Pacific Angler Friday Fishing Report: November 28, 2025

 Don’t snooze and lose!  This promotion ends at 6PM in-store and 11:45pm online on Monday December 1st!  Check out more details online here! 

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Are Electronics on your Shopping List this Holiday Season? 

There is no better time than now to purchase your marine electronics.  We have some great deals from Garmin, Simrad and Lowrance this holiday!   Promotions are online or drop by the shop to chat with us about your electronics needs.    

·                     Simrad & Lowrance Black Friday Promotion 
·                     Garmin Holiday Promotion 
·                     Islander Black Friday Promotion 

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Islander Reels Black Friday Deal 

If you’ve been dreaming of an Islander reel, why not get one at a reduced price!  These reels rarely go on sale, so treat yourself or a loved one, this Christmas and get one before they are gone!  We’ve got moochers, fly reels and centrepins in stock!    

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Simms G3 Waders 

You can’t beat this deal - Save $200 on a pair of Simms G3 Waders!    At this price we know these award-winning waders are going to fly off the shelf.   Grab yours today! 

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BC Federation of Drift Fishers’ 2025 Online Auction – CLOSES TONIGHT 

Today is the final day of the BCFDF online auction.  There is still time to place a bid or check in on your favourites before everything closes at 9 pm Pacific Time! 

There are some incredible items—guided fishing trips, outdoor gear, unique gifts, and more—all which support a vital cause. 

Your participation helps protect anglers’ rights, preserve river access, and promote the conservation of BC’s wild fish stocks.  Every bid makes a difference for the future of our fisheries. 

Bid on your favourite items today and find something special for yourself or the angler in your life! 

Cast your support today: https://can.givergy.com/BCFDF-2025 

FRESHWATER FISHING REPORTS 

Chilliwack/Vedder River Fishing Report – Steelhead Primer 

It’s hard to believe, but it’s pretty much December already, and that means a few things- colder weather, eggnog, and holiday-related credit card debt!   More importantly, it also means that steelhead season is about to get started on the C/V system.  Winter steelheading  is a time-honored BC tradition, and no system receives more hatchery enhancement, nor angling pressure, than the C/V.  The C/V is a fairly easy river to fish, but it does have its quirks, and anybody who wants to get out there and chase steelhead should know how to assess river conditions for the best odds of success before they even leave the house.   

The most important thing to look out for before you head out are water conditions; there’s no point in wasting an hour’s worth of gas if the river is hopelessly blown out and unfishable.  There are three resources we can use to check present conditions and estimate future conditions; the first of which is the real-time hydrometric data that is provided by the government, which can be found here.  This graph shows data for water level and discharge rate, which you can use to get a good idea of what the river is doing.  As a general rule, I look at the level instead of the discharge rate, and I consider anything over 2.5 meters to be high, and anything below 2.1 meters to be low; my “sweet spot” is between 2.2-2.4;  your preferences may vary.  Of course, the river may still be fishable if it’s high, as long as visibility is reasonable.  While this graph does show water levels, it does not directly tell you anything about turbidity, so that needs to be estimated based on water levels, precipitation and temperatures.  As a general rule, moderate-heavy rain or rapid snowmelt will make the water levels rise quickly- this will appear as a “spike” on the graph, and the water will almost certainly be dirty.  Rapid increases in water level almost always correspond with dirty water, which usually starts to sort itself out after the river has crested and begun to drop.  There is also a certain water level above which the water will always be dirty, regardless of how fast it came up or if it’s dropping or not.  This is largely due to several large clay slides that have opened up over the past few decades and continue to leech clay into the river during heavy rains or high-water events.  

  An example of what the hydrometric graph looks like, and how I would break it down. 

The second most useful resource is the weather forecast.  Once you get familiar with how the river responds to different weather trends, precipitation amounts or temperatures, you can look at forecasted weather trends and piece together a pretty accurate guess as to what the river is going to look like for the next few days.  Of course, the weather forecasts seem to be wrong, more often than not, but they are still a great tool when planning trips.   

Other helpful tools are the City of Chilliwack’s road/weather webcams.  They give you a real-time look at exactly what the weather is out there, and they even have a camera that provides a decent view of the river at the crossing bridge, viewable here. This can be used to get an idea of if the river is fishable or not at a glance, though it isn’t a clear enough camera to determine exact levels or turbidity.   

The C/V steelhead fishery usually starts fairly slowly in December, with a few fish being caught in the second half of the month.  Things usually start to pick up in January, and there will be fresh fish pushing into the system until April.  It’s hard to say when the “peak” of the run will be, as it changes from year to year, but fishing usually ramps up through January and remains productive until early Spring, depending on conditions.   

As I’ve always said, the key to this fishery, and for that matter, any other winter steelhead fishery, is to stay mobile, cover water, and work to find fish. Once you find fish, they can be remarkably easy to trick; I’ve always been of the opinion that a fresh, unpressured steelhead is actually a very easy fish to catch and that the real difficulty of steelheading is actually finding where the fish are and putting your gear in front of them. The C/V can be a bit of an exception to this, since the fish do receive quite a bit of pressure and can be tricky to catch, so keep that in mind. Also, remember that the saying “99% of the steelhead are caught by 1% of the anglers” is pretty accurate, so don’t be too discouraged if you aren’t catching fish. The C/V Steelhead fishery is a fairly tough fishery, and there are a lot of extremely good anglers that hit the river hard and land a ton of fish. For those of us who aren’t so lucky as to be able to fish the river every day, our best bet is to not give up- keep going at it, and you eventually will catch one.  As lame as that sounds, it is what it is... quitters don’t catch steelhead, and the effort that is invested in the pursuit of these fish is what makes catching them so rewarding!  

Taylor Nakatani 

________________________________________________________________________________________________ Squamish River Fishing Report 

Things are changing Squamish way.  Fall is slowly losing out to winter as the snow line drops, and the river level falls. 

Water levels bumped late last week, refreshing the system and adding a little more colour to the water. Fishing was decent after the rain. Coho can still be found in the main river, but you will find a large amount of coloured up fish… especially higher up in the system. The side channels and gravel beds are full of spawning fish. 

 A late season coho found when looking for egg eaters. 

It’s this time of year I start to shift my focus from coho to trout. Egging with a float or indicator setup will be very productive in the coming weeks. Lighter float rods or 5-6 wt trout rods will make the most of the feisty rainbows and brutish bulls you encounter. Fish along the current seams and choppy water. If you find a reliable food source, you will find trout. 

Swinging flies can also yield fish in the right water. Try medium sink tips and rabbit strip flies for the most swimming motion. I prefer white and flesh coloured flies, but black and olive will also work. In the same moving water, a gear angler can cover water fast and effectively with a variety of spoons. 

It is getting colder, so we expect water levels to remain low. This will give walk and wade anglers better access to fish in different water. In your adventures be mindful where you're wading. Side channels, forest creeks, and ditches all have spawning salmon. Respect the environment and steer clear of spawning redds and unnecessary crossings. 

I am still seeing plenty of bear prints so keep the bear spray on hand. The road still sucks and it’s getting colder. Be prepared for the weather and have warm clothes and the necessities to be comfortable out on the water. 

Eric Peake