Fly fishing the red deer river out of sundre area.

[brookpowell]

I'm somewhat new to fly fishing and very new to fly fishing in Alberta. I'm getting out as much as I can this year as a goal and live in the sundre area. I know the fundamentals but need help with fly choice for early season May 1. I'm not sure what all the different flys are called or what to ask for at a fly shop. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Chief16]

http://bowrivercanada.com/hatch-charts/

Here's a hatch chart of the RDR to get you started. It doesn't contain early May but there should be black winter stones and bwos out I believe.
As far as not knowing what to ask for in a fly shop, the best advice I can give is just go there and tell them you're new and want to learn new flies, ideas etc. They will know what is working best as they are always on the water and talking to others who have been. Don't be shy, we all started at the bottom at one point.