Outlook:
Break out the water-wings this weekend. From Vancouver to Squamish, there is a full rainfall warning in effect for this weekend. The EXCITING aspect of this forecast is this will bring fresh fish into their home river systems but it will also blow out many of the systems making the fishing conditions tough and potentially unfishable this weekend, shortly after this the fishing should be spectacular!
That being said, the people that check updated conditions or go exploring can quite often come across parts of the rivers fishable and have epic days catching the fresh fish coming up the rivers.
For the those of you heading out on the salt to do some salmon fishing please be sure you are keeping yourself updated with the Marine Forecast. There is gale warning in effect this weekend so be safe while preparing for your fishing this weekend.
We would love to tell you that you can escape the rain by heading to the lakes, but the interior is getting rain the next few days as well. However, there is nothing like wrapping up a wet day on a lake by relaxing in a cabin with a fire. Check out your favorite lakes with cabins and get away to relax!
World Class Fishing Opportunity!!
Our friends up a Nicholas Dean Lodge have had some cancelations this October for some prime fishing spots and we thought there maybe some of you would be in the position to take advantage of these openings!
The newly available spots at NDL are in super prime Fall Steelhead & Coho weeks in October that really aren’t available on a year to year basis because there is so much demand for them. Target rivers for these weeks would include the Kalum, Copper, Skeena and lower Nass tribs for Steelhead and the lower Skeena tribs for Coho.
Specific weeks and available rods include:
1. October 6 to 12 (3 rods)
2. October 13 to 19 (5 rods)
3. October 20 to 26 (2 rods)
4. October 27 to Nov 2 (6 rods)
The first three weeks will feature accommodations and dining at Yellow Cedar Lodge, and the last week at Pioneer Lodge. Bookings will be on a first come first served basis.
Please contact Bryce at Pacific Angler @ 778-788-8582 for booking any of these dates!
Skeena River & Nicholas Dean Lodge FEATURE REPORT by Andre Stepanian
I just got back from Terrace on a Hosted trip with 6 clients. We fished the main stem Skeena, Kalum and the Copper rivers. Due to the unusual warm summer there was a more rapid glacier melt which affected the clarity of the rivers so no skating dries this time.
Copper River run
Although the rivers were murky we all managed to hook into some beautiful Steelhead and big bright Cohos using type 3 sink tips and big flies in pink/purple and black/blue. The best fishing was on the upper Copper, here is where we fished what it was truly one of the nicest Steelhead runs that I have seen and where Gus landed this beauty.
Gus with a beauty!
If you haven’t fish the lower part of the Skeena and it’s tributaries I highly recommend taking a trip and experience not only the fishery but the magnificent scenery and service supplied by Chad Black and his team at the Nicholas Dean Lodge!!
AS
BOOK YOUR RAFT/JET OR WALK’N WADE FALL SALMON TRIP!
This fall Pacific Angler will be taking our guests fishing on the Squamish, Harrison, Fraser and other river systems for bullet chrome coho, chum and trout!
Raft, Jet & Walk ’n Wade Packages Include:
- A full day (approx. 8 hours) of guided fishing
- Instruction on single hand casting and spey casting
- Instruction on fishing techniques for fall salmon (gear and/or on the fly)
- Any fishing gear that is needed including waders, boots, rods/reels
Contact Bryce @ 778-788-8582 / Bryce@pacificangler.ca to book your fall salmon trip!
Stillwater Fishing:
Lake fishing continues to be productive and it is just about getting out on your favorite fall lake and if it is this weekend, bring a bucket to bail out your boat!
Productive fall patterns continue to be damselfly’s, bloodworms, dragonfly’s, leeches and scuds. Be sure to explore the edges of the lakes to see what color’s of these fall food sources are in the lake you choose. Match, fish and enjoy!
River Reports:
Birkenhead: With lots of sockeye in the system, fishing has been excellent using egg patterns (yellow or peach) while Chernobyl ants are producing as well!
Nice Birkenhead Rainbow
Squamish: The Squamish has been up and down in terms of water levels. The weekend forecast is calling for quite a dump of rain in the Lower Mainland. We expect the Squamish system to blow out over the weekend. Have no fear! This won’t interrupt much fishing opportunity at all. We are greatly anticipating the first frost of the year and the lower more stable conditions that it brings.
The trout and char are likely feeding quite heavily on the bounty of flesh and eggs from this year’s return of pink salmon. The trouble is finding them in clear and friendly enough water to effectively present your fly.
Squamish Coho
Andre has been working on filling the board with his proven fall coho patterns which are excellent for the Sea to Sky corridor as well as our other coho fisheries in the Lower Mainland.
The Squamish coho can be targeted with cast and retrieve lure methods as well as fly fishing. Spoon fishermen typically do quite well because of the amount of water they can cover as well as the tight locations they can fish such as wooded back channels.
Fly fishing with a multi-tip system allows you to cover a variety of depths and current speeds. The tips you will find most useful are a clear intermediate (1.5ips), and a type III (3ips). I have also found applications for type 6 tips and a full dry line, which is why we recommend a multi-tip system fly line.
Our guides Matt Sharp and Ryan O’Connor will be drifting/scouting the Squamish today (27th). Please feel free to call and pick Matt’s brain! We are left to wait for the arrival of cold nights, crisp mornings and great fishing!
Lower Fraser:
With September coming to a close and the bigger tide changes slowing down due to the moon phase, most of the pink salmon that many anglers have enjoyed spending their fall afternoons casting to are starting to taper down. The large schools of nickel-bright pink that were a common occurrence in the early parts of September are now starting to get farther up the Fraser and will most likely be found in and around the Mission Bridge area, as well as even farther around Seabird Island.
Though Deas Island Park in Ladner was a local hotspot for pink salmon and at times seemed over-crowded, those who were adventurous enough were able to find a lone rock or solitary piece of beach that allowed for peace and quite as well as some incredible close-to-shore action using small bright pink spoons. Many of the same tactics used in the lower tidal parts of the Fraser River will still work farther up- just remember that pinks are the smaller and weakest of the species and are usually found close to shore. When fishing for pink salmon, remember to think pink!
With the pink salmon coming to a close, coho will start to trickle-in, in fact, they already have started. Last weekend and including the Monday of this past week, a few coho were incidentally caught by anglers fishing for pinks. A lot of the same spoons and lures that pink salmon find attractive will also tempt coho to bite. Small spoons and spinners, such as Blue Fox and Croc’s would be a great place to start.
Please remember that there is zero retention of coho, INCLUDING HATCHERY, in the Fraser River until October 4th. Be sure to check the regulations after that date for reference to retention and size limits.
For those looking to get outside with the kids on a weekend afternoon or afterschool for a couple hours, there are lots of pike minnow and chub to be had on light spinning gear. Though they are not the fish most of us are looking for, they are a great fish to introduce children to fishing with and can be caught on relatively simple gear with baits found easily in the garden (worms!) or made in the kitchen (dough-baits, sweet corn, and cheese).
As always, check the regulations before heading out for any mid-season changes that can occur.
Tight Lines,
Jordan Simpson
Skagit: We had some solid Skagit reports again this week and from what we can gather the fish have realized that the seasons are changing and that is it time to be less fussy with what is in their diet. This time of year when the nights become cooler the fish will start feeding more aggressively. We were out last week and though we did well, we did not fool every fish that we came across – This week the reports were of much more aggressive feeding. We had reports of larger grey mayflies coming off and medium caddis in tan and yellow.
Skagit Rainbow
We still have yet to hear of any reports of the green drakes coming off. The bulltrout are always eager to intercept swung streamer flies like sculpin patterns and leeches.
Capilano: The Capilano has maintained a reasonable fishable level for several days now. The fishing has been good as expected after last week’s high water event. We’ve heard solid reports of chrome, sea liced springs in the lower portion of the river! Plenty of coho have been taken on blades and spoons as well. The coho are quite concentrated in the upper pools, with the springs being more present in the lower (or at least willing). The next bump in water level will bring in another notable push of fish. Blades and spoons work quite well for all species as well as chartreuse wool under a FLOAT using short float techniques. These fish are willing biters! Please be respectful of the fish and the resource as a whole.
Saltwater Reports:
Eddie Matthei
We have certainly been enjoying an Indian summer and although the mornings and evenings are getting cooler the fishing is getting hotter! This past week has had some amazing bites that got myself and a few other guides close to or into the double digits on fish on in a 5hr trip. I was able to add a few more photos of smiling guests including a couple of birthday boys with their birthday fish.
This is a good BDAY fish!!
Most fish are the big chinook but a few big late run northern coho as well. There has been some slow days but even then you can still get at least a couple of nice fish on. The biggest fish I heard of this week was 27lbs that I saw landed by Brian on Outrage One using my favourite gear combo, the glo green teaser head with a purple onion flasher.
No fighting over filet’s on this charter!
I have also had success with bright green flashers and white or light green with dark green teaser heads. I have also been running the anchovies and 7″ herring with no flashers which have also taken a few nice fish as well. Most of the action has been around the mouth of the Capilano river but I’m also hearing reports of nice fish off the Bell buoy as well. I’m sure we’d have even more good reports if more boats chose to avoid the crowds at the Capilano and fished the Bell Buoy.
Sunset charters are producing!
Yesterday was a fairly slow day at the Capilano with a large group of boats from the annual Vancouver Firefighters fishing derby but I do know of one boat that had all the water to themselves at the Bell Buoy and got a nice fish there. I fished there on Monday while I waited out the strong ebb tide and saw quite a few good marks on the sounder right along the last 2 mile markers.
A Capilano Slab!
With all the good fishing locally I haven’t had the chance to run further South to pass along any reports but I can tell you that the Sand heads had another visit from a pod of Orcas yesterday. Speaking of wildlife, we also had a Stellar Sea lion hang around the Capilano the last couple of days which is a pretty rare sighting so close to the city.
Another happy client!
Yesterday I had to wear sunglasses and use sunscreen but today will be a day for rain gear. We will loose some fish as they flush up the river but based on previous years I think it will draw even more fresh fish in.
Fishing should continue to be good for the next 2 to 3 weeks. Catch them while you can!
Tight Line,
Eddie Matthei
Pacific Angler Courses – October 2013
FALL SALMON RIVER FISHING: FLOATS, SPINNERS & SPOONS
Cost: $225.00+gst (SOLD OUT)
Date(s): October 2 (Theory @ Pacific Angler 6:30pm-9:30pm) & Oct 5th (on-the-water)
This course is comprised of two sessions and will give you an in-depth look at how to catch fall salmon. The evening seminar cover floats fishing, spinner fishing and spoon fishing, the three most productive techniques to catch salmon in a river. The second session will be a guided day out on the water putting the theory into practice.
FLY FISHING FOR SALMON IN RIVERS
Cost: $225.00 (before taxes)
Date(s): October 15 (Theory @ Pacific Angler 6:30pm-9:30pm)
On-the-Water: October 19th or 20th
Fly fishing for salmon is one of the most exciting fisheries in the Lower Mainland. Let us teach you the techniques and the hot spots to give you a well rounded foundation. Then put the skills into practice during a fully guided day on the water.
COHO ON THE FLY IN THE LOWER MAINLAND
Cost: $225.00+gst
Date(s): October 23 (Theory @ Pacific Angler) 6:30pm – 9:30pm
On-the-Water: October 26th or 27th
Fly fishing for coho in rivers is one of the most challenging yet rewarding fisheries in the Lower Mainland. Your instructor will teach you the techniques and strategies used to fish effectively for these acrobatic fish. You will then put theory into practice during a day on the water featuring demonstrations and person-to-person instruction.
INTRUDER NIGHT WITH DIMITRI
Cost: $30.00 (before taxes)
Date(s): Wednesday, October 9th @ Pacific Angler 6:30pm – 9:30pm
The Original Intruder Fly Tying Demo Night is back! Often imitated but never duplicated, our original intruder fly tying course is back once again. Dimitri will be demonstrating the techniques he uses to tie this effective pattern. Dimitri will show you how to use Rhea, Ostrich, Amherst, Polar Bear, and the latest materials to make intruders that no steelhead or salmon can resist. This is a step-by-step course.
A material list will be included. Each student is entitled to a 10% discount for the duration of the course.
Pacific Angler is proud to be your source for fishing education. Call Pacific Angler today, 604-872-2204, to book your spot. All classes have limited availability.
On behalf of the Pacific Angler staff we wish you the best in your fishing endeavors and we hope to see you either at the shop or on the water. To check out the latest Pacific Angler news view the Pacific Angler Facebook page.
Jason, Matt, Andre, Max, Eddie and Bryce