fly fishing around fort mcmurray
 

im am looking for a place to flyfish in or around fort mac other than the trout ponds and what flys to run for goldeye and rockies i have only ever flyfished for trout and char in bc and southern alberta any help would be well apreicated

I had great luck this afternoon catching goldeye with a wooly bugger about a foot under a slip bobber. I was fishing the athabasca at the barge landing north of town. Strike indicator and a fly rod would work just as well. Walk anywhere down by the river in town and you'll see them rising and can cast to them. The Mackay river, accessed from the bridge on the CNRL road offers some more scenic walk and wade fly fishing action to some very large goldeyes. They will hammer a grasshopper fly fished right along shore all summer and fall and fight like crazy in that river.
Cheers
Brandon

i will have to try and get out there some time this week and givr a try

i was practicingfly casting in a pond in timberlea the other day. i doubt its stocked butthat would be awesome. there are some big minnows in it thought. where are those trout ponds?

the texaco ponds are down highway 69 the west pond is the first right after clean harbours and the east is by the dog kennel place across the road from the autowreckers and there is also the highway 63 pond by the motocross track

Wait Texaco...
What?
If My Memory Serves Me Right...
Texaco=Esso In Canada

Were you fishing the Clearwater or the Athabasca in town?

Fly fishing for grayling in the hangingstone and the horse river is a blast. I used to do really good in the saline creek too but it looked pretty low the last time I was up there, I don't even know if it's still flowing. I used to catch them 14"-16" out of there.

Hangingstone and Horse Rivers
 

I've heard about goldeye at the mouth of the Horse River but where should a guy with no grayling experience be trying? Some people say the Hangingstone river where it crosses south of town, But it seems to accessible. Either way i'll try it but im hoping to find a spot less travelled.

The hanginstone where it crosses the highway south of town is alwys good, and the House as well.
I rarley fish for them right in town.
As faras white fish and goldeye go, you can catch them on the fly at the waterways wing dams, and in the fall we fish for them right a=undser the bridge in town.
At one time on any given day there would be upwards to ten fellas with the long rod having a great time , and the whites always cooperate at that time of year!
Cat

Psst. Hey you guys. There are also greyling in the rivers.:)

Grayling in rivers
 

:thinking-017: Don't tell everyone...LOL... I know they are there also but i'm new at grayling and think that a smaller river might hold a slightly better chance of landing grayling. If i'm wrong tell me...i'll fish the athabasca if I have to, i don't know where to try for grayling though...

hangingstone south of town has never let me down. never the biggest but always fish

Mouth of the saline river and the hanging stone for grayling in waterways. Don't be scared to hop in and get wet.

Saline/Hangingstone
 

Thanks Guys. I'm gonna try the hangingstone out on my days off. The wing dams are those wooden structures along the banks of the clearwater I assume? Where were you standing/casting from while at the wing dams?

Grayling score!
 

Hey guys I fished house and hangingstone rivers today and landed 5 Grayling with the fly rod. I had a few rises and lost one I had on. I'll load up some pics later. Two 10 inchers and a 13 incher landed and released at the House! Didn't know where to fish on the hangingstone south of town so I only got two 6 inchers there. Thanks for the advice guys.:sHa_shakeshout:

Grayling Pics
 

These are a couple of pics of a nice grayling caught on the house river

Are you referring to the House river or the Horse river which is right in town here? I am confused on where the house river is. I googled it it looks like it flows in to the athabasca but south of fort mac and from the map it looked inaccessible. if it is the Horse river that runs through water ways and up around abasand then that would be great to have a good river to catch some graylings right in town.

I'm staying in PTI What about around there?

Any tips on access for the Hangingstone? Do you access right from in FT Mac?

How about for the Horse River?

I've never caught many grayling in the Horse, but the House is great as is the hangingstone - I fish them where they cross the Highway south of town, i rarely fish for them at the mouths of those rivers except in the Fall they hit pretty good then.
I also fish for them up the Clearwater,, but you need a boat for that.:)
Anything bushy like a Tom Thumb, Elkhair Caddis, etc works pretty good.
A buddy of mine swore by a white dry fly "drowned" fished wet however.

Cat

Isn't the pti camp by the bridge to nowhere? Is that close to the McKay river?

PTI has several camps up here, Wapasou is one, Athabasca lodge is another, Beaver River, Husky.......
Cat

I am staying up at the Beaver River camp, forgot to bring rod:snapoutofit:

Will be back up here in a week or two and will give some of these creeks/rivers a try

Forgot the rod? Beaver River eh?

Try catching some crayfish with your hands.

I see what you did there!:scared0018:
Cat

Cat:

They are original in the Beaver River.

The Beaver River is part of the Churchill River Basin where they abound.

I never did anything bad.