Hwy 22 fishing advice

Wolkpack · #1 08-22-2018, 02:42 PM

I live in Edmonton and do most of my fly-fishing west of here, though I have not gone out much this year. But I am in Calgary this weekend and I would like to get a line in the water on my way back on Sunday. I have never fished between Red Deer and Calgary and I was looking for advice on fishing the streams accessible on or near hwy 22. Any advice on the streams I should stop at would be greatly appreciated because as I say, I have never fished that area. I value volume over size, and safe catch and release always. Also, I don't want to go where the fish might be stressed due to water levels or temp.

Thank you to anyone who is willing to offer me some advice.

bonedogg · #2 08-22-2018, 03:05 PM

little red deer river, Dog pound creek, fallentimber creek all good , mostly brown trout, Brook trout and whitefish and of course suckers. Also can catch the odd Pike in any of those streams as well. good luck with the adventure!!

Wolkpack · #3 08-22-2018, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bonedogg

little red deer river, Dog pound creek, fallentimber creek all good , mostly brown trout, Brook trout and whitefish and of course suckers. Also can catch the odd Pike in any of those streams as well. good luck with the adventure!!

Thank you bonedogg, I have heard those are some pretty challenging creeks to fish but I am desperate so I will give it a go. For access I assume it is safest to stay close to the bridges on or near hwy 22? I don't want to risk being on private land because not only am I respectful of that but also I don't want to get shot.

Thanks

JReed · #4 08-23-2018, 03:05 PM

Yep, park at the bridges off highway 22 to be safe. Get there early to claim an upstream path, this is crucial especially with the current below low average flows. Tread as lightly as you can, the fish in these creeks spook easily. When you find good water, sit back light up a smoke and watch for rising fish or movement in the water. The fish will reveal themselves. All tha'ts left is gentle and accurate casting, you'll be into fish.

If its hot out, please try and fish the morning. The flows are well below average right now and the fish are stressed out I'm sure. Enjoy the scenery and have some fun! The challenge of these creeks will make you a better fisherman

Wolkpack · #5 08-23-2018, 03:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JReed

Yep, park at the bridges off highway 22 to be safe. Get there early to claim an upstream path, this is crucial especially with the current below low average flows. Tread as lightly as you can, the fish in these creeks spook easily. When you find good water, sit back light up a smoke and watch for rising fish or movement in the water. The fish will reveal themselves. All tha'ts left is gentle and accurate casting, you'll be into fish.

If its hot out, please try and fish the morning. The flows are well below average right now and the fish are stressed out I'm sure. Enjoy the scenery and have some fun! The challenge of these creeks will make you a better fisherman

Thank you for the advice, it is appreciated. Supposed to be cool and rainy on Sunday but I guess we'll see. I'll leave Calgary early just in case.

Wolkpack · #6 08-27-2018, 03:52 PM

Thought someone might benefit from a report of sorts. On the way down I stopped at the Clearwater near Caroline and caught a nice brown near the gas station/RV park. That is a really fast river. I also stopped at DogPound Creek. It was a very small creek, very difficult to fish, and in about an hour and a half I only saw one rise.

When I was in Calgary I did get a chance to fish the Bow for a couple of hours but I got skunked, I have a lot to learn about fishing a river of that size. On the way back to Edmonton I stopped at Fallen Timber. It was very "fishy" looking, and I saw some rises, and I would have loved to have spent the afternoon exploring but I had to get going. Skunked again.

Next time I am in that area I will definitely try the Little Red Deer, it looked promising.

Red Bullets · #7 08-30-2018, 01:20 AM

South of Rocky on Hwy 22 you cross the Clearwater river. About 30 km south of Rocky east of Hwy 22 is cheddarville natural area on the clearwater river.. A bit of walking between pools of fishable water but there are some fish to be had.

This might be worth a try ( no guarantees. Rivers change) ... About a half mile north of where Hwy 53 joins onto Hwy 22 there is a lease road to the west. A short way west and it intersects with a well used lease road that you can drive sort of westward with lots of curves and the road then goes NW. The road goes for a few miles and eventually you can drive right beside the north Sask river there. The river is braided in this area so there could be some good pools worth fishing. This stretch of the river has some browns, bulls, rockies and if you catch a walleye or pike you can keep 3. Last time I fished the area I watched a family of 5 mink fishing and playing along the shoreline. It was a good road in. If you zoom in on google maps you can see where I mean.