British Columbia Fishing Blog

The first night sleep was short and rough. It wasn’t because Chris was listening to his radio at midnight. It wasn’t because of the trains that were roaming by a couple of hundred feet away from us. It wasn’t the mosquitoes. It was just too hot and the wind wasn’t able to cool things down.

At 4:00am, I heard cans rattling. I thought that perhaps they were raccoons having a good time, but it was Chris getting his truck ready. He came over and pointed the flash light at my face. “Hey! Ready to go fishing?” Mark and I quickly got ready and we were on our way to find some jack chinook salmon at 4:30am.

The method used is no different to how salmon are being fished on the coastal rivers. The bait of choice procured red roe, drifted under larger float in the 25g range because of the turbulent river current. Jack chinook salmon are males that return to the river a year earlier than others from the same brood year, therefore their size is obviously much smaller. All fish that anglers wish to take have to be under 50cm, so a measuring tape is needed if you wish to keep some fish. With a daily quota of four fish, it can make an outing quite rewarding.

Armed with my video camera, I began filming as Chris and Mark made their first casts. Mark was into the first fish on his second drift. The silver body splashed briefly under the dim light and the leader broke off. Mark thought it was a big adult chinook salmon, but I said he needs to tie up  better leaders because that fish did not look big at all. While Mark was getting ready on the side, Chris also found a fish on his second cast and a fresh silver jack was on the beach in no time.

Once Mark was back into the game, he immediately hooked up and brought in some fish. Seeing that the bite was on, I finally put down the camera to wet a line too. I managed to connect with two, before the bites died down slightly when the sun emerged. We ended the productive morning at 10:00am so we and our catches wouldn’t get too hot.

We then took refuge from the heat by spending a few hours in the coffee house nearby. By 1:00pm, Mark and I were getting itchy feet again. Mark wanted to land a bow since all of his fish had freed themselves. I was determined to catch one in front of the campground after not being able to find a good tug on the nymph from the day before. After flogging the water for a couple of hours, the result once again did not reflect the effort. Defeated, we made our way back to camp. I then realized that I had lost my landing net! A walk back along the same path did not recover it. The disappointment was quickly forgotten when a herd of bighorn sheep visited our camp just before dinner.

Freshly picked apricot for dessert

Another group of flyfishers, making their way to the big T

Indicators of a healthy stream

Seeing that we had some intense surface action from the evening before, we ventured back to the same spot at 6:30pm. As expected, the risers were having a feeding frenzy again. Mark connected with one in no time but it somehow fell off the hook once again. His frustration was further built by hooking the trees on his back casts several times. In the meantime, I missed a light take, but another one soon followed. This bow was not going to get away easily because of its greed.

By dusk, I managed to tempt a few big risers and brought two to shore. Perhaps the timing of the hookset needs to be improved, since the only fish being brought in were the ones that had swallowed the big dry fly.

Mark’s curse was finally lifted when this beauty surrendered itself just before dark. What might be even more accomplishing is the fact that he landed a northern pikeminnow on the dry fly a few casts later.

The catch numbers maybe low, but the experience was very rewarding, which will be put to good use when we fish in the same situation again.

Continue…

The August heat usually means it is time to move the office to the Thompson River valley. After the long weekend crowd had dispersed, Mark and I decided to pay those aggressive rainbow trout a visit. Stubborn trout and slippery boulders can make these excursions very frustrating at times, but past trips have always brought unexpected excitement and new findings that keep drawing us back.

We arrived in Spences Bridge on August 6th and were greeted by Roy and Sarah at Acacia Grove RV Park and Cabins. Acacia Grove makes camping luxurious. Our campsite is just a short walk from the river. The park also has showering facility, which makes sleeping much easier at the end of a long hot fishing day.

Silver twins, ready for action

 
Casting and hoping for a tug under the bright sun

The first afternoon scouting under the scorching sun was not rewarding as expected. A few tugs were felt, but they were from tinies that did not know any better. The only wiggly object that was unfortunately brought back with the stonefly nymph was this juvenile salmon.

After dinner, it was time for some serious business. The evening hours usually bring out the biggest trout that are seeking for a surface feed. Upon our arrival at a new spot, I sent out a golden stonefly nymph to see if I could be tugged. Meanwhile, Mark immediately generated some splashes further downstream but none stayed on his hook. After three or four connections, I decided to find out what the secret was. It turned out that he had been teasing them with a dry fly. I chose to walk downstream from both of them where I spotted some rises. A few drifts later, a tiny bob beneath the surface buried the fly. My dry fly experience is minimal, so even though I was staring at it intently, it took two more seconds to register that some fish had gotten it in its mouth. I set the hook, which was actually unnecessary because the trout was already swimming away with it. It took a few robust runs like what most rainbow trout from Interior BC would do before surrendering itself in the shallows. The scar at the edge of its jaw indicates that this fish was already caught before, a pretty typical sign in a fishery where catch and release is primarily practiced.

Ready to be released

Rising moon at dusk and a quiet river make a peaceful setting

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The newbie who lost the fish can file a report.

Five things to do while barfishing…

1) Sit, wait and stare.

2) Start a fire.

3) Roast a toast.

4) Attempt to net the bell that you have lost while demonstrating in a video on how not to lose a bell.

5) Snooze.

When these five tasks are complete, one may move onto the sixth task.

Catch a pikeminnow.

And another dozen.

The hands may get smelly after awhile.

Sunny with a light westerly breeze, one couldn’t have asked for better weather to host Fish for the Future 2008. This was our sixth annual event. When this project was first initiated in 2003, the idea is to promote sportfishing, but to also make sure required knowledge is made readily available to those who are new to this recreation. When educated anglers are created, resource stewards are created, which lead to a better future for the fish. This event is only possible each year with the support of BC Family Fishing Weekend, National Fishing Week and many local generous sponsors.

Maybe it was enthusiasm, the entire event only took 40 minutes to set up. We were ready to go by 9:30am! Once 10am passed, parents and kids began arriving steadily at registration for their licenses.

The pier was filled with eager new anglers in no time. It was time to catch a fish!

Perhaps it was the tide, or the extended freshet that the Fraser River has experienced this year, the fishing was somewhat slow at the beginning. The main target species are peamouth chub, northern pikeminnow and several sculpin species. There was also the possibility to catch a variety of other species such as bull trout, cutthroat trout, white sturgeon, starry flounder, shiner perch and american shad, making fishing rather unpredictable and exciting in the estuary portion of the Fraser River. Once the kids found the way to entice these picky feeders, fish began to show up on the floating dock.

Once caught, the fish was brought to the aquarium stations by the catcher so it could be observed and identified in the water by everyone. All fish were released after a viewing period. This system creates a relaxing atmosphere so there would be a willingness to learn about the fish that are being caught. Although it is not a derby, we tried to ensure that those who caught a fish would receive a small prize. Fish ID cards were also given out for future references.

Beside fishing, we usually invite several related groups to be with us because the event provides a good opportunity to advertise their projects or programs that they offer.

Fisheries and Oceans Canada has been a strong supporter of this event since the first year. The communication branch has provided reading material for anglers to take home. Since last year, the enforcement unit in Steveston has also been involved. By having an outreach program, it creates a better understanding of the agency and encourages people to work with the enforcement unit when reporting violators. The patrol boat cruise during the event is always an eye opener for everyone.

Based in North Vancouver, the Seymour Salmonid Society has also been with Fish for the Future for many years. Beside raising salmonids, the hatchery offers an educational program called “Gently down the Seymour”, which offers a better understanding of the Seymour River and its inhabitants. The hatchery staff once again brought along a few juvenile coho salmon and aquatic insects for visitors who have never had the opportunity to see them.

The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC has been offering Learn to Fish program since 2006. This successful initiative has increased freshwater angling interest among youth across the province. Although the society’s work is not entirely related to the type of fishery being offered in Steveston, it always sends out a group to our event to cover the educational component. Fish anatomy, species ID and fishing lessons were given throughout the day.

Based in Delta, Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society rescues and raises injured birds of prey back to their health. Thanks to the feathery stars, its exhibition always generates a big crowd at this event. We feel that it is important to be involved with O.W.L. because injured birds are often the result of improper disposal of fishing line and plastic bags in their habitat. The society is always looking for volunteers and donations. Donations can either be money or food (ie. fish and rodents).

New to this year’s event were the Fraser River Estuarium Project and the Greater Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. We hope to have them back next year. The Fraser River Estarium Project is a proposed permanent educational centre in Steveston, which aims to inform the public about the importance of the Fraser River estuary and delta ecosystem. The Greater Canadian Shoreline Cleanup happens each September. Organized by the Vancouver Aquarium, there are over 1,500 cleanups happening in communities across Canada.

As usual, we had a flycasting area setup for those who are interested in learning or improving their casts. Many thanks to Jeff for providing private lessons under the hot sun throughout the event. Many new flyfishermen were born today.

The flytying booth was also quite popular. Kids were able to create their own flies with the help from Floon, Carlo, Wayne and Tony.

Thanks to Daniel at DNE Fishing for running the river fishing information booth. The display of drift fishing rigs must be helpful for those who want to get into river fishing in the Lower Mainland.

Thanks to Randy and Bill at Ultimate Sportfishing for exhibiting the Fraser River white sturgeon tagging program. It is a less-known species that always needs more awareness from the public.

Thanks to George, Rene, Tim, Brian, Luke, Sean and Mary for running the fishing portion of the event. With several hundred people who were eager to try out fishing, somehow they managed to keep everything under control.

Thanks to Sandy, Natalie, Jennifer and Cathy for writing up juvenile angling licenses. It was a non-stop task. 197 licenses were written during the event.

Thanks to Mark for running the aquarium station. The bucket run was a good exercise for him.

Thanks to those who had taken our advice and chosen to ride their bikes down to the event! It was good to see dozens of bikes parked on the pier while they fished.

Based on the number of juvenile angling licenses issued etc, we estimated between 500 and 600 people participated in this year’s festival. We look forward to see you all once again next year! Next year’s event will most likely be on July 4th. We hope to continue expanding by inviting more groups to be with us in the future so this will become one gathering where people can collect all the information they need regarding fishing, conservation and better living.

The rest of the photos can be seen on this page. If you have a comment or feedback regarding this event, please go to this page.

Taking advantage of the splendid weather that we are currently enjoying in Vancouver, we took a short trip down to London’s Landing in Steveston to see how the fishing is before our big event on Saturday. The water remains muddy, due to this year’s late freshet. Fish were co-operating at times. We connected with three common species that are found in the tidal portion of the Fraser River.

Peamouth chub

Northern pikeminnow

Pacific staghorn Sculpin

We also had some feathery visitors that kept the evening very entertaining.