By Rodney Hsu

Late winter and early spring can be very quiet. Some anglers regard this period as the transition between steelhead fishing and interior trout fishing or Fraser River spring fishing. Some pack up their rods and bring out the yard tools until the sockeye season arrives. I see this period as an exciting time. On any given day, a short walk along the Tidal Fraser River, it's not unusual to see thousands of salmon fries emerging on the surface, causing small ripples as they migrate downstream. What lurk beneath them, can be scary. For a fry to make it safely into the ocean prior smoltification, it has to pass by this predator. Once awhile, among the small ripples, a large splash breaks the silence. Spring time is a gigantic feast for searun bull trout. For me, it's an opportunity to catch and release some powerful fish.

The mighty Fraser was exceptionally clean this spring. Due to the lack of snow, freshet was delayed so fishing condition was fantastic for a few weeks in May. Steelhead season had just finished, but I certainly wasn't going to stop fishing. On a sunny afternoon, I ventured down to my favorite local pier with a light spinning outfit. While catching a couple of peamouth chub that afternoon, I noticed some unusual action near the tidal flat. Every few minutes, a large fish would rise on the surface, it appeared a feast was taking place.

Excited, the following day I returned with the same spinning outfit, and some homemade lures that resemble the fries in the water. I first tied on a 1/4 ounce copper inline spinner onto the 6lb test Maxima Ultragreen. Water visibility was around 4 feet, so spotting this medium size lure was not a big issue. The vibration created by the spinner will only create more curiosity for the hunters. I whipped the spinner out. The tide was perfect, semi-low, with no strong flow, it was the ideal condition as my lure could make it to the bottom easily. After 30 minutes of casting and retrieving, it was almost time to switch to a new lure. A sudden huge tug on the rod made me strike as soon as it hit. Fish on! The first few seconds it felt heavy, motionless, possibly a snag. Just when I was about to chuckle over this false bite, the fish started to run. It peeled the line out so fast that it caught me by surprise! Trying to calm myself down, I tightened the rear drag by a few clicks, and I was in fighting mode. This fish swam to the left, to the right, then a small boil could be seen on the surface. It must be a spring jack, I thought. As the fish came closer to the floating dock, it became apparent that it was a bull trout, or a dolly as the locals would call it. After a ten minute battle that was filled with shout, laughter, adrenaline, sweat, the fish was finally tailed and landed. A nice 5lb bull trout it was. The colouration was so chrome that I had to look twice to make sure those white thumb marks are present. On that same evening, the spinner would produce two more fish in the shallows.

A few days later, a friend of mine named Iwan was visiting from UK for a few weeks. He is an avid fisherman, and being in BC, there was no way if he didn't get a chance to fish. Being the end of the steelhead season, and I am certainly no expert when it comes to stillwater flyfishing, I decided to entertain him with some barfishing in Richmond. We headed down to one of my favorite spot in North Arm two hours before flood tide. The first one hour was as boring as watching paint dry. Barfishing can be productive, but sometimes the boredom can certainly lead to insanity. Just when I feared that I would not be able to show a visitor the jewel of BC, the rod tips started to dance. First Iwan missed a bite, then I managed to land a small bull trout that was around 1lb. As soon as the fish was released, Iwan was into a fish himself. The bite lasted for two hours or so. During these two hours, the action was nonstop, even chaotic at times. In total, eight fish were hooked, the biggest being around 5lb.

Fishing for bull trout in the Fraser during spring is no rocket science. The key is timing. Knowing where the fish are is a confidence boost. If you are just casting blindly and hoping to hook a fish without any research, then most likely you will end up empty handed. I generally find that my success mostly occurs during the period between two hours before and after flood tide. Whether lures or bait should be used, it's a juggle that should be dictated by water clarity. If freshet has not arrived, lures can be very effective as they imitate the natural food that they consume. Bull trout are not picky, they are predators that will eat anything at anytime. As long as the roe is fresh, it will entice a bull trout easily.

These bull trout fight hard! An eating machine that has been engulfing salmon fries every minute will not give up so easily when hooked. 6 to 8lb test line is ideal. For barfishing, I prefer to utilize a large barbless hook so the fish will not swallow it. For fishing rods, a spinning rod between 6 and 8 feet that is ranked between 4 and 8lb test is more than enough.

Bull trout is a protected species in Southern BC, all fish must be released. It's a species whose population was once in great danger but it is making a tremendous comeback today. Enjoy this fantastic and less known fishery, but don't take it for granted, release your fish with care.