Fresh Lower Mainland Fishing Reports

September started well with three chinook to the boat today on a half-day, morning charter, on the first day of the chinook regulations allowing 2 fish a day, per angler in Area 29, outside of the mouth of the Fraser River. Green flashers with anchovies in various teaser heads were the ticket for us this morning. The chrome army truck and green glow splatterback teaser heads produced for us today, fishing fairly shallow - no deeper than 60 feet all morning. The pink salmon also continue to provide good action in the local area, and we also released one wild coho. With glassy calm waters and solid sunshine, all in all it was a great start to September! Lets go fishing!

The fall on the Fraser is the peak of the Sturgeon and Salmon. The Sturgeon target the salmon and the bite can be fabulous. Though we were expecting 4 or 5 fish for the trip my crew of 5 hooked 19 and landed 15. A great day and they flew home the next day with a great fish story to tell!

The salmon fishing in Vancouver is in full swing with good catches of pink, coho and chinook salmon happening in Vancouver Harbour and Bowen Island areas. The fish have been biting on everything from hootchies, to spoons and bait. The weather has also been spectacular, although the sunny skies and high pressure often bring some brisk NW winds. That said, when we've been able to get out of the water, the fishing has been great! The chinook fishing should just pick up so we are excited about the additional upcoming chinook opening in the areas right outside Vancouver at the mouth of the Fraser River which begin Sept 1. Lets go fishing!

The Fraser River is in fine shape , and has been for the last little while. It rose slightly on Saturday ,but by Sunday had dropped slightly. There is not much debris at all , making for some great fishing. Sturgeon fishing has been fairly consistent. I have been averaging 5 fish on a day. With some large fish . I just finished 4 days of guiding and ended up with 5 fish over 8' along with the others. Top baits have remained the same. Lamprey and Salmon eggs. I am still looking for inside edges and seams to fish. Fairly shallow. 8-15' generally. The takes and the first run on shallow water is something to be experienced. The Fraser River should start to continually drop soon, shaping up for some fantastic fishing.

The Fraser River is on the rise again. It rose a couple feet over night. I guided on Saturday and Sunday , and the river was considerably higher on Sunday. With that being said , I think the river will be on the rise for little bit this time. With the hot weather and the rain, I would expect it to rise until the peak this time. With that being said , Sturgeon fishing has remained consistent through the rise. I have been averaging 5-8 fish a day as of late. Rope baits have been lamprey and salmon eggs. Getting out of the debris flow is paramount to daily success. One has to think "outside the box" to enjoy consistent success. Looking for inside corners , slicks behind islands, or any break in the current. The main flow is out of the question at the moment. If one reels in his line , and there is leaves stacked on your in line , you're in the wrong spot and it's time to move on. Average size have been roughly five or so feet in length. The Sturgeon have been fighting exceptionally hard lately. After landing a five footer , I'm not sure one would want to hook something bigger. On Sunday , my clients hooked a MASSIVE fish. They fought it for 90 minutes , trading off on the rod, we never saw it once. Until it finally went under a log on the bottom , and broke us off. A fish tale for sure. It would have been nice to have at least seen the Sturgeon , but it wasn't in the cards that time. It's an experience like that ,that leaves on in awe and keeps one coming back. Unfinished business.

The decision whether we agree or not with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) has been issued and for the local Vancouver area fishermen, we are in the non-retention mode till August 1st. All other effected areas on the BC Coast from the northern end of Vancouver Island down the US/Canada border will open up July 14th. There are open areas on the west side of Vancouver Island and coastal BC but they are remote and not heavily fished or populated. Unfortunately, with current Covid travel restrictions, no mainland fishermen will able to travel to these destinations. The Sports Fishery Advisory Board (SFAB) and the Sports Fishing Institute of BC (SFIBC) have been working very hard over the past few years and presented fishing proposals that would address conservation measures to protect of "stocks of concern" and reduce sports fishing retention to only hatchery Chinook Salmon known as a marked selective fishery. However, on the brighter side, the non-retention in 2020 lasted until September 1st so at least we will be able to target the Chinook run in August. I and other Vancouver guides belong to the Avid Angler Program which allows us to go out and catch and release Chinook Salmon for the purpose of obtaining DNA samples for scientific research for....yes...DFO. I can tell you that the last 3 trips out, fishing no more that 3.5 hours, I have brought at least 14 Chinook salmon to the boat each time. Each trip out I experiment with all sorts of colors and gear. Since January, I have been experimenting by running dummy flashers with spoons, plugs, or bait in teaser heads and found it to be very productive. It's a better fighting sensation not having to drag up a flasher with the fish. There are lots of wild and hatchery Chinook stock in local waters. The commercial prawning season is open and typically lasts till the end of June. I don't drop the prawn traps now till about September when the stocks have recovered and the catch rate goes up. The crabbing has been excellent and there has been no problem getting one's limit but the commercial crabbing season is about to open. May 1st was opening day for lingcod (1 per day) and fishing the typical reef areas on the Nanaimo side has been good to very good. Remember though, it's now the law that you have descending device to safely return unwanted or non-retention species of rockfish. Be safe and enjoy the water and our precious resource. We are just coming to what we hope and expect is another great Coho season and retention of only hatchery coho. Also being an odd numbered year, the Pinks are coming as well. We'll be in great shape by playing these feisty Coho and Pinks before the Chinook fishery opens up, LET'S GO FISHING!