First coho of the year!
Published on April 8th, 2009 by Rodney
Just when you think that you’ve had it all figured it out, mother nature throws a curve ball and makes you go “Huh?”
I was just getting used to fishing without my Goretex jacket in last few days’ gorgeous weather, it all went downhill this morning as I woke up to howling wind and grey sky. Nevertheless, it wasn’t going to stop me from heading out this evening because when the Tidal Fraser is hot, you have to take advantage of it before it dies off. It’s a big piece of water, fish can come fast but can also disappear fast.
The wind was blowing from the south today, which is not so favourable for fishing along the north shore of South Arm. I decided to pick a spot on the north side of Richmond instead, where I could be somewhat sheltered from the gusts.
I headed out just after flood tide at around 6:30pm. I find that I am more likely to catch something when the outgoing tide coincides with dusk. Water was slightly dirtier than yesterday, but still very reasonably clean. The wind caused chops on the main channel, but I was looking for sheltered spots such as small bays that are formed by rock piles. All the fish have been hooked just several feet from shore, so best to break down the shallow portion into sections and tackle them individually.
I started with the fry pattern once again. I could see salmon fry swimming by my feet in large schools once again. Just minutes after I started casting, I spotted one shiny fish clearing the water just outside my casting distance. Cutthroat trout? I said to myself. Obviously, what else could it be? Another swirls appeared soon after, this time even closer to me.
Just I was getting excited, the rod was tugged hard. I hooked up and felt one head shake after another one at the end of the line. A silver body soon appeared on the surface, followed by a leap before it dashed straight toward me. I stripped the line in as fast as possible without burning my other hand with it. Once I caught up, it went straight toward the shallow mud flat where I wanted to land it. Perfect! I walked over and turned the fish to its side. It was huge! It had to be the biggest cutthroat trout that I’ve seen or caught down here! After a closer inspection, I was shocked. It was no cutthroat trout at all, it was a coho salmon!
How was this possible? The weather felt like October, but it is April, right? Even though it was a hatchery clipped fish, I watched it swim away since I had not expected to keep any fish in the first place. Beyond excited, I hopped back on the rocks and casted the fly out once again. A big swirl soon appeared in front of me. There were more around! I soon hooked another fish, but the line slacked immediately. The line came back fly-less, the leader must have been damaged during the previous fight.
With another fly tied on, I was back at it again. Although the next thirty minutes produced no action, I was blown away by what I was seeing in front of me. I counted at least seven more rises. Beside a couple of swirls, all were leapers and appeared to be coho salmon. They were just beyond my casting distance, which probably explained why there weren’t more hook-ups. I attmpted until it became too dark to even see my own fly.
Once again, the Tidal Fraser has proven that it will always be unpredictable, doesn’t matter how much fishing time you have invested on it. What will tomorrow bring?