Discover Fly Fishing at WILSON’S

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It’s all free so sign up now !  Register for the fly fishing club!

NOTE: Registration for the Blog is seperate from the Fly Fishing Club. Please register for both. Apologies for any confusion or inconvience…

Tags:   Canada Fly Fishing · Club · fly fishing · Fly Fishing Couples · Guide · Ontario fly fishing outfitter and Guide Service · Trips · Women Fly FishingNo Comments.

Today is the 10th anniversary of the last time I saw my father Lawrence Wilson. Our family got together 10 years ago today to celebrate Dad’s 80th birthday and as I left to head back to Toronto we hugged and said, “I love you.” Dad passed away from a heart attack a few days later and it turns out those were the last words we said to one another. For that I am thankful.

Dad was born in McNamee, New Brunswick on March 12, 1920 and he earned his teaching degree at the University of New Brunswick. He married my mother Esma Grady, who was from Blackville just downriver from Doaktown, and moved to Fredericton where Dad taught english. After a few years there they moved to Northern Quebec and then to North Bay, Ontario where he became a high school vice principal and mom raised our family.

The Wilson’s
Laurence, Louise, Jim, Murray, Bill, Francis, Tom, Marie,
Willard, Sade

The above picture is of Dad (on the left) with my uncles, aunts and grandparents and we think the photo was taken in 1937 in the front yard of the Wilson homestead. Dad was born on the second floor of the homestead which still sits on the banks of the Miramichi River. Until recently the homestead housed Wilson’s Sporting Camps which is now run by my second cousin Keith and his wife Bonnie. There is now a new lodge that carries on the family tradition and it is one of – if not the longest – continuously operating fishing Lodges in North America. I am proud of this tradition and believe that a fly fisher’s resume is not complete until you have caught an Atlantic Salmon on the Miramichi River and the new Wilson’s Camp that Keith and Bonnie have built is a wonderful place to accomplish that feat.

Fly fishing has a sense of tradition that few if any other sports have and I am fortunate that my family is a part of that tradition. While I was born in northern Ontario I have always felt a strong pull to the Miramichi and believe that the valley is very much in my blood. I encourage every fly fisher to book a trip to Wilson’s Camps to see for themselves what brings me back there every year.

Happy Birthday Dad… love you.

www.wilsonscamps.nb.ca

Tags:   Atlantic · Beginner · Birthday · Blackville · Bonnie Wilson · classes · Doaktown · Esma Wilson · Fishing · Flies · Fly · Guide · Jim Wilson · Keith Wilson · Lawrence Wilson · Lessons · Lodge · materials · McNamee · Miramichi · Outfitter · reels · rods · Salmon · Schools · Tying · waders · Wilson's Sporting CampsNo Comments.

If you haven’t heard of tube flies yet you will. We are working with Eumer to put together an order of tube flies and tube fly materials which will be in the store in the coming weeks.

www.eumertube.com

Tags:   Beginner · Canada · Casting · Courses · eumer · Fishing · Flies · Fly · Guide · Lessons · materials · Ontario · Outfitter · reels · rods · Schools · Toronto · tube · Tying · waders · Wilson'sNo Comments.

One word, they’re coming… (Bullocks. Okay then, two words)

For more information see www.guideline.no

Tags:   Canada · Fishing · Fly · Guide · Guideline · Leaders · lines · materials · Ontario · outfitters · reels · rods · Schools · Toronto · Tying · waders · Wilson'sNo Comments.

We would like to thank Bob McKenzie for his very generous donation towards the “Esma Wilson Cast for Cancer” at the 2010 Toronto Sportsmen’s Show! Bob is donating a Sage Vantage fly fishing outfit which includes a Vantage 4 piece fly rod (5, 6 or 8 weight) with a matching 1600 Series Reel, Rio fly line, leader, backing and cordura travel tube with an approximate retail value of $465 AND Simms men’s or women’s Headwaters Goretex chest waders with a retail value of $350.

To win these items all you have to do is donate $10 to Esma Wilson’s Cast for Cancer at the Sportsmen’s Show March 17-21 at the Toronto Convention Centre. To double your chances at no additional cost all you have to do is hit a target on the fly casting lane. If you do we will give you a second ballot to enter the draw !

For more information please www.torontosportshow.ca

Tags:   1600 Series Reel · Bob McKenzie · Canada · Cast for Cancer · esma wilson's · Goretex · Headwaters · Leader · Line · Ontario · reel · Rio · Rod · Sage · Simms · Sportsmen's Show · Toronto · vantage · wadersNo Comments.

Please plan on attending the 2010 Toronto Sportsmen’s Show March 17-21. This year the show is relocating to the Toronto Convention Centre on Front Street beside Union Station and we are delighted that there will be a 150′ long fly casting lane to test rod outfits.

In addition, there will be a fundraising event for cancer research on the fly casting lane called “Esma Wilson’s Cast for Cancer” that will give participants an opportunity to win prizes from attendance at local Fly Fishing Schools to a 3 day trip for 2 at the Restigouche River Lodge worth $5,000 !

For more information please see www.torontosportshow.ca

Tags:   Canada · Cast for Cancer · esma wilson's · Fishing · Fly · Guide · Lessons · materials · Ontario · Outfitter · Princess Margaret Hospital Foundation · reels · restigouche river lodge · rods · Schools · Southern · Sportsmen's Show · Toronto · Tying · waders · Wilson'sNo Comments.

We often have fly anglers come into our store looking for information on where to fly fish in and around the Greater Toronto Area and we are more than happy to steer them in the right direction – but we always leave it to the each person to figure out exactly where to fly fish. Perhaps like your parents did back in school, we won’t do your homework for you but we will answer questions to help.

We believe that telling someone where to find the ‘best fly fishing’ is like telling someone where they will see the most 4 leaf clovers – both are contingent upon an incredible number of factors including weather, timing, patience and luck. And when it comes to fly fishing, let’s just throw in the other variable known as skill. That said, steering people to a watershed does not guarantee success but we do agree that harm can be caused by sharing specific details on areas with good fly fishing. Accordingly, we will steer you in the right direction but always leave it to you to do your own homework – and you will ultimately have to rely on your own skill and luck… (hey, fish don’t jump on your line and the hatches don’t always cooperate!). Many of our customers share information on ’secret spots’ with us and we keep their confidence because we appreciate that they have taken the time to do their homework.

To that end, yesterday morning I took advantage of the great weather and walked Bronte Creek around Loweville because I read the following on the Conservation Halton website:

“From Bronte Harbour upstream to Lowville, the lower reaches of Bronte Creek provide fishing opportunities for resident fish species such as smallmouth bass and migratory species such as rainbow trout, lake-run brown trout, chinook salmon and white sucker. Special regulations, including permanent sanctuaries, seasonal sanctuaries and extended fall seasons apply to various sections of the lower reaches of Bronte Creek.

Between Lowville and Progreston, Bronte Creek and its tributaries support a resident brook and brown trout fishery. Brook trout are native to the watershed while brown trout were introduced in the 1950’s.

Upstream of Progreston, Bronte Creek and its tributaries are relatively pristine and support resident brook trout. Brown trout were stocked in Bronte Creek upstream of Progreston in the 1950’s and remnant populations of this species may still occur.

Annual stocking of rainbow trout (average 50,000 fry and fingerlings) and chinook salmon (average 35,000 fry and fingerlings) is carried out by the Ministry of Natural Resources downstream of Lowville. Brown trout (average 13,000 fry and fingerlings) are usually stocked off Bronte Harbour.”

What I was doing yesterday morning was what most fly fishers do, it’s called ‘homework’. If you want to know where the good places are to fly fish in Southern Ontario, all you have to do is read and do some of your own…

NOTE: All anglers must follow the MNR fishing regulations which for Bronte Creek are as follows:
- Year round open season for Rainbow and Brown Trout from Hwy 2 to Lake Ontario.
- Extended fall season for Rainbow and Brown trout between Hwy 5 and Rebecca St. (extended from the last Saturday in April to December 31)
- Fish Sanctuary (no fishing) January 1 to Friday before the last Saturday in April and September 30 to December 31 in City of Burlington and Flamborough Twp. From the C.P.R track in the village of Progreston downstream to Hwy. 5 including part of Limestone Creek up to Steeles Ave. in the Town of Milton.
- No fishing (Fish Sanctuary) from Hwy 2 to Rebecca St. all year.

For more information on angling regulations please visit www.mnr.gov.on.ca/en/Business/LetsFish/index.html

Tags:   Bass · beginners · Bronte Creek · Brown · Canada · chinook · Conservation Halton · extended season · fall · Fishing · Fly · GTA · Guide · lake-run · Lessons · Loweville · materials · MNR · Oakville · Ontario · Outfitter · Places to Fly Fish · Progreston · rainbow · reels · regulations · rods · Salmon · sanctuaries · Schools · smallmouth · stocking · Toronto · Trout · Tying · waders · white sucker · Wilson'sNo Comments.

The weather forecast in the Toronto area this weekend is calling for sunny skies and temperatures approaching 10C (which for our American friends is about 50F). While we haven’t had a lot of snow this winter in Toronto the temperature has been cool so I am looking forward to getting out for a walk along the Credit River to check out the water levels with my dog Hunter. I know she is looking forward to the walk as well because her tail is already wagging… Trout season is coming !

Tags:   Canada · Credit · Fishing · Fly · Ganaraska · Grand · Guide · Lessons · Maitland · nottawasaga · Ontario · Outfitter · reels · River · rods · Schools · Season · snoopy · Toronto · Trout · Tying · wadersNo Comments.

I was at a real estate shindig last night in the CBC building in downtown Toronto for NAIOP, a commercial real estate organization, and had the honour and privilege of listening to one of the most humble speeches I have heard in a very long time. The money raised at this dinner goes to the Geneva Centre for Autism in Toronto but the highlight of the evening for me was listening to Andrew Lennox, Senior Vice President of Real Estate at Scotiabank. Andrew was honoured at this dinner for the volunteer work he has done with the Salvation Army and when he rose to accept his award, he focussed not on his accomplishments but rather on the greater sense of accomplishment he receives by volunteering. This is a man who does not attend a few token meetings to line his resume, he is committed to doing good in the world and the Salvation Army is a better organization for having him.

Mr. Lennox talked about how proud he is of the assistance ‘the Army’ gives to the homeless and those less fortunate in the world and explained that members of the Sally Ann and its volunteers offer their support without discrimination or judgement. If someone is in need, the Salvation Army helps. Although the Salvation Army started out as an evangelical organization in the late 1800s, the selflessness he described was not necessarily religious in nature but rather, well, just the epitome of “doing good”. As Andrew mentioned, life is not about getting but rather about giving and the best experiences truly are realized when we give more than we get.

Those who know me are aware that I am not a religious man but I do respect nature and have a deep appreciation for life and how fragile it truly is. As I listened to how much good work the Salvation Army does in this world my mind started thinking about all of the wonderful people I have met over the years in fly fishing who have a similar degree of selflessness as Mr. Lennox. We all have heard of a friend of a friend or know someone personally who selflessly volunteers their time to help – not because of any expectation of recognition but because it is the right thing to do. I don’t know Mr. Lennox personally but he struck me as the kind of person who sees a problem and tries to help. As the audience rose to give a standing ovation I realized that fly fishing is a metaphor for life in that it is not about the catching, it’s about the fishing – and I also realized the world would be a better place with more people like Andrew Lennox…

Tags:   Andrew Lennox · Beginner · Canada · cbc · Fishing · Flies · Fly · Geneva Centre for Autism · Guide · Lessons · NAIOP · Ontario · Outfitter · reels · rods · Sally Ann · Salvation Army · Schools · Scotiabank · Toronto · waders · Wilson'sNo Comments.

We are very pleased to announce that the grand prize for Esma Wilson’s Cast for Cancer at the 2010 Toronto Sportsmen’s Show will be a 3 day/2 night trip for 2 to the Restigouche River Lodge worth $5,000 !

For more information on Esma Wilson’s Cast for Cancer please see our FaceBook page or www.castforcancer.ca

Tags:   Atlantic Salmon · Canada · Casting · Esma Wilson · Fishing · Fly · Guide · Lodge · Ontario · Outfitter · Restigouche · River · Sportsmen's Show · Toronto · Wilson'sNo Comments.

Issue #10 went live on March 1st and will be online until April 30th. If you have not taken the time to check this ezine out you should.

www.catchmagazine.net

Tags:   Canada · Catch · Fishing · Fly · Guide · Magazine · Ontario · Outfitter · reels · rods · Toronto · waders · Wilson'sNo Comments.