OUTLOOK
June is almost here and there are plenty of reasons to get out on the water right now!
Interior lake fishing continues to produce, with chironomids still accounting for lots of fish, while mayflies, damsels, sedges, and leeches are becoming increasingly important as trout settle into their early summer feeding patterns. Closer to home, local bass fishing has been providing consistent action, and many fish are now moving into the spawn phase.
On the river side, the first signs of early season coho are beginning to show up on the Cap. Conditions remain low and clear, but anglers who time things right around tides and low-light periods are starting to connect with fish.
For saltwater anglers, the excitement is building with hatchery coho opening on June 1. Now is the perfect time to get gear organized, stock up on a few proven producers, and make sure everything is ready for the weeks ahead. With coho, lingcod, rockfish, and crabbing opportunities all on the menu, there is no shortage of options as we roll into June.
If you missed it earlier this week, we also share our latest Stillwater Series video where Jason breaks down how we approach fishing for trout in deep water.
Check it all out and more below!
CLASSES AND COURSES
Introduction to Fly Fishing
Introduction to Fly Fishing Trout Streams
Stalking trout on mountain streams defines fly fishing. In this course we will teach you the fundamental techniques for fly fishing trout streams; dry fly fishing, nymphing, and streamer fishing. This course will get you as close to being Brad Pitt (River Runs Through It) as you will ever be! This course is comprised of one 3hr evening seminar.
Cost: $85.00+GST
Date: June 16, 2026
Time: 6:30pm - 9:30pm
INDUSTRY EVENTS AND UPDATES
BC Family Fishing Weekend
June is almost here and that means that Family Fishing Weekend is coming up!
B.C.’s Family Fishing Weekend is an annual celebration of fishing that coincides with the Father’s Day weekend. In 2026, the three-day event takes place from June 19th to 21st. This is a great chance to get together with family and friends and try fishing!
From free licences for certain fisheries to events throughout the province this is a great weekend! Check out all the details here!
FEATURE - TROUT ON THE DANGLE
If you missed it earlier this week we released the latest video in our Stillwater Series.
Deep Water Dangling for Trout | A Simple Stillwater Technique That Works
In our latest video in our Stillwater Series, we break down exactly how we approach dangling for trout in deep water using fast-sinking lines, sonar, and a simple but highly effective setup that allows you to stay in the strike zone consistently.
Don’t want to miss a video? – Subscribe to our YouTube channel today.
PRODUCT FEATURE
We have some great Spring sales on electronics! Lowrance electronics are on sale until Sunday May 31, and Garmin just announced a sale on Fish Finders just in time for Father’s Day 2026, which runs until June 21 on LiveScope items and June 29 on Echomap UHD2 items..
Check out all the specials instore and online here!
FRESHWATER FISHING REPORT
Capilano River Fishing Report
The Capilano have some slight water movements this week and a few fish have been seen slipping up in the low water. All signs point to Coho… we have berries ripening, cottonwoods in the air, and a saltwater opening Monday.
The season has had a slow start with only a few keen anglers bagging fish. I wanted to go over some simple tricks to help newer anglers target these early season fish:
Think small and light:
Low clear conditions warrant smaller presentations. Small beads in the 8 mm range or small clumps of roe will help find picky coho. STS Fluorocarbon leaders will be invisible in the water in the 10-8lb range… these are not huge fish. Rio Fluorocarbon leaders will also help sink smaller flies for the fly chuckers. On the fly try to have a few flashy and a few subtle patterns with very little flash. We see some trout patterns cross over to make great early season coho flies. Check out the lake leech boxes for inspiration there.
Cover HOLDING water not moving water:
Fish will move up when they feel it's safe. This is usually when water levels bump, when the water has some colour to it, or under the cover off the evening and early morning dark. With the current conditions expect to target the fish in holding water after they have made there run up. I usually skip the shallower “moving” water. They will seek out the darker deeper pools when the sun comes up. This also makes the first light bite quite important and leads to our last point…
Timing is everything:
The last piece the puzzle and arguable the most important. Fish will also push up the river with high tides, and rain. The ideal timing would be a bit of rain, a high tide in the early am, and a water bump. If all three happen you will probably see me there. Look for each of these features on their own but if the start aligns, I have had my best days when all three come together.
As I mentioned the early fish are not historically giants so medium and medium/light gear will do the trick. Check out the Daiwa crossfire spinning combos to get started or explore the Loomis GCX range for something truly exceptional for the fishery. Fly anglers can have luck using a 6wt or similar will be plenty. The Redington wrangler can be a great start and the new Orvis range of Recons and Helios rods just might be our new shop favorites.
Take care when adventuring up and down the North Shore cliffs. This is a dynamic system with steep hiking and precarious fishing spots. Watch for changing river and water conditions and leave your fishing location cleaner than when you found it.
Eric
STILLWATER FISHING REPORTS
Lower Mainland Bass Fishing Reports
Another week of wild and unexpected weather made for another interesting week of bass fishing in the Lower Mainland. Despite the moments of cold and wet, Spring has arrived in the minds of local largemouth and the couple of pre-spawn ponds I fish have now moved into spawn time. While this can make for a very easy, predictable fishery, repeatedly casting at and catching the same bedding bass can be really tough on fish survival rates. Fish more than just on the spawn beds and you’ll not only catch more bass, but you’ll also spread the pressure out too!
A couple of hours in the evening after work are well worth it this time of year!
While these fish aren’t super interested in feeding once they’ve begun to defend their spawn bed, they do become very territorial and will move quickly to defend their space. Fishing unweighted soft plastics are always a play during this time of year because they spend so much time in the strike zone, but I also like to fish dropshot, shaky head, and ned techniques for the same reason. The easiest technique to learn as a beginner of the three is undoubtedly Ned rigging, as it’s as simple as tying the appropriate jig head on the end of your line, and we’ve got plenty of the VMC NRJ Ned Rig Jig heads in stock! I don’t geek out too hard on the colour of the jig head itself as it’s usually sitting in the soft bottom, but I always keep a couple of contrasting colours of plastic for them. As with all plastics, if you carried a black/blue and a green pumpkin flavour you’d be well prepared, but I also like to carry something a little brighter and more “nuclear” like the Crushcity Ned BLT in Green Pumpkin Chartreuse Pepper!
Jay Awrey
BC Interior Lakes Fishing Report
May flew by as usual and for the most part there was great lake fishing throughout the province and in the popular Regions such as 3, 5, and 8. The focus for May is always on chironomids and there will be more of that to enjoy on the higher elevation lakes as we get into the first few weeks of June.
The trout were mostly on chironomids this past week, but we are seeing more and more mayflies and damsels each trip.
June brings more opportunities for both fish and anglers. If you’re heading out this weekend, be ready for mayflies, damsels, sedge (caddis), dragonflies, and possibly larger “bomber” chironomids on the right lake. If those aren’t producing, keep your leech and blob flies handy—they’ve saved many slow June days. This time of year, conditions can change quickly, so you won’t know what to expect until you’re on the water.
If you do happen to hit some good chironomid fishing, the fish are often out in the deep water this time of year. That means fishing chironomids straight up and down with a sinking line, unless you enjoy casting 30 foot plus leaders.
To learn more about this technique, often called dangling, check out my latest video Deep Water Dangling for Trout. Most people equate dangling with chironomid fishing and that is certainly what most anglers are doing when employing this technique. It works equally well with blobs, leeches and similar flies, so don’t be afraid to experiment with different patterns and use dangling to get your offerings down to the deep feeding zones often encountered in June, July and August.
See you in the shop or on the water,
Jason Tonelli
SALTWATER FISHING REPORTS
Vancouver Saltwater Salmon Fishing Report
With June almost upon us that means one thing for saltwater anglers – time to start getting your coho gear ready to go! As of Monday June 1, coho will be open in area 29-3 as well as most parts of area 28 for 2 hatchery coho per day, size limit of 30cm or greater. This means we can fish the productive waters off South Bowen for coho and out on the Hump as well.
A productive early season coho charter from last year!
The past few seasons we have had productive coho fishing right from the start on opening day and we are hoping for the same this year! Prepping and getting ready now pays dividends as it allows you to spend more time fishing instead of looking for items you wish you hadn't forgotten.
Where are your top producing flashers? Your go-to hoochies? Do you have lots of pre-tied leaders ready to go and drop as you deal with a fish in the net? Do you even know where your net is? Did you break a rod last year and forget to replace it?
If you are looking for a new net, our staff and guides have come to really like the Gibbs nets: with their vinyl coated bags, tangles caused by hooks going through traditional knotted bags are greatly reduced, as well as the knotless vinyl being easier to clean and maintain.
When it comes to flashers, most of us will focus on UV and reflective flashers over glow flashers. As fisheries change and anglers start targeting fish at deeper depths, most experienced coho anglers will stay in the top 40' of the water column where light has fairly decent penetration.
Metallic Betsy series flashers are always a good choice, with other UV blades being found in the mix as well.
UV Purple, UV Chartreuse, and UV Green are all popular options to round out your kit. Some flashers have a mix of glow/UV already built in such as the Salty Dawg, amongst others.
Some local favourites for tricking coho
For hoochies, you can't go wrong with anything that is White and/or Chartreuse, especially with the addition of mylar inserts.
Essentially, the more flash, the better. Don't be scared to throw a disco down there.
Any of your pearl and/or UV white hoochies paired up with some mylar inserts will be a safe starting point, of which you may not have to deviate from.
For added action, anglers may also place Wiggle-Fin Action Disc's in front of their hoochies to give them some extra flair.
Spoons work great as well, with anglers still sticking to the UV/Reflective options. Silver Knight series or other nickel-plated spoons are a great choice, as well as other bright and fun UV-themed spoons such as Party Girl by Gibbs.
For leaders, most anglers will rig their hoochies on shorter and stouter leaders- allowing the flasher to impart and give action to the lure. 40lb-50lb Maxima is the most common line, as it's quite stiff and allows the flasher to influence the hoochie. Keeping it shorter around the 28"-30" range also allows the hoochie to get whipped/kicked around.
Some common lure choices for targeting coho
When fishing for coho, concentrate on the top 60 feet of the water column and don’t be surprised if you hit fish right on the surface when letting out the gear. When it comes to trolling speeds, it's okay to be a little bit faster than how you'd fish chinook so don't worry if your angle looks a little off, as long as your gear is working that is the important part. I'd rather go a tad faster than slower when to targeting coho.
Check out our video from a couple of seasons past where Jason chats through our top coho spoons, flashers and hoochies. The video also covers leader lengths for coho as well as some tips on boat speeds while targeting these fun and exciting fish.
Remember that chinook is closed to fishing in our local waters, meaning that you should not be fishing for nor targeting chinook. There are a lot of them around, so when you get a chinook while coho fishing, and you definitely will, simply release it carefully at the side of the boat and continue on with your coho tactics.
Also, don’t forget that bottom fishing for lingcod and rockfish is also open over in the Gulf Islands. We are doing trips there for these species and will now add coho to the list, along with some chinook fishing as it is open for C&R opportunities in area 17. Overall, a fantastic day can be had in this area with bottom fish, coho, and chinook making for a lot of action!
Crabbing has been excellent as well and we are dropping crab traps on all our charters right now. To book a trip, give us a call at 778-788-8582.
If you have your own boat and want to get setup with all the top coho gear and crabbing essentials, come by the shop for some expert advice and the top coho producers!
Keep your eyes on the rods,
Jordan Simpson
