Fly fishing start up

[tullfan]

So, we have our boat and enjoy trolling and casting on the small lakes. That’s fun for our weekends and days off for my wife and I.
Now living in Calgary and real close to the bow I’d like to start fly fishing. Especially after my wife got me a float the bow fly fishing day.
My question is, what do I really need to just fish the bow. I’m not interested in fishing all types of fish or going into the mountains for elusive fish. I just want to do the bow when my wife is working and I’m off.
Do I just buy a fly fishing for beginners starter pack or is there a generic rod and accessories I need.
Kinda vague, I’m sorry, just dipping my toes in.

Tullfan

[WhiteFalcon]

Something like the Orvis encounter combo set up in 6wt should be fine. Redington and TFO also have combos like that too. Comes with rod, reel. backing, fly line and leader already. Although I would swap out the leader. As for flies bow river troutfitters in Calgary has a fly assortment pack with flies picked for the bow river. Then just grab some tippet, nips, and forceps and should be good to go!

[spurly]

Originally Posted by WhiteFalcon

Something like the Orvis encounter combo set up in 6wt should be fine. Redington and TFO also have combos like that too. Comes with rod, reel. backing, fly line and leader already. Although I would swap out the leader. As for flies bow river troutfitters in Calgary has a fly assortment pack with flies picked for the bow river. Then just grab some tippet, nips, and forceps and should be good to go!

And a landing net.

[stob]

X2 what they said...they will be a balanced great intial set up...spend your $$$ now on waders ... spend the rest of your $$$ once you catch the bug/fever and this initial set will become your back up or loaner

[58thecat]

Originally Posted by spurly

And a landing net.

And not one of those ones that store easy and are compact floppy things....as witnessed this year at the Bow the current kept collapsing the net sides turning a normal net job a gong show on a beauty trout....I had a good laugh watching from a distance....

[Maxwell87]

9’ 6wt combo kit within your budget and a floating line is a great starting place for fishing the bow river, a net like other mentioned and a small amount of nymphs and streamers. build up your flybox over time when you develop a relationship and understanding of the river with a good flyshop. a few spools of tippet in 2/3/4x will do you for 99% of what’s available also. if you have a guided float booked you will get plenty of into and can go further from there in terms of what you should/could get but you don’t need to over complicate it

[tullfan]

Thank you gentlemen. Will get the ball rolling when the weather is nicer. I kind of envy the guys I see in the water fishing when I drive by. I want that to be me. Lol.

Tullfan

[Richard B.]

Any fly shop can set you up at a reasonable price and give you good advice,

[Prairiewolf]

Originally Posted by Richard B.

Any fly shop can set you up at a reasonable price and give you good advice,

Agreed. Fish Tales, Bow River Troutfitters, or Iron Bow are all great shops to walk in with the questions you have.

What a gift a river like the Bow is for us - and excited for you to begin that journey!

[Sundancefisher]

Go to Fish Tales.

Get a 6 weight TempleFork rod with a warranty and a dependable cheap reel.

Buy a cheaper 6 weight floating line and a 9 foot 15 lb leader and a role of 12 lb floro tippet.

Buy a fly box. Pick up an assortment of lake flies and river flies. Pick up a small contain of split shot and a few corkie floats

Take lessons from fish tales.

Then off you go.

Alternatively look for a deal on FB marketplace or on here.

[tullfan]

Originally Posted by Sundancefisher

Go to Fish Tales.

Get a 6 weight TempleFork rod with a warranty and a dependable cheap reel.

Buy a cheaper 6 weight floating line and a 9 foot 15 lb leader and a role of 12 lb floro tippet.

Buy a fly box. Pick up an assortment of lake flies and river flies. Pick up a small contain of split shot and a few corkie floats

Take lessons from fish tales.

Then off you go.

Alternatively look for a deal on FB marketplace or on here.

Fish tales is where my wife got me a float the bow fly fishing day last season. It was so much fun. It was my wife's first time. and my first time fly fishing. One of the guys at her plant brought his gear in on night for her to practice casting, lol. She was a natural. Come fishing day she was slaying them, landed a huge rainbow. She tried to not look too happy as it was my day, but there was no hiding it. lol. I got out fished and had a good time doing it. I think we will do it again this year. Our guide was fantastic.
I would assume that for about a $1000 or so I could get gear, waders, tools and such and be done.

Tullfan

[densa44]

This is a very addictive hobby, I started when I was 10 years old and am nearly 80 and still at it. I'll give a few tips tha where told to me by my Grandfather. 1.Careful wading is more important than long casts, 2. Pick up the line as carefully as you cast it. 5. Realease everything that you catch.

There you have it, get some advice from the younger fellows on how to fish nymphs. BTW you are now living in one of the best areas for trout fishing. One day on the Bow, taking a couple of scouts on a canoe trip I caught and released 32 rainbow trout! It was openning day in May.

Welcome to the Hobby, I love it.

[Sundancefisher]

Originally Posted by tullfan

Fish tales is where my wife got me a float the bow fly fishing day last season. It was so much fun. It was my wife's first time. and my first time fly fishing. One of the guys at her plant brought his gear in on night for her to practice casting, lol. She was a natural. Come fishing day she was slaying them, landed a huge rainbow. She tried to not look too happy as it was my day, but there was no hiding it. lol. I got out fished and had a good time doing it. I think we will do it again this year. Our guide was fantastic.
I would assume that for about a $1000 or so I could get gear, waders, tools and such and be done.

Tullfan

Waders is a different beast. If you fish during the summer you just need shoes and swim trunks. If you have bad ankles, knees, balance… good wading boots is a must. There is a range of wader quality and warranty. Spring summer fall breathables are best. Neoprenes are good in the winter.

If money is a key driver then going cheaper on the reel and a templefork rod with a warranty is good. Also buying used.

If fishing a lake and you have a boat you don’t need waders. Lake fishing without a boat you should get a fishcat 4 float tube.

Remember some stud are consumables and get used up. Leader, tippet, flies etc.

Boots last a while.

Waders can be trashed in one trip if you rip them on a Barbwire fence.


Reel and fly line lasts a while.


Rod can break first cast or last a lifetime not breaking. Some of it is bad luck. Some rods have warranty’s. Break a TFO and pay a $ and get a replacement piece and they have a Calgary office.

[MR.K]

Just my two cents worth
TFO is in Calgary so you are lucky for that (great quality, great repair policy and they are easy to deal with)
They have some decently priced quality package deals and if you throw in your e-mail address you should be able to get an additional % off.
These guys also know and fish the Bow.

[tullfan]

Originally Posted by MR.K

Just my two cents worth
TFO is in Calgary so you are lucky for that (great quality, great repair policy and they are easy to deal with)
They have some decently priced quality package deals and if you throw in your e-mail address you should be able to get an additional % off.
These guys also know and fish the Bow.

This is all great advice. I can’t wait to start. Then I get to reading about tying flys so they land right side up? Or two flys( hopper dropper) or hook size time x of something? Uugh, I thought the casting part was the hard part.
Not gonna lie, when I get kitted up I may ask for a tag along one day. I’ll be there with all my new stuff, lol.

Tullfan

[bradcgm]

I would also recommend some sort of chest pack, vest, or waist pack for lugging the little things around and can find some cheaper decent ones on amazon. Good magnetic or reel clips or something similar are a nice touch for attaching your net/tools without having too much in your way.

[goldscud]

I have found a comfortable daypack has been good choice for daily adventures.
For trips where I am focused on a limited number of flies/techniques, I just use a fanny pack.

[Tronneroi]

Originally Posted by tullfan

This is all great advice. I can’t wait to start. Then I get to reading about tying flys so they land right side up? Or two flys( hopper dropper) or hook size time x of something? Uugh, I thought the casting part was the hard part.
Not gonna lie, when I get kitted up I may ask for a tag along one day. I’ll be there with all my new stuff, lol.

Tullfan

Lots of decent used set-ups online at the moment. Don't turn your nose up at sub $300 rod/reel combos either. My wife uses a TFO NXT 9' 5/6 wt that's perfectly fine, and like others have said, can be put in for warranty right in Calgary.

Also, most folks at the fly shop will talk your ear off recommending flies. Never had a negative experience at Fish Tales, OFF, or The Fishing Hole.

[haggis57]

Originally Posted by bradcgm

I would also recommend some sort of chest pack, vest, or waist pack for lugging the little things around and can find some cheaper decent ones on amazon. Good magnetic or reel clips or something similar are a nice touch for attaching your net/tools without having too much in your way.

All good advice above. My go to rods for both stream and lake fishing for the last 13 years have been TFO and I couldn't be happier.

The vest, sling, chest pack, backpack selection might be one item where you consider buying used to begin with. Depending on how you fish and how long your outings are you may want to try a couple of different options. We're lucky in Calgary because the Facebook Marketplace and Kijiji sites are probably the most active in Canada for fly fishing gear. You'll have lots of different pack types to choose from come March - April when guys start planning the new season. I started out with a vest, then went to sling packs for 7 years until age related shoulder problems forced me to look at chest packs. I got my vest from Kijiji 10 yrs ago and still use it for lake fishing. I'm now using two different sized chest packs (both from Marketplace) for my fishing on the Bow and backcountry stream.

Good luck with your new hobby!

[-JR-]

Don't go cheep on a rod thats all i have to say .
I did many years ago with a cheep combo set,I never really got into it as I had a hard time to get the line out or get it really far out .
I ended up selling it and just used my spinning rood on creeks and river which worked good .
Few years later i tried a hi end rod on Berland River . That line went out without even trying and casted 3 times farther out than i ever could get that Fishing hole combo unit that i had for 3 years .

[32-40win]

Distance casting is somewhat more like a wienie extension than useful on a river like the Bow with varying water flows that affect the line drift. If you only get 40ft out and cast it accurately, you are far better off. On a lake, salt water or really slow flowing water, it can be useful though, depending on where and what you are fishing for. Roll cast is more useful along river/stream banks.
And there is nothing wrong with using a click drag reel on a fly setup, just have to be more aware of line control with your fingers on the reel, can use a piece of leather as a drag aid on the reel rim. Used Scientific Anglers click drags for many years, they work just fine. If you can find it, Lefty Kreh had a vid out with 101 Flyfishing tips on it, it's worth watching, not sure if anyone else has done one anything remotely like it since., or even if it ever got put on a DVD. And there is an Alberta flyfishing group on FB run by Gary Hanke that has a treasure trove of info from the competitive flyfishing world that can be very useful, lot of good stuff in the files section in that group.

[mrcrossbow]

I'd say go with buy once cry once, get good quality gear will make the experience better, nothing worse then fighting with your gear, not being able to cast because the rod is low quality, line is all in a birds nest, nice thing about good quality gear is, if for any reason you want get out of the sport or it just isn't for you, the resale on good gear is well good, should be able to break even, or even trade for gear you will use, ie spin casting gear. a good vest or lumbar/fanny pack is great also, and can be used for other activities, waders are nice to have, if you like standing in hip deep water ( I like useing a sit on top kayak and fly fishing lakes ) match your gear to the fish your going after, a nice 6 or 7 wt rod 7wt gets you into pike territory ( I use a 8/9 wt but I only fish for pike ) iron bow fishing shop is helpful in giving info and setting you up. Just don't cheap out on the rod, can go little cheaper on the reel and up grade that later, get good line ether floating or sinking, sinking tip, floating is good place to start, I just use regular old mono line as my leader, again good stuff not dollar store stuff unless like birds nests, and get good tipet line. if useing float line match your Flys to it and get some floating spray for your Flys. oh and give your fly line a clean every now and then. If you start going for pike that's a different sort game, heavy wt rods n line and metal tipets but very addictive. I was hooked after my first pike and now that's all I target, still now and then a aggressive trout will smack my big ol pike Flys, always a surprise when that happens. I tend to ramble on and on so I'll stop now.