Water Temperatures and Fishing Restrictions

Hi Everyone! I have not posted much fly fishing because many of my favourite places to fish this time of the year have very high water temperatures. There is an advisory in place and I suspect "Hoot Owl" Restrictions will follow soon. This is a post from My Wild Alberta on Facebook! Many backcountry lakes in the mountains will have acceptable water temperatures but you will have to hike "high" to find them.

Declining river flows and low water levels, and warm water temperatures can cause stress to fish. To help protect our fisheries, an angling advisory is now in place for ALL flowing and non-flowing waters across Alberta.

When an advisory is in place, it is especially important for anglers to follow angling practices that reduce impacts to fish, including:

 Fish in stocked ponds and lakes as much as possible. Here’s a map of stocked waterbodies: https://bit.ly/3qmaoUr

 Fish in the early morning when temperatures are cooler

 Using heavier tackle helps you reel in a fish quickly, which helps reduce exhaustion and improve recovery

 Keep fish wet at all times and minimize handling time. Brush up on your fish handling by watching this video: https://bit.ly/34WvT4B

 Use single point hooks, single hook lures, or flies

Always know before you go and check the My Wild Alberta Advisories, Corrections and Closures page before you fish! https://mywildalberta.ca/.../advisories.../default.aspx

Time of day angling restrictions are another tool that may be implemented to protect fisheries should specific temperature and flow criteria be met. There are no time of day angling restrictions currently in effect. For more information about time of day angling restrictions, visit https://mywildalberta.ca/.../time-of-day-angling...