As winter fast approaches here in Alberta, (did we ever get summer?), thoughts of a long, cold winter disheartens most fly fishers. We will probably be lucky enough to get in a few days on the Bow or Crowsnest, as long as our days off coincide with the much anticipated Chinook winds. Last winter I was lucky enough to make two winter fly fishing trips, both of which were first time events for me. In late January I travelled to Cuba to fly fish for bonefish and in early March I travelled to Idaho to fly fish for winter steelhead. One of the best things about trips like these is that not only do they give you a break from winter for a week or two but the trip planning and preparations make the time go by a little quicker. As a fly fisher, part of the preparation involves researching the flies that will be needed, and, if you are also a tyer, it means sitting down at the bench for several evenings tying up your final selection.
My favorite hole on the North Saskatchewan River never failed to produce and usually I could count on catching a few suckers and walleye for an afternoon's effort. Over time I found myself staying later and later until I would keep right on fishing into the night, under the stars. There was some ambiant light from the glow of the city, but for all intents and purposes, it was night. Under that faint light I could just barely make out my bobber, but did manage to see a lot of bites. Through the night I caught a bunch more fish, most were walleye, but there was the odd pike and goldeye mixed in for flavor.
While attending the U of A last winter I met Colleen, a wonderful person, an ecologist and mom who wanted to introduce her children to fishing. We made plans to go out fishing and sometime towards he middle of August our schedules agreed. We met along the shores of the North Saskatchewan River and had a great evening.
I've been going back and forth to the coast for many years and it's always a thrill to look down into the water and see the mottled brown diamond shape twisting and turning on my line. Halibut are sought after and with a little perseverance, they can be caught. The hardest thing about catching halibut is locating them and sometimes this requires a lengthy boat ride out into the pacific. Big halibut are often deep dwellers that make forays into the shallows to feed.
It's fall and like I mentioned in the feature this month, big pike have moved into the shallows to bust up the local whitefish populations. Fall also means that this is one of the very best times of years to catch a monster. Versatility, I discovered, is the key to unlocking these big pike with each day being different. Over the years the following approach has worked very well for me and here are my lures of choice.
It's no secret that first ice is the time to go hunt brookies. It's something I do each and every season. But what isn't so obvious is the fact that because of the approaching spawn all these brookies are in shallow and present some truly outstanding fishing before freeze up.
If ever there were a time to be getting excited about trout fishing, it's now. That's because the month of September is likely one of the two best months to be fishing.
By now the leaves have started to fall, or quite possibly they may have already fallen, completing their one-way trip to the earth. It’s late fall, freeze up is a month away and there’s a hint of winter in the air. This is the Pike’s last hurrah.
