Smiling guest holding a Bow River rainbow trout under a bluebird sky on a guided fly fishing trip with King Trout Outfitters near Calgary

Fishing Reportgood

Bow River Fishing Report

Week of September 14, 2026

By Dan King · Lead Guide, King Trout Outfitters

Dan King's Bow River conditions report for September 14, 2026. The river's settled at 62 cms and stable after dipping to 57 midweek, water down to 10°C and falling, midges and October caddis thick all day, and the streamer bite for staging fall browns only getting better down low. Watch on YouTube →

Bow River fly fishing conditions in downtown Calgary on September 14, 2026 — low, clear fall water below the skyline and Centre Street Bridge, where King Trout Outfitters runs guided Bow River trips. — The Bow running low and clear through downtown Calgary on the morning of Monday, September 14, 2026, looking across to the skyline and the Centre Street Bridge under clear fall skies. Point-in-time snapshot from the DELTATECH Calgary live river camera. Source: DELTATECH Calgary Live Camera →

Bow River fishing conditions for the week of September 14, 2026 are good. Flow is 62 cubic meters per second and stable. Water temperature is 10°C. No angling restrictions are in effect. Active hatches include Midges, October Caddis, Blue-Winged Olive (BWO), Caddis.

Flow (m³/s) →

10°C

Water Temp ↓

good

Overall Conditions

None

Restrictions

iFlow context: The Bow read 62 cms this morning, and it's settled in right there the last few days after a rougher week. It was sitting at 70 the last time I wrote this, dropped as low as 57 midweek, bounced back into the mid-60s, and has now leveled off in the low 60s for three straight days. Still well under that 90 cms late-summer baseline, and nothing on the gauge says that's about to change. This is still classic fall wading water: skinny, clear, and predictable. Pick your water in the shallower stretches, and with visibility this good, drop your tippet a size and fish fine. Source: Environment Canada

A red FLYPOD drift boat with two anglers on the Bow River near Calgary, ready to launch for a guided fly fishing trip

On the Water

Do You Need a Boat to Fish the Bow River?

You can wade the Bow in spots, but most of the best water sits along banks and seams you can only reach by drift boat. That is why guided trips here run from a boat. It covers miles of productive water in a day and keeps you safer when flows are up, like the 62 cms running this week.

What Are Conditions Like on the Bow River This Week?

“

Dan King

Lead guide at King Trout Outfitters · 15+ years on the Bow River

Dan here. Fall's in full swing on the Bow. Flow bottomed out at 57 cms midweek and has settled back up around 62, which is about as stable and fishable as this river gets. Water's down to 10 degrees and still falling, and that's flipped the whole system into its fall pattern. Midges and October Caddis are the story right now, thick from first light through last light, so carry small zebra midges and big caddis pupae and you're covered most of the day. The BWO still shows on any grey afternoon, and the hoppers are basically done, so don't lean on them anymore. Down low the streamer bite for staging browns is only getting better, biggest fish in the river, and they're eating like it. No closure as of today, but always check My Wild Alberta before you head out. I'll be straight with you: this stretch right here, cool stable water and aggressive fall browns, is the best fishing of the whole year on the Bow. My October dates are filling fast. If you've been sitting on booking a fall float, now's the time.

Close-up of a wild brown trout held gently in hand showing distinctive spotted markings

What They're Eating

What Do Trout Eat in the Bow River?

Bow River trout do most of their feeding underwater, on mayfly and stonefly nymphs, caddis, leeches, and aquatic worms. Through summer they also look up for caddis and terrestrials like hoppers. This week they are keyed on Midges, October Caddis, Blue-Winged Olive (BWO), Caddis, which is why the patterns below are producing.

What Hatches Are Active on the Bow River?

Insect	Hook Size	Activity
Midges	#18-24	heavy
October Caddis	#8-12	heavy
Blue-Winged Olive (BWO)	#18-22	moderate
Caddis	#14-18	light

See the full month-by-month Bow River Hatch Chart →

What Flies Are Working This Week?

Close-up of a hand selecting a fly from a well-stocked fly box

BWO Parachute

#18-20dry

October Caddis Pupa

#10-12nymph

Zebra Midge

#18-22nymph

Pheasant Tail

#16-18nymph

Olive Woolly Bugger

#4-6streamer

Sculpin / Sparkle Minnow

#4-6streamer

Pro Tip

No restrictions this week. Fish from dawn to dusk. The best window is mid-morning through late afternoon when the hatches are active and the water has warmed a few degrees.

Where Should You Fish the Bow River This Week?

Upper Bow

Above Bearspaw Dam

Above Bearspaw is still the pick right now. The Ghost keeps this reach a degree or two cooler than everything downstream, and that's exactly why the fall bugs fire here first. Midges are thick early and late, tiny #20-22 patterns dead-drifted through the flats, and the BWO still shows on the grey afternoons. I'm running a Zebra Midge under an indicator when nothing's rising, then switching to a #18 parachute the second I see noses. Wade slow. At 62 cms and this clarity, a sloppy cast spooks a fish sitting in a foot of water before you even see it.

City Section

Bearspaw to Carseland

The town water is fishing all day now that the cold nights have knocked the heat out of it. October Caddis are the story through here, big #8-12 bugs bouncing off the banks in the evening, and the fish know it. Swing a caddis pupa through the riffles at Carburn or work the Prince's Island back channels with a dry-dropper, October Caddis pupa under a stimulator. Midges take over once the light goes flat, so carry small stuff for that last hour. This reach is holding fish and holding attention right through the afternoon, no more midday shutdown.

Lower Bow

South of Calgary

McKinnon Flats down to Carseland is where I want to be for the big boys. The lower-river browns are staging hard now, cooling water has them aggressive, and they're keying on baitfish before winter shuts things down. Swing an Olive Woolly Bugger or a Sculpin through the deep buckets and tight to the cutbanks, and hold on, because these grabs are violent. Mix in a hopper-dropper or an October Caddis rig for steady numbers between streamer runs. Water's shedding heat fast down here too, so it's fishing top to bottom of the day. Handle these big fish quick and get them back, they're the whole reason to fish the Bow in the fall.