WOMEN IN WADERS - going international

Bianca Viljoen

March 2018. An unexpected and last minute invitation for dinner at a hotel near OR International Airport brought family together for the first time in twelve years; a part of the family that took up residence in Canada as far back as 1987. Not fully prepared for this belated invitation a good “not- picked everyday” bottle of red wine was purchased for the occasion. The wine was handed over within minutes of sitting down at the table in the hotel dining room. Without much ceremony the intended flight envisaged for the bottle of wine was cancelled. Naturally, before the first glasses were consumed, the question “when are you guys coming to visit us in Canada “came up. Well, as quick as the question came up, the answer followed. “Next year”. It suddenly became a very expensive bottle of wine.

Bow River Outfitters

In the following weeks hard planning, the finalisation of dates, itinerary and, with much closer consideration, fly fishing opportunities were considered. A few days for me to fly fish was not negotiable and for those days all family gatherings were arranged around the spoil. After various options were considered, the decision was made. The Bow River, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

The Bow River flows into and through the city from the North. It is possible to fish the river “in town” surrounded by buildings and the highway. Brown trout the main attraction. We, however, chose the “country” option. Drifting for 23 kilometres on the river from the North towards the city.

The Bow river that runs through the city

I was referred to a guiding outfit, The Bowriver Troutfitters in Calgary, who I contacted via email to secure our bookings.

The date of departure from Johannesburg, 8 August 2019, was eagerly awaited. We arrived in Calgary Sunday afternoon, 11 August 2019, after a hit-and-run visit to Ancaster, Ontario. I was itching to hit the water and experience The Bow River.

Monday, 12 th August 2019. 7am our guide, Lawrence, picked us up from our Airbnb accommodation with his Ford F150 Truck and trailer and his boat in tow. We drove out about 30 kilometres north of the city to “the Middle Bow River”, the point at which we started our drift down river from McKinnons to Carseland.. We geared up at the departure point with James and his daughter, Izzy, who joined us from Tasmania, supplied with waders by our guiding outfit, whilst a light drizzle predicted a cold and wet day ahead. After a very welcome and professional briefing session, we got into two boats and off we were to hunt the wild rainbows frequenting this section of the river. Needless to say, the scenery was stunningly picturesque. The water was clean and breathtakingly clear.

T h e g u i d e s , J e f f i n t h e o n e b o a t and Lawrence with me in the other, were tremendously skilled in their handling of the boats. Able to row you closer to fishing spots, they left no stone unturned, rowing back up stream if necessary to visit possible hiding places for fish. Not only were they very competent in their craft, but also good company with a great sense of humour. I had the opportunity to land decent trout using dry dropper, long line nymphing and streamers. My first fish on was a jumper of note, almost landed inside the boat, I could not strip in line fast enough to keep tight line. What a way to start the day and a fantastic ice breaker.

My guide and I

Midday we went ashore for a light lunch. Stretching legs and stalking fish close to the river bank. Here we stalked fish doing the “zombie walk”. Much fun was had. After this welcome break we tackled the river again. This time I was targeting specific rising fish. At one bend I spent almost a half an hour playing an arrogant fish that was feeding hard but just would not take my fly. It was time to re-think the tactics. After a change of fly, approaching from a different angle and almost a giving up I managed to hook him with a what felt like a 4 minute strong fight! Turns out, after all that, this fish would be the one that got away; but that I had the privilege to experience for a few minutes….it would be the one that will haunt my thoughts for days to come. Don’t we all have these experiences. We got to the bottom of the run…our day came to an end. We hitched the boat up and returned to the city with a chuffed guide that was amazed that a woman landed several trout using 3 different disciplines. Big deal for a guide to accomplish the need of his client.

Tuesday the 13 th August 2019, my aim for the day was hopefully to add another species to my list of fish landed on fly. We chose The Old Man River to try and accomplish this. Lawrence and I walked and waded, specifically in the “Gap”, which is a section of the Oldman River that runs between two huge mountains. We worked the water once again aiming for specific rising fish, first in slow flowing water and then in the faster flow.

Once again we had the opportunity to experience true Canadian wilderness and natural beauty even more breath taking than the day before. Rocky mountains and cobblestones everywhere with gin clear water. After several takes and losing many a fish, we again tried dry dropper using a beetle pattern. Little did I know that after all that hard work my day was about to become even more special…and then it happened… my first cutthroat on fly! What a privilege to have landed such a beautiful fish.

To some it would be a fish like any other…to me it would once again be a part of my journey…a teaching in life… mother nature allowing you to experience life in another dimension. We all had a very memorable holiday in Canada that continued from there on…what I was reminded of again through this experience was to drink that “not-drunkeveryday” bottle of red wine because you are w o r t h i t . M a k e t h i n g s h a p p e n f o r yourself...keep going…keep doing what feeds your soul. I celebrated my 43rd birthday on that day, in my 6th year of flyfishing. My journey continues! #iamalive

My evening celebrations after a cutthroat moment