Runoff is on pause? Over? Who knows? The River has been dropping in both the city, and Banff. The river is "streamer green," with about 2 feet of visibility. Warm weather early in the week followed by the possibility of rain could bring on another surge of water, but that will depend on how things are handled upstream.
Recently the streamer fishing has been awesome. The fish are chasing, boiling, and eating streamers with reckless abandon. Nymph fishing has also been good, and some fish have been caught on the dry, by some patient, and observant, anglers.
Bow River Flies - Staff Picks - Hai 
Nymphing continues to be a good choice to catch fish. A larger, darker, nymphs, continue to produce, as well as the trusty San Juan. Hopper dropper rigs are a great way to work rifflie water. A large foam dry fly with your nymph of choice hung 18-24 inches below is a fub way to work the water, and may result in an eat on the dry fly.
All right, I already called the river colour, "streamer green." The slightly off colour, high water seems to give fish the confidence to chase streamers in a big way. It could also be that their normal feeding lanes have been disrupted, and they are more on the hunt out of necessity. What ever the reason. It's on.
A new vice to indulge your vice? Ton's of options for every level, and style, of tyer.
Pike Pike fishing has been good recently. The Bow River along with Lake McGregor, Crawling Valley Reservoir, Lake Travers, Little Bow, Clear Lake, Twin, Badger, and Lake Newell, are all great options. Click to learn about tips and tactics for Northern Pike.
Magazine's are a great way to keep up with current trends, and fly fishing culture. Also, who doesn't like cool fishing pics?
Echo Fly Rod Demo Day Saturday June 21, is Echo Fly Rod Demo Day. Test out a new rod, or two, and receive some valuable casting input from industry experts.
A one day session where students will spend the morning in a classroom environment, learning about equipment, lines, knot tying, etc. Then, after the included lunch, the students will head outside for a dry-land casting session.
Classes are filling up quickly. Click here for Course Dates and to Register Online
Please try to keep fish wet and remember to pinch your barbs. Keep fish in the water as much as possible. Pinching your barbs will make releasing the fish a lot easier for both you and the fish.
We ask that you handle your fish with care by:
- Pinching your barbs
- Keeping fish wet
- Eliminating unnecessary fish contact with dry surfaces
- Reducing handling time
Fly tagging assembly line.
Dries: Booty's DL Cripple BWO, Double Vision BWO, Black Micro Frank, Galloup's Double Winged Caddis, Keller's Centre Stage Caddis, RIO's Skater Tot, Ninch's Iceberg Caddis, Pav's X Caddis
Streamers: Bow River Bugger, Hi Res Bugger, Tungsten Found Ya Bugger, Slum Lord Jig, FM Olive Sculpin, Clouser Minnow, JT's Kreelex Minnow, Cone Head Lightning Bugger, Marabou Clouser
Nymphs: Jimmy Legs, Rubber Legged Squirrel, Will's Chai T, Kaleidoscope, Tungsten Prince, BWO Killer Jig, Bead Head Prince, MFC Lightning Bug Purple, Puparazzi Tungsten Jig Caddis, 4 Bead Caddis, Juan's Jig UV Kryptonite Caddis, Tungsten Mic Drop
Trout Spey: Rio's Pocket Rocket, Aqua Stu's Ostrich Intruder, Jerry's WMD Sculpin, AF Mattoli's Spey Bugger, King Squirrely Muddler
The forecast calls for warm temperature early in the week followed by possible rain. These factors should combine to start another, possibly final, push of water, but whether that push is significantly felt in the city, and downstream, is yet to be determined. The usual factors, irrigation, flood mitigation, and reservoir top offs, will all play their part.
Hackle. A great variety of grades and sizes. From bugger packs to size 22 dries, we have options.
Wade with caution. High water can be tricky, with higher than usual flows, along with poor visibility. Things can change quickly over the course of a day, or even an afternoon, so make sure your don't wade somewhere that you can't get back from. If you are constantly putting yourself in jeopardy, like me, you may want to consider a wading staff.
Get out there whenever you can. Runoff will continue to dictate, when, and where you can fish for the next while. If you don't go you don't really know if it's fish well, or not. You should always err on the side of going fishing if you can.
Fish Tales