Ram river vs North Ram River

[markfisher0]

Hey guys,

I am gonna head down to Nordegg for a few days coming up with the wife, and I would like to do some fly fishing. I am mainly a Southern Alberta fly fishing guy, so I am not quite sure about central Alberta. I have looked in the BRMB for some access points for both rivers but I have a few questions.

1) Which river is generally better for an intermediate fly fisherman? I am aiming for cutties and the occasional bullie.

2) Are the hatches and timing similar to Oldman/Crowsnest/ Livingston systems?

Thanks!

[SamSteele]

I have limited experience on these two rivers, but my feeling is Ram for larger fish in deeper pools and North Ram for smaller fish in large quantities. There are no Bulls above the falls on the Ram, so if you are accessing off the FTR you would need to go down into the canyon and fish below the falls. Not for the faint of heart, but it can be done with some planning.

I was just there last weekend and fishing was tough on the Ram. Water levels and clarity were good, but I only caught one and raised three in 5 hours fishing. Yellow stimulators have worked well for me there in the past. Elk hair caddis as well.

Good luck!

SS

[mikeym]

the N Ram is probably the better river for you to try. a lot better access as the N Fork rd runs along a good stretch of it off the FTR. also easier to walk and wade as it is runs thru a big valley for the most part. the Ram river is harder to access as you would have to start at the FTR and it runs thru a canyon mostly downstream so is harder to walk. Onion Lk rd does follow it for a bit upstream but then it veers away from the river.
the N Ram has a lot of nice pools and runs along this stretch with some nice size cutties in it. there are a lot of big cuts in this stretch, it is just that they see a lot of flies all year so are a little tougher to fool but very rewarding when you hook into one.
the hatch will for the most part be the same but just a week or two later. i have fished the Livingstone and N Ram and find the cutties in the N Ram are not as picky as in the Livingstone. when you do find the correct fly the fishing can be amazing.
and no bulls in either river above falls as mentioned, just cutties.
PM me and i can give you some starting points.
good luck
Mike

[markfisher0]

Thanks for your expertise Mike and Sam!

It sounds like for a first timer in the Western hills, I should stick with the N Ram . Personally, I would consider any cuttie 1-1.5 lbs to be a good size. Is the N Ram good for that?

Cheers guys!

Mark

[tcarlyle]

Rivers are high; just fished there on North Ram early this week. The river was about 10-12 inches higher than normal; wading was out in lots of areas. Fish nymphs if you are going. Should be dropping water levels by weekend. Good luck!



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[Pikebreath]

Originally Posted by markfisher0

Thanks for your expertise Mike and Sam!

It sounds like for a first timer in the Western hills, I should stick with the N Ram . Personally, I would consider any cuttie 1-1.5 lbs to be a good size. Is the N Ram good for that?

Cheers guys!

Mark

lbs???? Real stream trout fisherman measure their trout in inches,,,, sounds way bigger!!!!!

And if an angler only thinks in "cm's" and is clueless about inches,,,, they are way too young to have learned everything there is too know about fishing!!!!!

Old Guys Rule!!!!!!!