Alberta

Highwood River

Alberta·Bow Valley and Calgary·50.39° N, 114.59° W

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About Highwood River

The Highwood is two rivers that share a name. Up top, from the Mist Creek confluence down Highway 40 to Highwood Junction and on along Highway 541, it is a clear, cold Kananaskis freestone where westslope cutthroat, cutbows, rainbows and bull trout take dry flies from June 16 to the end of October. Below the Kananaskis Country boundary it drops through the Eden Valley reserve and private ranch land past Longview and High River to the Bow, and turns into a wider, warmer river where rainbows and whitefish carry the catch. One thing to know before you go: rainbows outnumber cutthroat even in the upper river, and pure cutthroat now hold out mainly in the headwaters and tributaries. Every rainbow, cutthroat, cutbow, brown and bull trout you catch on the Highwood goes back. Inside Kananaskis Country you may keep 2 brook trout, and below the boundary every trout goes back, brook trout included.

The upper river fishes on foot. Runoff usually turns it brown from May into early July, so the real season starts once it greens up in mid-July and runs into October. Read the Diebel's Ranch gauge, just below the Kananaskis boundary, which runs from about March to October: under about 10 m³/s the river is clearing and you can cross at the tailouts, and 4 to 8 m³/s is the late-summer sweet spot for a stimulator or a hopper with a PMD dropper. Above about 15 m³/s it is high and off-colour, and a hard rain on the Front Ranges can push it back there for a few days. Expect golden stones in late June and early July, green drakes and evening caddis through July, PMDs on bright afternoons, and hoppers from August until the snow. Below Longview the river is big enough to float in a raft, and the guides who run it wait for mid-July clarity too.

Plan for three things. You need a Kananaskis Conservation Pass to park anywhere along the upper river, and Highway 40 north of Highwood Junction stays gated until June 15. Below the boundary the banks are the Eden Valley reserve and private ranch land: you need the band council's permission to enter reserve land, and elsewhere you reach the water at bridges and road allowances and stay below the high-water mark, or ask the landowner. And the lower river runs low and warm in a dry August, because irrigation canals at High River take a large share of the flow. When the Bow runs warm and low, Alberta can close every ES1 stream from 2 pm to midnight, the Highwood included, so check the advisories before a July or August trip.

Species

Rainbow Trout
Primary · Jul-Oct · 10-16", some larger lower down
Wild, and the most-caught fish on the river, in both the upper and lower reaches. Pure rainbows sit mainly in the lower river and lower tributaries. Catch and release only.
Westslope Cutthroat Trout
Common (upper river) · Jul-Sep · 10-14", a few to 18"
Native, and listed as Threatened. Pure fish now live mostly in the headwaters and tributaries, and the upper mainstem holds many hybrids. Your best chance is above Highwood Junction. Catch and release only.
Mountain Whitefish
Common · Jun-Oct · 10-16"
Native and found throughout, and the main catch below High River in fall. You may keep 5 over 30 cm, inside Kananaskis Country only until August 31.
Bull Trout
Present (protected) · Release only · 16-26"
Native and listed as Threatened, with more of them showing late in the season in the upper river. Zero harvest in Alberta. Keep them in the water and release them quickly.
Brook Trout
Uncommon · Jul-Oct · 6-10"
Introduced and scarce. Inside Kananaskis Country you may keep 2.
Brown Trout
Rare · Sep-Oct · 12-18"
A few turn up in the lower river in fall. The Highwood is not a brown trout river.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Rainbow Trout	Primary	Jul-Oct	10-16", some larger lower down
Westslope Cutthroat Trout	Common (upper river)	Jul-Sep	10-14", a few to 18"
Mountain Whitefish	Common	Jun-Oct	10-16"
Bull Trout	Present (protected)	Release only	16-26"
Brook Trout	Uncommon	Jul-Oct	6-10"
Brown Trout	Rare	Sep-Oct	12-18"

Sections

5 reaches

High River to the Bow

WadeBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout · Whitefish

The warmest, lowest water on the river in summer, after the Little Bow Canal and the Highwood diversion take their share at High River. The Sheep River joins above the mouth, so the gauge near the mouth reads both rivers and is no guide to the Highwood alone. Mountain whitefish and rainbow trout carry the catch, with a chance at a brown trout in fall. The last 500 m above the Bow fall under the Bow's rules.

Best for: Fall mountain whitefish and a lower-river brown trout. Skip it in a hot, dry August.

Longview to High River

FloatRainbow Trout · Whitefish

Here the Highwood is big enough to float in a raft, and guides run it from Longview downstream once the water clears in mid-July. The 2013 flood left the channel full of logjams, strainers and sweepers, and the diversion headworks west of High River are a hazard, so scout before you float. Rainbow trout dominate, with mountain whitefish. Both banks are private land: use bridges, road allowances and the bed and shore.

Best for: Guided raft days for rainbow trout from mid-July into hopper season.

Kananaskis Boundary to Longview

WadeCutthroat · Cutbow · Rainbow Trout

The river leaves the mountains through the Eden Valley reserve and private ranch land, read at the Diebel's Ranch gauge at its top. Access is the hard part. You need the band council's permission to enter or cross reserve land. Below the reserve, reach the water at bridges and road allowances and stay below the high-water mark, or ask the landowner. Rainbow trout and cutbows carry the catch, with fewer cutthroat than upstream.

Best for: Rainbow trout and cutbows for anglers who sort out access first, on dries and nymphs from mid-July into October.

Mist Creek to Highwood Junction (Highway 40)

WadeCutthroat · Cutbow · Bull Trout · Rainbow Trout

Small to medium mountain freestone beside Highway 40, with pull-offs at Lantern Creek, Picklejar, Lineham, Cat Creek, Strawberry and Fitzsimmons. It wades easily at summer flows and gives the river's best chance at westslope cutthroat trout, along with cutbows, rainbow trout and bull trout in the deeper pools. It is all Kananaskis public land, and you need a Kananaskis Conservation Pass to park. Highway 40 is gated until June 15, a day before the season opens. The stream you follow down from Highwood Pass is Storm Creek, which is closed all year above Mist Creek, so start at Mist Creek day use.

Best for: Dry-fly days for westslope cutthroat trout in July and August, on stimulators, drakes and hoppers.

Highwood Junction to the Kananaskis Boundary (Highway 541)

WadeCutthroat · Cutbow · Bull Trout · Rainbow Trout

Bigger water once Cataract Creek and Zephyr Creek join, with long runs and deeper pools. It holds more rainbow trout and cutbows than the reach above, plus westslope cutthroat trout and bull trout late in the season. Sentinel, Highwood and Green Ford day-use areas sit along Highway 541, all on public land with a Conservation Pass. Cataract Creek, a small cutthroat stream up Highway 940, falls under the same rules and makes a good side trip. The Diebel's Ranch gauge sits just below this reach.

Best for: A mix of dry-fly and nymph water for rainbow trout and cutthroat, and a streamer for a bull trout in September.

At a glance

Ideal wading flow: 4–7.9 m³/s
Blow-out: >15 m³/s
Ideal water temp: 10–16°C

Best seasons

Read at the Diebel's Ranch gauge for the upper river. Runoff usually runs from May into early July, above about 15 m³/s (530 cfs), high and off-colour. It clears on the drop through 10 to 8 m³/s (350 to 280 cfs), usually in mid-July, when the edges fish with stoneflies and drakes. About 4 to 8 m³/s (140 to 280 cfs) is the late-July to September sweet spot, clear and crossable at the tailouts. Under about 3 m³/s (110 cfs) in late September and October the fish get spooky, so go small and long. The High River gauge reads after the irrigation canals, and when it sits near 2 to 3 m³/s (70 to 110 cfs) in a hot spell the lower river warms fast: fish early and quit by early afternoon. Trout feed best at about 10 to 16 °C (50 to 61 °F). No Highwood gauge reports water temperature, so carry a thermometer and stop above 20 °C (68 °F).

Regulations

The Highwood is in Alberta's ES1 watershed unit, with bait banned and the river closed November 1 to June 15. Inside Kananaskis Country it is open June 16 to October 31 with only brook trout and some whitefish kept. Below the Kananaskis boundary it is catch and release for all trout, June 16 to October 31.

Mist Creek confluence down to the Kananaskis Country boundary, with tributaries except Storm Creek: open June 16 to August 31, bait ban, mountain whitefish 5 over 30 cm, brook trout 2, other trout 0.
Same reach, September 1 to October 31: bait ban, mountain whitefish 0, brook trout 2, other trout 0.
Kananaskis Country boundary down to 500 m above the mouth, with tributaries except the Sheep River: open June 16 to October 31, bait ban, mountain whitefish 5 over 30 cm, trout 0.
Within 500 m of the Bow: open all year under the Bow's rules, bait ban, limit 0 for trout, mountain whitefish, walleye, pike and burbot.
Storm Creek above Mist Creek is closed all year.
Bull trout limit 0 everywhere in Alberta.
From July 1 to August 31 the province can close ES1 flowing waters from 2 pm to midnight when the Bow runs warm and low. Check mywildalberta.ca before a summer trip.
You need a WiN number and an Alberta sportfishing licence, sold through AlbertaRELM.

Any period not listed is closed. Bait ban means unscented lures and flies only. Bull trout and westslope cutthroat are both listed as Threatened, so release them quickly and keep them in the water. You need the band council's permission to enter the Eden Valley reserve, and the landowner's permission to cross private land. Alberta allows travel below the ordinary high-water mark of a river bounded by private land.

Source: 2026 Alberta Guide to Sportfishing Regulations (ES1). Regulations change annually. Verify before fishing.

Getting there

Longview, AB

About 1 hr from Calgary to Longview, and about 1 hr 45 min to Highwood Junction by Highway 22 and 541. Calgary International Airport is the nearest airport.

Fly shops

Flys Etc.High River
Fish Tales Fly ShopCalgary

Camping: Alberta Parks campgrounds in the Kananaskis Sheep and Highwood area, including Etherington Creek and Cataract Creek, sit close to the upper river. Longview, High River and Okotoks have motels and inns.

Park at the Highway 40 and 541 day-use areas with a Kananaskis Conservation Pass. Highway 40 north of Highwood Junction is closed December 1 to June 14. Below the Kananaskis boundary the river runs through the Eden Valley reserve, where you need the band council's permission, and then private ranch land: reach the water at bridges and road allowances and stay below the high-water mark, or ask the landowner. Scout the diversion headworks west of High River before you float. Carry bear spray in Kananaskis Country.

Highwood River

Alberta·Bow Valley and Calgary·50.39° N, 114.59° W

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Fishing: Good
Flow: 3.8m³/s; Steady · normal; Highwood River below Little Bow Canal
Water temp: —

Flow

3.8m³/s

Steady ·

Highwood River below Little Bow Canal

Water temp

—

Normal range

1.9–4m³/s

Median 3 m³/s

Weather

8°C

Mostly Clear