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Slivers Charters Salmon Sport fishing
January 24th 2007
Doug Lindores
January is now more than half over and the spring-summer-fall salt-water sport fishing season is coming closer. Most charter-guide and fishing lodge operations in B.C. are organizing for what looks like a pretty good year of sport fishing on the west coast of British Columbia. The West Coast of Vancouver Island from Victoria to Winter Harbor seems to be the hotbed of sport fishing tourism. Migrating salmon heading to their spawning ground and eagerly feeding on the rich bait resource found in B.C. waters swim right by the sport fishing hotbeds of Kyoquot, Ucluelet, and Barkley Sound. These area are often holding places as the salmon which are still eating and getting heavier feed on the vast amount of bait fish found in these areas.
People interested in coming to Vancouver Island with their own boat and gear should be arranging their accommodation in the area they plan to fish. Those using a guide service and are chartering boats and using a lodge or even motel/hotel accommodation should book their trip to avoid disappointment. Slivers Charters Salmon
Sport Fishing will be guiding the Port Alberni Inlet for sockeye, chinook and coho, Barkley Sound for chinook and coho, and Uclulet for chinook, coho, pinks, and halibut.
February and March seem to be popular months for many avid sport fishermen to organize their summer fishing trips.
UCLUELET (WEST COAST)
Ucluelet sport fishing has suffered during the winter due to higher than usual winds on the coast. The cold-snap on the West Coast moderated that and conditions over the last 10 days allowed those avid keen anglers to get out on the water. Guides Bob and Al
who both fished with clients last week and over the weekend fished the areas of Begg Island, the lighthouse, the Ucluelet Harbor, Mayne Bay, and Sail Rock with some success fishing winter springs (black mouths). Most of the fish ranged from 9 to 11 pounds and were taking anchovy, hootchies, and coyote spoons. Glow and green/white Rhys Davis anchovy teaser heads, Purple Haze and white hootchie, and watermelon, cop car and green-silver coyote spoons seem to be excellent choices to lure fish to bite. Most of the salmon are from 70 to 125 feet. Ucluelet fishing will get better for winter spring
fishing in February and March as the weather becomes gradually better. We will also fish
Barkley Sound during the Herring spawn in late February and early March. Winter spring fishing should be at a peak about the time of the spawn.
Our “Seafood Safari” is about to begin. This is an excellent opportunity for people to fish prawns, crab, oysters, salmon, and bottom fish. As we get closer to late April or early May there will also be opportunity to fish halibut.
This summer the west coast is expecting good returns of migrating chinook, coho, and pinks. The Halibut fishing should be as good or perhaps even better than last year. For winter and summer fishing on Vancouver Islands rugged but scenic west coast e-mail Doug for more information at dlindy@shaw.ca
SOMASS-STAMP RIVER
The past 7 days the water in the Upper and lower Somass has dropped. Fishing for winter steelhead over this time period has been off and on. Guides Matt and Rollie had a couple of days when 20 fish were hooked but also had days where the fish were difficult to find and only 5 or 6 fish were hooked. The river has had some very busy days with weekends the busiest. The year to date for winter steelhead has been very good and has been ranked the best over the past 5 years. The lower river has seemed to be the best for fishing. The lower river below “the bucket” is bait fishing permissible and is the busiest for sportsmen use. The upper river has had low to moderate fishing in terms of boats and walkers (when possible). Most of those having success in the upper river are using gooey-bobs and spin and glows and Janson Eggs. Some have reported to have success on large Pink Worms which of course are artificial. There still is a good 8 to 9 weeks of winter steelhead fishing. We are expecting February to be very good. River anglers should know that the Somass-Stamp is one of the healthiest systems in B.C. Steelhead fishing is not the only type of angling. In mid September we begin a very prominent coho and chinook fishery. Fall trips for September and early October are filling. Coho and chinook returns are predicted to be very good in 2007 which will develop an exciting fishery in the fall. Of course at the same time there is summer steelhead in the system and they are fished into November.
BARKLEY SOUND
Samatao Bay had been hot but over the last 10 days it has dried up. The bait moved out and so did the salmon. Winter Springs (black mouths) fishing has been a little slower this past week. The water however was reasonably calm which enabled sportsmen and guides to move around and look for fish and bait. Mayne Bay, Sail Rock, Vernon Bay, Swale Rock and the Canoe Pass area were reasonably good. There have been a number of smaller fish but some beautiful 9 to 10 pound fish were picked up by guides Mike and Jon. The biggest fish of the week was 15 pounds at 130 feet on a white hootchie and purple haze flasher in Vernon Bay by guests from England. Other hot lures have been anchovy, glow hootchies, watermelon and cop car coyote spoons. The Herring spawn will occur in late February or early March which will pick up the winter chinook fishing even more. Slivers Charters guide Doug is expecting February fishing to be very good in Barkley Sound.
The summer run of chinook and coho returning back to Robertson Creek near Port Alberni is forecast to be excellent. These fish will enter Barkley Sound during the first week of August with fishing being very good until mid September. Barkley Sound also has early migrating coho and chinook come into its rich bait waters to feed beginning in June. There will be some excellent days at hot spots such as Meares and Swale Rock. People interested in fishing Barkley Sound and perhaps booking a accomodation in the area should contact guide Doug of Slivers Charters at 250 724 2502 for info. Regarding what looks like a very exciting summer season.
Port Alberni Inlet
At this time of year the inlet does not have any sport fishing. Fishing usually begins about mid June for sockeye. The sockeye season continues most years into early August. By mid August the Inlet fills up with chinook followed by coho. These fish enter the Somass-Stamp River system and make their way to the Hatchery for spawning. Over 60,000 chinook returned to Robertson Creek in the fall of 2006. Adult coho return was low but the jack coho return was very high which means the adult return of coho in 07 should be very good. Fishing opportunities in the Alberni Inlet this summer will be fantastic. Remember the Port Alberni Salmon Festival during the Labour Day Weekend.
For more information
Call
Doug Lindores
Slivers Charters Salmon Sport Fishing
250 724 2502
e- mail dlindy@shaw.ca
www.catchsalmon.ca
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