Kootenay Adventures Alberta
Did my annual trip to BC/Alberta early last August and it was nothing short of fantastic. Sorry for the late posting but better late than never. Our aim was to fish the Lower Bow for a few days and then head south and west from Calgary and fish the Kootenay region for some Cutthroats.
We decided to spend our first day fishing out of a B&B called the North Bow Lodge right on the Lower Bow River.
Great spot, beautiful rooms, great food and awesome hosts. You can walk and wade right from the lodge, and/or the owner will also give you an ATV shuttle upriver and make your way back.
The wind was howling that day, but we managed to catch some decent Rainbows all on big hopper patterns. Biggest fish was 18".
Day 2 we were picked up at the lodge by our guides from Bow River Troutfitters (who I would highly reccomend for guiding and their shop). Another hot day, but a lot less windy.
Not sure if you have experienced hopper fishing at it’s peak, but it’s nothing short of awesome. The key was to place your fly tight to the banks, the tighter the better actually.
The hits were explosive. The great thing about the Bow is the average size of the fish…a 16"er being the norm. We did really well…lost count how many fish we landed. Most of the fish were rainbows, the biggest being 23.5" by my buddy Chris. I did however land my personal best brown, a 23" Brown caught on a big brown bead head stonefly nymph.
I didn’t think the trip could get any better but it did. We spent the next 3 days fishing in the Kootenays of S.eastern B.C. Encountering forest fires on the way highlighted the hot dry summer they were having. We pushed pretty far off the beaten path…about a 1 1/2 hour trip on a maze of logging roads.
I won’t name the river (sorry), but it was one of the top three rivers I have ever seen, let alone fished. Cutthroat’s were the main quarry. Amazed at how surface oriented and beautiful these guys are. Kinda reminded me of smallmouth in their aggresiveness. Top flies were #4 Joe’s Hopper, Turk’s Tarantula, Chernobyl Ants & Green Drakes (#12). Fishing tight to cover of any kind was key. We caught some on nymphs and streamers as well, but fished big dries 90% of the time. Also drooled over some huge Bulls finning in a large pool, but they weren’t too interested in our flies. I’m told once late August/Early september comes around, they’re attitude changes. If you get a chance, get out to the Kootenay’s of B.C!
