Roaming & Trout Spotting

 "These good times are like money in the bank. We were born lookin' for rainbows...Let's go fishin', Frank... If anyone asks you what it's all about, wink and grin and tell 'em trout."

 

-- from Let's Go Fishin' Frank, by Danny O'Keefe

One week ago a good friend was visiting and we roamed around and tossed flies on several rivers in the SW corner of Alberta. It was tough angling. It seemed like the recent floods have simply punched the life out of many streams.The Crowsnest river, on the days I walked it, had few mayflies and I didn't even see one large sipper. Unusual for July. The PMD hatch simply didn't develop. There were large and mid-sized stone flies on some sections of the river and you could prospect with a dry but even that was very slow going.

river side flood damage

My favourite local hatch river, the lower Oldman, was beyond silty: think chocolate milk! In the past two weeks, I have seen little improvement in it. The visibility is less than one foot and I don't see it clearing anytime soon.

The lower Castle river, on the one day I fished it, was clear but seemed void of life: trout and bugs. I spotted a Toad stream side: tough little guy. I don`t know how he survived the recent torrent.

toad

sight fished rainbow, caught by author on dry fly

There was some life on a river further south and it was fairly clear. And we had some luck with a Cutthroat stream up in the mountains. We just kept moving around and searching.



beautiful cutthroat, caught by Joe F on dry fly

big rainbow caught sight fishing, by Joe F on dry fly



clear sky and great terrain for trout spotting

Our persistence paid off on some days in what so far has been a very tough season for the dry fly angler. The pictures capture our successes but what you don`t see is all the long hours we put in every day; the many miles covered on foot; the time spent in the mid-day heat standing on high cliffs and the grassland benches searching the water below for a few good fish; and the long faces and frustration after some very challenging days. We did catch some fish; and several very special ones. There were no gimmes this week. My friend, Joe, a versatile angler, caught trout on all the rivers we fished. There were a few angling moments where it all came together. And other moments like the drive home one day from the plains to the foothills where for a split second my eye caught a Pinto Mare and her Colt illuminated in a green field by the warm, soft setting sun during what painters and photographers call the Magic Hour...an image I'll never forget.




crowsnest river rainbow, caught by Joe F, prospecting with dry fly

The most fascinating angling days for me were when we got to sight fish to several large trout. It was classic trout spotting, watching them cycle and fishing dries in very shallow water...so visual!

An excellent DVD on this type of angling is: Sight Fishing Trout Rivers by Jensen Fly Fishing. It is full of information and the video footage is beautiful.



rainbow caught sight fishing with dry fly in shallows by author



trout spotting from cliff

rainbow trout, caught by Joe F