A Family Gone West

We often lament these economic times that send our down-east young people out west to find new lives. With them go our hopes and dreams. Children, grandparents, uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews, cousins and so on used to grow stronger together, each playing an important role in the family. But rural family life as we remember it has changed.

Last September, Newtown grandparents Nancy and Ray Buckland decided to follow their family to Calgary. Selling the family home and most of their belongings, they headed west, taking with them the family dog.

Ray Buckland, known to most of us as Bucky, has clocked at least 75 years, much of it in wilderness parts of Guysborough County. He fished, hunted, guided and trapped here. He’s also an excellent fly tyer. Above all, Bucky was always driven to experiment, to learn from trying new things.

So, finding himself in Calgary in his golden years must have been quite a shock. But his determination to pursue expertise, even in a new environment, has paid off for Bucky. Alberta’s fabulous Bow River flows close to his new home, offering year-round fly fishing. By adapting eastern techniques to western waters, he’s had great success fooling large brown trout. He’s developed new friendships, regularly attends a weekly oldsters’ card party, and is planning hunting and fishing trips to nearby Montana and British Columbia.

Bucky frequently contacts his down-east friends who are amazed by his adaptability. Not bad at all for an old guy – he’s got his fish and family too!

The photo shows Bucky releasing a 27 inch Bow River brown trout. Here’s a modern dressing of an old wet salmon fly that Bucky often used for fishing the West River St. Mary’s. Its bright colour scheme also excels for salmon in the cold waters of autumn.

Copper Killer

Thread:                       G.S.P. 50 Denier blood red thread

Hook:                          Salmon wet fly hook such as the Tiemco 7999 or Mustad 36890

Tag:                            Fine copper wire and fluorescent green floss

Tail:                             Golden pheasant tippet strands

Butt:                            Fluorescent red floss

Body:                          Copper Diamond braid or Flatbraid

Hackle:                       Bright orange hen hackle wrapped and folded backward

Underwing:                 Four strands of copper or hot orange Krystal Flash

Wing:                          Pine Squirrel Tail

Head:                          Blood red thread finished with 2 coats Angler’s Corner Wet Head Cement

Enjoy your fishing and please stay on the line …