Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: lovethewater on December 09, 2011, 10:59:56 PM
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My buddy and I want to take our kids our (4yr old girl and 6 yr old boy) out to Squamish for a 4 hour adventure on Sunday. Ideally we would like to limit our trek to 20 min in and would like a poke at a salmonoid and don't want to be hassled for roasting a couple marshmellows. Does anyone have any suggestions about where to park to begin our day? Any responses are greatly appreciated. PM me if you want.
Cheers and merry Xmas...ps I do have my freshie and salt license...
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You won't find many Chum still alive this late in the season.
For a nice walk with the Kids I'd head to the dunes just upstream from the Ashlu Bridge-cross the bridge and take the first right you'll see what I mean.
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Watch the young ins in the upper area of the Squamish. Lots of pretty quick water.
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IMO its way too cold to takes little kids into the Upper Squamish area. Go to Alice, Cat, or Murrin Lake, have a fire and let the little ones chuck spoons until they get bored. It's cold out there..
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I agree. That particular area Dogbreath mentioned is indeed very nice and remote, but not suitable for kids at that age IMO, especially during this time of the year. A slightly better option may be the Cheakamus River where the road along it is paved and access is slightly better.
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In the Squamish Valley, the sun goes behind the mountains around 2pm and a low fog often sets in, it gets very cold dressed up like a Simms rep with several layers of wool and fleece. Its several very noticeable degrees colder than Squamish proper, and more humidity. The Squamish River changes every high water and that puts a lot of wood in the river, so if they were to go into the (ice cold) water, they're in pretty bad shape. You're out of cell phone range up there and there isn't much traffic- a couple of anglers or hunters and some powerhouse workers on weekdays. The road is unplowed beyond the powerhouse and requires a high-clearance vehicle with 4wd if you want to turn around. I've had to pull several people out up there and I've encountered more who at lost headed in the wrong direction, way under equipped and would have been in for a very long uncomfortable night. Its easy to forget how remote it really is up there and how little help there is if things went sideways.
In your case, you want to fish and to catch fish on the Squamish, you have to cover a LOT of water which means a LOT of walking and climbing over log jams, more so this year because the river cut a new channel thats is mostly pretty removed from the road this year. Not very condusive to bringing kids. I wouldn't bring kids to the upper in winter, at least not without another 4wd truck (not an AWD soccer mom car) and I'd abandon the idea of wetting a line if you have the kids with you.
If it were me, I'd check out the lower Squamish by the dike or even along bar at the mouth of the Mamquam and watch the eagles, there are more around this year than last year. Chum are on their redds now, spawning, neat to watch, but their no longer suitable for angling. THey do bring in the eagles though.
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Since when did the Ashlu become remote?
Did someone move the whole river 40 miles further back into the mountains?
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Since when did the Ashlu become remote?
Did someone move the whole river 40 miles further back into the mountains?
When you've got kids. Perhaps your aware that the road goes quite a ways back in sticks up the Squamish and Elaho.
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When you've got kids.
Yes another 20 minutes each way can make a difference to small children especially when they've already spent some time in a vehicle.
But 20 minutes from the Cheakamus doesn't make for a remote location-that is plain nonsense.
Perhaps your aware that the road goes quite a ways back in sticks up the Squamish and Elaho.
Yes I've driven to the headwaters of the Elaho at least three times over the years and tried more times but the road isn't always in condition-or existence for that matter as many here know.
I especially recommend the drive to anyone who spends too much time in shopping malls or in front of a computer screen-roll down your truck window and pound some fresh air it'll do you a world of good.
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Yes another 20 minutes each way can make a difference to small children especially when they've already spent some time in a vehicle.
But 20 minutes from the Cheakamus doesn't make for a remote location-that is plain nonsense.
Yes I've driven to the headwaters of the Elaho at least three times over the years and tried more times but the road isn't always in condition-or existence for that matter as many here know.
I especially recommend the drive to anyone who spends too much time in shopping malls or in front of a computer screen-roll down your truck window and pound some fresh air it'll do you a world of good.
I don't think you're on the same page with regard to the road being covered in snow and the ruts are up to 10"+ deep in spots. Suggesting to anyone, especially with kids to take along scenic drive up there is bordering on irresponsible without at least bringing up road conditions and the lack of easily accessible help up there. Remote is an entirely relative term. If you're going up (especially if you're taking kids up) near the river in the winter, its remote enough to warrant proceeding with a great deal of caution. Its not uncommon to be the last guy at the end of the road by late afternoon, if you were unable to get out by vehicle (stuck, dead battery etc), its going to take an adult several hours to leg it to the nearest house/phone, several hours stationary in damp -10* conditions common at night there now is not going to be pleasant for anyone even when properly equipped, let alone children.
I've had to give assistance to numerous people on the upper Squamish because they were stuck, dead battery, flat tire, floated the river and left the keys to the downstream truck locked in the upriver truck, somehow got turned around and thought Squamish was 180* opposite direction and most recently, a group of campers looking for Porteau Cove going past mile 30 on the Squamish because Google maps steered them wrong. I was riding in a vehicle that drove over a rock that took out the oil pan and had to walk out, I've also been stuck up there for hours in the snow while I dug myself out. Too many people treat that area too casually and from what I've seen, lots come pretty close to having it bite them in the my friend, myself included. Its not the place for a casual Sunday drive at this time of year without a great deal of caution and some prior knowledge of the area IMO.
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Hey guys thanks for all of the advice.
We ended up taking the easy way out and had a great time. We walked maybe 20 mins down the Cheak (around the Wellness Center area) - had a fire, roasted dogs and marshmellows and had hot chocolate. It was a great time and the kids loved it. I did fish for about 10 mins but it was pretty clear I wasn't going to get anything.
I would love to explore more of that area in the future, but not with the 'are we there yet?' chorus and my fwd vw wagon. Squamish is a beautiful place and we are very lucky to have it so close to the city.
I would recommend it to anyone looking to expose their kids to a bit of fresh air and a gorgeous river.