I enjoy looking at old historical photographs, especially ones of the Crowsnest Pass. I am also interested in repeat photography, where photographs of the same subject are taken from the same location, at different times. Sometimes these photos can be taken decades apart. This type of “then and now” photography is often used by environmental scientists and researchers to track and study landscape change over time.
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I was going through some of my photos last week when I came across several that I took a few years ago. A couple of these were taken while snowshoeing with friends on the outskirts of Bellevue, on a snow-covered ridge overlooking Turtle Mountain and the Frank Slide.
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I was able to make it out fishing a few times this fall. I chased bull trout a couple of times and also fished for cutthroats in the backcountry, and for rainbows on the Crow.
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The fishing season on our local trout streams officially opened today. While a couple of rivers around here, including the Crowsnest, are open year-round, most close at the end of October. It’s been 8-1/2 months since anyone has fished these waters.
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This is my first blog post since last July. I apologize for taking this long to post something here.
The past year has been difficult for me and my family. For those of you who do not already know, my wife Carol passed away on January 29th. We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary on December 29th, only a month earlier. Carol’s health had been declining for some time, as she bravely battled an illness for which there is no cure. I have been hesitant on posting something about Carol’s passing, but have decided to do this. I hope that sharing a little bit of Carol’s amazing life will help keep her memory alive.
Continue readingSpring officially arrived about two weeks ago. Although the weather has been a bit unsettled lately, it looks like winter is gradually coming to an end in the Crowsnest Pass. The ice is receding on some of the local lakes and rivers. Anglers are making their way out onto open water once again.
It’s been a cold winter in the Crowsnest Pass. Between mid-December and mid-January, the temperatures were brutal. We also received a fair amount of snow. I have spent a lot of time digging out this winter. It seemed like as soon as I cleared the driveway, sidewalk, front steps, and patio of snow, it would snow another foot.
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Less than two weeks ago, we were enjoying summer-like weather in Crowsnest Pass. It was sunny and warm, with daytime temperatures registering in the mid-20 degree Celsius (75°F) range. After a long winter, people were glad to be able to be outside wearing t-shirts and shorts. A lot of people were out biking, hiking, and walking their dogs. The nice weather also drew numerous anglers onto some of our local trout waters. Life was good.
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Bouldering has become an extremely popular activity in the Frank Slide. On any given day, you will see multiple groups of people hiking into the vast expanse of the slide in search of limestone boulders to test their climbing skills. On their backs, they carry padded foam mats – crash pads, to be placed at the base of the boulder. It’s the only form of protection from injury they have, should they fall. This type of free climbing is made without the use of ropes or harnesses.
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One of the great things about fly-fishing for trout is that these fish often live in some of the most picturesque places you will ever visit. The headwaters of some of the trout streams in southwest Alberta are a good example of this.
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