Fly Fishing in Fernie by Wayne Osborne
Photo by Dave Brown & Fernie Fly Fishing
The weather has been cool and wet but the fishing has been hot on dry flies. The Elk has been on fire.
Through July, as a general rule, Stoneflies were coming off in big numbers earlier in the day, with massive Mayfly hatches in the afternoon followed by Caddis hatches in the early evening. That's not unusual, but the Mayfly hatches were exceptional.
Mayflies in a variety of sizes and colours had excellent conditioned Cutthroat Trout rising in large numbers. At times it looked like Tuna working in the ocean. However, they have been quite selective, so having exactly the right fly and perfect presentation was essential. Green Drakes, Mahogany Dunns, BWO's and PMD's were all coming off at once. The trick is which fly pattern would they take at the time, there were no hard and fast rules, but olive Tilt Wing Drakes size 12 and BWO's size 16 were very effective, along with parachute Light Cahills size 14 and Mahogany Dunn patterns size 14 also working well at times.
But then Fly Fishing is not just for old expert anglers, anybody of any age can learn and enjoy a healthy lifetime experience. Fly fishing is great fun and challenging no matter how much experience you have. There are always new places to go with a myriad of species and situations to challenge and hone your skills, fresh or salt water. So get away from the computer, get some healthy enjoyable exercise, get out into the wilderness, climb mountains, walk streams, a day fly fishing beats the hell out of sitting at a desk in every way any day. Against popular belief, fly fishing need not be an expensive sport for the elite few, anybody can enjoy the experience, especially in Fernie where some of the very best freshwater fly fishing in the world is right at your doorstep.
There are always experienced anglers willing to lend a hand when it comes to helping learners. There is no better time than right now to get started, August is peak season with unbeatable fishing ahead in the fall, then after that is a lifetime of the most enjoyable exercise you can get.
