Cow Lake Derby

[WayneChristie]

anyone got any info and tips? besides dont eat the mutants that is :bad_boys_20:

[Dust1n]

cow is slow....period

[WayneChristie]

got to like your chances in a derby where last years winner weighed less than a smoky!! :sHa_sarcasticlol:

[Dust1n]

ya its just a slow year though

[sheepguide]

Should get out from the rig the day before the derby so hope to make it there.
Who all is going out there?
SG

[Dust1n]

im going tommrow hopefully either that or gull lake

[WayneChristie]

flygirrl invited the wife and myself up for the derby, so hopefully the weather will cooperate. I got a few nice pike in there the one time I fished it this summer, hopefully they will have a category for them too this year.

[sheepguide]

im going tommrow hopefully either that or gull lake

Ment the derby sorry.
SG

[Rockymtnx]

Any details on the derby?

[nicemustang]

Derby? When?

[WayneChristie]

I guess its usually the family day weekend

[diamonddave]

ya its just a slow year though

How many times have you been out here??? Have you gone out with anyone that knows the lake?? Seriously.....

Darcy, Wayne, I will be there with all the rugrats and plan on bringing home all the prizes again. :sHa_shakeshout: They have always had good support and donations for prizes in the past. Hope the weather turns out good.

[WayneChristie]

How many times have you been out here??? Have you gone out with anyone that knows the lake?? Seriously.....

Darcy, Wayne, I will be there with all the rugrats and plan on bringing home all the prizes again. :sHa_shakeshout: They have always had good support and donations for prizes in the past. Hope the weather turns out good.

Im bringing my perch killer lures, so I will give you a run for the money :) do they have a recent website or something?

[flygirrl]

Been to the derby many times in the past 5 years. Fish Cow Lake offten in summer and a fair bit in winter ( not this year so far) Some nice pike there and I doubt very much they will allow the pike to weigh in. If your looking for the big perch Ive only seen bigger perch there once and it wasnt in the derby. The derby is just a fun day I think the cost is like 10.00. Cow lake store hosts the derby. They have the store, restaurant and cabins there although I would imagine the cabins are booked as this is a popular derby.

[diamonddave]

We had better have an AO gathering out there, I would rather see some of us win this!!

[Dust1n]

ya i have we dryed all over with the flasher and cam (most places) and iv been out there a few times and F&W even said no one caugth any...founatantly see watched me bring in a 14lb pike at the boat launch :) it used to be an awsome lake EVERYwhere you went to now its locaation location

[sheepguide]

Sure wish they would have left it a trout fishery! But cant keep everyone happy. Hope to see everyone at the derby. Now just have to make sure I can get away from this rig by then.
SG

[Dust1n]

sheep i wanted it a trout fishery too....

[sheepguide]

sheep i wanted it a trout fishery too....

Used to pull alot of great rainbows out of that lake.

[Dust1n]

ya nice broods but it would have made it better if theyre reasents and that size

[sheepguide]

ya nice broods but it would have made it better if theyre reasents and that size

No not broods! Cow was a a rainbow lake before it died off. Then the Perch were introduced along with a few brood stock. Then they put in the pike.

Was an awesome trout fishery in its day! We caught natural rainbows back then bigger than the broods of now.

SG

[diamonddave]

ya i have we dryed all over with the flasher and cam (most places) and iv been out there a few times and F&W even said no one caugth any...founatantly see watched me bring in a 14lb pike at the boat launch :) it used to be an awsome lake EVERYwhere you went to now its locaation location

Just like any lake, spend some time and find the fish, pretty simple. You should spend as much time figuring out how to post a pic, as you do telling everybody how to fish every lake in alberta. Might lend a little more credibility to you than just trying to get your post count up......

[Dust1n]

alright ill email some pics to ya alright then you can stfu and be happy like everyone else unlike some people like you that u always back talk and yes i fish a differnt lake mostly everyday cause i got a truck and can use it whats your email

[Gumbi]

Ya cows slow, Up to this year we limit out most the time. last year at the derby my buddy got 4th, he won a auger a tent and a rod holder.

[Dust1n]

whatever next year should be better when the perch spawn and they grow fast to....just that they keep getting fished out to easy

[chubbdarter]

alright ill email some pics to ya alright then you can stfu and be happy like everyone else unlike some people like you that u always back talk and yes i fish a differnt lake mostly everyday cause i got a truck and can use it whats your email

have you ever called one of those call centers in India?

[WayneChristie]

whatever next year should be better when the perch spawn and they grow fast to....just that they keep getting fished out to easy

The one time I fished Cow last summer there were thousands of little perch, you could see them flying into the air everytime a big pike crashed through the schools. Toss a spinnerbait in the middle of the commotion and catch pike like crazy. Worked for me. We saw some pretty decent sized perch in other spots as well.

[Dust1n]

in the summer it was incredibal just off the docks even...we got in a belly boat and fly fished for em using the 4wt pheasent tail nymph .we seen a bunch of sucekrs to

[pope]

No not broods! Cow was a a rainbow lake before it died off. Then the Perch were introduced along with a few brood stock. Then they put in the pike.

Was an awesome trout fishery in its day! We caught natural rainbows back then bigger than the broods of now.

SG

Natural rainbows?? I think this was a trout stocked lake for years before some goof tossed in some perch.

[smitty9]

Cow lake, like most prairie pothole lakes stocked with trout, was always a pike/perch fishery before trout was introduced.

Lakes that have rainbow trout in them either had pike/perch fisheries, or just minnows, or were devoid of fish before stocking efforts.

Therefore, with the exception of brood stock rainbows, Cow is "back" to its original state.

The only natural rainbows in this province occur in the Athabasca and Peace watersheds, flowing water. Only by beaverponds or flooding would they have gotten into stillwaters.

Just to clarify, I assume by "natural" you meant native. Of course, there are differences between native versus wild populations.

A native population is one that previously existed before the 18th century, before any white man came up with the idea of stocking fish.

All native populations are wild, but not all wild populations are native. Many brook trout fisheries are now wild (population replaces itself by natural recruitment), but were never native. The Maligne Lake/river system is an excellent example of wild fisheries exist for both brooks and rainbows where no native fisheries existed previously (except near the mouth of the Maligne/Athabasca).

Just wanted to clarify what you meant by natural vs native vs wild vs stocked.

Cheers,
Smitty

[sheepguide]

Natural rainbows?? I think this was a trout stocked lake for years before some goof tossed in some perch.

Sorry should have said stocked! And then winter killed and was then turned into what it is now.

[Dust1n]

ya last year F&W said the rainbows are fished out very fast

[sheepguide]

Here is a little history on Cow Lake.

Watershed Unit ES2
Clearwater Area Fisheries Management
Cow Lake’s Fishery:
Successes and Struggles
Cow Lake, south west of Rocky Mountain House historically contained suckers and minnows. In the 1950s, rainbow trout were periodically stocked to create a fishery. Survival and growth of these fish was dependant on overwintering success. On one occasion during the 1980s, trout survived three consecutive winters, growing to sizes exceeding 75 cm (30 in) and 7 kg (15 lb), bringing anglers from long distances.
Around 1990, yellow perch were illegally introduced in the lake by someone. After 1995, rainbow trout stocking was reduced to a small number of large retired brood fish each year, due to competition with perch for food. There were larger perch caught initially, but the average size has since declined because of too many perch.
The illegal introduction of perch into trout lakes is a very serious problem in Alberta. As with Cow Lake, it can result in the loss of a high profile trout fishery and the associated economic returns.
Options for removing perch from Cow Lake were explored and the use of a fish toxicant was considered, but was found to be cost prohibitive at over One Million Dollars. As well, the physical features of the lake and groundwater inflows would probably have made this option ineffective.
The days of Cow Lake as a destination trout fishery are gone. Fish & Wildlife’s next best option was to introduce northern pike to diversify the fishery by producing large pike and to bring the perch population to a healthier condition. In the spring of 2006, 300 pike were transferred into Cow Lake, and a regulation of one pike over 100 cm was put in effect to protect and help establish the new pike population and to create a trophy fishery.
The pike population is off to a good start! In 2008, Fisheries staff confirmed pike reproduction in Cow Lake. Many anglers have also reported catching larger pike,. However, recently, there have been some anglers that have been caught by Fish & Wildlife Officers with undersized pike in their possession. We need your help to protect this developing pike population. If you see any angler keeping illegal sized pike (under 100 cm in total length) at Cow Lake, or know details of illegal perch introductions, please call the Report a Poacher Hot Line at 1-800-642-3800, anytime.
For more information about the Cow Lake fishery or other fisheries in the RMH area, call Fisheries Management at (403) 845-8230.


SG

[smitty9]

SG:

Thanks for the copy and paste! Learned something new (thought it always had pike previously).

Here's hoping with proper management and enforcement, the hope for a trophy pike fishery turns into a reality.

Wouldn't be a bad thing for that to happen...flyfishing for 20+ lb pike in that shallow slough!

Smitty

[sheepguide]

SG:

Thanks for the copy and paste! Learned something new (thought it always had pike previously).

Here's hoping with proper management and enforcement, the hope for a trophy pike fishery turns into a reality.

Wouldn't be a bad thing for that to happen...flyfishing for 20+ lb pike in that shallow slough!

Smitty

No problem. Seemed that a few others didnt know what the lake was previous either so thought it would be a good read for them. been a great lake to me. Been fishing it for around 30 years now.
SG

[Tabrnack]

What a horrible mistake they made introducing pike..
K so there's a lack of walleye in alberta...walleye eat small perch...
Pike are in nearly every waterbody in alberta,it's why we call them slew sharks,
pike eat EVERYTHING..small trout/big trout,small/big perch,theyll eat each other if they get a chance

Cow lake was a real perch destination a few years back...
one of the only perch spots around, unless you want to drive to edmonton or farther north

Shouldnt be much longer till its all their is ,pike, filthy things.

i dont think they gave it much thought at all.
Why not walleye??

[smitty9]

Tabrnack:

Wow - you've really got a thing against pike. No matter.

They picked pike because I assume Cow Lake has far better spawning habitat for pike over walleye. Very few "just" walleye-perch lakes occur naturally (anyone know of one in Alberta). Usually, if walleye are present, so are pike. Anyways, to answer your question, stocking walleye would be a waste of money, because of the continual need to stock them. Whereas pike, stock once, twice, maybe three years, and then you're done; natural recruitment takes over. (Aside from winterkills, naturally).

Your comment about perch fishing displays your ignorance of fisheries management. With no pike, sure you can still have a perch fishery.

If you like catching 200, 4" perch per day.

You need a predator to thin them out. Perch fishing in terms of sizes and overall aquatic ecosystemic balance should improve because of the pike.

As the article says, the days of Cow Lake being a trophy trout lake are over. As long as the perch bucket brigade in the province wrecks trout stillwater fisheries and gets away with it, you'll never see a lake the size and potential of Cow ever be used as a trout fishery again. (with the limited exception of using it as a dump for old, tired brood stock).

Better off trying to lobby, convince, and work with the native group down at Chief Hector to restore that lake to its former glory.

Smitty

[Tabrnack]

first off ya got me wrong, i like pike ..i fish pike everywhere!
Sometimes i'd like to just get perch, so hate me:)

then ya go assuming more stuff on why they picked pike..!.. of course it was cheaper and faster..

3)Very few "just" walleye-perch lakes occur naturally (anyone know of one in Alberta)
everybody jump in now...anybody know of a naturally occurring stocked trout pond...what a rhetorical comment.. we're talkin about STOCKING fish my friend.

i'm not ignorant..i suggested a predator.. you ignored that.

And who's trying lobby what?did i try to convince you of something??

Tellin ya i like a Perch spot,..and wouldnt mind keep some walleye too!
TabrnacK

[Dust1n]

i like a perch spot too but aftr they put n pike they have slowed the perch down alot i wish it was kept a trophy trout lake.i like perch