It's a perfect summer day. There's a light breeze, its overcast with some sunny breaks, and the temperature is comfortable. I have lots of choices available to me. There is great river fishing, good trout fishing, good pike fishing, and good walleye fishing. I decide I'm going walleye fishing.
While the old song says "there aint no cure for the summer time blues", hopefully I can give you a few tips to help you cure the Summer time fly fishing blues. Summer is on the way and if our Canadian spring this year is any indication it is going to be a hot one.
One of the most popular sports fish near and far is the pike, and summer days are meant for chasing them. They are widely distributed ...
With the arrival of summer, it’s time for me to head to the mountains where there are all kinds of terrific fishing opportunities.
Over the course of the last 40 years or so I have taught numerous kids, including my own son and daughter to fly fish and have learned much along way.
One of the unfortunate realities of midsummer angling is that when the hot weather arrives, the angling cools off.
Can you blame me for planning a family holiday to Cold Lake to fish for lakers!! Anyone would do the same if their family would let them. So Linda, my two daughters and a slew of Linda’s cousins headed for Cold Lake. Bad idea. First off the weather was brutal that first week in July. The water was cold so there was no way the family would hang out at the beach so I could go fishing.
I had always imagined the Fraser as a huge river with a very swift current, rapids, waterfalls and drop offs. Actually the river itself is quite similar to our North Saskatchewan River in northern Alberta in many respects. It's the scenery that really sets the two rivers apart. The mountains, hundreds of bald eagles, and the salmon jumping at this time of year, make this boat ride an adventure in it itself. Although I have fished lots of lakes over the years and drifted the Bow and Red Deer Rivers in a drift boat, I gained a whole new respect for the guides who are navigating jet boats in this ever-changing river.
A fishing life usually starts like this. A new angler decides to go fishing and to begin with any species or fishing opportunity will do. The real goal is simply getting out and catching a fish, never mind what type or how many. A bend on the end of the rod is the measure of a good day. That's how I started and I can't count how many days I spent fishing the banks of the Fraser River near Chilliwack, BC. I caught suckers, bullheads, pike minnows, carp and on very rare occasion, trout. My experiences were very typical of a new angler.
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.
