Merry Christmas To All

I would just like to wish all my clients, readers and followers of the Bow River Blog a very merry Christmas this year. I sincerely appreciate each and everyone of you who take the time to read the Blog.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season. With the weather as nice as it’s been, I am hoping to get out fishing Boxing Day and spank some monster Bow River trout!

Thank you so much for your continued support and readership.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

~Mike

Slowing it down for those big Bow River Browns

It’s that time of the year when the water temps have gotten much colder. There is snow on the ground and the fish are heading for their over-winter holes. These are locations in the river where the water is deep enough, and the river cannot entirely freeze solid to the bottom. The fish are getting slower now, and so should your presentation!

Jordan sent me a text during the week and asked if I would like to join him on Saturday to fish the Bow River. We had arranged to meet at noon in Douglasdale to fish one of the over-winter holes I just mentioned. This spot is about eight feet deep and slow-moving current, the perfect location to find hungry fish. The bug life has mostly all dried up, making the river perfect for chucking large, suspending crankbaits. As some of you readers know, I started my own business last February selling high quality fishing lures. These lures have been crushing it all year, and Jordan has been doing extremely well with them! Anyone who has purchased these lures, has caught amazing fish all throughout the Bow River basin. Jordan asked me to bring him more lures to the river so he could purchase them and use them the day of our trip. Unfortunately, he lost several of the lures the last time he fished and needed to stock up.

I pulled into the parking lot near the river and Jordan was already there getting his gear ready for battle. I gave him the lures he needed; we both tied up the 4.7-inch cranks and hiked down to the rivers edge. Jordan was smashing trout on the lure I call “The Green Goblin” all season, and that was his first choice of the day. I stayed down low in the slow water, and Jordan walked up the river into a seam coming off a nice rock bar. It was not long before he was hooked up into a beauty brown. I came running up with the net and scooped it up for him. His first of many big browns was in the net.

For me, its rewarding to see other anglers catch amazing fish, consistently trip after trip on the Robertson Tackle lures. Jordan has caught some of the best fish the Bow River has to offer, and I honestly could not be happier for him! I am grateful he asked me to come out fishing with him and was very glad he caught all the big fish of the day. We will definitely do that again soon!

Thanks for the great day fishing the Bow River.

Stay safe out there friends.

~Mike

Friends, Fun And Fishing the Bow River

After having issues with my boat this past week, I got repairs done to the steering cable and we were back in business for the weekend trips. This past Saturday, I had a trip with a long-time friend from my old hood. We lived on the same street in Dover, where I grew up here in Calgary! Tony and his brother Doug, whom I had not seen in many years, were set to tussle with the Bow Rivers finest fish.

It had been many moons since Doug had fished the Bow River, even though he lives here in Calgary! I thought it was very cool that Tony had asked him to come out, and I wanted to make sure he did well and caught a pile of fish. I stocked the tackle box with all my new Robertson Tackle crankbaits the night before the trip, making double sure we had a smashing day on the water.

As we made our way down river, both Tony and Doug were able to hook some great trout. The “Raunchy Rainbow” was lighting it up again out there, getting many rainbow trout to the basket. After the midday point, and after digesting one of my home-made sandwiches, we decided to pull into a back pool known for monster pike. I added steel leaders onto the 4.7-inch crankbaits and before long, Both Tony and Doug were into some amazing Northern Pike. It was very awesome to watch the boys battle those monster river Pike. After catching several epic fish, we moved on and finished our day trout fishing!

There is always something special about seeing old friends and spending time on the water doing what we love. I appreciate you both coming out with me. I also deeply appreciate what Doug said to me at the end of our trip at the boat launch; “You are an amazing fishing guide Mike”.

Thank you, Doug, from the bottom of my heart. Until we meet again next year. Hope you both have a safe and happy fall season.

~Mike

Lure Fishing the Lower Bow River

This past weekend, I had my good friend Rob Clarke come down from Edmonton to fish with me. Rob brought his friend Ron with him on this adventure. Ron has not fished the Bow River in almost twenty years, so to say he was excited is an understatement!

As some of you may know, I started my own little fishing lure business this spring. I called it Robertson Tackle, and you can find the ecommerce website here. I was excited to let both Rob and Ron try the 3.5 inch crank baits and the 4.7 inch lures as they work extremely well. The “Raunchy Rainbow” was producing very well on both days of our trip, as was the “Bad Brown” color pattern. Under clear skies and clean water conditions, natural color patterns are key!

We had a complete blast on both days of our trip, producing great fish and enjoying many laughs along the journey. It was great to meet Ron and get him onto some great trout the Bow River has to offer. The boys went back up to Edmonton with a smile on their faces!

Thanks for the great laughs and the epic memories gentlemen.