April. Pretty short walk from the parking lot to streamside, though anywhere in Fish Creek you might end up having to fight for space on the weekend if you don't get there early enough especially if the weather is nice.

http://flyfishcalgary.com/board/index.php?...695&hl=icky

Yeah, those Cloudveil jackets look pretty good. Right now Cloudveil, Simms, Cabella's, and LL Bean are the only ones that are licensed to make Gore-Tex waders and fishing jackets as well. I went from only having owned cheap-ass waders to the Simms G3s and you can seriously tell the difference. The material feels more durable and the seams look bomb-proof. I also didn't need as many layers under my waders to keep warm or feel too hot when walking back to the car. It was almost like they were breathable or something. Oh, wait... The warranty may be built into the price on Simms and Patagonia stuff, but when a seam fails after 366 days I just send them back and they'll be repaired or replaced. One year warranty has you shelling out another $250.

Nice find! Here's a link to a pic of one: http://www.speypages.com/gallery/showphoto...500/ppuser/1606

Yeah, it's just as important to balance a single hand rod with the reel, but I think that's a lot easier to do. For example, the majority of 6 weight single hand rods are about 9' long and probably weigh roughly within an ounce of each other. Easy enough for the reel manufacturers to make their reels so that they'll balance most of the mainstream mass marketed rods (Sage, Loomis, Scott, TFO, Orvis, etc.). With a two-handed rod you can get a lot more variation I think. I was looking at the Meiser Highlander rods and he has 7/9 rods in five different lengths - 13', 13'6, 14', 15', and 16'. All five of those rods are going to need a reel with roughly the same capacity, but the reel that balances the 13' won't necessarily balance the 16'. Meiser doesn't list the rod weights on his site so I can't say for sure (probably because the weight changes with the different custom components he offers). I think there are just more variables to consider when picking a reel for a double hander.

What's the warranty like on those? The reason I have no problem paying extra for Simms or Patagonia is that the warranty service is top notch. I Googled "mirano waders" but couldn't find a website for them.

Check local retailers for the pricing of the 2007 Simms stuff. The 2008 waders are arriving soon so they probably want to get rid of the old stock. I bought a pair of G3 waders on the weekend and got a good deal for that exact reason. Then again, I may have just gotten the deal because I've established a good relationship with the local retailer by buying most of my gear there.

Gawesworth goes into this in his Spey Casting book, specifically about having a reel that makes the rod's balance point at the same spot where it would be most comfortable to grip with your top hand. I think he mentions that if the balance point is too high or low that it can be more tiring to cast. There's a formula he gives for determining the ideal reel weight for your rod, though I haven't tried it.

On Sunday I fished river left with the two-handed rod for the first time. I found my snakerolls were a lot better left hand up (I'm right handed) than they are either cackhanded or right hand up when fishing river right. I did however find that if you bring your rod tip close to your body too soon on a snakeroll you run the risk of giving yourself interesting new body jewelry.

Didn't see any fall colours yet so...

Right, but which spey lines are those capacities for? Take a look at this chart for comparison: http://www.nautilusreels.com/SpecsPricing.asp#Spey

I just went through the frustrations of choosing reels for spey lines back in January. It really depends on the line weight of you spey rod and the type of line you put on it I think. On the Ross site it says that you can put 125 yards of backing on that reel with a 6/7/8 spey line, but they don't specify which spey line exactly or even if that's 20# or 30# dacron. Some spey lines are longer than others and some have heavier heads. So that reel might be ok for you if you just go with a mid-belly spey line or scandi line, but might be too small for a skagit line unless you use gelspun backing. I'd ask Brian, Courtney, or maybe the guys at Fish Tales if they have any experience putting spey lines on that reel and capacities. Keep in mind that the manufacturer's capacity numbers don't necessarily match real world. I experienced first hand a reel that took a line when it was spooled tightly in the store on a machine, but once I used it and reeled it back in manually it didn't fit any more.

I think a good drift boater would watch where the walk and wade guy is casting then go around that area. Either that or ask them. At least that's been my experience with good drift boaters, pontoon guys, etc. Usually the good ones will pass me by hugging the opposite bank from where I am even when I'm fishing a single hand rod. As far as tighter spots, both the drift boater and the walk and wade guy should compromise. I would stop casting while the boat passes, and the boat should make an effort to get through the water I'm working as quickly as possible with minimal disturbance. These are ideals as I see it and I know it isn't always going to work out that way...

If it's just the lightweight moisture wicking stuff you're after MEC carries some that is dirt cheap. Most of that stuff (UnderArmour, Nike Dri-fit, etc) is pretty much the same and a lot of it is probably all made at the same factory just like Polar Fleece. I bought some from MEC last year and it works as well as the Nike Dri-fit at almost half the price.

Hard to say without knowing the exact message that comes up. Is it a message from the Windows installer or from Fusion? If you can, take a screenshot using Cmd-Shift-4.

Yup, got mine and an extra so I gave it to a friend. Unfortunately I think it was like giving an addict a key to the police evidence room...

Yeah, water levels are super low right now. Today I saw a guy standing almost in the middle of the river and it was just above his knees. This was right around the foot bridge at Burnsmead.

I think I figured out my main problem while reading up on skagit heads last night. Most of what I read mentioned using skagit heads for big ass streamers. Tested it today and I'm pretty sure I confirmed it. Casting a sparse fly with the Windcutter is no problem for me. I was casting things like a size 6 SJW and a size 4 spruce fly using a snake roll easily. But if I try chucking a big weighted and wind resistant fly like a size 4 Kaufmann stone or a conehead Bow river bugger, no dice. Guess I'll wait until I get a skagit line for that rod before trying to cast any more heavy flies.

What he said. And Nick0Danger's suggestion of hiring Max isn't a bad idea ever. One of my friends who doesn't fish the Bow often summed it up perfectly - the Bow can be a cruel mistress.

West Winds has signed copies of Trout Highway in for anyone who's interested.

In iTunes, go to File->Add to Library. Navigate to your backup drive and the folder with all your music. Use Command-A (Command is the key next to the space bar with the apple and squigly thing) to select all files in the folder. Click "Open" and you're done. The Command key lets you do most things. In Windows you used Alt-Tab to cycle between programs, but in OS X it's Command-Tab. Try opening a bunch of Safari windows then use Command-` (top left next to 1) to cycle through just the Safari windows. Where you used to use Ctrl-X, Ctrl-C, and Ctrl-V for cut, copy, and paste now you use Command-X etc. Get this book, it'll really help: http://www.amazon.ca/Mac-OS-Leopard-David-...2193&sr=8-1