Ideal Weight For The Bow?

[vancouver]

5 for winter work unless I pull out the 3 for those dry midge days and it's pretty much a 4 show all summer long unless I pull out the 7 for chucking the big streamers...

 

Ya, you gotta have a few rods....But if you were to only ever have one, it's a 5...

[birchy]

I believe Silverdoctor's sturgeon would disagree with that 4 weight real quick!!

[monger]

I agree with you tightline...few fish in the Bow need more than a 4wt...if you use 6+lb leader (maybe fish over 27")

 

My buddy uses his 3wt to land stillwater 10lbers...but he uses good leaders and works the fish. If you actually palm the reel there are very times you will see your backing all year.

 

[SanJuanWorm]

I feel like my ideal weight for the Bow would be 200lbs, sadly im 225.

[monger]

Stop going to Tim Horton's

 

7wts are for poofters...my other fishing buddy uses one

[Guest Jeremie]

I personally have a 10' 6 weight that will be my nymphing rod. With the drift boat now i'll be able to store more rods, so my 8'6 7 weight will be my streamer rod and my 9' 4 weight will be my dry fly rod. If i come across some smaller ish fish rising, it might not be a bad idea to bring the 3.

[Tungsten]

Whats with all the 6and 7wts?You guys need some casting lessons sheesh!

I like a fast 5 for heavy stuff 3s and 4s for the other stuff.

With the proper tippet you can land fish with a 3wt just as fast as a 6wt.You just gotta pull a little.

[Eelpout]

People may love the fight you get from a 4 wt. or lighter, but the extra time spent fighting a fish will be contributing too more lactic acid build up in its system and could cause its death, even though it is revived and released. In my opinion anything lighter than a 6 or perhaps a 5 (but even that's pushing it, considering the size of some of the fish in the Bow) is to light for this river.

People who take excessive time to fight fish do it for their own pleasure, not out of genuine sport.

 

It is not the line the rod casts (or weight in general parlence) nor how deep it flexes that makes it difficult to land large fish, but the strength of the tippet. I've horsed some nice fish in on a short glass 4wt using 6lb mono.

 

I know of a guy who fishes stripers with a rod normally considered a specialty light trout rod.

[Ulmo]

wow! thanks eveyone, seems like a 6 wgt would be the way to go, of course "what fun would having just one rod be?" ;-) i was leaning towards a longer, stiffer six, then i would still have my 5 wgt to cast drys, then hopefully down the road i could look at a 3 or 4 for the small streams out in the rockies, but getting ahead of myself... for now, a six it is, will start hunting immediatley. thanks again guys!

[ggp]

It is not the line the rod casts (or weight in general parlence) nor how deep it flexes that makes it difficult to land large fish, but the strength of the tippet. I've horsed some nice fish in on a short glass 4wt using 6lb mono.

 

I know of a guy who fishes stripers with a rod normally considered a specialty light trout rod.

 

Total nonsense! Rather than telling us that you know a guy who does it, you should try it for yourself. I have done it for myself and I know that you cannot put the same pressure on a fish with a light rod that you can with a heavier one, using the same leader. Lighter rods simply do not have the backbone required to move some fish....If you have ever fished Chinook salmon with a fly rod and it decides to sulk on the bottom they become extremely hard to move, even with a 9 or 10 wt. There is no way you will move one with a light rod (by that I mean a 6,7,or an 8) trying all the tricks you have learned over the years, and thats not to say that if the fish co-operates you can't land it, with a light rod because you can....But hay all I can do is share information, the rest is up to the individual fly fisher!

[seanbritt]

I agree with some of the folks here that it comes down to knowing how to fight the fish and using the appropriate tippet. There is nothing more annoying than watching anglers on the river play a fish for an extended period of time simply because they either don't know how to apply pressure or are afraid of loosing the fish. I once helped out a fellow random angler land a fish. He was all the way into his backing and the fish was in the middle of the river. Thinking he had a decent size fish on, I waded out to help him (and lost my $250 camera in the process-the payment for helping out!), only to net a 12" brown! When I asked, he was using a 6wt rod and 3x tippet. After further conversing, it turned out he was new to the sport. I spent some time talking about different ways to apply pressure, etc. and how he has the tools to bring the fish in a lot quicker. I've also been out with a close fishing buddy who landed a 27" brown on a 4 wt in about 1/2 the time of the previous story. Myself, only time I've taken considerable time landing a fish is when I've foul hooked a fish and can't apply the same techniques.

 

In the end it boils down to your skills at that point in time of your evolution as an angler and what tools you need to complement your skills to land that fish healthy and quickly. For some its a 3wt for others its a 7wt.

[birchy]

In 5 years now since I started, I've yet to see my backing even one time! Granted, I don't put as many hours on the water as a lot of you, and my biggest Bow River fish is still only 22". My biggest fish to date was a 29" bully that made my arm sore, but she didn't put me into my backing either. Granted, I did run downstream a ways with that one.. That was with my Sage Fli 696-4.

[ggp]

I agree with some of the folks here that it comes down to knowing how to fight the fish and using the appropriate tippet. There is nothing more annoying than watching anglers on the river play a fish for an extended period of time simply because they either don't know how to apply pressure or are afraid of loosing the fish. I once helped out a fellow random angler land a fish. He was all the way into his backing and the fish was in the middle of the river. Thinking he had a decent size fish on, I waded out to help him (and lost my $250 camera in the process-the payment for helping out!), only to net a 12" brown! When I asked, he was using a 6wt rod and 3x tippet. After further conversing, it turned out he was new to the sport. I spent some time talking about different ways to apply pressure, etc. and how he has the tools to bring the fish in a lot quicker. I've also been out with a close fishing buddy who landed a 27" brown on a 4 wt in about 1/2 the time of the previous story. Myself, only time I've taken considerable time landing a fish is when I've foul hooked a fish and can't apply the same techniques.

 

In the end it boils down to your skills at that point in time of your evolution as an angler and what tools you need to complement your skills to land that fish healthy and quickly. For some its a 3wt for others its a 7wt.

Well I'd like to think that after forty years of fly fishing and fifteen years of fishing prior to that, that I have amassed some knowledge and skill, but there is always something new to learn whether it be from an old experienced fly fisher or a new person to the sport who just does something a little different, and it works. So I try to keep an open mind, but in this case I just don't agree with the use of 3 and 4wt's in the Bow . I have used light rods in the past and landed large fish with them, but I came to the conclusion that I would rather have one designed for larger fish in big water than smaller ones designed for smaller fish in smaller waters. A 3x tippet should be enough to bring in just about anything in the Bow. However a 3x tippet in my opinion defeats the purpose of a 2,3,or 4wt. rod. No question that light rods have a place which in my opinion is smaller streams and dry fly fishing, where I will usually start of with a 4x tippet and work my way down to a 6 or 7x if necessary. Having said that there can be some very large fish in small streams but they tend not to run to the same extent as their cousins in larger rivers. Some of our central Alberta streams have some very nice browns in them and this is where I tend to use my light rods but not in the Bow. Like I said before I can only share information, it is up to others as to whether or not they are willing to accept it.

[monger]

I can fit my 6lb Maxima into #18 dry flies. The fish don't seem to mind. You can apply lots of pressure with 6lb Maxima. Some day I will try this tippet stuff all you fellows talk about....maybe I'm missing out on something.

[Garhan]

I have been using a 5wt for dry's and nymphing and a 7 wt for larger streamers and very large heavily weighted nymphs (Stoneflies, etc..). Today's rods are so light anyways it all hardly makes a difference at the end of the day when it comes to casting. But when playing larger fishand casting larger flies a 7 wt is handy with those larger wet streamer patterns. Generally speaking you catch larger fish with larger flies, but not always. . Not like 40+ years ago when we fished the Bow. The 7 will also be more than good enough for most Steelhead, Carp, Bonefish, Peacock bass, Snook and Northern Pike.

 

But hey I golf with a 3 iron exclusively.

[monger]

Garhan, how big are these streamers you are throwing? #2 or bigger? I want to try for some bigger fish

[Tungsten]

I can fit my 6lb Maxima into #18 dry flies. The fish don't seem to mind. You can apply lots of pressure with 6lb Maxima. Some day I will try this tippet stuff all you fellows talk about....maybe I'm missing out on something.

 

 

lol,if you cut it on an angle you can push 8lb in.

 

 

 

[Garhan]

Garhan, how big are these streamers you are throwing? #2 or bigger? I want to try for some bigger fish

 

Anything from a #4 to a 4/0 with as much as 30 wraps of .031 lead wire.

[monger]

That's a super sized meal

[reevesr1]

I love these types of conversations. Basically, they boil down to:

 

"Whatever method I use to fight a fish is correct. Anyone who fights a fish longer or shorter is doing it wrong."

 

 

[monger]

Shorter can never be wrong...then you get to cast at the next one

[osbornes]

At the risk of sounding too simple... a 4 weight is what I have, so a 4 weight is what I use!! Sometimes I break the line, sometimes I actually bring a fish to hand!!

 

I have fun with my 4 weight everywhere I go! Just me an' my ol' 4 weight!

[Ulmo]

Folk's;

I bring with me in my boat 2wt, 2 -4wt,2-5wt,6wt, & 7wt..It is nice to have a selection to choose from...How many golf clubs are in your bag?? There is no one rod that is perfect for the Bow and just about everyone I know, including most professional guides bring many rods for the differing conditions ,tactics and targets...My thoughts...

 

this is something i hear a lot, guys will use different weight for different flies, different water, even different weather. i can buy into this, landing a 16" trout in a small stream requires little backing, that same trout in the middle of a big, fast river is a different fight altogether, but what about the reel(s) - just one with several spools or different reels altogether?

[kphebert]

i use a 4,5,and 6wt in 10 foot 9 foot and 8 foot. i dont spend that much time chucking streamers but do use them.i am more of a nymph fisherman.i know there some big fish in the bow like the elusive 30 incher that has never seems to be photographed but the biggest i got was 24 on my 5wt and had no problem landing it.i had a 3x tippet on at the time.

[SanJuanWorm]

I caught a brown close to 30 inches 2 years ago and it took everything I had to land it with a 6 weight. Super fun though. Just a blurry pic taken via cell phone.