When Sockeye open on the Fraser River anglers seem to come out of the woodwork. If you want to take advantage of this fishery it’s a fact that you will be fishing with other anglers – in some cases MANY other anglers! The good news is that the Fraser is huge and there is room for everyone. Regardless, here’s a few tips to help everything go smoothly:
1. Know the rules before heading out. All the necessary information, including a species identification chart, is in the regulations, so read and understand it all before you head out.
2. Treat everyone on the bar as you would like to be treated.
3. Spread out. If the bar is full then either wait for an opening or go somewhere else.
4. Never cast your line on top of another’s line. Doing this will almost always result in a snags & tangles with the other person.
5. Always cast upstream but no higher than the person above you.
6. The person who is downstream should always cast first! This prevents lines from crossing and almost eliminates the potential of snags with other anglers. It also helps keep the casting flow going.
7. As you are reeling everything back in after your drift, keep your line and hook clear of people’s legs that are in the river. If you are getting close to people when reeling in then chances are you have over drifted. Shortening up the drift will solve the problem.
8. If you have a fish on your line let the people around you know that you may need space by …
a. If you think that you have a Chinook on – usually indicated by a big head shake followed by the immediate stripping out of a lot of your line, then shout “SPRING ON!” and start moving with it down the river if you have to … and you usually always have too.
b. If you think that you have a Sockeye or something else on, then shout “FISH ON!” so the people around you know what’s going on and can get there lines out of the water if need be. Typically, you should be able to bring a Sockeye in from where you are but it’s always nice to let people directly around you know what’s going on so don’t be shy.
9. If you are an inexperienced angler, or are fishing with inexperienced children, then crowded conditions are not your best bet. Try to find a spot clear of other people until you are confident in your casting/retrieving abilities. When sockeye are open for retention in the Fraser the river is usually full of them so finding a place where you won’t get your self in trouble should not be an issue.
10. Please pick up after your self and pack your garbage out with you when you leave. Better yet grab a bit extra to help keep our river clean
Caring For Your Catch: Once you have caught a Sockeye and have dispatched it, cut or pull out a gill from both sides of the fish to allow it completely bleed out. Bleeding stops any bruising and improves the quality of the meat. As soon as the fish has finished bleeding, clean or dress it and immediately store it on ice in a cooler. We have seen many Sockeye stored unbled and uncleaned on the beach or in the shallows by the beach basically rotting in the sun. This is such an unnecessary waste! After all the effort and expense it takes to go fishing, it just makes good sense to make sure our catch comes home in the best condition possible.
Good luck to everyone .
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Topic: sockeye etiquette (Read 7268 times)