Wild Steelhead and the Thompson River Bait Ban

If you fish at all the importance of the well being of wild fish should be on the top of your priority list. I myself am not a Steelhead fisherman (Not yet anyways but thats a conversation for another day!). But as I have done with my introduction to the Bow River I am trying to learn as much as possible about the fish I will be targeting and the situations that surround their well being.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Steelhead, it is more or less is a sea-run (anadromous) Trout that returns to its freshwater birthplace to spawn.


I think that Dylan Tomine of Wild Steelhead Coalition described these fish best in his article titled "State of the Steelhead", which I urge you to read:

"These fish range from fourteen inches to thirty pounds,

from two to nine or more years old, from heavily spotted

to nearly unmarked. And yet, they share several distinctive

traits: A willingness to come to the swung fly. The speed

and strength normally associated with saltwater fish. An

individual beauty that haunts those who fish for them."

These fish are truly one of natures most magnificent creatures. Unfortunately due to a multitude of reasons their wild stocks are on the decline. Anglers as a whole need to unite for this cause and continue to bring awareness to our rivers. Even if you are not an angler the continuous decline in these populations is a direct representation of what we are doing nature in general.

Something that can be done right now to help out in this movement is signing the Thompson River bait ban petition that Greg Gordon created. A bait ban on the Thompson is long overdue and this petition is a solid step forward to giving these fish the protection they need. Pretty much every other river system with wild Steelhead has had this regulation for 20 years so it really is time to take action. Please sign here, it only takes 30 seconds:

http://www.petitiononline.com/baitban1/petition.html

If you agree with the cause please also consider forwarding this link to your email contacts,twitter followers , blog readers or facebook peeps. Our goal is 2000 sigs and we hope to have this by the end of the second week in September. So yes this is a bit of a challenge, please help spread this around.

Take a moment, make a difference.

Gear Review: Jetboil PCS

Being that I am planning some backcountry trips in the coming months and definitly some longer trips next year I have been working on gearing up. The first item on my list was something that I thought would be helpful on short day trips to mountain streams or even on Bow River floats and that is a backpacking stove.

Jetboil PCS - A whole lot of awesome!

I decided to go with the Jetboil PCS. The PCS is a clever little system that packs into the size of a Nalgene bottle. The cooking vessel is the container that holds the fuel, stove portion and even a couple accessories (pot support and canister stand). After emptying the contents out of the cooking vessel, the unit assembles in no time flat.

The cooking canister can be used to cook a variety of meals from dehydrated packages to full blown pasta dinners. The unit can boil 2 cups of water in less than 2 minutes for coffee or tea. The cooking vessel then doubles as a serving device with an insulated sipping lid for beverages.

Although I haven't logged any field time with this fine piece of kit, I have made some killer camp coffee while doing some woodworking in my garage! I will report back after a couple trips to the wild with it to see if my opinion changes. Until then my reccomendation is to go out and buy one!

Blog Feature: Skate the Fly

I have been following Dylan and the gang at Skate the Fly for a couple months. The blog entries produced are informative and interesting reading to say the least. Roll on over to check out their foray into video blogging...what a concept: crushing beers and talking about fishing!

http://www.skatethefly.com/blog/2010/7/28/skate-the-fly-tv-episode-2-greg-thomas.html

STFTV: Beer and Fish!

Who the F*%K is the Greenhorn Angler?

I have been fishing since before I can remember. As a young child my family would rent cottages every summer in either Renfrew County Ontario or the Gatineaus in Quebec and fishing is what I remember most. Jigging worms or spin-casting top water lures like the BIG-O for bass is what originally go me into activity. I continued fishing this style to the same types of fish when we bought our own cottage in Quebec until my early twenties.

So if I have been fishing since I was a weasel then why am I the "Greenhorn" Angler? 

When I moved across the country from Ottawa, Ontario to Calgary AB I started hearing stories of the famous Bow River. Everything I read about involved Rainbow and Brown trout, neither of which I had ever seen or fished. Lucky for me it turns out my new landlord was a part-time guide. I thought I was set but then I showed him my fishing gear.

After many beers and heated discussions it was decided that we would go fishing together but I was not to bring any of my spin gear. After a few trips that left me frustrated and wanting to snap the rod in half I begin to get the hang of casting and presenting the fly.

One of the outings we got to the river at dark thirty on a late June morning. After finishing our Egg McMuffins and bullshitting a bit we pulled on our waders and walked a half hour to the fishing spot. My borrowed 4wt rod was outfitted with a tapered leader and a Stimulator, could have been anything and I wouldn't have known the difference. A couple casts in to the riffle, a big splash and some one yelled "Fish on". That is when I realized I had a fish on.

Got the fish to the bank, nice 20"+ Bow River rainbow and I was hooked. I decided right there that fly fishing was for me and probably for the same reason a lot of you out there keep coming back... the take.

First Trout on the Fly. A Dry at That!

I invite you to join me as I wade through the details and demystify one of the greatest pastimes out there, ripping lips and crushing beers along the way.