Fernie area guide recommendation, please.

[myt1]

Seeing how the Canadian border is currently closed to U.S. travelers, there is a very good chance my trip may never come to fruition.

But if it does I might be able to fish a few days in the Fernie area the last half of July.

Can anyone please make a recommendation for a guide. I might want one day of drift boat fishing and one day of walk and wading.

Thanks so much.

 

[100954]

You will need to contact one of the fly shops in Fernie. It’s a nice area to fish. If I recall they require the purchase of a special permit for each day you fish, in addition to a license.

 

[myt1]

Yes, I believe that is correct.

Several of the rivers have a daily quota on the number of people allowed to fish each day and you need day permit.

Which makes me think this might not be the wilderness experience I was hoping for, at least not to those rivers.

 

[thomasw]

Hi - I fish a lot in the Fernie-Kimberley region of the East Kootenays. If you plan to fish the St. Mary's or Skookumchuck you should definitely contact Kimberley Fly Fishing; the head guide there is Nathan and the rest of his guiding crew know the area very well. I know this would apply more to 2021, but I thought the information might be useful in any case.

 

[chauchey]

Yes, I believe that is correct.

Several of the rivers have a daily quota on the number of people allowed to fish each day and you need day permit.

Which makes me think this might not be the wilderness experience I was hoping for, at least not to those rivers.

Don't give up hope, it can very much yet be a wilderness experience if that's what you want. When you book your guide, just ask them to take you into less frequented waters. I've fished there a number of times now and it's very possible to be alone, or around very few people with great fishing.

 

[myt1]

Don't give up hope, it can very much yet be a wilderness experience if that's what you want. When you book your guide, just ask them to take you into less frequented waters. I've fished there a number of times now and it's very possible to be alone, or around very few people with great fishing.

Thanks for reviving an older thread.

I'm curious, what are your thoughts on when and how the Canadian border will be opened again for tourist/fly fishers?

My guess is if it opens at all this summer, still doubtful, you will have to have proof of having taken the vaccine; or at the very least show proof of a negative Covid test that is up to the minute current.

This thing just isn't going away.

 

[chauchey]

In Canada, there is no appetite among the public to open the borders to travelers on mass atm, so the feds will happily keep them shut. I personally feel that if you want across in either direction for recreation this summer it will require either a vaccine passport stamp, the current quarantine, or a negative test. People willing to quarantine 10 days are still allowed across. I think they'll start to loosen things this summer at some point, especially once the vaccines become more widely available. I feel it's pretty safe to plan travel for next summer. It looks bad right now but thats part and parcel with living through a crisis.