Outlook  

Spring is Coming! We have an epic weekend of weather incoming and with it we expect fishing to pick up across the fisheries!

Local Lakes are getting stocked. Salmon fry are out. Steelhead reports are coming in strong, and we are even hearing that some low elevation interior lakes are close!

In this week’s report, we have details on the local lake stocking, the coastal river fishing and Jason tunes in with some updates on the upcoming interior lake fishing season. We are excited!

Also, if you missed it Brian Chan did a YouTube live with Fishing BC talking about the upcoming Stillwater season and what he does to get prepared. If you missed it check it out below:

INDUSTRY EVENTS AND UPDATES 

Join Our Retail Team – We’re Hiring!
As we look toward the spring and summer season we are looking to add to our retail team!
Check out the full job description here

COURSES 

Introduction to Fly Fishing

This course was specifically designed to give the new fly fisher the basic knowledge, casting skills and fly fishing strategies to effectively fish our local BC waters. This course is comprised of two sessions; 3hr evening seminar and a 3hr casting session. The dates below show the seminar date first and casting date second.
Dates: (Apr 29 & May 5), (Jun 4 & 8), (July 11 & 15), (Sept 18 & 22)
Cost: $180.00+GST
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Casting Time(s): 10am – 1pm or 1:30pm -4:30pm

Introduction To Fly Fishing Lakes

This course will give you an in-depth look at the fundamentals of fly fishing lakes. We explore equipment, techniques, major insect hatches and ideal lakes to begin with. You will learn all you need to plan your next successful lake trip to one of BC’s 5,000 lakes! This course is comprised of one 3hr evening seminar.
Dates: Apr 3, 2024
Cost: $75.00+GST
Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm

Coastal Streamer Fishing
Many Anglers focus on steelhead in the spring but with spring comes warmer waters, salmon fry, more active sculpin species and all the predators that feed on them. In this course Matt will go over different techniques and flies for targeting these species with single hand and switch rods on coastal streams. This course includes an evening seminar and a guided day on the water.

Dates: Seminar: Apr 9, 2024
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Seminar Only Cost: $75.00+GST
Seminar & Guided Walk’n Wade Portion SOLD OUT

Introduction to Chironomid Techniques
Chironomids are the number one food source for trout in BC’s lakes; however, few anglers have taken the time to become true masters of this discipline. Those that do, are often rewarded with the largest fish. Trevor is a former member of the Canadian Fly Fishing Team and an excellent chironomid angler. Dedication to his sport has helped Trevor to become one of the top fly fishermen in the province as well as a fisheries biologist. This course is comprised on one 3 hour evening seminar. Content is for beginner to advanced.
Date: April 23
Time: 6:30-9:30 PM
Cost: $75.00+GST

Check out the full course listing here and give us a call at the shop (604.872.2204) to sign up today!

FRESHWATER REPORTS

Chilliwack River Fishing Report

The C/V system bumped up a bit earlier in the week due to the rain and actually ended up blowing out a bit on Tuesday- it wasn’t high, but it was dirty. Low and dirty, my favourite! It did end up coming back into shape very quickly, and the river is now back to the usual program of running low and clear. The weather forecast calls for a lot of sunshine and some above-average daytime temps for the next few days. This is going to do one of two things- either the river will continue to drop due to the lack of precipitation and the low/clear conditions will continue, or the river will experience a bump in river levels and turbidity due to snowmelt and runoff. My recent track record of being wrong on most of my predictions means I won’t be commenting on which one I think it’ll be… but I will recommend checking the river level gauges and the forecast to determine what the river is doing before you head out. 

Fishing was very good before the mid-week blowout but has been a bit slower since then. I’m expecting it to pick up for the weekend, since the river and the fish will have had plenty of time to settle by then. Note that the unseasonably pleasant weather means that this coming weekend is likely to be incredibly busy, so keep that in mind if you’re heading out. 

There’s still plenty of time left in the steelhead season but, do be aware that the upper river from the Tamihi bridge to the boundary, will be closing at the end of the month, so keep that in mind! There will be fresh fish pushing into the system well into April, but there will also be some darker fish that have been in the system since December; keep that in mind while fighting and handling any fish you happen to encounter- handle all fish with care, but take extra care when handling the senior citizens! 

As far as gear goes, all the gear I’ve mentioned before will be good bets and will continue to be good options for the rest of the season. Remember that Colorado blades and swung spoons/spinners/flies can become more effective when the water temps start to rise, so it’s always a good idea to have a few in your arsenal. 

Salmon fry should be out in reasonable numbers by now, so take care when wading to avoid trampling the next generation.  

Taylor Nakatani

Squamish River Fishing Report

We had a little bump of water mid-week and with it fishing was solid. We are hearing fry reports across the system and with the heat this weekend, expect the salmon fry to be out in force. It will be interesting to see if the heat bumps up the river with some snow melt. Right now, it is low and clear so it could use some water.

All anglers heading out should have fry and or streamer presentations in their fly box and spoons or Colorado blades fish if you are gear fishing.

Our guides have been out scouting all week. If you would like to book a raft trip or walk and wade now is the time to put a day on the schedule for the sometime in the next 4 weeks. Give the charter line a call if you are interested. Book Now 778-788-8582  

Matt Sharp

STILLWATER REPORTS

Local Lakes Fishing Report

Vancouver Local Lakes Are Getting Stocked

With Spring just starting to show itself, and warmer weather on its way, many anglers will start getting antsy to hit their local lakes or ponds.

With local urban fisheries about to get their annual first stocking, anglers will be dusting off their lighter trout rods and getting ready with fresh line, fresh hooks and bait, and new licenses.

The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC just stocked Como Lake and Lafarge Lake, with more stockings to come in the next few weeks and months. For those who like to take advantage of this fun and relaxing opportunity, now is a great time to start getting kitted out.

Light trout lines in the 4-8lb test class, matching rods and reels, and smaller offerings in both baits and lures should all be on one’s mind.

Light to medium-light action rods are preferred to keep things fun, with reels matching in size rounding out the outfit.

Smaller offerings such as spoons, spinners, and baits are all great choices, and anglers prepared with a variety of options will find success. As temperatures and daylight fluctuate, so will the temperament and feeding patterns of these early fish. Some days, or even moments, an active presentation such as spinners or spoons can entice fish. That said, a simple change in barometric pressure or weather can turn them onto static baits presented under a float or just off the bottom.

Some great lures to consider would be spoons such as the Crocs, Mini-G from Gibbs, or smaller sized spinners such as those from Mepps, Blue Fox, and Rooster Tail.

For baits, it is hard to beat a dew worm either on the bottom or under a float. That said, krill, single salmon eggs, and Power Bait are all great options to consider and keep at hand.

Having a variety of baits is always a good choice as angling pressure changes in case the angler next or across from you starts to use the same thing, or if they’ve been offered a certain type of bait all morning long by the time you show up in the afternoon.

Your basic Freshwater license can be purchased online at www.gofishbc.com with various options for length of validity.

You can also check the stocking reports for each township or municipality here as well.

If you are curious about this fishery or just starting out, feel free to come by the shop for some tips and tricks, as well as a few local options to try your luck.

-Lafarge Lake Lurker

Interior Lakes Fishing Report

Interior Lake Fishing Primer 

It won’t be long until the interior lakes start to ice off and the spring lake fishing season begins! In fact, there are already a few lakes that are ice free and bobbers are dropping, if you know where to look. The vast majority of the lakes are still locked up, but with this mini heat wave coming in, things will be ice free in no time!

There shouldn’t be much winter kill this year as the lakes had more of a “normal” fall. Things cooled down gradually, the lakes had a chance to turnover, then the lakes slowly froze up. This is all a good thing when it comes to oxygen levels and winter survival rates.

What wasn’t normal was the amount of ice that formed and the amount of snowpack, or lack thereof. The ice on many of the lakes is quite thin, so that will make for a quick ice off. There is also little or no snow on the ice, so that too will make for a quick ice off.

In the mountains, there literally is no snow in a lot of areas where normally right we would be measuring it in feet right now. So, although we might be happy about an early start to the season, we might be in some trouble when it comes to summer water levels because of an early ice off and little to no snowpack to fill up the water table.

We will see what Mother Nature has in store for us this spring and summer, but we will be wanting some rain to keep the lakes full and to cool them off come July and August. If not, we may experience low lake levels that can affect water chemistry and productivity and potentially even some summer kill. That is a long way off though, and anything can and will happen when it comes to the weather, so in the meantime get ready for some lake fishing!

The lake supplies and flies are rolling in each week at the shop so come down and get stocked up. Expect more detailed lake reports and ice off tactics in the Friday Fishing Report as things progress.

See you in the shop or on the water,

Jason Tonelli  

SALTWATER FISHING REPORTS

Vancouver Salmon Fishing Report, March 15, 2024 

Things are changing rapidly in our local waters so let’s get right to it as we only have 2 weeks left of chinook retention!

First off, the 4 months of excellent chinook fishing in Howe Sound has come to a standstill. Thing really shut down this past week. We went from multiple keepers to working hard for a bite in a matter of days. It was quite shocking really, but also not completely unexpected as we have seen this happen in the second week of March before, but it doesn’t always seem to happen. It’s a bit of a mystery, as the fish seem to literally disappear and then the algae bloom seems to turn off any remaining fish. But don’t fear if you are heading out yourself or have a trip booked, we have lots of productive options still. a

Luckily, we have had some light winds and have been crossing over to Gabriola and have had some great fishing there this week. Eddie and Josh were both across multiple times this week and put nice keepers in the box on all their trips.

I am also happy to report that the crabbing has really turned on the last few trips. Prawning is also still consistent, but nice to see the crab traps with lots of keepers in mid-March!

Closer to home, in the last few days we have heard of decent reports from South Bowen. Try fishing from Cowan to Roger Curtis in 200-400 feet of water and 80-165 on the riggers. We will be giving this a rub in the next couple of days. From the reports we have and the pics we have seen, there are some decent ones in the area. It is very possible this is where some of those Howe Sound fish ended up, as they move out of Howe Sound after the herring spawn and focus on herring and anchovies off South Bowen.

Also, this time of year the Freighters and the Bell Buoy can really be hot. So far it hasn’t been that way, but it can change in a day and we are right about due for this to happen.

So that gives you some options this weekend. The Gulf Islands, South Bowen, or Vancouver Harbour. Howe Sound can turn back on again as well, it’s a big and complicated ocean, but for us the three spots mentioned will be at the top of our list this weekend.

See you in the shop or on the water,

Jason Tonelli

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