We left Red Deer at 6 am. The canoes were loaded on the Gulf and the fly fishing gear and layers in the trunk. We knew the weather was not going to be perfect. Steve, Taryn, Karen and I know how to bundle up. The lake temperature was a frosty 48F. Hmm, I hope the lakers would want to play! It took a little over 3 hours to get to our destination and then we set to work launching the boats! Once we found some creeks entering the lake, we started to connect with lakers. We connected on 13 or 14 fish but only landed 4 lakers. We mostly used balanced minnows. As we fly fished, we could see avalanches crashing down from several glacial areas. There was a lot of snow melt too. The canoeing kept us pleasantly comfortable. Even though the day was rainy and cold, it was a good day. We even got to watch a grizzly, mountain sheep and a beautiful grey owl. We did see some emerging chironomids but I suspect that will happen as the water warms a bit!
We are planning a return visit. I hope the weather is better. One of the most picturesque areas to fly fish!
Steve Luethi photo
