Trip Report Father and Son Trip to Fernie BC

[nkuchmak]

Hi all, 

Let me introduce (or reintroduce) myself. I was an old member of just about every Ontario fishing forum a long long time ago but have fallen away from the online fishing community and even fishing itself for some brief periods but this last year saw me diving head first back into this sport I love. I moved to the Hamilton area a year ago and have been looking for some sort of community outlet to talk fishing since my wife is starting to get frustrated hearing my "theories" of why the fish aren't biting. Hopefully this great forum will provide this fix and may help to save my marriage

In the meantime, I figured I'd share a brief report with photos from a trip I took with my father this month. When he turned 60 last year he asked me to plan something that we could do together since he has growing concerns that soon I will have kids and forget to make time for fishing with him. Over the last few years we have fished together only on a semi annual basis and I thought this the perfect opportunity to spend some high quality time together. I almost exclusively fly fish and my father enjoys this style as well despite being a little rusty so we chose a destination that provide some guided fishing and some DIY fishing. We chose Fernie BC as our first destination and it truly  did not disappoint. 

A few thoughts on the fishing in this region...

Cutthroat trout are typically given a reputation of being non selective near suicidal surface feeders. This was actually not my experience as frequently I would cast to rising fish with the same pattern I had success on the day prior only to get refused. A few fly selection changes later would usually bring the fish around but to call these fish unselective is insulting to the trout. That said, they certainly were focused on the surface and if the hopper pattern or beetle pattern didn't get a rise, a small may fly or ant likely would. 

The cutthroats are quite large in this region. It was rare to catch tiny trout with the average cutthroat being around 12-16 inches and very thick due to the powerful currents of the systems in this area and prolific bug life. This is no place for your 6x tippet. Routinely we fished 3x and only went to 4x for smaller flies when needed. 

A note on the Bull trout. These fish are known as voracious predators and while that definitely is true, When I arrived at the end of July the fish I encountered were at the very beginning of their run upstream. First thing in the morning they would chase down large streamers and crush them with reckless abandon however as the sun crept in the sky the fish would shut down and become lethargic or "zone out". Despite being able to see large fish in the crystal clear pools I found the inactivity of the fish to be reminiscent of spring time great lakes steelhead and preferred to leave them be when they were clearly not active. Unfortunately, even in the mountains,  many anglers find the temptation of these impressive fish too great and end up foul hooking them. Local guides informed that it is becoming an even larger problem of anglers targeting these fish later in the spawn when they turn colour and move up onto the reds. Sad to see this behaviour in such a pristine location. 

On a more positive note there is incredible backcountry fishing throughout this region and it was not hard to find some DIY locations if you had a 4x4 vehicle and a can of bear spray. While I enjoy guided fishing in new locations nothing really beats going exploring on your own and finding success at the end of the journey. I am already planning to head back in a year or two as I have only really scratched the surface of this amazing place. 

Lastly if you are fishing in BC the classified waters regulations are something very different that we have in Ontario. Some of the best rivers in this area only permit a certain number of non resident anglers per day and must be booked well in advance. Advance planning is needed and I'd suggest doing your homework if you want to fish these popular rivers and you are not a BC resident. 

To conclude we had an absolute blast fishing for 5 days in this part our beautiful country; however, we were not heading home just yet. After our time in Fernie we moved on to fish near Missoula, Montana. A bucket list destination for me and what I have always considered the epicentre for fly fishing (think A Runs Through It). I will put a post together sharing some of my experiences in that great state next.

I have attached a few photographs  below that I hope you will enjoy. I posted a heck of a lot more on my instagram if you'd like to see more i'm at  @nickgoesfishing. Im always looking together to connect with others from the province so shoot me a message anytime. 

Anyway thanks for reading, 

Nick 

 

 

 

Edited August 30, 2018 by nkuchmak

[Dutch01]

Great report and some beautiful pics. Thanks for posting.

[b2kptbo]

Good stuff, looked like you 2 had a blast...

[Jds63]

Great photos and report Nick.

Nice to see a son taking the time to do that with his father ....

[grimsbylander]

What a terrific report. Those pictures are incredible too! Coincidentally, happened to watch A River Runs Through It last night!! Love that scenery.

[BillM]

Man, some of the those back drops are unreal!   I drove through Fernie a few years ago, never wet a line unfortunately.   Gotta change that sometime soon.

[Whitespinnerbait]

Awesome...

[Rustic-Fisher]

Amazing fish! grew up fly fishing those rivers Alberta/BC .. man I miss those days !!!

[nkuchmak]

On 8/30/2018 at 3:44 PM, BillM said:

Man, some of the those back drops are unreal!   I drove through Fernie a few years ago, never wet a line unfortunately.   Gotta change that sometime soon.

Aw thats too bad. It is such a great destination with lots of great fishing nearby. 

[nkuchmak]

1 hour ago, Rustic-Fisher said:

Amazing fish! grew up fly fishing those rivers Alberta/BC .. man I miss those days !!!

Very envious that you lived near such an awesome place. 

[spincast]

. those fish are sweet - the backgrounds are amazing. thanks for sharing

[David Chong]

Awesome report and amazing pics! That's what memories are made of!