Tofino BC Saltwater Fishing Report
By Jeff Hale, Fishing Tofino | Last updated: April 10th, 2012
Fisheries and Oceans Canada confirmed that the halibut fishing season has opened on March 1st this year. The recreational share of the total allowable catch has also increased from the historic 12% to 15%. Retention is still one halibut per day, two possession, but this means halibut fishing opportunities should remain open through the entire summer.
On Good Friday, early season fishing in TOFINO is going strong, with nice size halibut coming in from everywhere (you don't necessarily have to go far this time of year) and salmon in the mid to high teens caught right off outside of the bay.
Captain Jeff of www.fishingtofino.ca reports that the halibut are coming in close to shore in Tofino and a team got two - 35 & 40 lb halibut in the morning before the wind picked up later in the afternoon. The huge bait schools are forming offshore which is always a good sign on the depth sounder.
Captain Jeff comments that a friend went up north from Tofino and hit a school of chinook salmon. They caught and released over 9 salmon within about 2 hours ranging from 10lbs to 20lbs. The spring salmon are acrobatic and feisty.
There is no doubt that the early season fishery for 2012 is shaping up to be a banner year again. Many are talking about June and July being the best months for the big springs. With the coho fishing only getting better and better after July 1st. So take your pick of your favorite salmon whether it be spring or coho and come on out for a day or two. Please phone toll-free 1-888-732-3077 for more information!
Jeff Hale
Fishing Tofino
Here is a returning guest's two day fishing trip diary in July 2011.
Day 1
We left the dock at 6:00am and off to Portland Point Bank, it was a smooth 30 minute run. The new 25 foot Pursuit offshore fishing machine made the trip effortless and comfortable. We had our lines in the water trailing herrings with purple flashers at depths of 57 ft. The large springs were sitting just below the schools of coho that had shown up last week.
In less than 10 minutes, we had our first spring on that gave a great fight for about 15 minutes and was netted by the very capable guide. For the next hour we caught and released 4 wild coho that are the protect species on the West Coast. Your guide will explain that hatchery coho are allowed to keep. However the wild coho are making an impressive comeback after being reserved for catch and release only.
We then hit the much anticipated tide change. Over the next two hours we had THREE DOUBLE HEADERS. (2 salmon on the fishing rods at the same time) and 3 more springs between 15lbs to 22lbs in the boat during the tide change. One 15 year old guest opens the cooler and stares in amazement at the 4 springs.
So now the guest's request Halibut, the guide quickly pulls up the lines and heads to another section of the offshore bank about 10 minutes cruise and we are Halibut fishing. Over the next 1.5 hours by jigging we catch and release about 5 dogfish. (Maybe the British use them for fish and chips but we throw them back) Well pulling up those dogfish is hard work. So the guide recommends trolling the bottom with halibut lures (less work) and over the next 3 hours we have 3 beautiful halibut on board. The halibut ranged from 15lb to 25lbs. There are 40lb -70lb monster halibut lurking out there as well.
So we have put in our 8 hour first day fishing. While Jeff our fishing guide cruises back to the dock we enjoy the surfacing Grey Whales feeding on the abundant bait fish that draws the variety of sea life to the West Coast of Vancouver Island.
Day 2
We are eager, to get out on the offshore banks and are already at the dock waiting at 5:45am. Jeff the guide had heard from another charter guide friend. A reef west of Tofino is producing uncommonly large Yellow Eye Red Snapper, are we interested? We are on the boat with a Yahoo and offshore to try our luck with Red Snapper. We pull up to the reef and Jeff the guide shows us on the depth screen the abundance of baitfish. Instructs us to drop our lines and wait. It did not take more than 30 seconds and wham, 15lb Red Snapper hit the lure on the way down. So over the next 3 hours we caught 6 Red Snapper ranging from 12lbs to 18lbs. Lots of Cod and bombers they are called as well. We were wondering why we had not got any Ling Cod yet and we did not have to wait long. When one person yelled, 'Fish On' and it's a big one. Now you have been hearing this ALL day, so it is no surprise. But this time it was big. A huge Ling Cod broke the surface with a head the size that make for trophies. Then in an instant he shook the hook and was gone. We talked about the one that got away for most of the remaining morning. We pull up the lines and decide to try our luck on some Salmon.
Just one problem, if you can call it that. There are just too many 7lb to 10lb Coho around and we want the big springs! Jeff the guide tells us that there is a solution. He pulls out these 'huge plugs' for lures that work on Spring Salmon. Theory is that they are too big for the Coho to get there mouth around. We did not even look at the watch, the rod took a dive, then the downrigger clip released and that sound of the reel 'zinging', that brings tingles to the back of the head. The guide said, 'Mad Fish On' and did this one ever run. When we finally got it in the boat after 20 minutes, it weighted about 24lb -25lbs. Jeff, said if we did not catch this one it would probably weight in about 30lbs in August due to the incredible amount of feed in the area to fatten up on.
Over the last 4 hours of the trip, we must have caught and released at least 6 Coho. They started hitting the big plugs. This was a lot of fun. But it was our last day and we wanted a couple of more springs. So we then headed over to an island that will remain nameless and proceeded to hit large spring after spring. Far exceeding anything we had seen over the last 2 days. 5 more springs in the cooler. Why? Jeff called it the afternoon bite and so it was.
On the ride back to the dock, Jeff pointed out a sea lion colony. We also noticed a group of Sea Otters lying on their backs eating something. Just so much wild life to view and enjoy! Well back at the dock, Jeff had put the call in to have the 'fish processing person' pick up our fish. We had it vacuum packed and flash frozen, for our trip home the next morning.
Call Jeff 1-888-732-3077 for a personal fishing report or available fishing spot. Check out his website and enquire about a unique fishing experience.