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The Elk River originates from the melting ice off of the
glaciers in Elk Lakes Provincial Park. As it makes its way down the mountains
it flows into the Elk Lakes and down the Elk Valley, where it is joined by
many tributaries that produce some amazing trout as well. With over 90 miles
of fishable water the Elk River is quite possibly the best dry fly fishing
river in North America. Largely undiscovered and still only a three hour
drive from Calgary and a two hour drive from Kalispell, the Elk River flows
through one of the most picturesque valleys in British Columbia. Whether you’re a novice or expert, a trip to
Fernie is something you'll never forget. Casting to rising native
Westslope cutthroat from our fully-appointed McKenzie style drift boats is
one of the best ways to see the Elk but we also can arrange walk & wade
trips to some of the smaller streams which are all located just a short
distance from Fernie. The small town of Fernie is surrounded by mountains on all sides
and is often thought of as an alpine village which is famous for the skiing
and the legendary powder. Fernie offers plenty in the way of restaurants,
hotels and shops. The St.Mary River is located only an hour’s drive from Fernie and this beautiful stream is a
perfect combination of spectacular scenery and great fishing. We offer the St.Mary as
part of our regular package and have access to six different floats on the
river, which is more than any other outfitter around. The fishing on the St.Mary
is generally best in August and September with dry flies working for most of
the day. Westslope Cutthroat are native to the river along with Bull Trout
but over the past few years more and more rainbows have been finding their
way into the system. Since access is limited on the river, only a few
outfitters have access to the water and very few private boats will be found
floating. The solitude of this river combined with excellent dry fly fishing
makes it a favorite for many of our returning clients and friends. The
Kootenay River was once thought of as nothing more than a mystery. Since all
the major streams in the Kootenay Valley empty into the Kootenay River the
summer is not the time to fish here. This river is fished best in April and May
before runoff when we experience one of the best Mothers Day Caddis hatches
found anywhere. It is common to float down this stream and see the banks “popping” with rising cutthroat. Even with
all of the exciting dry fly action the Kootenay offers it is the Bull Trout
which most of our clients are really after. Since the water level is low and
clear many of these huge trout are caught on small streamers and nymphs. Once
you spend a couple days on the Kootenay River you will surely be hooked into
returning every spring to this unique fishery. Homewaters
Guide Service was born of one anglers dream to share the beauty and
tranquility of his local streams with flyfishermen from around the
world. Born and raised in the East
Kootenay’s, Jeff Mironuck spent his youth
stalking the freestone streams of the East Kootenay and Southern Alberta
with a flyrod in hand, and from this has put together an extensive list of
guidable waters in the area. The guiding area features
an array of angling opportunities and fly anglers can find themselves fishing
delicately presented dry flies with 2
wt. rods on small intimate streams or
swinging large bulky streamers for huge browns and bull trout from MacKenzie
Style drift boats on the regions mid-sized rivers. Our extensive portfolio of waters will
please the palate of any discerning flyfisherman. The
hatches here are diverse and prolific.
As our season begins and the water remains slightly cloudy,
Salmonflies begin to pop off in large numbers along the rocky banks of the
river. As they return or fall to the
water, the native cutthroats begin hammering these bulky insects with
reckless abandon. Plump Green Drakes
also begin their ascent to the surface early in the season and pools will
boil and “pop” as rising trout aggressively
feed on these large mayflies. More intense
than the Salmonfly, the golden stones begin making their appearance usually 2
weeks after the Salmonfly emergence.
These awkward flyers leave their nymphal forms along the dry rocks of
the riverbank and literally paint the rocks with their dry mottled
shucks. The early season is not to be
missed if large flies and crushing takes is your preference. As we
move further into summer, ever present caddis swarm in thickets close to the
bank and smaller stones (yellow/lime sallies) begin their mid-day
flights. This is also the time for the
Elk’s famous P.M.D. hatch. You can pretty much set your watch to these
hatches and the spinner falls are a spectacle in the evening light. More delicate approaches are the rule here
and sunken spinner presentations or soft-hackling will prolong the
productivity of this hatch Terrestrials
become important as the summer sun warms the river and the winds blow hoppers
from grassy, overhanging banks. This
presentation requires strong heart over skill as often fish explode on hopper
imitations which are skittering atop the surface. Terrestrials remain solid into the early
autumn and one may find themselves hooking
fish on a no. 8 foam hopper at the start of the day and then casting a
no. 20 Baetis emerger to an aquarium of rising fish as the day
progresses. Autumn also sees a number
of Flavs (lesser green drakes) and October Caddis emerging from the gin-clear
waters. We are
truly blessed some with excellent hatches and as guides we are able to really
jump around the boxes to suit the different hatches that can occur within one
day. It is not uncommon to fish a
hatch in which one fish will be selectively rising to a carpet of Baetis
while a foot away another sips exclusively on Flavs. Due to the varying elevations of our
streams, you can fish the same hatch that spent itself two weeks earlier in a
lower drainage on a high mountain stream and in essence follow the hatch. As a flyfishing outfitter,
Homewaters maintains a hard core work ethic and our level of professionalism
remains unsurpassed . Our guides will
go the distance to ensure the best angling opportunities are provided to the
clients throughout the day. This is
immediately reflected in the quality of the gear which we use and the
dedication to the vise which provides our clients with an extensive and
contemporary fly selection. Novice or
accomplished fly angler we have the tools to provide the best guiding
experience on your trip to the beautiful Rocky Mountains of British Columbia
and Southern Alberta. Home
Waters Guide Service was born of one anglers dream to share the beauty and
tranquility of his local streams with fly fishermen from around the
world. Born and raised in the East
Kootenay’s, Jeff Mironuck spent his youth
stalking the freestone streams of the East Kootenay and Southern Alberta
with a flyrod in hand, and from this has put together an extensive list of
guidable waters in the area. The
guiding area features an array of angling opportunities and fly anglers can
find themselves fishing delicately presented dry flies with 2 wt. rods on small intimate streams
or swinging large bulky streamers for huge browns and bull trout from MacKenzie
Style drift boats on the regions mid-sized rivers. Our extensive portfolio of waters will
please the palate of any discerning angler.The Elk River originates from the melting ice off of
the glaciers in Elk Lakes Provincial Park. As it makes its way down the
mountains it flows into the Elk Lakes and down the Elk Valley, where it is
joined by many tributaries that produce some amazing trout as well. With over
90 miles of fishable water the Elk River is quite possibly the best dry fly
fishing river in North America. Largely undiscovered and still only a three
hour drive from Calgary and a two hour drive from Kalispell, the Elk River flows through one of the most
picturesque valleys in British Columbia. Weather you’re a novice or expert, a trip
to Fernie is something you'll never forget. Casting to rising native
Westslope cutthroat from our fully-appointed McKenzie style drift boats is
one of the best ways to see the Elk but we also can arrange walk & wade
trips to some of the smaller streams which are all located just a short
distance from Fernie. The small town of Fernie is surrounded by mountains on all sides
and is often thought of as an alpine village which is famous for the skiing
and the legendary powder. Fernie offers plenty in the way of restaurants,
hotels and shops. The St.Mary River is located only an hours drive from Fernie and
this beautiful stream is a perfect combination of spectacular scenery and
great fishing. We offer the St.Mary as part of our regular package and have
access to six different floats on the river which is more than any other
outfitter around. The fishing on the St.Mary is generally best in August and
September with dry flies working for most of the day. Westslope Cutthroat are
native to the river along with Bull Trout but over the past few years more
and more rainbows have been finding their way into the system. Since access
is limited on the river, only a few outfitters have access to the water and
very few private boats will be found floating. The solitude of this river
combinded with excellent dry fly fishing makes it a favourite for many of our
returning clients and friends. The
Kootenay River was once thought of as nothing more than a mystery. Since all
the major streams in the Kootenay Valley empty into the Kootenay River the
summer is not the time to fish here. This river is fished best in April and
May before runoff when we experience one of the best Mothers Day Caddis
hatches found anywhere. It is common to float down this stream and see the
banks “popping” with rising cutthroat. Even with
all of the exciting dry fly action the Kootenay offers it is the Bull Trout
which most of our clients are really after. Since the water level is low and
clear many of these huge trout are caught on small streamers and nymphs. Once
you spend a couple days on the Kootenay River you will surely be hooked into
returning every spring to this unique fishery. Homewaters
Guide Service was born of one anglers dream to share the beauty and tranquility
of his local streams with flyfishermen from around the world. Born and raised in the East Kootenay’s, Jeff Mironuck spent his youth stalking the
freestone streams of the East Kootenay and Southern Alberta with a flyrod in
hand, and from this has put together an extensive list of guidable waters in
the area. The guiding area features
an array of angling opportunities and fly anglers can find themselves fishing delicately
presented dry flies with 2 wt. rods on
small intimate streams or swinging
large bulky streamers for huge browns and bull trout from MacKenzie Style
drift boats on the regions mid-sized rivers.
Our extensive portfolio of waters will please the palate of any
discerning flyfisherman. The
hatches here are diverse and prolific.
As our season begins and the water remains slightly cloudy,
Salmonflies begin to pop off in large numbers along the rocky banks of the
river. As they return or fall to the
water, the native cutthroats begin hammering these bulky insects with reckless
abandon. Plump Green Drakes also begin
their ascent to the surface early in the season and pools will boil and “pop” as rising trout aggressively feed on these large
mayflies. More intense than the
Salmonfly, the golden stones begin making their appearance usually 2 weeks
after the Salmonfly emergence. These
awkward flyers leave their nymphal forms along the dry rocks of the riverbank
and literally paint the rocks with their dry mottled shucks. The early season is not to be missed if
large flies and crushing takes is your preference. As we
move further into summer, ever present caddis swarm in thickets close to the
bank and smaller stones (yellow/lime sallies) begin their mid-day
flights. This is also the time for the
Elk’s famous P.M.D. hatch. You can pretty much set your watch to these
hatches and the spinner falls are a spectacle in the evening light. More delicate approaches are the rule here
and sunken spinner presentations or soft-hackling will prolong the
productivity of this hatch Terrestrials
become important as the summer sun warms the river and the winds blow hoppers
from grassy, overhanging banks. This
presentation requires strong heart over skill as often fish explode on hopper
imitations which are skittering atop the surface. Terrestrials remain solid into the early
autumn and one may find themselves hooking
fish on a no. 8 foam hopper at the start of the day and then casting a
no. 20 Baetis emerger to an aquarium of rising fish as the day
progresses. Autumn also sees a number
of Flavs (lesser green drakes) and October Caddis emerging from the gin-clear
waters. We are
truly blessed some with excellent hatches and as guides we are able to really
jump around the boxes to suit the different hatches that can occur within one
day. It is not uncommon to fish a
hatch in which one fish will be selectively rising to a carpet of Baetis
while a foot away another sips exclusively on Flavs. Due to the varying elevations of our
streams, you can fish the same hatch that spent itself two weeks earlier in a
lower drainage on a high mountain stream and in essence follow the hatch. As a flyfishing outfitter,
Homewaters maintains a hard core work ethic and our level of professionalism
remains unsurpassed . Our guides will
go the distance to ensure the best angling opportunities are provided to the
clients throughout the day. This is
immediately reflected in the quality of the gear which we use and the
dedication to the vise which provides our clients with an extensive and
contemporary fly selection. Novice or
accomplished fly angler we have the tools to provide the best guiding
experience on your trip to the beautiful Rocky Mountains of British Columbia
and Southern Alberta. Elk River fly-fishing resources -
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