Landon and his mom Sandy booked a trip on Landon's Friday off school and the soon to be 7 year old was able to show me his impressive fishing skills! When we hooked this fish, Landon took over the rod and did the pump and reel technique to perfection and landed his first and thus personal world record sturgeon. The rod had a pretty good bend in it and the fish took a few runs before Landon got it under control and got it to the swim platform so I could get it into the sling. Landon scanned the sturgeon and it didn't have a tag so he watched as I gave it one and then we measured it. Landon is now the youngest "citizen scientist" to have landed a sturgeon on my boat. He helped coach mom as she landed another one and so ended a pretty special day on the water. I think Landon might adopt this sturgeon by subscribing to the Fraser River White Sturgeon society adoption program. Tight lines Folks!

Just of few of the experiences of the year so far. From a slow day with a few bites to over 15 fish, to a day where only one of the seven fish was under 6.5 ft we have had some great moments on the river so far this year. November is coming up and this can be a month of the largest fish fattening up on the last of the drifting salmon before the cooler water sets in. Even though it can be chilly days, a heater on board and the possibility of seeing the rod dip down is a great way to spend a day on the river.

Adam and Anita came out for a 6 hour trip this week and after 45 minutes of wondering if the fish would show up, they turned up in a big and fun way. After two good starter fish the #1 Rod geared up for Mr. Big started to bounce. Adam learned what "Arm Burn" feels like and he thought the fight time was much longer based on the soreness of his arms! However they landed and help me tag this 6.5 footer and then went on to more! Another Mr. Big grabbed the Mr. Little line ( we also fish some lines with small hooks to try and tag juvenile sturgeon) and by the way the rod bent down Adam knew he was into a big fish. However, size matters and the big guy straightened out the hook and did a "self release". This is all part of the day. All's well that ends well and in the last minute of the day a nice 4.5 footer reminded Adam that his arms were still sore and would be even more so! A good day was had by all. Tight lines everyone.

Mike and Sarah had sturgeon fishing on their bucket list and decided on a spring trip to Vancouver to check it out with Fraser Legends fishing. They had a trip of a lifetime scoring the following. Landed 16 sturgeon and a huge 12 lb bull trout. Normally you might see one of the following but they saw all these in one day, blacktail deer, black bear, river otter, seals, bald eagles and of course some muscle wrenching sturgeon.....apparently the muscles started to soften up in the evening hot tub sessions at their hotel..... They helped tag 7 new sturgeon and register the health of 8 previously tagged fish Thanks for coming out Mike and Sarah.....see you again soon!

Jake and Aaron called up spur of the moment and we got out on the water yesterday. The cold snap had dropped the water temperature to 42 F and we knew the bites would be light. However, Jake connected twice and caught his first sturgeon and the largest fish he has ever caught. However when he hooked the big one and the rod bent down and he felt his back muscles twinge he said, "I knew I was going to have to trade off the rod to Aaron" if the fight went the distance. This time the big one did a roll and the barbless hook came out. Jake and Aaron are planning to come back to renew that match up in October. From here on in the Sturgeon will be getting more aggressive as the weather and water warms and the Eulachon bait fish enter the river to spawn and the sturgeon start their spring feasting on this bait fish.

The last couple of outings have been beautiful views and a couple of arm muscle busting fights. Winter sturgeon fishing can have cool crisp days but a heated cabin and some warm tea or coffee and telling great fishing stories help pass the time. The rod tip may only bend slightly as bites can be a lot lighter as the water temperature drops but the thrill of help catch and tag and measure these beautiful creatures helps us build our winter data base. Even though we are looking to tag as many juvenile fish as possible, you just can't stop these big fish from biting!