New to fly fishing, looking for spots to start

[Chief16]

As the title says i am new to fly fishing and do not have any friends who are into it to give me a start on where to go. I live in Wetaskiwin but am absolutley willing to drive to check out any good spots you guys would be so gernerous to tell me about. The only place I have fly fished is the stocked pond in town, pulling out only 6 or 7 inch bows, and the bow in calgary once as i passing through which is a great start but would love to expand and learn to fish different waters. Thanks in advance for anything you guys are willing to share!

[Northwinds]

Chief,sent you a pm

[grinr]

Not trying to be a smart@$$.....but posts like this come up here every other week,and not many anglers are going to name their favorite honey holes on an an open forum for the world to see....they don't remain secret honey holes that way.
The good news is,there is plenty of info and resources out there,many of those at your fingertips right now.
1)Browse thru the 24pgs of flyfishing topics right here on AO....most newb questions have been asked and answered multiple times,and dozens(hundreds?) of locations have been named(outed) by good intentioned folks.
2)pick up ACA's "Discover Alberta's Wild Side" magazine for FREE at most any licence vendor.It gives locations,access details,descriptions etc for over 700 provincial Conservation Sites,many of which have fishing.
3)Check your AB Sportfishing regs,it names a cpl hundred(?) stocked lakes/ponds in AB.Also use the regs to get ideas for your area(PP2) or neighboring fish management areas(ES2,NB1 etc.?).You should be able to tell from the bag limits for each particular stream,lake etc what species are present there,and even take a guess at their abundance based on generous or ZERO bag limits.
4)pick up Mitchell's Guide to Fishing AB(or wutever it's called?) again at most licence vendors for 7-8 bucks?Hundreds of lakes and streams named in that.
5)Mitchell's book "Alberta's Trout Hiway/Fishing The Forestry Trunk Rd" sold at most flyshops,BP,Cabelas,WSS etc....great resource for fishing the FTR with details on all the major ES drainages from Waterton to GP.

Best of luck to ya,enjoy.

[Calgaryguy1977]

Originally Posted by grinr

Not trying to be a smart@$$.....but posts like this come up here every other week,and not many anglers are going to name their favorite honey holes on an an open forum for the world to see....they don't remain secret honey holes that way.

I tell people all the time of many of the good spots I know ....but I won't if it's someone who I think will catch n kill though. That said, if people arent keeping fish and I trust them then I have no problem with it.
A lot of people keep things secret which I dont agree with and I think its the elitest attitude that give many fly fishermen bad names.
If im out somewhere catching something on a certain fly im happy to tell people what im using to catch fish. A lot of guys will just say things like match the hatch or figure it out. But I appreciated when people helped me when I was new and I didnt abuse the knowledge I got from them and shared every chance I get. I guess im a pay it forward kind of person.

I agree with you that advertising your fav honey hole on forums isnt overly smart though considering how many people see it. If it's a pm though I dont see a problem with it.

[grinr]

Originally Posted by Calgaryguy1977

I agree with you that advertising your fav honey hole on forums isnt overly smart though considering how many people see it. If it's a pm though I dont see a problem with it.

Agreed,and that's all I'm trying to say.PMs and/or helping individuals is one thing.Posting tell-all reports on an open forum,ie; spot burning little known and often fragile fisheries for any and all slobs,poachers,game hogs and abusers to take advantage of is quite another.In fact on some FF forums,"spot burning" is strictly forbidden.....as it should be.

[Chief16]

No i certainly would not expect people to give me their honey holes as they have discovered them not me, but a little guidance would be nice. I mean like yes magazines give your great information on lakes and streams etc. but how to actually find fishable water is the problem i am facing. Finding parking lots and things such as a place to start from is my problem. From here I would be able to develop and find my own personal favorites.

[grinr]

Originally Posted by Chief16

No i certainly would not expect people to give me their honey holes as they have discovered them not me, but a little guidance would be nice. I mean like yes magazines give your great information on lakes and streams etc. but how to actually find fishable water is the problem i am facing. Finding parking lots and things such as a place to start from is my problem. From here I would be able to develop and find my own personal favorites.

Google Earth is your friend.

[biggyJ]

I agree with Grinr.

I understand that you want general information.

But honestly if I told you to park at spot A on road B, walk past the sign to the river, and then go 100 paces upstream to the spot where there is a log in the river and throw in a pheasant tail and you will catch a fish. Is this what you truly want?

Barry Mitchels guide has just about everything that you need to get to the river and more. If you couple this with a backroad mapbook then you are gravy.

Beyond that it is up to you to go and figure it out. This is half the fun of fly fishing. Discovery, adventure, trial and error. If you ask any fly fisherman who has been at it awhile they will tell you about all of the times they have tried a new spot and it didnt pan out. Now they know.

Many would consider failure a waste of time, I dont think this is true in this instance. We live in world of immediate gratification, fly fishing is not this. Put your time in, meet up with new people, fail a couple of times, succeed a couple of times and you will truly find out what this sport is about.

Cheers.

[Jayhad]

Originally Posted by grinr

Google Earth is your friend.

right there is all the direction you require

[spazzy]

If you can find a copy of Trout streams of Alberta by Jim Mclennan. You would be well on your way , I was in the same spot as you until I found this little gem.
Found a copy on amazon.com and a few other.

[Chief16]

Thank you guys so much for the info. I will definatly be looking into these books and finding more stuff out for myself, sorry for starting this thread as it seems it must be one of a thousand like it and is irritating for many

[drock0802]

Originally Posted by spazzy

If you can find a copy of Trout streams of Alberta by Jim Mclennan. You would be well on your way , I was in the same spot as you until I found this little gem.
Found a copy on amazon.com and a few other.

amazon is selling a copy of this book for 187 dollars!

[Chief16]

Yes i just looked and saw that, being in high school working only part time there is no way i can afford that! Is that about what to expect to pay for that book everywhere?

[MTB_FlyFisher]

Originally Posted by Chief16

Yes i just looked and saw that, being in high school working only part time there is no way i can afford that! Is that about what to expect to pay for that book everywhere?

A library membership is nowhere near that expensive, and you'll have access to that book, Barry M's trout highway book, and countless others.

[biggyJ]

"trout highway"

You dont need it, save the money unless you want it for an interesting read.

get a backroad mapbook $25 and Barry Mitchels Magazine $10. Honestly that is all you need.

[Calgaryguy1977]

Originally Posted by biggyJ

"trout highway"

You dont need it, save the money unless you want it for an interesting read.

get a backroad mapbook $25 and Barry Mitchels Magazine $10. Honestly that is all you need.

I second this.....as an Albertan this is the best fising book ive ever read!!!

[Chief16]

Thanks every body so much!

[Lornce]

Explore, fish, and really important just use your eyes and look at the water.

[borchy]

Originally Posted by spazzy

If you can find a copy of Trout streams of Alberta by Jim Mclennan. You would be well on your way , I was in the same spot as you until I found this little gem.
Found a copy on amazon.com and a few other.

X2

[Chief16]

Google Earth really did help! Thanks for all the tips to start my trials there

[pikergolf]

Originally Posted by Chief16

Google Earth really did help! Thanks for all the tips to start my trials there

That is a chunky fish, nice!!

[Calgaryguy1977]

Nice job buddy! Jealous!

[drock0802]

Now that's a football

[Mitchthefisher]

Nice fish!

[drock0802]

what did u catch him on?

[JReed]

Originally Posted by drock0802

what did u catch him on?

He bought it from the local grocery store, put his boat in a random lake, and took a picture hahaha.

Just kidding, nice fish!

[drock0802]

Originally Posted by JReed

He bought it from the local grocery store, put his boat in a random lake, and took a picture hahaha.

Just kidding, nice fish!

dude thats what you have to do to hold a fish! lol u comin to bullshead this weekend or u gonna be weak again

[g.p flyfisher]

if you have nimble fingers and patients buy a fly vice and start tying right away.
I spent hundreds on store flies before I started tying and I catch more on hand ties than store bought.

My personal opinion spend more on line and reels than the rod itself, must have a dip net, look for deep pools, backwaters, anywhere the water slows and deepens.

I bought a $700+ package and don't notice a big diff. between my rod and my bros($100 rod) other than mine has no q's lifetime warranty. pick my brain anytime cant help with locations i'm in the peace region.

[Justbyfaith]

Originally Posted by Calgaryguy1977

I second this.....as an Albertan this is the best fising book ive ever read!!!

x3
Call around and find it- best book for fishing written for Ab.