troutfisher Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Hello i have been in calgary since january 2008, i still have not been able to find a good fishing spot , i have been to the bow all threw the city, been to policemans flats, been to the bragg creek area, fished the elbow , the Glenmore resiviour, ect..... can anyone please tell me a good fishing spot , where i can catch some rainbows or browns, i have even been stopped by the conservation officers, and they wont even tell me a good spot to fish , iam beginning to lose hope, and looking for some advice from anyone who loves fishing in alberta . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kungfool Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Hello i have been in calgary since january 2008, i still have not been able to find a good fishing spot , i have been to the bow all threw the city, been to policemans flats, been to the bragg creek area, fished the elbow , the Glenmore resiviour, ect..... can anyone please tell me a good fishing spot , where i can catch some rainbows or browns, i have even been stopped by the conservation officers, and they wont even tell me a good spot to fish , iam beginning to lose hope, and looking for some advice from anyone who loves fishing in alberta . There is good fishing pretty much anywhere on the Bow. Sounds like you need some instruction on how to catch them. My advice is to take a beginners fly fishing course with Jim Mclennan. It helped me out a lot and Im sure it will help you as well. Took my course with Jim through country pleasures. Link is here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reevesr1 Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Going to echo Kungfool here. Location likely isn't the problem. Take a course from one of the shops, hire a guide (Max's advertised walk and wade special is an excellent way to start), whatever. You need to learn how to spot good water, and how to fish it once you see it. Trust me, once you do you will learn there is good water all over this river. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taco Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Or hire Maxwell for a day, he's runnin a special right now http://flyfishcalgary.com/board/index.php?...amp;#entry63181 EDIT; damn texan he has no life, he's always on here postin before i can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutfisher Posted October 12, 2008 Author Share Posted October 12, 2008 thanks for the quick responces, i've been fishing for many years, and know how to read the water pretty good, been paying close attention to what's in season , and what other people are using for flys, the main problem i am having here in calgary is everywhere i go fishing is packed with other people , so my guess is all these local fishing holes are fished out, i've been studying alot of online maps of alberta and the calgary area, and cannot locate and remote fishing spots which DO NOT have public access via (the infamous dog walking paths). Just looking for some good areas , with low traffic , tough access and excellent fishing , mabye i am asking for to much , but it's alberta there has to be spots like this....any info would be greatly appreciated..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theiceman2 Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 The best thing I can tell you is to buy two books called "Alberta's Trout Highway" by Barry MItchell, and "Kananaskis Coupntry trail guide" by Gillean Daffern. Armed with these two books you will be given hundereds of ideas and details of access and fishing species present. Nobody on the board is willing to drop their pants and post about their secret honey hole. If they did it would be filled with people the next day. Try taht Barry Mitchell Book, its really good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
luukesh Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 If you are looking for access points that are a little less trafficked, google earth is the ticket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayhad Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 I will tell you from experience this last season the the bow is a unreadable mistress of the night for new guys, you just need to put in time and ally yourself with experienced guys.... keep it up it can be tough times and a the learning curve is very gradual. it will come Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutfisher Posted October 12, 2008 Author Share Posted October 12, 2008 Thanks alot guys , i will keep at it ..... happy thanksgiving Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rusty Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Policeman's Flats is one of the best spots on the whole river, regardless of how hard it gets hammered. I fish it really regularly (over 30 days a year) and cannot believe the number and size of fish so close to where you can park. I also cannot believe how so many people down there are fishing the wrong water with the wrong techniques. The only difference between the pounded spots and the less known ones is the solitude, not the fishing. 10% of the guys catch 90% of the fish on the Bow. Get out for a day with Max, spend some more time watching and learning to read water, and you'll be in that 10% before you know it. There are plenty of places around here with low traffic, tough access, and excellent fishing - but you'll have to find them the way most of us did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LynnF Posted October 12, 2008 Share Posted October 12, 2008 Thanks alot guys , i will keep at it ..... happy thanksgiving Good job. It took us a couple of years regularly floating the Bow until we "figured out" the Bow enough to be able to have a consistent day of fishing on it. It's not an easy river to figure out and, with the increased pressure it's seen in the last few years, that makes it even tougher fishing. I'll echo Rusty's advice - get out there with Max. I'd do the same thing if I could find the time right now - even though we've been fishing it the last 8 years. He's the guy who'll start you on the road to knowledge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest RedWiggler Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Hello i have been in calgary since january 2008, i still have not been able to find a good fishing spot , i have been to the bow all threw the city, been to policemans flats, been to the bragg creek area, fished the elbow , the Glenmore resiviour, ect..... can anyone please tell me a good fishing spot , where i can catch some rainbows or browns, i have even been stopped by the conservation officers, and they wont even tell me a good spot to fish , iam beginning to lose hope, and looking for some advice from anyone who loves fishing in alberta . If you have been to all these places you have found a lot of good fishing spots. You can go anywere on the bow and catch fish it is one of the easiest pieces of water I have ever fished, the problem with the Bow here is that it has become a total gong show in and around Calgary so try and find a spot out of town somewere which is getting tough to but you should still be able to get into some fish. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pisces Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Hey Trout try strapping your flyrod to a mountain bike pack a lunch and head down to 17th ave. boat launch . From there follow the path south you can go all the way to Southland . You'll find many spots you can call your Own ! Try it tomorrow its supposed to be a nice day !! Tight Lines ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bowbonehead Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Trust me there are no secret spots between Calgary and Cluny just harder spots to get to. Sometimes we can't see the forest for the trees. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SanJuanWorm Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 You need to hire a guide like others have suggested. One guided trip will help you immensely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lonefisher Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Luckily the bow has basically the highest number of fish per mile in Alberta (they say 2000 fish per mile). It gets fished hard but theres a lot of fish to catch. Having fished a lot of rivers in Alberta I can tell you it can be the hardest river to figure out, some days downright frustrating, but it has the highest payoff. Even in fish creek park you can literally fish right beside the parking lot and follow 4 other people up the river and still catch (big) fish. But you gotta get the river dialed in..... Do some serious reading on technique and practice the fundamentals and you'll start hooking up. Presentation is pretty key on the bow and the guys who can fish where the fish are with good presentation can have repeated bumper days on the bow. Maxwell likely offers the best deal that can be had for bow river tutoring but if thats not what you want you just gotta learn it. Pick a 100 yard stretch of water fish it from bank to a full cast out with all the different techniques. Sometimes it seems the fish are literally on the banks, sometimes they are in the pools, sometimes you don't seem to find a fish outside of the riffles, sometimes they're lined up on the shallow smooth flats pickin BWO's..... And it can change from day to day. But once you start to find fish in a particular type of hold you usually find more in similar holds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
headscan Posted October 13, 2008 Share Posted October 13, 2008 Totally agree with LoneFisher. I think a lot of us get locked in to certain flies and presentations because they worked last week, yesterday, or even earlier in the day. Dead drifting a SJW might work great for a while, but a few hours later it's ignored and they hit a swung caddis pupa and later still they're hitting a stripped streamer. The fish might be in the slower water early in the morning then move into the riffles as the day goes on. I've been just as guilty of locking in as anyone else, but once you start thinking about it and varying things you land more fish. I also don't think the fish in some of the high traffic areas are as spooky as most think. Today I was at Fish Creek and noticed a nice sized trout about 5 feet from me. Considering I was using double spey casts almost directly over him (noisy line ripping off the water) I'd say he was far from jittery. When I took two steps towards him he moved off but didn't bolt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutfisher Posted October 14, 2008 Author Share Posted October 14, 2008 Totally agree with LoneFisher. I think a lot of us get locked in to certain flies and presentations because they worked last week, yesterday, or even earlier in the day. Dead drifting a SJW might work great for a while, but a few hours later it's ignored and they hit a swung caddis pupa and later still they're hitting a stripped streamer. The fish might be in the slower water early in the morning then move into the riffles as the day goes on. I've been just as guilty of locking in as anyone else, but once you start thinking about it and varying things you land more fish. I also don't think the fish in some of the high traffic areas are as spooky as most think. Today I was at Fish Creek and noticed a nice sized trout about 5 feet from me. Considering I was using double spey casts almost directly over him (noisy line ripping off the water) I'd say he was far from jittery. When I took two steps towards him he moved off but didn't bolt. thanks for ll the help guys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutfisher Posted October 15, 2008 Author Share Posted October 15, 2008 Hello i have been in calgary since january 2008, i still have not been able to find a good fishing spot , i have been to the bow all threw the city, been to policemans flats, been to the bragg creek area, fished the elbow , the Glenmore resiviour, ect..... can anyone please tell me a good fishing spot , where i can catch some rainbows or browns, i have even been stopped by the conservation officers, and they wont even tell me a good spot to fish , iam beginning to lose hope, and looking for some advice from anyone who loves fishing in alberta . well after spending lots of time online , we found what looked like a good spot on the bow , using google earth , started doing what all you folks have been telling us and had the best time fishing in Calgary since we've (my roomate and myself) been here , Different combinations of BH nymph were working all afternoon and into the evening and SJW were working also here is a few photo's of the ones we landed, missed about 5-6 , Thanks for all the info everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutfisher Posted October 15, 2008 Author Share Posted October 15, 2008 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reevesr1 Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 Sweet, now get out of my water! Kidding of course. Very well done! Beauty fish, particularly the brown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefisherking Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 Nice pics! It was only a matter of time. What do you think you were doing wrong before? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Taco Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 That'll work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agbff Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 Ive been trying all summer with out results like that... That broon is soooo nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Der Posted October 15, 2008 Share Posted October 15, 2008 Looks like you figured it out,nice fish,brown is a beaut. I,ll second the question what did you do different make things work .Ive only fished Bow 2 times myself and never with any luck .I look at hogs you guys show on here and drool . I though I was pretty good fisher but think could learn alot yet when fishing bow . Daryl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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