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[Polaris]

Went to try my luck catching salmon at Capilano.  Got there by 8am and went at it for 4 hrs catching nothing. Here's what I was doing: fishing the pool by the hatchery bridge.  Fished under float. Tried: olive wooly bugger #6,  Colorado spinner (brass, hammered, #4), Indiana spinner (silver, smooth, #2), Blue Fox (brass #2), Black Fury (#2).  Fish was jumping right in front of me (so I am thinking it must have been feeding) but not a single bite!  Any suggestions?
Are these fish still feeding so close to spawning (and dying) or do they jump for other reasons?
If they are still feeding, can they be caught with anything other than bait (which is banned)?
To get salmon at Capilano, Squamish and Fraser above the Mission bridge (and not lose your line and tackle) what strength main line and leader are recommended?
What dry fly Styrofoam pattern is good for salmon?

[mko72]

I am by no means an authority on this but from what I understand is that the river is so low that the fish in there, have been in there since June/July and are in no mood to bite, anything.  I've caught a few but have caught nothing since mid-August.

[TheChumWhisperer]

Coho at the Cap are famous for not biting.  Especially in the low water,  I am amazed that these fish can get past the weirs.  All of your techniques are correct.  Give it a try at first light, the first hour of daylight can be productive for these tight lipped fish.  Try again when the water comes up.

I use 20lb mainline for all types of fishing, seems to work for me.  Keep the leaders short and tight lines..

[Every Day]

To answer your question of are the "fish" still eating... depends.

If they are the coho/chinook any other salmon you are seeing then no. No one really knows why these fish jump. Some speculations have them jumping to loosen up their roe skeins. some speculate to say it helps them imprint on location by "seeing" their surroundings. There are many more various speculations that people have, those are just a few examples.

If they are summer steelhead, then yes they will eat. Those fish are in the river for months and won't spawn until March/April along with the winter runs. Many people will catch these fish on nymphs, dry flies, etc, especially as they continue to be in the system longer. Once a steelhead is a kelt (on their way back to the ocean from spawning) they will pretty much eat anything in sight (worms, minnows, bugs, etc).

As for the dry fly poppers... I'v had coho take after them a few times out on the island in rivers but it isn't very common. Dry flies are best used off the beaches for coho/pinks if you're going to go that route.

[BCfisherman97]

Unless your fly fishing with a light tippet and a small fly, you have slim chances of getting fish until some rain.

[Drewhill]

Sounds like you're doing everything right. Just no rain.

[Nitroholic]

wait for the rains no point till there's some water in there

[Zanna]

If you want to fish around Cap area the beach at the mouth of the cap will be more productive until the rain. All the fish are accumulating there in the ocean waiting for the river to rise and start their run.

Spinners or spoons on a low tide seems to give best results.

[1son]

yeah def need a nice rainfall and you will see the difference for sure

[Polaris]

I understand that its easier for fish to enter a river if water is higher but why does a low water level make fish that is already in a river not bite?

When a fish isn't feeding and strikes a lure out of aggression, does it just ram the lure with its head without trying to swallow it and if so how does this fish get hooked?

When playing a fish not in open water but in a narrow snaking canyon with sharp rocks that can cut the line if a fish runs around a bend, do you still let out line or just reel the fish in without letting it tire first?

On the subject of line strength, it was suggested earlier to use a 20lb main line (I assume with a 15lb leader).  However,
I've read that Chinook in Cap can reach 11kg (that's 24.3lb).  As I see it then the weakest link - the leader should exceed that.  This would suggest a leader of maybe 25lb and main line of 30lb (unless 24lb fish are extremely rare).  How to reconcile these numbers?

 

[CohoJake]

I understand that its easier for fish to enter a river if water is higher but why does a low water level make fish that is already in a river not bite?

When a fish isn't feeding and strikes a lure out of aggression, does it just ram the lure with its head without trying to swallow it and if so how does this fish get hooked?

When playing a fish not in open water but in a narrow snaking canyon with sharp rocks that can cut the line if a fish runs around a bend, do you still let out line or just reel the fish in without letting it tire first?

On the subject of line strength, it was suggested earlier to use a 20lb main line (I assume with a 15lb leader).  However,
I've read that Chinook in Cap can reach 11kg (that's 24.3lb).  As I see it then the weakest link - the leader should exceed that.  This would suggest a leader of maybe 25lb and main line of 30lb (unless 24lb fish are extremely rare).  How to reconcile these numbers?

 

I rarely use leader heavier than 15 lb, even for chinook.  Last season I landed a 40 lb chinook in some heavy rapids on the Chilliwack river with a 15 lb leader.  It took a while, but if that fish wanted to spool me, I couldn't have stopped him with 30 lb. 

Leader strength and weight of the fish don't have much relation.  Ever try to lift a child in a swimming pool?  They are pretty dang light until you get them out of the water.  Also, if a fish decides to turn sideways against the current, they can effectively pull a tremendous amount of weight.

For tips on how to play a big fish in heavy water, search this forum for "side pressure".

[BCfisherman97]

As stated, these fish have been in the river since June/July. The water is low and clear, the big heavy lures with mainline of 30 and leader of 25 will never catch a fish in this water unless of course you snag them, which is probably not what you want to do. When I fish the cap in the summer and the water is low, I use a 6 pound leader max, usually 5. With that leader and the low water, you can pull out a 10 pound fish pretty easy. There is no current for fish and the fish will not go around bends in the river because the water is so low, that only some pools remain and the rest of the river is like a creek. I have never had a fish or seen a fish out of the cap take someone around a bend. And no the "sharp" rocks will not cut the line, never seen that happen, unless the fish wrapped it's self around a boulder in the water or something. Most of the fish in there right now are between 3-6 pounds in the river river now (coho) and the steelies are bigger. Bigger fall run fish will push in with the rain.

You probably will not see springs in there that much until the water comes up, mostly left over hoes that are LOCK JAW due to the low and clear water, these fish are stale and have been in the river a few months now. Using a 25 pound leader is just over kill, ESPECIALLY on the cap. If I would fish gear, an 8 pound mainline and 5 pound leader, small spoon or spinner, first and last light. Fly fishing, like I said is your best bet because it does not spook fish as much as metal falling into the water. Even when fishing the Vedder, Chehalis or any other lower mainland stream, I will run a 8-12 pound leader max, no need for 25's and 30's at all.

Fish will bite if they do, probably not with the water being as it is, but you do get the odd one, you gotta work really hard for them when fishing gear. They will just sort of chase your lure, open their mouths and hit it. If you get a chaser don't be surprised if they turn away at the last second, cap coho do that a lot. Like I said, the water is low, clean and fish are stale, wait till it rains for fresh, biting fish.

There is little current on the cap right now, so its like playing a fish in a lake almost, so lighter line and you won't have a problem landing a fish.

[Every Day]

Fly fishing, like I said is your best bet because it does not spook fish as much as metal falling into the water.

Not always... depends what rivers you are fishing I guess.
I hit way more fish in low clear water (out here any ways) on big metal than I do on small flies.
Out here on the island during low water (like now), the moment your fly line hits the water (even with clear fly line) the fish scatter.
Spoons I find if you cast right onto the shore and pop it into the water and start reeling they don't scatter at all, and I usually hit fish.
Make sure you cast well past the fish or where the fish are sitting though with hardware or they will spook when it hits the water.

On the topic of seeing fish following and turning...
If you do see this happening, either speed up your retrieve at the end, or jig it at the end.
Also don't look past jigging spoons all the way back in. Sometimes works well on stale fish or fish that just want something different than what everyone else is doing.

[BCfisherman97]

Jigging spoons works, caught coho on the Cap and Vedder doing it and there will be several fish chasing your lure. But I don't know the waters on the island very well, but I imagine that those fish ED is talking about are fresher than the ones holding in the pools on the cap. These fish have been in there for a long time.

[Polaris]

Please explain "jigging" spoons.

Also coming back to line strength, I realize the current at Cap is weak now, but I don't want to have to buy diff line after the rains when water pressure picks up (or if I decide to go to a stream with stronger current).  Would it be a correct approach to get one main line of 20 or 25lb and perhaps two leader test strengths of 10 and 15 lb?  I mean, is a 10lb leader really that much more visible to fish than a 5lb leader?