March Crowsnest River up date

We haven't bothered to ski Castle Mountain or Fernie for six weeks .. we are still waiting for snow ! Oh well , the fly fishing has been getting better and better the last three weekends (Monday and Tuesday for us) We close the Crowsnest Cafe' and Fly Shop two days a week until May, then Suzie and I go full out until Steelhead season in October. Any how ,the trout are starting to wag those tails and feeding less selectively on midges with this warm weather .. There may be some bigger nymphs moving around under those currents, as a variety of nymph patterns fished more actively without a indicator have worked for me the last 3 weeks ..Dave Osberg ,Susie and I have been out the last 2 days. On Monday Suzie decides to fish a dry .We haven't really hit a good midge hatch for a couple weeks ... Suzie fished a few good looking dries to no avail.She asks me for advice occasionally and sometimes she even listens but not often (marriage does that ). So I tell her what I have seen ,which wasn't much, a few black spiders and some blue bottle house fly's as far as terrestrials go and no midge hatch . So I suggest a small black rubber legged beetle/spider guy in her box and she pulls out the giant version of it ,size #4 and ties it straight on to the 3x leader she was fishing her streamer on "let me put some finer tippet on there for you Suzie". Ok fine... I tell her that I am going to catch up to Dave and" don,t waste to much time on the skinny water" as there is not many trout in it this time of year .. I leave her in the corner pool and tromp hundreds of yards up stream until I spot some fish .. white fish.. and some big ones . My first cast was short,just trying to get some line out really ,when my fish senses tell me to set the hook ! Just a little white fish , but it spooked them all out.. I fished the adjoining bucket of water but could not spot anything to keep my interest.. I wanted Suzie to be in sight ,but I was impatient , wanting to get to bigger slower winter water.. I tried to spot fish as I stalked along the bank ice and stopped at a favourite deep pocket, and fished it with out a glimpse of a trout through the clear waters .I thought I would at least spook a few ? Well finally I can see Suzie downstream working her huge dry fly , driving it across the river into the wind .. God ! She is taking all day... She never listens ! At least she is in sight and I feel better for her safety . I can watch her from the first big pool that Dave has no doubt already trashed and gone on to the next. I did see a couple rises in the slow water and saved those casts for Suzie . Now Dave has come back down stream and we watch together as Suzie works all that shallow crappy water ... We can't stand it after a while and we fish it all ... Suzie fished the nice little pool bellow were I tried and got nothing with my very successfull nymph rig and yanks a fish ..and it gets off . So she catches up to us finally with just a beaming grin ... What did you catch him on Suzie ? She responds .. on my #@$%**&&* dry fly ... were you not watching? I landed two and lost about four all in about a foot of water... That wife of mine she never listens to me ! Well I must have pushed them all to the other side for you ..I didn't spot Em ! Well to make a long story short Suzie has been chucking streamers lately, and trying too copy my ties .. one she cut the marabou tail short and straight as I was trying to teach her about fly/hook proportions the day before ..I tried to suggest to her that one should stay In her fly box as a lead eyed damsel fly pattern ..So she and Dave O are fishing yesterday and she has to go use it and catch the the big fish of the day .. Dave says at least a 21 inch fat rainbow ..We will get this picture off Daves camera and onto the Blog it... looks like a beauty; but she's not holding it right!! When will she start listening to me ? P.S Dave O hooked a twenty inch plus Brown trout ,that jumped twice and broke him off and yes the Crows Nest River is totally ice free from top to bottom and the lower section is open to fish for this month .. check the regs, Ill'e get that picture ... And Suzie Rules with Dry Fly... bye for now Al B.

To Blog or Not to Blog ?????????

HAMELET .....To Blog ... or Not to Blog ! That is the Question ! Whether ' tis Nobler in the World Wide Web to suffer the Slings and Arrows of outrageously abundant information ... Or to take Casts against a Sea of Natures Variables . And by Casting , Conquer them ....... To Cast to Sleep , to Cast some more ..... and between sleeps we tye , with the hope to end the heartache of natures thousand natural shifts -that fish are heir to ... 'Tis a Consumtion ! ..... Devoutly to be Fish'd ; ... To Cast ... to Sleep , Perchance to Dream - Aye- There's the Rub .. Muscilin for my line .... For in that Cast of Death ! No dreams may come , Til we have untangled this motal coil,- Tis a triangle taper.... Alas we must give pause; theres the respect that makes "calamity" of long lines .... For Who would beor the Whips and Scones of Immoral Timing . The Obsessors Wrong ; the proud Mans contumely , the pangs of Despis'd Love , the Rods delay .. The insolense of office , and the spurns that lack of patience are merit of th' unworthy takes.. when his quietus make ; To tye with bare bodkin ; What fly would fardels bear ? To Grunt and Swear Under Weary Rod , but of that , the Dread of Cast Learned only after Death! Still it's th' undiscovered country from whose bourn no angler returns , puzzles the will ... and makes us rather bear those casts we have that fly to others that we Know Not Of ?. Thus conscience does make cowards of us all ... and Thus the native hue of Lengthy Trout ! .... Line is sickled o'er sipping fish with vague casts , I thought ? ... an enterprize of great pitch and moment. With this regard their currents turn awry my offerings and loose the name of action ..G. Loomis... I Think ! ....soft you know . The fair Oncorhychus and floating nymph .... Whisper Creek in thy orisons ... BE All My SINS REMEMB'ERD .. ! OPHELIA ..... Good My Lord ...FISH ON!!!

nice winter rainbow

january

Well...Here we are...the freeze has subsided and there is open water...As is typical (it seems) the big ones are slow to respond, but respond they do..streamers and nymphs..the boys did well on tiny midges the other day and I lucked into some co-operative rainbows on size 6 streamers ...The Crowsnest is fishing well and with the last week of warm weather it's fairly easy to walk and wade. The beavers have not taken a siesta, nor have the otters...Al and Gary went out for late night Ling cod, a few hearty souls were up to the same and did well. The Cafe and flyshop is open Wednesday thru Sunday from 8-5 ,and if you need any info etc,please call toll free 1-877-363-3258 or at the shop 403 -563-8510.