Alberta

Upper Bow River

Alberta·Bow Valley and Calgary·51.09° N, 115.36° W

Log an outing

See the full conditions on the Upper Bow River

Flow and temperature charts for every station, the weather, and the days ahead. Free, with an email.

A free account also gets you

5-day Fish Index forecastSee how each of the next 5 days rates on every river and lake, from the flow or wind, water temperature, weather and moon forecasts.
A dashboard for your watersSave your rivers and lakes and compare them on one board, with the last week and the days ahead.
A logbook that fills in the conditionsLog outings and trips with photos, even with no signal in the app. Troutline adds the flow, water temperature and weather for each day.
Your angler profileSee other anglers' public outings, and share yours.

Already have an account?

Want history, unlimited alerts and more? , with the first 14 days free for new members.

Solunar · next 7 days

About Upper Bow River

Above Calgary the Bow is a different river from the famous water below the city. It runs cold and turquoise with glacial flour, it is far less fertile, and its fish are smaller and warier for it. Along the Bow Valley Parkway it is a modest mountain stream holding brook trout, mountain whitefish and a few protected bull trout. Bow Falls in the Banff townsite blocks fish moving upstream, and below it the Bow becomes a brown trout river all the way through Canmore to Lac des Arcs and the dams at Seebe. Most browns run 8 to 14 inches, with enough 18- to 20-inch fish in the deeper buckets above Dead Man's Flats to keep you honest, and a good summer float can turn up dozens of small fish on dries.

It is a wade-and-small-raft river, and a dry-fly river once the snow is gone. Runoff takes it out for two to three weeks, usually through June. From late July through mid-September it fishes best: green drakes from mid-June into August, PMDs, evening caddis, golden stones as the water drops, then hoppers and fall caddis into September. Both sides of the park line are open all year, so winter and early spring are a midge-and-nymph game on low, clear water. Flows are read at the Banff gauge, below the townsite bridge and above Bow Falls. It sits above the Spray River, the Cascade powerhouse and the Spray Lakes water that enters at Canmore, so the river at Canmore always runs bigger than Banff reads. As a rule of thumb at that gauge, the Bow carries about 8 to 15 m³/s through the winter, peaks well over 100 m³/s in June, starts to fish again as it falls under about 80 m³/s in July, and is at its best between about 20 and 60 m³/s from August into October. The turquoise tint is normal. Brown water from a muddy side creek is not.

The park line changes the rulebook. Inside Banff National Park you need a Parks Canada fishing permit and a park pass, an Alberta licence is not valid, and every fish goes back where you caught it. You may fish only one fly on your line, so no dry-dropper or two-nymph rigs, and lead under 50 grams is banned, so carry tungsten. Felt soles are banned too. Below the park you need an Alberta licence, bait is banned, and nothing is kept, all year. TransAlta's dams shape the lower river: below Lac des Arcs the water slows behind the Seebe and Horseshoe dams, and below Horseshoe Dam the Bow runs through Stoney Nakoda reserve land, where you need the band council's permission to enter. For most anglers the practical lower limit is Bow Valley Provincial Park. Whirling disease has been in the Bow since 2016, so clean, drain and dry your gear between waters, and carry bear spray: elk, black bears and grizzlies use the same banks you do.

Species

Brown Trout
Primary · Jul-Oct · 8-14", some 16-20"
The main fish from Bow Falls down to Seebe, introduced to the park in 1925. Expect lots of small browns on dries in summer, with the bigger fish holding in the deeper buckets above Dead Man's Flats and around Lac des Arcs. Above Bow Falls they are present but sparse.
Mountain Whitefish
Common · Year-round · 10-16"
Native and common throughout, and the fish that keeps a winter nymphing day busy. None may be kept in the park or on the provincial Bow.
Brook Trout
Common above Bow Falls · Jul-Sep · 6-12"
The everyday fish along the Bow Valley Parkway above the falls, and in the spring-fed side channels and backwaters around Banff and Canmore.
Rainbow Trout
Uncommon · Jul-Sep · 10-16"
Introduced and far fewer than below Calgary. They show mostly in the lower river, below Canmore toward Exshaw.
Bull Trout
Rare (protected) · Release only · 16-25"
A species at risk. A remnant population holds above Bow Falls and in the headwaters, and they are close to absent from the mainstem below the falls. Every bull trout goes back at once. Learn to tell one from a brook trout, and keep it in the water.
Westslope Cutthroat Trout
Rare (protected) · Release only · 8-14"
Pure westslope cutthroat survive in a handful of headwater streams in the park, not in the Bow itself. An occasional cutthroat or hybrid turns up in the river. None may be kept anywhere on this water.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Brown Trout	Primary	Jul-Oct	8-14", some 16-20"
Mountain Whitefish	Common	Year-round	10-16"
Brook Trout	Common above Bow Falls	Jul-Sep	6-12"
Rainbow Trout	Uncommon	Jul-Sep	10-16"
Bull Trout	Rare (protected)	Release only	16-25"
Westslope Cutthroat Trout	Rare (protected)	Release only	8-14"

Sections

4 reaches

Lake Louise to Banff (Bow Valley Parkway)

WadeBrook Trout · Bull Trout · Brown Trout · Whitefish

About 55 km of cold, glacier-tinted freestone beside the Bow Valley Parkway, with long riffles, braids, undercut banks and backwater sloughs, ending at the top of Bow Falls in Banff. It is the least fertile water on the river. Brook trout and mountain whitefish are the everyday fish, a few protected bull trout still hold here, and brown trout are scarce above the falls. Pull-offs along the parkway give easy walk-in water, with Parks Canada self-certification stations at Castle Junction and Five Mile Bridge.

Best for: Brook trout and mountain whitefish on small dries and tungsten nymphs, with the chance of a bull trout you release at once. Solitude and scenery more than size.

Bow Falls to the Park Boundary

Wade & FloatBrown Trout · Whitefish

Below Bow Falls the river takes in the Spray River and the Cascade powerhouse release and runs about 13 km of riffle, run and pool through the Banff Springs golf course and down the valley to the east park boundary near Harvie Heights. The falls stop fish moving upstream, so from here down it is a brown trout river. The Banff gauge sits above the Spray and Cascade inflows, so this water always runs bigger than it reads. Banff National Park rules apply: Parks Canada permit, catch and release, one fly per line.

Best for: Brown trout on dries after runoff, from wading water along the golf course to short raft floats, and whitefish on nymphs in winter.

Canmore (Park Boundary to Dead Man's Flats)

Wade & FloatBrown Trout

The classic upper Bow float: about 16 km of braided channels, gravel bars, riffles and deep corner buckets past Harvie Heights, through Canmore under the Engine Bridge and the Bridge Road bridge, and down to Dead Man's Flats. Spray Lakes water from TransAlta's plants comes in at Canmore, adding to the flow. In town, the Bow River Loop and the water upstream of the Bridge Road bridge are easy wading at summer and fall flows. The braids and logjams catch out paddlers every year, so scout before you float. Alberta rules apply here: an Alberta licence, bait banned, and no fish kept.

Best for: Brown trout on green drakes, PMDs, caddis and hoppers from late July into September, with the bigger browns in the lower buckets toward Dead Man's Flats.

Dead Man's Flats to Seebe

WadeBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout

Below Dead Man's Flats the river slows, spreads into the shallow, lake-like Lac des Arcs, passes Exshaw and runs through Bow Valley Provincial Park to the TransAlta dam at Seebe, where the Kananaskis River joins. It has no live gauge of its own. It is quieter water than Canmore, with fewer but larger brown trout and more rainbow trout than upstream. West wind funnels down the valley and makes Lac des Arcs hard work in a small boat. Below the Horseshoe Dam the Bow runs through Stoney Nakoda reserve land to Ghost Reservoir, and you need the band council's permission to enter or cross it.

Best for: Bigger brown trout on streamers along the edges and the slow water, and a better chance of a rainbow trout than above Canmore.

At a glance

Ideal wading flow: 20–59 m³/s
Blow-out: >79 m³/s
Ideal water temp: 10–16°C

Best seasons

Read at the Banff gauge, which under-reads the river below Bow Falls. Late July to mid-September is the best of it: dries, green drakes, hoppers and stable flows, at about 20 to 60 m³/s (700 to 2,100 cfs). Late September and October bring low, clear water, BWOs and pre-spawn browns. April to mid-May is a pre-runoff window for nymphs and BWOs as the river rises from about 10 m³/s (350 cfs). Winter is open on both sides of the park line, at about 8 to 15 m³/s (280 to 530 cfs), but slow and cold, with midges and nymphs in the deeper pools. Runoff climbs past 40 m³/s (1,400 cfs) in May and peaks well over 100 m³/s (3,500 cfs) in June, and guides stop floating the Canmore water for two to three weeks. It fishes again as it falls under about 80 m³/s (2,800 cfs). Trout feed best at about 10 to 16 °C (50 to 61 °F). Parks Canada advises against angling above 18 °C (64 °F). Overcast days suit the BWOs and drakes, and calm evenings the caddis.

Regulations

Two rulebooks split at the east boundary of Banff National Park, just west of Harvie Heights. Inside the park you need a national park fishing permit and a park pass, an Alberta licence is not valid, the Bow is open all year, and all fishing is catch and release. Below the park the Bow falls under Alberta's ES1 rules: open all year, bait banned, and no fish of any kind kept.

Banff National Park: a national park fishing permit ($15.00 a day or $51.25 a year, valid in the mountain parks) and a park pass are required. A provincial licence is not valid.
Banff National Park: the Bow from Hector Lake to the east park boundary, with its backwaters and oxbows, is open all year. No ice fishing on the Bow. Most Bow tributaries are open July 1 to August 31 only.
Banff National Park: catch and release for every fish. Because of whirling disease, release each fish where you caught it.
Banff National Park: only one artificial fly on a line, no natural bait or chemical attractants within 100 m of park waters, no lead tackle (sinkers, jigs, lures or flies) under 50 grams, and no fishing from 2 hours after sunset to 1 hour before sunrise.
Banff National Park: felt-soled wading boots are banned. Clean, drain and dry your gear and fill in a self-certification permit before you fish.
Alberta (ES1), Bow River from Banff National Park down to Bassano Dam: open all year, bait ban, limit 0 for trout, mountain whitefish, walleye, pike and burbot.
Alberta (ES1): bull trout limit 0 everywhere, and bait is banned in all ES1 streams.
Alberta: from July 1 to August 31 the province can close ES1 flowing waters, including the Bow below the park, from 2 pm to midnight when the water runs warm and low. Check mywildalberta.ca before a summer trip.
Alberta: you need a WiN number and an Alberta sportfishing licence, sold through AlbertaRELM.

Ghost Reservoir, below this page's water, has its own Alberta rules that allow bait and some harvest, so the Bow's no-kill rule ends where the reservoir begins. Barbless hooks are recommended in the park but not required. Below Horseshoe Dam the Bow runs through Stoney Nakoda reserve land, and you need the band council's permission to enter or cross reserve land.

Source: Parks Canada, Banff National Park fishing regulations summary 2026-27, and the 2026 Alberta Guide to Sportfishing Regulations (ES1). Regulations change annually. Verify before fishing.

Getting there

Canmore, AB

About 1 hr 15 min from Calgary International Airport to Canmore, and about 1 hr 30 min to Banff

Fly shops

Wapiti Sports & OutfittersCanmore

Camping: Parks Canada campgrounds at Tunnel Mountain, Castle Mountain and Johnston Canyon sit close to the park water, and Bow Valley Provincial Park has campgrounds on the lower river. Banff, Canmore and Lake Louise have every kind of lodging.

Inside the park, pull-offs along the Bow Valley Parkway and the paths below Bow Falls give easy walk-in water, and Parks Canada self-certification stations sit at the main access points. In Canmore, wade the Bow River Loop between the Engine Bridge and the Bridge Road bridge. Floats start a short drive above town and take out above the slow water near Dead Man's Flats. Below Horseshoe Dam the river runs through Stoney Nakoda reserve land: you need the band council's permission to enter or cross it. Grizzly and black bears and elk use the whole valley, so carry bear spray.

Upper Bow River

Alberta·Bow Valley and Calgary·51.09° N, 115.36° W

Log an outing

Fishing: Fair
Flow: 14m³/s; Steady · normal; Bow River at Banff
Water temp: —

Flow

14m³/s

Steady ·

Bow River at Banff

Water temp

—

Normal range

13–18m³/s

Median 15 m³/s

Weather

6°C

Mostly Clear

See the full conditions on the Upper Bow River

Flow and temperature charts for every station, the weather, and the days ahead. Free, with an email.

A free account also gets you

5-day Fish Index forecastSee how each of the next 5 days rates on every river and lake, from the flow or wind, water temperature, weather and moon forecasts.
A dashboard for your watersSave your rivers and lakes and compare them on one board, with the last week and the days ahead.
A logbook that fills in the conditionsLog outings and trips with photos, even with no signal in the app. Troutline adds the flow, water temperature and weather for each day.
Your angler profileSee other anglers' public outings, and share yours.

Already have an account?

Want history, unlimited alerts and more? , with the first 14 days free for new members.

Solunar · next 7 days

About Upper Bow River

Species

Brown Trout
Primary · Jul-Oct · 8-14", some 16-20"
The main fish from Bow Falls down to Seebe, introduced to the park in 1925. Expect lots of small browns on dries in summer, with the bigger fish holding in the deeper buckets above Dead Man's Flats and around Lac des Arcs. Above Bow Falls they are present but sparse.
Mountain Whitefish
Common · Year-round · 10-16"
Native and common throughout, and the fish that keeps a winter nymphing day busy. None may be kept in the park or on the provincial Bow.
Brook Trout
Common above Bow Falls · Jul-Sep · 6-12"
The everyday fish along the Bow Valley Parkway above the falls, and in the spring-fed side channels and backwaters around Banff and Canmore.
Rainbow Trout
Uncommon · Jul-Sep · 10-16"
Introduced and far fewer than below Calgary. They show mostly in the lower river, below Canmore toward Exshaw.
Bull Trout
Rare (protected) · Release only · 16-25"
A species at risk. A remnant population holds above Bow Falls and in the headwaters, and they are close to absent from the mainstem below the falls. Every bull trout goes back at once. Learn to tell one from a brook trout, and keep it in the water.
Westslope Cutthroat Trout
Rare (protected) · Release only · 8-14"
Pure westslope cutthroat survive in a handful of headwater streams in the park, not in the Bow itself. An occasional cutthroat or hybrid turns up in the river. None may be kept anywhere on this water.

Species	Abundance	Best Season	Size
Brown Trout	Primary	Jul-Oct	8-14", some 16-20"
Mountain Whitefish	Common	Year-round	10-16"
Brook Trout	Common above Bow Falls	Jul-Sep	6-12"
Rainbow Trout	Uncommon	Jul-Sep	10-16"
Bull Trout	Rare (protected)	Release only	16-25"
Westslope Cutthroat Trout	Rare (protected)	Release only	8-14"

Sections

4 reaches

Lake Louise to Banff (Bow Valley Parkway)

WadeBrook Trout · Bull Trout · Brown Trout · Whitefish

Best for: Brook trout and mountain whitefish on small dries and tungsten nymphs, with the chance of a bull trout you release at once. Solitude and scenery more than size.

Bow Falls to the Park Boundary

Wade & FloatBrown Trout · Whitefish

Best for: Brown trout on dries after runoff, from wading water along the golf course to short raft floats, and whitefish on nymphs in winter.

Canmore (Park Boundary to Dead Man's Flats)

Wade & FloatBrown Trout

Best for: Brown trout on green drakes, PMDs, caddis and hoppers from late July into September, with the bigger browns in the lower buckets toward Dead Man's Flats.

Dead Man's Flats to Seebe

WadeBrown Trout · Rainbow Trout

Best for: Bigger brown trout on streamers along the edges and the slow water, and a better chance of a rainbow trout than above Canmore.

At a glance

Ideal wading flow: 20–59 m³/s
Blow-out: >79 m³/s
Ideal water temp: 10–16°C

Best seasons

Regulations

Banff National Park: a national park fishing permit ($15.00 a day or $51.25 a year, valid in the mountain parks) and a park pass are required. A provincial licence is not valid.
Banff National Park: the Bow from Hector Lake to the east park boundary, with its backwaters and oxbows, is open all year. No ice fishing on the Bow. Most Bow tributaries are open July 1 to August 31 only.
Banff National Park: catch and release for every fish. Because of whirling disease, release each fish where you caught it.
Banff National Park: only one artificial fly on a line, no natural bait or chemical attractants within 100 m of park waters, no lead tackle (sinkers, jigs, lures or flies) under 50 grams, and no fishing from 2 hours after sunset to 1 hour before sunrise.
Banff National Park: felt-soled wading boots are banned. Clean, drain and dry your gear and fill in a self-certification permit before you fish.
Alberta (ES1), Bow River from Banff National Park down to Bassano Dam: open all year, bait ban, limit 0 for trout, mountain whitefish, walleye, pike and burbot.
Alberta (ES1): bull trout limit 0 everywhere, and bait is banned in all ES1 streams.
Alberta: from July 1 to August 31 the province can close ES1 flowing waters, including the Bow below the park, from 2 pm to midnight when the water runs warm and low. Check mywildalberta.ca before a summer trip.
Alberta: you need a WiN number and an Alberta sportfishing licence, sold through AlbertaRELM.

Source: Parks Canada, Banff National Park fishing regulations summary 2026-27, and the 2026 Alberta Guide to Sportfishing Regulations (ES1). Regulations change annually. Verify before fishing.

Getting there

Canmore, AB

About 1 hr 15 min from Calgary International Airport to Canmore, and about 1 hr 30 min to Banff

Fly shops

Wapiti Sports & OutfittersCanmore

Upper Bow River

See the full conditions on the Upper Bow River

About Upper Bow River

Species

Sections

Lake Louise to Banff (Bow Valley Parkway)

Bow Falls to the Park Boundary

Canmore (Park Boundary to Dead Man's Flats)

Dead Man's Flats to Seebe

Fishing reports

Read the fishing reports for the Upper Bow River

More in Alberta

Bow Valley and Calgary

Bow River

Elbow River

Ghost River

Highwood River

Kananaskis River

Sheep River

Spray River

Other regions

Belly River

Castle River

Clearwater River

Crowsnest River

Livingstone River

McLeod River

Upper Bow River

See the full conditions on the Upper Bow River

About Upper Bow River

Species

Sections

Lake Louise to Banff (Bow Valley Parkway)

Bow Falls to the Park Boundary

Canmore (Park Boundary to Dead Man's Flats)

Dead Man's Flats to Seebe

Fishing reports

Read the fishing reports for the Upper Bow River

More in Alberta

Bow Valley and Calgary

Bow River

Elbow River

Ghost River

Highwood River

Kananaskis River

Sheep River

Spray River

Other regions

Belly River

Castle River

Clearwater River

Crowsnest River

Livingstone River

McLeod River

Fishing conditions

Fishing conditions