Heading into our last session of the 2023 Quebec Provincials (In Memory of Mark Anderson), Morgan McLean and I were tied for first with only a few fish points separating us . Our final session was on Lac Taunton at Kenauk Nature in Montebello, QC. The session began and my boat partner and I agreed on a plan to start in a shallow choke point which connects the two major parts of the lake and focus on the weeds and the opposing drop offs. I began with a Di3, Halloween Damsel on the point, vampire in the middle and candy floss booby on the top dropper (predictable I know). Julio Rodriquez was on ..read more

I feel like I’m finally able to lean on my knowledge as a certified Environmental Technician. But don’t ask for much more than this. I remember this course like it was yesterday and how interested I was because it directly related to something I was curious about. I’ve been out fishing pretty hard the past couple weeks with moderate success both personally and while guiding. Early Spring can be difficult fishing which can relate to turnover and what comes with that process. What is Turnover? Through the winter months and immediately after ice off, the upper section of the lake, the epilimnion ..read more

Over time, the quantity of flies in my fly box has grown but the number of patterns have shrunk. What you begin to realize is that you develop confidence in a handful of patterns and everything else gets neglected. I would vouch to say that any of the top international competitors would be more than happy to have only 5 of their go to nymphs in their fly box. However, although there might only be 5 true patterns, when you start multiplying that by hook sizes, bead colours and bead weight, you’ve almost got 1 fly box for a single pattern. What this boils down to is having absolute confidence i ..read more

Still sometimes I catch myself chasing fly patterns rather than the two important steps which come before it. Ultimately, whether you have the right flies and right depth but you’re fishing in an area vacant of fish, I hope the beer is cold. Determining where the fish are is the first thing you must do in order to start putting fish in the bottom of the net. How do you find the fish in a lake you’ve never fished before? Let’s say you have no prior knowledge of this lake, no local intel, no depth chart and no fish finder. Knowing the species would at least be a good start and if it’s stocked o ..read more

Having had the opportunities to fish competitively at the highest level for the past 14 years with a hyper focus on Stillwater, I’ve been able to cast the majority of the industry leading lake rods. For the longest time, I was under the impression that it was necessary to spend the money on that thousand dollar rod to get the highest performing piece of equipment. And to be fair, for many years, it was. Also having the added benefit of working in the fly fishing industry for the past 4 years, it’s become obvious that mid range rods have gotten so good. I’m not saying there’s not a place for t ..read more

This blog post is a basic introduction to Loch Style Fishing along with the suggested equipment for the job. It seems of late, local streams have become growingly crowded with little unspoiled water and unbothered trout to be found. Lucky for us here in Quebec and most of Canada, our terrain is littered with vacant lakes which are often filled with great fishing opportunities. I’ve preferred Stillwater fishing over river fishing since a very young age. I love breaking down a new lake, putting together the pieces of the puzzle to find the most effective technique and that ultimate feeling when ..read more

Here is a look at 5 flies that I never get in a boat without. I hope that they give you as much success on the water as they’ve given me over the years! Halloween Damsel This fly is best fished on the point amongst a 3 fly team on sinking lines. Tie the tail longer than you’re normally comfortable with to get the best action. Vary the retrieve to find what action entices the most. In my experience, a medium pace rolly polly retrieve with intermittent stops is the most productive. This fly is effective year round and will rarely come off my line if I’m pulling. Hook: Hanak 450 BL #12 Threa ..read more

On September 1st, I was in the boat rigging up with my boat partner John Gummer from New Zealand, unknowingly sitting in individual 2nd place going into the final session of the 2016 Commonwealth Fly Fishing Championships. As I strung up my Di7 sweep with the team of flies my teammates had done very well with on Lac Barriere, I giggled to myself as John was threading his guides with a floating line. Knowing that the fish were down between 13ft-18ft based off of my teams previous success on this lake, my game plan was a 31 count, yes… 31 not 30. Once hitting that countdown, crawling back a cora ..read more

I remember sitting at the closing awards ceremony in Devon, England 2 years ago at the CWFFC when Jim announced that the next championship was coming to Canada. After finishing 12th out 77 anglers in 2014 it left me hungry, knowing I would have a chance at redemption on home waters. In the spring of 2015 the selection between the Eastern and Western venues had concluded and the championship was coming to Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. This was exciting news as I have had extensive experience on these waters and held a lot of confidence on these venues. The championship was to be held on the now infa ..read more

 My writing will never be nearly as eloquent as Mark’s, but here it goes. Fly fishing is a passion that if savoured, never let go of. I still ponder the thought of what makes spending thousands of dollars to go catch fish sometimes no longer than 20cm, worth it. I believe that its a number of things. It likely begins with that moment of uncounted emotions when your line tightens. The feeling of excitement, rushing nerves and uncertainty of what the waters will offer you in that instance. However, the drogue sets as you begin to travel to parts of the earth that you never would h ..read more