The Fish and Lake Improvement Program for the Parkland Region

Tackle and Equipment

What works Best

"Run what you brung."

We're not here to tell you how to fish if you're comfortable with what you already use. Just be certain it's going to meet the requirements for handling Parkland hawgs!

We're attempting to instruct neophytes or first time visitors to the Parkland fishery to what other seasoned vets have found to be true. If our readers are truly seasoned anglers then they already know the learning curve is steep and doesn't have an end.

Some of these questions may be answered in the FAQ portion of the site, well worth reading.

-- or if you want to excel in your Parkland fly fishing venture, you may want to read over and observe the tips coming on these pages and the How-To sections. Keep returning because many of them will be worth making into an electronic scrapbook as we post them.

Reels for Stillwater Fly Fishing - Bob Morenski

Boats

Many feel most comfortable when fishing from boats over other floatation devices. Any boat will do, so there's no need to run out and trade in your 12 foot punt for the latest in bass-boat or Deep-V offerings. In fact, some of the best anglers in the west prefer punts or flat-bottomed duck boats (john boats). These they anchor front and rear in productive areas and fish quite successfully. Some carpet theirs to reduce noise and others install swivel seats. The late Jack Shaw brought this method to a science and even installed a wheel to facilitate launching and loading.

The method is very well suited to fishing chironomids, either free-lining or under a strike indicator, but it can also be used to present about any other type of fishing since boat control is absolute.

Boats can move about freely and with speed as well, so different part of the lake can be accessed quickly, even when  having to resort to electric motors or oars.

Many visitors to the area from other provinces and states prefer to fish from boats. If visitors feel so inclined then contact a local guide if boating is your choice and you don't want to tow or stow your own. All of our guides have them and all of our lakes have launching sites.

Pontoon Boats

There are many stable pontoon watercraft available in today's stillwater market. Almost all of these use some sort of inflation and can be deflated for easy storage. Similarly, the chassis that holds the pontoons can be broken down and stowed inside any compact vehicle. Most have some method of attaching an electric trolling motor, which provides mobility on par with boats. They can also withstand pounding in waves that would make any conveyance uncomfortable. Unlike boats the operator has complete ability to control unanchored drift with fins on his or her feet while fishing a shore or weed line. That ability has led many to anchoring their boats in their back yards and taking up pontoon boat angling.

Pontoon boats have the joy of large aprons, to facilitate stripped line, fish, reel changes and all other on-water necessities required.

Float Tubes

Many consider the float tube as an entry-level device, to be hung on the wall when that first pontoon boat becomes affordable. Float tubes are ran by foot power as the operator fins to and fro so they are not considered the ultimate in mobility. They are however a force to consider. They can be stowed and carried even on commercial aircraft. They are the most controllable of all devices and once one learns the nuances of a lake they re by far the most stealthy of all means of transport. Many seasoned veterans opt to use them when seeking the largest fish because they are the hardest to approach. Big fish are not intelligent, they are spooky and gained their size by leaving the area at the slightest unfamiliar shadow, sound or vibration. The low profile and absolute "boat" control of the float tube meets every stealth requirement when stalking the huge Parkland trout.

Wading and Waders

One of the more common requests made over the years is whether our lakes have areas where wading is possible. These come mainly from fishers who are used to fishing streams and have that equipment or want to make their start in lake fishing as inexpensive as possible. There are few areas in several Parkland Lakes where one can wade in most of our lakes. This is especially so because weed growth blocks off the outer fringes of the shore lines. Most of our lakes have rather abrupt shores that drop off into five feet of water at the outside of the reeds. They are not conducive to wading but there are areas on some waters, like Tokaryk, where a person is able to do so and it is very effective. Most wading aficionados soon see the successes of the float tubers and realize that to join them all they need are fins and a belly boat. They already own the remainder and the upgrade is relatively inexpensive.

Most folks who fish the Parkland use breathable waders. During colder periods they wear synthetic moisture-passing fleece, like Polar Fleece, and remain reasonably comfortable. However, at ice out and again just prior to freeze-up, when the fishing is particularly hot, we older folks opt for good old 5-mil neoprene waders and still add the "techie" fleece under them.  Perspiration is seldom a problem at that time of the year ...

Tackle

Rods

After long experience we came to realize that fish could give a fig about what wand someone used in their demise or interruption from their normal watery element. Whether it's classic bamboo, fiberglass, a composite or IM-Whatever it makes little difference from their point of view.

The rest is in the fisherperson's head and in some valid cases, their physical abilities.

Head cases involve those who wish to impress others with their "many-hundred-dollar" acquisitions. We won't go there.

While every rod will likely hook and land a fish there are benefits to gaining a lighter weight model that will allow one to cast all day long without having to resort to trolling and/or anti-inflammatory potions aprés-fish. There is no need to break the bank to get a version that's price wasn't swelled by glossy advertising costs.

Lake fishers are usually sitting in a boat (if they want to catch larger fish) or partially immersed in the drink in some sort of floatable. For that reason longer rods are the norm and 10 feet the standard. One can cast further with the same effort and if the wand is made from a lighter, medium-action composite that will kick line then that is the combination to seek on the fly shop rod rack.

For the Parkland we use 6 or 7 weight rods with a medium action, at least none feet long but longer if possible. Chironomid dunkers might consider a rod with a faster action at the tip as well. During warmer weather some of us go to much heavier AFTMA weights provided we can keep the actual weight of the rod in check.

 We have found that 8-10 weights, our usual pike rods, will bring in a fish in August much more quickly when lactic acid buildup becomes a problem. Perhaps that is not very sporting from the angler's point of view but the 28-inch-plus finned hawg on the other end might have a different opinion. Keep in mind that tippet strength and hook quality becomes the deciding factor after surpassing the ten weight rating.

 Although pricey, the multi-tipped, and multi-piece rods gave one the chance to make that one piece of carry-on luggage a sure-arrival when flying into the Parkland. They also fit into normal bags, rather than running about looking for the wrapping machines at your local airport. Best of all there is no longer any need to enrich the "House-of" to lay your hands on one or two. Folks like March Brown and a host of others are now making them available to the general public at much low costs.

If you can only bring or afford one rod then make it a 6-7 weight and enjoy it.

Reels

Don't bring your "it-weighs-nothing" stream-borne "line-storage" devices to the Manitoba Parkland and expect to be happy with the experience on your way home.

Yes you will need to store a lot of line and a LOT of backing but you'll need a large capacity reel to hold it all. More than anything a quality drag system is of utmost importance. You'll want a large abor reel to hold it all and yet give you the ability to take up slack swiftly prior to the next screeching run.

A prime example is Tokaryk Lake. Hook one of those hybrids on the chara flats and watch your reel empty as the finned critter heads for deeper water - often hundreds of feet away. Then, to relieve the pressure (provided one of the 6 jumps didn't shake the hook) and just to remind the sucker on the other end who's the boss a, hopefully less violent, run will come back toward the angler. Now you have to reel up the slack. Note the phrase reel up? You won't be stripping this in and the large diameter of the flyline is now missing to assist your winding efforts. Hence the large-arbored reel.

Fortunately almost all manufactures are making them now, due to the emergent popularity of stillwater fly fishing and its promise of un-crowded waters. They have come way down in price and even the less expensive models often have smooth drags. Nonetheless, test them in the store. The fastest way to avoid a trophy photo is to have even a slight a glitch in the drag mechanism

You will find a good helpful article on reels, put out by Bob Morenski, elsewhere on this site.

Lines

Suppose you have or could afford only one floating line. Will it work in the Parkland? Yes. Floating lines can work almost anywhere when teamed with strike indicators and/or weighted flies, but are most effective for chironomid fishing and beating up the shallows. But in all sensible thought an angler might want to add a second uniform sinking full-sinking, weight forward line that descends about 3 inches per second. That will become the workhorse when the water is deeper than 7 feet. Most of us also have line(s) that are called intermediates, that sink slowly to avoid surface disturbance, about 1-2 inches per second. To that we add at least one that will drop at 5-7 inches for mud-sucking in the depths during warmest weather.

Whatever the arrangement, try to keep a straight line to the fish so you'll feel the take. That means avoiding he old bellied lines where the middle of the line sank much faster than the tip.

Poly Leaders

These are useful when attaining that straight line presentation. Most sink at the same rate as the chosen line by matching them from the poly-line selections provided from most manufactures. Using these it is only necessary to add a shorter tippet.

Tippet Material

Unless the water is crystalline as in some Duck Mountain lakes, you'll opt for 2-x to 0x and probably freshly manufactured fluorocarbon. Even then a monster Patterson Brown or a Tokaryk hybrid rainbow will pluck you like a goose on the initial take.

Leave the cobweb material at home.