The Field Journal
Rivers & Lakes · Tributary Creek

Murphy Creek

A creek in the Lower Arrow Lake watershed, a tributary of Columbia River, holding Westslope Cutthroat, Bull Trout and Rainbow in provincial fish-inventory records.

Murphy Creek is a tributary creek flowing into Columbia River. Recorded fish: Westslope cutthroat, bull trout, rainbow, cutthroat, dolly varden, kokanee.

The water

It flows into Columbia River within the Lower Arrow Lake watershed (Lower Arrow Lake → Columbia River). It runs stream order 5 (well down the network, toward river scale; the scale runs from 1 for a headwater trickle to 6+ for a river) and roughly 14 km. Westslope Cutthroat Trout, Bull Trout, Rainbow Trout, cutthroat, dolly varden, Kokanee, recorded here in provincial fish-inventory data (31 records). Named tributaries in the index: Neptune Creek, Elgood Creek.

The fishing

As a small stream, a tributary of Columbia River, Murphy Creek fishes the way creeks of its size do: short drifts with a buoyant attractor dry over a light dropper, working the pocket water and the heads of pools. Match the fly box to the season and confirm against a current local report.

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Tributary Creek
Lower Arrow Lake watershed
straighten
Stream order 5
~14 km
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Westslope Cutthroat and Bull Trout
31 records
footprint
Wade / Technical

Conditions

  • Navigability: wade / technical: steep gradient, pocket water (median channel width ~4.3 m, narrow; median gradient ~7.59%, steep; peak mean-annual discharge ~0.316 m³/s, very low flow; canyon-confined sections with ~179 m walls (DEM)).

Access & the rules

Access for Murphy Creek, meaning the roads in, put-ins and any walk-in or seasonal limits, is worth confirming locally before you commit a day. The drainage map shows how the water sits in its valley.

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Before you fish

Confirm the current BC freshwater fishing regulations (Region 4 – Kootenay) before you go This water is part of the Columbia River system.. Official synopsis: gov.bc.ca fishing regulations.