Neave Creek is a small tributary of Toby Creek in BC's Columbia Valley, draining toward the upper Columbia River near Panorama. Provincial fish-inventory data gives it the strongest direct fish count of any water in the Toby Creek tributary group, mostly rainbow trout, with brook trout, Burbot and redside shiner rounding out the records.
The water
Neave Creek's mouth sits at 50.51916, -116.13894, where it joins Toby Creek on its way to the Columbia River. It runs stream order 3 (early on a 1-to-6+ scale where 1 is a headwater trickle and 6+ a full river), and the channel geometry is small throughout: a narrow median width of about 2.8 m, a gentle-to-moderate gradient of about 3.04%, and a very low peak mean-annual discharge of about 0.084 m³/s. That combination reads as classic small-tributary water, best fished on foot rather than from a boat.
The fishing
Local beat data records 112 fish in Neave Creek: 102 rainbow trout, 4 brook trout, 3 burbot and 3 redside shiner, the clearest small-stream trout signal anywhere in the Toby Creek tributary group. An older Toby-family fisheries survey appendix also identified rainbow trout in Neave Creek, consistent with the current record set.
Read the record count carefully
Local fly recommendations for Neave Creek run Adams, Royal Wulff, Elk Hair Caddis and Stimulator on top, ant and beetle terrestrial patterns, and Hare's Ear, Prince Nymph and Pheasant Tail underneath. That matches the food base: mayfly, caddisfly and stonefly hatches, summer Terrestrials (Hoppers, Ants, Beetles), and small baitfish or redside shiner forage where connected lower-water habitat exists.
Access and the rules
No confirmed public access point, road name or trailhead for Neave Creek turned up in the checked sources. Treat a visit as an access-and-regulation check first rather than a mapped destination, and expect to work it out from the Toby Creek drainage. Kootenay Troutfitters, based at Panorama, guides Columbia Valley streams in the area, though Neave-specific trips are not publicly listed.
Before you fish
Conditions
- Navigability: small wade water (median width ~2.8 m, narrow; gradient ~3.04%, gentle-to-moderate; peak mean-annual discharge ~0.084 m³/s, very low flow). No boat needed and none of much use here.
- Stocking: no stocking record. Neave Creek runs entirely on wild fish.
