The fish have been extremely active this past week with plenty of action on both, streamers and nymphs. There have also been some dry fly opportunities for those brave and patient enough to give it a try. Cooler weather may slow down some fishers, but the fish should continue to strap on the feed bag, with there being plenty of bugs, and baitfish, in the river. The river is low and clear, for the most part, with some occasional discolouration due to weather, or snow melt.

The Rainbow's are spawning. So handle them with extra care, and let them get back to business.

Bow River Flies - Staff Picks - Will

Blue Winged Olive and Midges hatches continue to happened, mostly mid-afternoon to late afternoon. Concentrate on heads of pools and sheltered backwaters. If you spot a consistent riser, or two, try to match the hatch, or throw on your smallest Adams, and give it a go. Skwalas have been spotted, mostly downstream from MacKinnon, but also in the city. Give drifting a Skwala dry, or stimulator, a try. You could also drop a small nymph, if you wanted to increase your chances. Sometimes giving the fly some movement during the drift, or stripping it across pools, like you would fish a streamer, can provoke a strike.

The nymph fishing has been great. Concentrate your nymphing on deep pools and runs. Target walking pace water. The fish are moving now, and could be anywhere in the run. Fish through the whole run,  concentrating on getting the fly, or flies, down as deep as possible. It you're not feeling bottom occasionally, add weight and/or tippet. Stonefly nymphs, worm imitations, and attractor patterns are all working. Pick your favorite, or favorites, and have at it.

The streamer fishing continues to be on. Spring is a great time to fish on a floating line. Use a 9-12 ft 1 or 2X leader to tumble weighted flies down runs and through pools, while working the flies slowly, to give them action. Sink-tip lines should have shorter leaders, not more than 4 feet, so the line takes the fly down. An unweighted fly, used with a sink-tip line, will have a great deal of action, and is less likely to get hung up on the bottom than a weighted streamer.

Trout spey has produced lot's of splashy hits and short strikes, to go along with catching a decent percentage of these hits. Swinging flies through riffles and runs is great fun. Spey casting takes practice, like any other aspect of fly fishing, but once you get the hang of it, it's a fun and productive way cover a lot of water. Eventually, you will expend much less energy spey casting than you ever could covering the same water with a single-hand rod.