Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum

Fishing in British Columbia => Fly Fishing Cafe => Topic started by: mykisscrazy on September 07, 2011, 09:19:16 AM

Title: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: mykisscrazy on September 07, 2011, 09:19:16 AM
So I hear of lots of people catching fish on spinners and spoons.
Anyone having any luck flyfishing?
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: frozensalmon on September 07, 2011, 09:20:15 AM
I met a guy he said he got 30 pinks in 1 hour on fly on his secret spot............
lol
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Tex on September 07, 2011, 10:54:22 AM
I met a guy he said he got 30 pinks in 1 hour on fly on his secret spot............
lol

Which is in his bed, because he must've been dreaming for those kind of numbers to be true?  lol
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Easywater on September 07, 2011, 12:01:12 PM
No, large-number-fish days for pinks on the fly are easily reached.
Most are fly-flossed but it doesn't really matter.

I wll be doing a pink fly day or two in the near future.
My arm is going to be sore for a week or so after that.

Last season, I hooked a pink near the tail and it took me 100 ft into my backing.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: bluenoser on September 07, 2011, 12:47:12 PM
30 pinks in one hour...2 min per fish...that is fast.

Saw a guy hook into three fishing around No#3 rd yesterday...his back cast look a little dangerous but maybe that was just the angle I was at compared to him....he was using a quick strip retrieve.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: katfish on September 07, 2011, 12:56:58 PM
How was the back cast dangerous.  Too close to the head?  Should have had rod out to side more, not straight up over and down.  I'm new to fly fishing and once  took a hook to the face.  Lucky I did not get hurt!  It was windy too.  Thanks
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Tex on September 07, 2011, 01:39:38 PM
No, large-number-fish days for pinks on the fly are easily reached.
Most are fly-flossed but it doesn't really matter.

Large numbers on the fly are entirely possible, but as pointed out one fish every two minutes for an hour straight seems pretty incredible.  :)  And it's tougher to floss the fish in the tidal fraser than it would be where there is more current.  That's ok though, maybe it DID happen, and that would make for a magical day! 
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Tex on September 07, 2011, 01:41:29 PM
How was the back cast dangerous.  Too close to the head? 

I think the dangerous backcast might've referred to the people walking on the pathway behind the caster, rather than the backcast being a danger to the angler himself.  Though I entirely agree, backcasts CAN be dangerous to the angler, I know you're not the only one who has hit him or herself in the face with a fly before!  ;)
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: bigblockfox on September 07, 2011, 02:22:17 PM
i am going to try the fly on my boat this weekend. hopefully it works because it would be a blast to hook into fish of that size on a 6 wt. i dont think i would even try a fly from shore. gonna bring the spin caster as backup.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Tex on September 07, 2011, 02:47:52 PM
i am going to try the fly on my boat this weekend. hopefully it works because it would be a blast to hook into fish of that size on a 6 wt. i dont think i would even try a fly from shore. gonna bring the spin caster as backup.

It definitely CAN work, as Pinks will take the fly aggressively, I've had some great days flyfishing for them over the years in various places.  Flyfishing can be a lot tougher in low-visibility conditions such as we're having right now, you'll do better if you can find clear(er) water while you're out there.  Also stick with highly visible flies that incorporate bright colours (including metallic wraps, etc) and present strong silhouettes.

Good luck!
:D
Tex
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: bigblockfox on September 07, 2011, 02:58:03 PM
i think i have some proper flys for average water conditions. cant wait. but i will try to find better water probably by the mouth
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Sandman on September 07, 2011, 05:23:33 PM
I only fly fish (although my daughter's first pink was on a croc) and although I have stopped reporting, I have not been skunked on the Fraser yet, although I have had 1 day with only 1 fish.  I can honestly say not one of the pinks I have caught is flossed.  Every one is caught on the retrieve, stripped straight back up the river, and usually within the last few meters.  I have never hooked a pink on the drift or the swing in the Fraser.  I have also had great days with numerous fish but that might be 5 fish in an hour.  To catch one fish every 2 minutes you would not be fighting the fish for more than 1 minute and I have not had a fish yet come to hand so quickly.  These have been some strong fighting pinks (many over 7 pounds).  I can see 30 "bites" in an hour possible (had a similar experience years ago in the Charlottes fly fishing the salt chuck for pink for the first time), but I was missing the majority of the strikes due to inexperience. However, fishing the Fraser, with the visibility so low, I find it hard to believe that you would get a bite on every cast (and that would be necessary to achieve those numbers) especially when I found that a slow retrieve produced more hits and a slow retrieve means fewer casts in an hour.  This sounds like an exaggeration, (but what fish story isn't?), that being said, I have seen my flies out perform the gear around me on every outing except my last when two guys in a boat beside me hooked 4 fish on small pink spin-n-glo's in the time I hooked 1 (about an hour).  That said, once I found out how they were fishing them (very slowly and near the bottom) and adjusted my methods (rapid sinking line and ultra slow retrieve) my own pace picked up after they left.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: dmoney on September 07, 2011, 05:28:55 PM
Which is in his bed, because he must've been dreaming for those kind of numbers to be true?  lol

LOL Spence, I agree. 30 fish in an hour isn't difficult to believe, it's impossible to believe. It didn't happen. A fish every cast would result in fewer than one every 2 minutes, unless there was no hook on his fly :)

D$
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: steelie-slayer on September 07, 2011, 06:52:51 PM
i think he had fishermans disease or on stoner time, and his one hour was probly actually all day  ::) or he counts long line releases as catches.
I know i have had times where i have hooked pinks on EVERY cast flyfishing but thats in clear rivers in pools stacked with fish.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: bigblockfox on September 07, 2011, 09:51:08 PM
thanks for the info sandman, even though you were referring to the 30 fish per hour. i wasn't sure on which line to try first. i will try that sunday.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Sandman on September 09, 2011, 11:07:28 PM
What size flies are you using? Are they bigger than normal because of the water clarity? ::)

I think I mentioned previously (maybe on another thread) that I had tried bigger flies as I thought they might help the fish see them in the low visibility of the Fraser, but it has been the usual Size 6-8 that have taken the fish.  I have smaller flies for the clearer waters of the Harrison but I did not get any hit on those either.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: ricer on September 11, 2011, 07:12:30 AM
Where have the pinks gone?
Seems a little early for the pink run to be over - i know the commercial seines are fishing (only 3 or 4 out in the strait) as we went out to sandheads yesterday.  We only caught one.  Saw some small schools of fish here and there.  I heard the run was downgraded as well to 17 million?  It was just getting fun!
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: bigsnag on September 11, 2011, 08:59:05 AM
fished lower tidal Fraser yesterday. Started off with Pink daredevil with white lightening stripe down the middle and even though small schools of pinks continually streamed by bites were far and few. Switched to the fly rod with a clear tip and started to get bites steadily. A slow strip was the key and the bites came quite close into shore,about a rod length and a half in. Finished the day with a limit of pinks, lost about as many and a total of about 11 fish on the fly.
The best fly for that day was ones that were solid pink / cerise,with a marabou tail.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: ricer on September 11, 2011, 05:42:40 PM
good to hear

went up to look at peg leg - rumour has it they dregged it out so no one can cross because people were getting stuck last year and spilling oil and gas into the river.  an alternative might have been to make it more passable!

fly fished below peg leg and caught a couple but couldn't get out to where they really were cruising
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: ricer on September 11, 2011, 05:43:26 PM
good to hear

went up to look at peg leg - rumour has it they dregged it out so no one can cross because people were getting stuck last year and spilling oil and gas into the river.  an alternative might have been to make it more passable!

fly fished below peg leg and caught a couple but couldn't get out to where they really were cruising

where abouts were you fly fishing - pm if you like
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: steelie-slayer on September 11, 2011, 09:06:10 PM
i use a size 6 shrimp style fly thats pink with a green bead and black tail and it works good for the fraser and for clear water a blue tail instead of black
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: ricer on September 13, 2011, 07:08:31 AM
what tides are you guys finding the best?
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Sandman on September 13, 2011, 08:12:50 PM
I have not been out in over a week, but it was always incoming tide, and usually tailed off after the switch and the tide started going out again.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Damien on September 15, 2011, 09:13:35 AM
Has anyone tried fishing from the flat on the south side of the river just east of Deas Island Park?  Seems at low did one can get way out there, with obviously a ton of back casting space as you are a few hundred feet out from shore.  I could see oodles of pinks jumping very close to shore out there.
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: ricer on September 15, 2011, 11:21:30 AM
very muddy i am guessing  - you might sink
Title: Re: Fraser Tidal - Fly Fishing Pinks
Post by: Damien on September 15, 2011, 12:12:59 PM
wear snow shoes!

 ;)