2018 Sport Fishing Guide

ULTIMATE FISH FINDING GUIDE
THE
GUIDE
BEST BAIT,
LURES &
LOCATIONS
TOP LODGES
TO LIMIT OUT
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TESTED TECHNIQUES
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www.suncruisermedia.com Canada Pub No: 42201513 1

A WILDERNESS EXPERIENCE FOR
EVERYONE
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2 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018
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-Contents-
8 British Columbia: An Angler’s Mecca
12 Nootka Marine Adventures: A Wilderness Experience for Everyone
27 Westcoast Fish Expeditions
28 Westview Marina & Lodge: A Secret Space in Tahsis
53 Hakai Lodge
54 Catch the Action: BC Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club

PUBLISHER
Jason Tansem
EDITOR
Perry Mack
COPY AND FIELD EDITORS
Suzanne L. Clouthier & David Y. Wei
NATIONAL SALES MANAGER
Jason Tansem
ART DIRECTOR / DESIGNER
Cassandra Redding
ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS
Lisa Di Marco, Kate Parfitt
NATIONAL ADVERTISING
CONSULTANTS
Mark Collett, Brian Peck
DIGITAL EDITOR
Tracy Ubell
SOCIAL MEDIA
Megan Campagnolo
CONTRIBUTORS
Steve Fennel, David C. Kimble, David Y.
Wei, Suzanne L. Clouthier, Darcy Nybo
COVER PHOTO
Kingfish Westcoast Adventures
DESTINATIONS
16
30
40
46
56
Vancouver Island, Gulf Islands & Mainland
Vancouver Coast & Mountains
Thompson Okanagan Similakameen
Cariboo Chilcotin Coast
Northern British Columbia
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THE SPORT FISHING GUIDE 2018
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Celebrating our 35th year of operation.
www.suncruisermedia.com 5

BC Regions
WATSON LAKE
1870 CALGARY, AB
2108 403 CRANBROOK
985 885 1181 DAWSON CREEK
1575 295 698 590 EDMONTON, AB
1753
1913
620
602
606
526
931
1091
800
897
KAMLOOPS
163 KELOWNA
1379* 983* 853* 1197* 1163* 363* NANAIMO
403*
998 1370 1240* 1140* 1471* 750 391 PORT HARDY
790*
1228 789 880 406 737 525 791* 734* PRINCE GEORGE
685
988 1513 1604 1130 1461 1249 391* 10* 724
1409
2120 1084 757 1298 1264 464 217 604* 892
504
2006 975 845 1184 1155 355 23* 410* 778
395
1492* 1013* 883* 1227* 1193* 393* 113 504 821*
433*
Distance Chart
(Kilometers)
*Driving distance does not include
travel by ferries.
PRINCE RUPERT
1616
1502
504*
TOURISM REGION BOUNDARIES
BRITISH COLUMBIA BOUNDARY
Rivers Inlet
n Vancouver Island n Vancouver, Coast & Mountains
n Thompson Okanagan n Cariboo Chilcotin Coast
n Kootenay Rockies n Northern BC
Look for these
colours to find
the region
highlights.
6 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

It’s in Our Blood
Fishing is a way of life in B.C. that
brings together families, drives
economies and supports wild
Pacific salmon.
Since 1987, people and businesses
from the recreational fishing
sector have helped the Pacific
Salmon Foundation invest over $54
million into conservation projects
valued at over $183 million.
Our children deserve a future with
abundant salmon and the healthy
ecosystems that depend on them.
Donate today or learn more at:
www.psf.ca.
At least 90 cents of every dollar you
donate goes directly into wild salmon
projects.
30 Years for wild Pacific salmon
psf.ca
www.suncruisermedia.com 7
Photo: Island Moments Photography

Introduction
Guillaume Bourdages
8 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

BY DAVID C. KIMBLE
BRITISH COLUMBIA
An Angler’s Mecca
The beautiful province of British
Columbia has fish and fishing like
none of the rest of Canada. It has
giant fish like barn-door halibut
in saltwater and, in the mighty Fraser River,
gargantuan white sturgeon – both of which
could well be bigger than your boat. For the
very youngest members of your family, the
province also has plenty of fun, little fish like
small trout, yellow perch, or bass that can be
caught right from shore. The province has
27,000 kilometres of Pacific Ocean coastline
with some kind of game fish in every bay or
inlet. They might be one of five varieties of
huge, hard-fighting Pacific salmon, or they
might be bottom dwellers like lingcod or one of
the dozen members of the very tasty rockfish
family. With 56,000 freshwater lakes – 20,000
containing sport fish – and 750,000 kilometres
of glacier-cooled, fish-filled streams, there’s
almost no limit to the variety of fishing that
both visitors and residents can experience.
Looking at saltwater destinations, there
are tremendous fishing locations in the Lower
Mainland, Gulf Islands, and Vancouver Island
regions where anglers, mainly seeking the
five varieties of hard-fighting Pacific salmon
– including prize chinook salmon weighing
over 22.7 kilograms (50 pounds) – can easily
drive with their own boats. However, to
avoid additional ferry fares for a boat and
trailer, many other anglers will drive to their
favourite resorts or marinas, and make use of
the professional guides and services offered.
Even without taking the ferry, anglers can also
find good numbers of salmon within a stone’s
throw of the downtown area of beautiful
Vancouver, along the outer edges of the Fraser
River delta, or north along the Sunshine Coast.
For the ultimate in this fabulous
province’s saltwater fishing adventures, check
out the fly-in destinations along the Central
and Northern coasts, located in remote areas
that receive far less fishing pressure than most
drive-to locations. Most of the resorts that
service these remote destinations will provide
anglers with everything they might need to
catch salmon, halibut, and lingcod. Anglers will
be totally pampered with comfortable rooms
and beds, gourmet meals, and state-of-the-art
boats which include top-of-the-line fishing
tackle, bait, and complete foul-weather gear
to keep you warm and dry. Anglers won’t be
able to remove their broad smiles for weeks
after they arrive back home, totally relaxed,
with several large boxes of vacuum-packed and
flash-frozen fish fillets to serve to their families
and friends. And – they usually don’t even need
to get their hands dirty. If you’ve personally
never experienced one of these luxury fly-in
trips, trust me – it’s an absolute must-do on
every angler’s bucket list.
For totally awesome freshwater fishing,
anglers just can’t beat the destinations within
the Thompson Okanagan Similkameen or
the Cariboo Chilcotin Coast. Tremendously
fun on light tackle, coho and pink salmon in
rivers will readily strike flies as well as lures.
You’d better have some heavier gear with you,
however, because Central Coast coho often
tip the scales over nine kilograms (20 pounds)
and a few have even been close to that magical
13.6-kilogram (30-pound) mark. Rainbow
trout and kokanee are the most sought-after
fish in Interior waters; trout weighing over 4.5
kilograms (10 pounds), and kokanee over 3.6
kilograms (eight pounds), are quite common.
Family-friendly lakes, where limits of pansized
rainbow trout are more common than
not, are found throughout the province. Many
feature campgrounds, cabins, and resorts.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC makes
fishing easier by generously stocking many
of these lakes with catchable-sized trout. We
all love the sound of a child squealing with
laughter when they hook their first fish.
Look for northern pike, lake char, Arctic
grayling, and the occasional inconnu in the
province’s northern Interior. In the central
Interior, look for several thousand lakes full of
rainbow trout, kokanee and sometimes lake
char, bull trout, and eastern brook char. In the
southern Interior, you’ll find largemouth and
smallmouth bass, sometimes right alongside
the rainbow trout, eastern brook char and
kokanee. In Interior rivers, you can also find
chinook salmon, rainbow trout, and mountain
whitefish. To further whet your appetite for
fishing in British Columbia, remember that:
a 42.3-kilogram (93-pound) salmon was
caught off the Central Coast; a 12.3-kilogram
(27-pound) rainbow trout was caught in
Okanagan Lake; a 4.8-kilogram (10.5-pound)
largemouth bass was caught on Osoyoos Lake;
and a 4.2-kilogram (9.3-pound) kokanee was
caught in Okanagan Lake. Those facts should
get your angler’s heart a-pounding. For relief,
go fishing in beautiful British Columbia.
www.suncruisermedia.com 9

FIN FINDER
British Columbia’s fresh and tidal waters are home to an exciting variety of fish that lure anglers from
all over the world. Here are just a few of the many species you may find tugging on your line.
n Vancouver Island n Vancouver, Coast & Mountains
n Thompson Okanagan n Cariboo Chilcotin Coast
n Kootenay Rockies n Northern BC
n
n
n
n
n
Chinook Salmon
freshwater/saltwater
Also known as king
salmon or springs, and, if
over 30 pounds, “Tyee,”
Chinook are the largest
of the salmon and are
highly prized by anglers.
Fall Chinook spawn soon
after arriving at their spawning
grounds - usually large rivers
throughout the province. Spring
Chinook migrate earlier but
delay spawning until fall and
then spawn in smaller tributaries.
Fry spend a year or more in
freshwater.
Average size: 1.5 to 38 kg (3 to
80 lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
Coho Salmon
freshwater/saltwater
Also known as silver salmon,
coho are bright silver in
colour and are notorious for
wild, fast, and erratic fights.
Most coho spend 18 months
at sea, staying in coastal waters,
and then returning to their home
stream as three-year-olds.
Average size: 0.9 to 14 kg (2 to
30 lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
Sockeye Salmon
freshwater/saltwater
Strong, determined fighters
on light tackle, sockeye are
silver-blue in colour and are
best known for their deep,
pink flesh and excellent eating.
Sockeye fry, after emerging
from the gravel, migrate to
freshwater lakes where they spend
one to two years before heading out
to sea.
Average size: 2.2 to 3 kg (5 to 7
lbs) occasionally reaching 6.3
kg (14 lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
Rainbow Trout
freshwater
Rainbow trout are the most
popular of the freshwater
fish. Trout as large as 16
kilograms (35 pounds) have
been pulled from BC lakes.
Kamloops rainbow trout are
considered the highest jumping,
most acrobatic of any trout in the
world. Gerrard rainbows are the
largest of the rainbow family and
are found in Kootenay Lake and
other lakes in south and central BC.
Average size: 0.5 to 5 kg (1 to
11 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Cutthroat Trout
freshwater
Closely related to rainbow
trout, coastal cutthroat trout
are present in most lakes
and rivers along the coastal
mainland and on offshore islands.
It is not uncommon for anglers to
encounter these heavily spotted
trout while fishing for steelhead.
Average size: 0.5 to 1 kg(1 to
2.2 lbs)
10 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018 2016
n
n
n
n
Kokanee
freshwater
Kokanee are a landlocked
strain of sockeye salmon that
inhabit freshwaters throughout
the mainland areas of the
province. They are most abundant
in the Thompson Okanagan, Cariboo
Chilcotin Coast, and Kootenay
Rockies. The present world record
of 4.2 kilograms (9.2 pounds) was
taken from Okanagan Lake in 1988.
Average size: 0.5 kg (1 lb)
n
n
n
n
barb roy photo
Rockfish
Saltwater
BC rockfish come in all
shapes, sizes, and colours and
are primarily bottom-residing
fish. Rockfish have long lives (up to
115 years for red snapper) and do
not breed until they are between
seven and 18 years old, depending
on the species. Rockfish in BC
include red snapper (yelloweye),
quillback, tiger (pictured), and
copper.
Average size: 30 to 50 cm (12
to 19.5 in) depending on species
n
n
n
n
n
Lake Trout
Freshwater
Despite their name, lake trout
are included in the char family
and have deeply forked tails
and worm-like markings on
their backs and dorsal fins.
Lake trout are common in
most large lakes throughout central,
eastern, and northern BC and
have been known to reach weights
of 15 kilograms (33 pounds) and
more.
Average size: varies

Halibut
Halibut are huge game fish in BC,
both in size and in popularity. These
extraordinary bottom fish have eyes
and colour on only one side of their
flat, diamond-shaped bodies and can
reach almost unbelievable weights of up to 180 kgs (400 lbs). Many fishers
choose to release the larger females (over 60 lbs/27 kgs), which may carry
up to a million eggs, and keep the smaller males, often called “chickens,”
because of their superior flavour.
Average size: 9 to 18 kgs (20 to 40 lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
White Sturgeon
White sturgeon are a living relic from the Jurassic period and are
the largest freshwater fish in North America, growing to lengths of
six metres (19 feet) and weights of 620 kilograms (1,360 pounds).
Strictly catch-and-release (no retention). Conservation is carefully
monitored. Guides are strongly recommended.
Average size: 4.5 kgs to 5.5 kgs (10 to 12 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Bull Trout
freshwater
A member of the char family,
bull trout are often found in
BC’s interior and northern
waters. They are distinguished by
their large, broad, flattened heads
with jaws that curve downward.
Average size: 1 to 6 kg (2 to 13
lbs)
n
n
Brown Trout
freshwater
Brown trout have a very limited
range in BC but are known
to reach weights of 6 kilograms
(13 pounds) on Vancouver Island.
Brown trout are also present to a
limited degree in the Okanagan.
Average size: 0.5 to 2 kgs (1 to
4.5 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Lingcod
saltwater
Lingcod belong to the greenling
family and are the only
Canadian greenlings that
have canine-like teeth. They
have been known to weigh
up to 45 kilograms (100 pounds),
with the females attaining a larger
average size than the males. Many
anglers release mature females to
allow them to spawn and retain the
smaller, tastier males.
Average size: 3.5 to 7 kgs (8 to
15 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Chum Salmon
freshwater/saltwater
Chum are similar in appearance
to sockeye but have
vertical dark bars as they
near river mouths. They are larger
than sockeye and are noted for
their long, nearly unstoppable runs
and bulldogging tactics. Chum fry
migrate to the ocean soon after
they emerge from the gravel and
can spend up to seven years at sea;
however, four years is more typical.
Average size: 5.5 to 11 kgs (12
to 24 lbs)
n
n
n
Cutthroat Trout
freshwater
Westslope cutthroat trout
originated in the Kootenay
Rockies in southeastern BC
and have been successfully stocked
in many lakes in the Okanagan.
Although they are seldom large in
high-alpine lakes, they grow to very
respectable sizes in lower elevation
lakes and streams in the Kootenay
Rockies.
Average size: 0.5 to 1 kg
(1 to 2.2 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Shellfish
saltwater
Few meals can rival a feast
of West Coast shellfish. The
general term “shellfish” is
used to describe aquatic
invertebrate animals (without a
backbone). In BC waters, shellfish
include crab and prawns, which
are most commonly caught using
traps from boats, as well as clams,
oysters, scallops, mussels, squid,
and octopus.
n
n
n
n
n
Smallmouth
Bass freshwater
When hooked, these game
battlers put up a fast-paced,
stubborn fight, often with
lots of acrobatics. There are
healthy populations of smallmouth
bass in lakes in the Kootenay
Rockies, Okanagan, southern
Vancouver Island, and Salt Spring
Island. Bass willingly take bait and
lures, but fly fishers do well in the
summer.
Average size: 0.5 to 1.5 kg (1 to
3 lbs)
n
n
n
n
Pink Salmon
freshwater/saltwater
Pink salmon are the smallest
of the salmon but have a reputation
for being spirited fighters,
making them popular
with fly fishers. When pink emerge
from the gravel, they already have
the silvery colour of smolts and
migrate directly to the ocean. Pink
spend a fixed 18 months at sea;
thus, all returning pinks were born
in the same year.
Average size: 1.5 to 3 kg (3 to
7 lbs), occasionally to 5 kg (11
lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
Dolly Varden
freshwater
One of the char family, dolly
varden are present in many
lakes and streams in the
province and are often caught
while fishing for coastal cutthroat
or rainbow trout. They are
distinguished by their oval, snakelike
bodies.
Average size: 0.5 to 5 kg (1 to
10 lbs)
n
n
n
n
n
Steelhead
freshwater/saltwater
Many exciting fishing experiences
centre on a battle with
a steelhead, a feisty, sea-run
rainbow trout. There are two
strains, winter-run and summer-run,
but spawning migrations
often overlap. Steelhead spend one
to three years in freshwater, then
migrate to the ocean for one to
three more years before returning
to freshwater to spawn.
Average size: 3 to 10 kgs (6.5
to 22 lbs)
Unless otherwise credited, images courtesy of Tony Pletcher, Fisheries & Oceans Canada
www.suncruisermedia.com 11

12 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018
Spotlight

Photos courtesy of Nootka Marine Adventures
NOOTKA MARINE
ADVENTURES
A Wilderness Experience
for Everyone
www.suncruisermedia.com 13

W
ith three luxurious properties
nestled in the untouched
wilderness of Nootka Sound
and Esperanza Inlet, Nootka
Marine Adventures is the ultimate retreat for
outdoor enthusiasts on Vancouver Island.
Nootka Marine Adventures built their
reputation catering to the sport fishing
aficionado. Head out on a fully-guided
fishing adventure, bring your own boat, or
choose from a large fleet of rental boats. The
freshwater fishing is also exceptional. Within
close proximity are the Conuma, Canton,
Leiner, Gold, and Burman rivers, along with
Malaspina Lake – all located within a short
drive from land-based Moutcha Bay Resort.
Nootka Marine Adventures has also become
a preferred destination for guests looking for
other authentic wilderness experiences. Mix a
little variety into your sport fishing adventure
with a range of day trips, such as kayak or
stand-up paddleboard rentals; caving; hatchery
tours; hiking; and all-terrain vehicle trails. You
can also participate in getaways that offer a
blend of activities, including their highly rated
outdoor programs, seminars, and newly offered
health-and-wellness retreats. Nootka Marine
Adventures pride themselves in creating
custom-crafted adventures for individuals
or groups wishing to fish or just explore the
spectacular, historically rich region.
Moutcha Bay Resort: Drive-to,
Land-Based Resort
Moutcha Bay Resort is set on 25 waterfront
acres along the sheltered western edge of
Nootka Sound. As well as 38 serviced RV sites,
the resort offers a dramatic main lodge with
spacious high-end suites, luxurious yurts, and
chalet accommodations. While some rooms
offer full kitchens, most guests prefer to enjoy
dining at the Conuma Grill, the resort’s licensed
restaurant. Moutcha Bay is also the hub for
those arriving by car to access the two other
floating resorts.
Nootka Marine Adventures’ extensive
fleet of boats is based at Moutcha Bay, including
18 roomy, comfortable guide boats. The resort
also offers a premium selection of rental boats
ranging from 18 to 24 feet in length. The fullservice
marina – with 70 moorage slips (many
with access to 15- and 30-amp shore power)
– has everything for the do-it-yourself mariner,
including fuel, bait, and tackle.
Along with many on-site conveniences,
Moutcha Bay offers a government-inspected
fish processing facility. You can return home
with your catch portioned, vacuum-sealed, and
flash-frozen to the highest standards.
You don’t have to be a fishing enthusiast
to enjoy what this resort has to offer. It’s a
wonderful place to just relax in a pristine
wilderness setting. There are plenty of activities
for kids, too: a children’s playground with a zip
line, pedal boats, stand-up paddleboards, kayak
rentals, and lots more.
Rates:
Beginning in May – for $40 a night you can
rent a serviced recreational vehicle or tent site.
Starting at $600 per person, a group of four
can bring their own boat, stay in a waterfront
chalet for three nights with private moorage,
and fish for three days, with gourmet meals
and fish processing included.
Starting at $1,300 per person, a group of
four people can stay in a luxurious waterfront
yurt for three nights, with 30 hours of selfguided
fishing from a 24-foot Grady-White
rental boat (excluding fuel charges), gourmet
meals, and fish processing.
14 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Nootka Sound Resort: Floating
Resort in Galiano Bay
Accessible by floatplane, or by boat transfer
from Moutcha Bay Resort, Nootka Sound Resort
is Nootka Marine Adventures’ original floating
wilderness resort. The resort was renovated and
expanded to increase capacity to 54 guests, and
modernized to add creature comforts. Nestled
in protected Galiano Bay at the heart of Nootka
Sound, the resort is recognized as one of the
top floating resorts in Canada. The all-inclusive
lodge offers comfort and luxury for both
intimate gatherings and large groups.
Rates:
Starting at $800 a person, you can bring your
own boat, and stay in lavish accommodations
for three nights with two full- and two half-days
of fishing and certified fish processing. This
package includes daily breakfasts, artisanal
lunches, and four-course gourmet dinners with
fine wine for four people.
Starting at $1,895 per person, you can stay
for three nights, and have a professional guide
and boat for two half-days and two full days
of fishing including certified fish processing.
The price includes transfers from Moutcha Bay
Resort, daily breakfasts, artisanal lunches, and
four-course gourmet dinners with fine wine.
Newton Cove Resort: Floating Resort
in Little Espinosa Inlet
Only minutes from ruggedly beautiful
Esperanza Inlet, Newton Cove Resort is a
state-of-the-art floating paradise. Nestled in
a secluded cove on the cusp of prime offshore
fishing grounds, this opulent resort can
accommodate up to 44 guests in 22 doubleoccupancy
rooms with ensuites.
The discerning angler will have access to some
of the west coast of Vancouver Island’s most
consistently productive inshore and offshore
waters for salmon and bottomfish. During
August and early September, thrill-seekers may
also have the opportunity to experience the
highly sought-after albacore tuna fishery.
The spectacular, remote wilderness that
surrounds Newton Cove Resort attracts guests
to this prime destination for exclusive retreats
and corporate events.
Rates:
Starting at $2,300 per person, you can stay in
this well-appointed resort for three nights. You
GETTING THERE
Drive-to – From the B.C. Ferries terminal in
Nanaimo, take Highway 19 North to Campbell
River. From there, take scenic Highway 28
West to Gold River, and continue on towards
Tahsis. Moutcha Bay Resort is situated 43
kilometres north of Gold River, about six
kilometres past the Conuma River Hatchery.
Local bus companies also offer ground
transportation for small or large groups from
local centres and airports.
Fly-In – Although many guests choose the
scenic drive to Moutcha Bay Resort, they
can also charter a floatplane from various
locations (Vancouver, Campbell River, Comox,
Nanaimo, Gold River, or Seattle), and fly
directly to any of Nootka Marine Adventures’
three resorts.
Contact:
URL: www.nootkamarineadventures.com
E-mail: info@nootkamarineadventures.com
Phone: 1-844 367 4592
will receive professionally guided fishing for
two half-days and two full days, with certified
fish processing of your catch. Your stay includes
transfers from Moutcha Bay Resort, daily
breakfasts, artisanal lunches, and four-course
gourmet dinners with fine wine. The rugged
marine beauty of the region’s three major
inlets – Tlupana, Tahsis, and Esperanza – while
transferring from Moutcha Bay to Newton
Cove is a bonus.
www.suncruisermedia.com 15

Vancouver Island,
The Gulf Islands,
& Mainland
David Y. Wei and Suzanne L. Clouthier
16 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Nootka Marine Adventures
Throughout the year, Vancouver
Island, the Gulf Islands, and the
adjacent mainland consistently
offer some of British Columbia’s
finest saltwater and freshwater sport fishing.
Saltwater anglers will find salmon and
bottom-dwellers in a wide variety of locations
that range from calm, sheltered inlets to big
stomach-churning swells on the open Pacific
Ocean, to swirling whirlpools and back eddies
in the tidal narrows of Discovery Passage. Flyfishers
can walk-and-wade for searun cutthroat
trout throughout the year, or for salmon from
mid-summer to fall, in estuaries and along the
beaches of eastern Vancouver Island.
The vast region’s mainland portion
offers prime wilderness fishing for monster
chinook and trophy coho within rugged,
steep-sided fjords. Remote estuaries and
wilderness streams at the heads of these
mainland inlets will deliver incredible helifishing
for salmon during late summer into
autumn, then steelhead fishing well into the
spring … and searun Dolly Varden char or
cutthroat trout anytime.
Freshwater fishers will find rainbow,
cutthroat, and Dolly Varden in Vancouver
Island’s many streams, rivers, and lakes. The
Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC, from
the Vancouver Island Trout Hatchery in
Duncan, complements natural populations
with generous releases of rainbow trout. You
can even find smallmouth bass and catfish in
many lakes around southern Vancouver Island
and on Salt Spring Island.
With 34 ships serving 47 ports on
24 routes, B.C. Ferry Services has been
an important part of travel to and from
Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, and the
adjacent mainland since 1960. The company’s
B.C. Ferries Vacations offers a convenient way
to plan and book complete travel packages
around the Vancouver Island region.
Campbell River Area
When thinking about salmon fishing on
Vancouver Island, Campbell River is always
one of the first towns to consider. It still
boasts the title “Salmon Capital of the World”
(although the town of Port Alberni also claims
that moniker). Among the islands and islets
of the narrow strait between Campbell River
and the mainland, there is good fishing for
salmon and bottomfish in protected passages
throughout the year, though most of the
angling activity takes place from early spring
through to mid-autumn.
It pays to visit the town’s marinas, tackle
shops, and full-service fishing resorts for
expert advice and tackle selection. First-time
visitors should consider professional guiding
services to learn about fishing in places with
turbulent and potentially dangerous tidal
currents. Anglers can choose from relaxed
downrigger-trolling in open waters to
strenuous drift-jigging around underwater
structure, or experience the gape-mouthed
excitement of motor-mooching a cutplug
herring along the edges of enormous tidal
whirlpools. Between Vancouver Island and
Quadra Island, you can find excellent fishing
from Race Point to Cape Mudge along both
sides of Discovery Passage. There are plenty
of spots only minutes from the dock that
are ideal for a successful, standard four-hour
charter: the entrance of Campbell River’s
harbour to Willow Point; April to Whiskey
points; and Yaculta to Cape Mudge, including
hot spots like Duncan Bay and Copper Bluffs.
When tidal currents in Discovery Passage are
too swift for downrigger-trolling, you can try
drift-jigging, or motor-mooching with cutplug
herring in back eddies off rocky points.
The “Hump” is a small ocean mount that
lies at a depth of 50 metres, just south of Cape
Mudge. Schools of bait like to congregate
on the lee-side of the mount, depending on
the prevailing tidal current. While trolling
is popular there, you can have even better
success lift-dropping a heavy drift-jig (like
a glow Army Truck Rip Tide Striker) within
three metres of the bottom, where game fish
like to wait in ambush.
Near the end of an ebb tide, the “Deep,”
south of the Hump, is renowned for great
fishing in almost 200-metre depths. In June,
try deep-trolling your lures at over 75 metres
for mature “Columbia” chinook on their
southern migration.
In recent years, halibut have been slowly
re-establishing around the Hump and Deep.
Don’t be too surprised if you find one of these
good-eating flatties hitting your deeply trolled
or jigged lures.
For bird-watchers, Mitlenatch Island
Nature Provincial Park – a barren rock in the
middle of Georgia Strait – boasts the largest
seabird colony in British Columbia. Its rocky
shores are a good place to observe younger sea
lions cavorting in the water while big, maned
bulls bellow raspy challenges as they jockey
for the driest ledges to lay in the sun.
During spring, anglers looking for
chinook should head to more distant spots.
North of Seymour Narrows, try trolling along
both sides of Discovery Passage from Brown’s
and Plumper bays to Chatham Point, Green
Sea Bay, and Thurston Bay. In September and
www.suncruisermedia.com 17

West Coast Adventures
Vancouver Island, The Gulf Islands And Mainland
October, try these same spots for huge runs
of silver-bright chum salmon (and be sure to
enter the three-day, community-supported
Brown’s Bay Charity Derby). Along the eastern
side of Quadra Island, fish the shoreline from
Francisco Point to Rebecca Spit, then on both
sides of Hoskyn Channel (which separates
Quadra Island from Read Island). Mature fish
enter Toba and Bute inlets during May; it’s
a long run, but a trip to these distant fjords
might net you a hefty white chinook. Later
in the summer, the northern tip of Sonora
Island at Hall Point, or Denham Bay on the
mainland, are worth another long jaunt for
the chance to hook a Frederick Arm tyee that
can top 20 kilograms.
Popular trolling lures to use in the
Campbell River area include:
• big spoons (like the Gibbs-Delta G Force
“Bon Chovy,” “Trailhead,” “No Bananas,”
or “Trap Shack”; O’Ki Titan “Bloody
Nose” chartreuse or white glow with
“Real Anchovy Image”; Tomic #500, #602
“Honeycomb,” #639; Luhr Jensen “Cop Car”
or “Army Truck Coyote”; Pesca “Gut Bomb,”
“Big Gulp,” “Old School,” or “Clupea”; or
Williams Whitefish)
• smaller versions of any of these spoons
(and others, like the Gibbs-Delta Skinny G,
Razorback, or Silver Horde Coho Killer in
“Herring Aide,” “Outfitter,” “Gold Nugget,”
“UV Purple/Pink/Black” or “No Bananas”
colours) with two-metre-long leaders
behind full-sized flashers
• hoochies (Army Truck, glow-green
splatterback, Tiger Prawn, Mint Tulip,
UV purple haze, Pistachio, Irish Mist, or
Goldstar “Double Glow” OG153R), one
metre behind full-sized glow flashers
(Gibbs-Delta Guide Series UV Moon Jelly,
O’Ki Fire n’ Ice, or Hot Spot UV Purple)
• anchovy (real or Gibbs-Delta soft plastic Big
Bite imitations) in Rhys Davis or O’Ki JDF
teaser heads (chrome, UV purple, or glow),
or Jughead Shakers, with two-metre-long
leaders behind full-sized flashers
• wobbling lures (Gibbs-Delta Hockey Sticks,
or Apex Hot Spots)
• five- to seven-inch Tomic (#493, #500,
#530UV, #602 or #639), or four-inch Lyman
(#306 or #327) plugs.
Runs of all five species of Pacific salmon
return to their birth streams from late
summer into the autumn. Beach-fishers are in
their heaven as schools of pinks (interspersed
with coho and the odd chinook) swarm into
the shallows on incoming tides to attack
saltwater fly patterns and small spinning
lures.
Established in 1924, Campbell River’s
legendary Tyee Club allows an angler
membership for catching a tyee (a big chinook
that weighs 13.6 kilograms or more) under
very strict rules. The fish must be caught
with a rod and reel in the Tyee Pool, at the
mouth of the Campbell River, from a guiderowed
craft. Anglers can only use an artificial
lure (usually a big 50/50 or “watermelon” #8
Gibbs Stewart spoon, or a glow #600 or #602
“tubby tyee” Tomic plug) attached to a main
line with a breaking strength of less than nine
kilograms (that’s 20-pound test). Once a fish
is hooked, the guide mustn’t touch the rod or
line — only after the fish has been netted. All
tyee must be weighed at the clubhouse on the
beach in front of the Pool.
Try the Campbell River itself for its
renowned salmon and steelhead fisheries.
Other area rivers include the White, Lower
Quinsam, Salmon, Elk, Adam, and Eve,
where you can find cutthroat, rainbow, and
18 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Since 1924
Since 1924
Since 1924
brown trout along with seasonal salmon and
steelhead.
For still-water anglers, Quinsam, Buttle,
Muchalat, Echo, Beavertail, Drum, Campbell,
and Upper and Lower Campbell lakes offer
excellent fishing for rainbow and cutthroat
trout. Accessible via a vast network of gravel
logging roads, many small lakes (like Roberts
in the Sayward Valley to the north) are also
well worth a visit. Try spin-casting small
spoons, Worden’s Flatfish, or Gibbs-Delta
Silvex or Mepps Aglia spinners, or just soak a
worm beneath a bobber.
Eco-tours of the region by high-speed
Zodiac are exhilarating, and great fun. You
might spot killer whales, Pacific white-sided
dolphins, harbour porpoises, migrating sea
lions, and other marine mammals amidst
the stunning vistas of the Inside Passage.
Take a tour in late summer to viewing
stands overlooking spawning streams to see
grizzly and black bears fishing for salmon.
During peak tidal flows, feel heart-pounding
exhilaration while holding at the bottom edge
of a two-metre high overfall as it roars past
the bow of your boat, or stare into massive,
seemingly bottomless whirlpools while you
take a white-knuckle “spin cycle” through
Seymour Narrows or Arran Rapids.
Discover fascinating exhibits
documenting the area’s First Nations heritage,
early European settlers’ pioneering days,
and resource industries at the Museum at
Campbell River. Scrutinize spawning salmon –
eyeball-to-eyeball – during a “swim-with-thefishes”
drift-boat tour down the Campbell, a
designated British Columbia Heritage River.
See, and even touch, marine life from regional
tidal pools, eelgrass beds, and undersea
“forests” of bull kelp at the Discovery Passage
Aquarium. A drive north to Sayward, a
historic port and logging centre, will bring
you to the world’s largest yellow cedar.
Take the short trip across Discovery
Passage aboard B.C. Ferries to Quadra Island.
Tour the We Wai Kai Nation’s Nuyumbalees
Cultural Centre in Cape Mudge Village, with
its significant collection of Kwa’kwa’ka’wa’kw
artifacts, ceremonial masks, and carvings.
Search for ancient petroglyphs at low tide
along the rocky shore near picturesque
Cape Mudge Lighthouse. Over a hundred
artists and craftspeople (including painters,
potters, sculptors, musicians, writers, and
photographers) have studios and workshops
on Quadra Island, many of which are open to
the public. From a pebbled beach at Rebecca
Spit Marine Provincial Park, on the eastern
side of Quadra, gaze across Sutil Channel for
stunning, panoramic views of the mainland’s
snow-capped mountains.
Finish your angling adventure in
Campbell River spin-casting drift jigs for
salmon and bottomfish off public Discovery
Fishing Pier on the downtown waterfront,
while watching majestic cruise ships glide
by. And we challenge you to finish one of the
huge, regular-sized ice cream cones from the
pier’s food concession!
Central East Coast of Vancouver
Island, and the Gulf Islands
Out of Nanaimo, anglers will find good
angling for chinook throughout the year
along the deep drop-offs adjacent the Gulf
Islands of Saturna, Mayne, Galiano, and
Gabriola, and at the edges of swift tidal
currents at the entrances to Active and Porlier
passes. Troll at depths between 35 metres
and the bottom along Gabriola, but watch
bottom depths carefully around the Flat Top
Islands (especially at Thrasher Rock) and in
the entrances to Porlier and Active passes.
Anchovy in clear, UV purple, “jelly fish,” or
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www.suncruisermedia.com 19

Vancouver Island, The Gulf Islands And Mainland
glow-green teaser heads work well for feeder
chinook all year, and for mature chinook
from May to September. Small Gibbs-Delta
Razorback, G-Force, and Skinny G; Silver
Horde Coho Killer; O’Ki Titan; Tomic; Pesca;
or Luhr Jensen Coyote spoons are also
effective. Troll any of these lures with twometre
leaders behind a full-sized “jelly fish”
UV plastic blade flasher with glow Mylar tape.
When the seas are calm and winds light, driftjig
with Gibbs-Delta Minnows, Deadly Dicks,
Buzz Bombs, or Rip Tide Strikers at Driebar
Point on Gabriola Island, or around Five
Finger, Snake, and Entrance islands.
For the freshwater angler, Brannen,
Long, Rhododendron, Horne, Lowry, Spider,
Quennell, Westwood, Cameron, Loon,
Colliery Dam, and the four Nanaimo lakes
near Nanaimo hold plenty of cutthroat and
rainbow trout.
From Parksville to Qualicum Beach, try
your hand at beach-fishing for pinks, along
with the odd coho and chinook. You can find
good runs of these small but willing strikers
in the shallows around many estuaries. Flycast
using a sink tip line, and pink shrimp or
Clouser minnow patterns. Spin-cast pinkhued
lures (Gibbs-Delta or Mepps spinners,
or small casting spoons like the Luhr Jensen
Krocodile or Williams Bully).
Around Courtney-Comox, there’s
good salmon fishing from Bates Beach to
the southern ends of Hornby and Denman
islands. These are good waters to try driftjigging
for salmon (with Buzz Bombs,
Zzingers, Spinnows, or Rip Tide Strikers) as a
productive alternative to deep-trolling bait or
lures with downriggers.
Comox Lake, which also holds a good
population of willing kokanee, has great
fishing for rainbow trout, Dolly Varden
char, and trophy cutthroat trout. Maple
and Wolf lakes (along with Chickadee on
Denman Island), are regularly stocked with
rainbow and cutthroat trout. The Forbidden
Plateau boasts a number of small hike-in
lakes that hold surprisingly big rainbow
trout. Try the Puntledge and Oyster rivers
for good salmon and cutthroat trout fishing
during late summer.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society of
BC stocks many of the region’s lakes with
catchable-sized trout from the Vancouver
Island Trout Hatchery in Duncan. The Society
also offers a free Learn to Fish program for
kids aged 5 to 15 at Colliery Dams Park. If you
have no fishing gear, learn about their free
Rod Loan program at www.gofishbc.com.
The drier eastern side of Vancouver Island is
a golfer’s paradise, with some 40 courses to
choose from. Both Little Qualicum River and
Englishman River falls (north of Nanaimo)
feature stunning cascades, shaded walking
trails, and swimming holes within a lush
forest setting. Many of the Gulf Islands are
West Coast Adventures Nootka Marine Adventures
only a scenic B.C. Ferries’ cruise from the
mainland or Vancouver Island, and offer fine
dining; luxurious sea-view bed-and-breakfast
accommodations (many with massages and
other spa treatments); wineries; and weekend
crafters’ markets. The Horne Lake Caves,
20 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

lying just north of Qualicum Beach, offer
spectacular underground tours that range
from mild to extreme. You’ll find some of
winter’s best snowboarding, alpine downhill,
and Nordic cross-country skiing at Mount
Washington near Comox. Strathcona, British
Columbia’s oldest provincial park, is the place
to find excellent hiking on the panoramic
Forbidden Plateau throughout the summer.
Southern Vancouver Island
Southern Vancouver Island (from Cowichan
Bay and Salt Spring Island on the east to
Sooke on the west) offers excellent salmon
and bottom fishing year ’round. Between
October and April, enormous schools of
baitfish (herring, sand lance, anchovy, and
squid) congregate in the waters of Victoria
Harbour, Oak Bay, and Saanich Inlet. Feeder
springs up to 10 kilograms in weight, along
with the odd tyee, prey upon this abundant
feed.
Ultraviolet-absorbing “moon jelly” glow
flashers, lures, and teaser heads are top
producers in these waters. Troll your gear
just off the bottom using Gibbs-Delta Guide
Series, O’Ki, or Hot Spot flashers in the latest
blades made from glow UV plastic, as well as
original silver Mylar on plain green, red, or
chartreuse blades. For lures use:
• small whole herring or anchovy, or Gibbs-
Delta Big Bite artificial anchovy in a Rhys
Davis, O’Ki JDF, or Jughead Shaker teaser
head with two-metre leaders
• small spoons (Gibbs-Delta Skinny G,
Razorback, G-Force, or Gypsy; Silver Horde
Coho Killer; O’Ki Titan; Tomic; Luhr Jensen
Coyote; or Pesca SPF or RSG) in green-andglow,
Army Truck, or “police car” colours
with two-metre leaders
• hoochies (Purple Haze, Army Truck, Oil
Slick, Tiger Prawn, Pistachio, green-andwhite,
glow splatterback, or translucent
white octopus or squirt) with one-metrelong
leaders
• small Tomic Tubby Tyee (#602, or #639) or
Lyman (#306 or #327) glow plugs.
Bottom bouncing your downrigger weight
occasionally will attract halibut as well as
salmon to your lures.
Troll around Moresby Island from Point
Fairfax to Seymour Point, Sidney Channel,
Coal Island, and Hamley Point. Other areas
worth checking out include Imrie Island,
Colburne Passage, Dock Island, Shute Pass
from Knapp Island to Shute Rock, Miners
Channel between Sidney Spit and Forrest
Island, Cordova Channel, the Red Can Buoy
at the northern end of Sidney Channel, and
Wain Rock in Saanich Inlet. The peak of the
halibut fishery occurs from March to May.
Find these oversized flatfish around slack tide
at places like the Oak Bay flats, Constance
Bank, Race Rocks, and just off Mendarte and
Halibut islands in Miners Channel.
Around Sooke and Pedder Bay, mature
chinook begin to show up in May. Slow-troll
your flasher (O’Ki metallic Gold Betsy) and
anchovy (in a matching Betsy teaser head)
offerings at depths between 10 and 25 metres
for these sometimes tyee-sized slabs that
can weigh up to 25 kilograms. During the
summer, big schools of coho, pink, sockeye,
and chum flooding though Juan de Fuca Strait
augment the chinook fishery. Look forward to
exciting aerobatic battles with trophy-sized,
hook-nosed northern coho that swarm into
the area in late summer.
Thetis, Elk, Spectacle, and Fuller lakes
(near Victoria) and St. Mary’s Lake (on Salt
Spring Island) have good populations of
smallmouth and bigmouth bass, in addition
to great fishing for rainbow and cutthroat
trout. The Cowichan, a designated Heritage
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www.suncruisermedia.com 21

Vancouver Island, The Gulf Islands And Mainland
River, provides year ’round, world-class walkand-wade
or drift-boat fly-fishing for rainbow,
cutthroat, and trophy brown trout, and
steelhead trout during the winter. Shawnigan,
Langford, Cowichan, Chemainus, and Dougan
lakes, along with the Sooke and Koksilah
rivers, are other good freshwater destinations
to fish.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society’s liberal
stocking program is the primary reason for
southern Vancouver Island’s fine freshwater
fishing. For kids, the Society also runs free
Learn to Fish programs at Langford’s Lake Ida
Anne, and at Victoria’s Elk Lake.
Many talented artists, artisans, and
craftspeople are based in Sooke, and welcome
visitors to their studio shops. Cool off on a
hot summer’s day with a refreshing dip in
the Sooke Potholes. Goldstream Provincial
Park is a great place to check out the autumn
spectacle of salmon spawning. Later in the
fall, you can observe swarms of bald eagles
and other raptors as they gorge on the
spawned-out carcasses.
Victoria, the provincial capital, is a
tourists’ mecca. Take a guided tour of the
stately Legislative Buildings, then cross the
street for an intriguing and educational visit to
the Royal British Columbia Museum. Many of
the city’s heritage buildings (like Craigdarroch
Castle, with 39 rooms that feature finely fitted
oak woodwork and exquisite stained glass
windows) are open to the public. In the suburb
of Colwood, take a tour of Fort Rodd Hill,
Hatley Park Castle, or the Fisgard Lighthouse
National Historic Sites. And there are plenty of
stores and funky shops worth checking out in
the downtown core.
In the town of Duncan, north of Victoria,
take a self-guided walk among 41 exquisitely
carved totem poles, then discover more about
the Cowichan First Nation at the Quw’utsun’
Cultural and Conference Centre. Tour the
British Columbia Forest Discovery Centre to
learn about the province’s logging industry,
and enjoy a nostalgic ride through the dense
forest aboard an old, narrow-gauge steam
locomotive. And be sure to have a taste of
some award-winning wines at wineries in the
Cowichan Valley.
Pedestrian-friendly Sidney (also known
as Booktown for its many bookstores) is a
great place to take a leisurely stroll along the
waterfront. The Shaw Centre for the Salish
Sea has hundreds of examples of local sea life
in fascinating saltwater aquarium habitats.
Nearby is world-renowned Butchart Gardens
– its immaculately manicured grounds and
vividly coloured, seasonal floral displays are
sure to awe and inspire the home gardener.
West Coast of Vancouver Island
Extending far into the Pacific Ocean from
the western coastline of Vancouver Island,
the relatively shallow offshore banks of
continental shelf form a nursery for young
salmon and a major migratory route for
mature salmon. Undersea structure in the
form of reefs, ocean ridges, shoals, gravelly
depressions, and rocky outcrops provides
shelter for vast shoals of baitfish, while at the
same time places for salmon and bottomfish
to ambush their prey. You can choose to fish
so far offshore that the majestic peaks of
Vancouver Island look like out-of-focus hills.
Inshore, you can fish in the calm waters of
protected sounds, or feel the salt spray while
trolling close to the surf-pounded, outer
coastline.
Safety first! With long distances to
travel, and few safe havens, first-timers
should seriously consider hiring a guide
to go anywhere on the western coast of
Vancouver Island. Licensed pros have the
knowledge, experience, and equipment to
deal with hazards like frequent fog and rough
seas – and to know when they should stay in
port. Be certain that any boat is in top-notch
mechanical shape, and equipped with VHF
radio, radar, a depthsounder, GPS, and an
auxiliary trolling motor to complement Coast
Guard-mandated safety equipment. And it’s
Nootka Marine Adventures
22 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

good practice to carry both a fully charged cell phone and a waterproof,
handheld GPS as backup.
Although the fishing on the west coast is good 12 months of the
year, the serious saltwater season begins after most severe winter
storms have passed in March, and is over by the end of September.
Early in the year, you can find great fishing for feeder chinook in the
protected inshore waters of major inlets and sounds. Migrating halibut
start coming onto the shallow banks from the deep ocean around
late April. In late June, the first shoals of sizeable coho mix with both
feeder and mature springs. Throughout the summer, surges of pink,
sockeye, and chum salmon join in. Sport fishing tapers off once the
first big Pacific storms start in early autumn.
Port Renfrew, in San Juan Inlet, is a convenient base for fishing
(easily reached from Victoria or the B.C. Ferry terminal at Swartz Bay
in a little over two hours via Highway 14 West). Just outside the inlet,
the “Beach” follows a sand ledge along a 20- to 30-metre-deep contour
north from Owen Point to Camper Creek. The Beach (and at Nitinat
Narrows, between Port Renfrew and Bamfield, in August) is where you
are most likely to find trophy-sized, mature chinook to 20 kilograms.
Troll from just inside the 20-metre contour, working out as deep as the
30-metre contour. There is spectacular fishing right inside the inlet,
from late August to the end of the season, for big, aerobatic San Juan
River coho that can top 10 kilograms.
Swiftsure Bank is a shallow plateau at the entrance to the Strait
of Juan de Fuca about 30 kilometres to the northwest of Port Renfrew.
Long known as a major nursery area for salmon and bottomfish,
fishing is highly restricted to only certain parts of the bank (be sure get
the exact boundaries from the DFO regulations for Area 121). While
the fish may not be as big as those along the Beach, there are plenty
of feeder chinook and the odd mature fish to 15 kilograms. While
deep-trolling for chinook with downriggers, you can also flat line an
unweighted bucktail streamer fly or small spoon to attract aggressive
coho (including lots of fin-clipped hatchery fish that you can keep as
part of your limit of salmon) right in the surface film. The bank also
has exceptional bottom fishing for halibut.
From late summer through autumn, you can find steelhead, huge
mature coho, and chinook in the San Juan River and its estuary. The
Gordon River has a good run of steelhead. Two nearby popular lakes,
Lizard and Fairy, hold stocked rainbow trout, searun Dolly Varden
char, and cutthroat trout.
In Port Renfrew, ask for directions to the Red Creek Fir and San
Juan Spruce, Canada’s largest standing Douglas fir and Sitka Spruce
respectively. Nearby, serene Avatar Grove holds “Canada’s Gnarliest
Tree.” For a challenging multiple-day trek that will test your nerve and
stamina, reserve a spot to hike the world-famous West Coast Trail
from Port Renfrew to Bamfield. You’ll find world-class kite-boarding
and wind-surfing at Nitinat Lake. On your way back to Victoria along
Highway 14, Botanical Beach in Juan De Fuca Provincial Park is worth
a stop at low tide to inspect the incredibly colourful marine life that
teems in shallow tidal pools. Finish your day with a leisurely stroll
along the wave-washed gravel beach at the mouth of the San Juan
River in the warm glow of sunset against a darkening sky.
You’ll access the weathered beauty of Barkley Sound through the
main towns of Port Alberni, Ucluelet, and Bamfield. This sound has
good fishing throughout the year for feeder chinook, with excellent
chances to hook a fish between the entrance of Bamfield Harbour and
Cape Beale. Swale Rock, along with Diplock, Sanford, Effingham, and
Chrow islands, are other fishy spots worth trying. Brawny, mature
chinook return to the Robertson Creek hatchery and to the Stamp,
Sproat, and Somass river systems all summer. Throughout Barkley
Sound and Alberni Inlet, fishing for trophy tyee (to 25 kilograms)
peaks around August 15. There is some limited retention of wild coho
inside Barkley Sound, but be sure to note the no-fishing boundaries
around the sound’s Rockfish Conservation Areas in the Broken Group,
including spot closures in places like San Mateo or Nahmint bays
during the summer. And be sure to enter the renowned Port Alberni
Salmon Festival & Derby during Labour Day weekend.
Along with mature coho and chinook salmon, the Stamp River
is gaining quite a following for its excellent summer steelhead run
that compares well with its superb winter steelhead fishery. There’s
only light fishing pressure on good populations of steelhead, resident
rainbow, and cutthroat trout in Sproat, Great Central, Nahmint,
Henderson, and Nitinat lakes — all easily accessed from Port Alberni.
Flies, bait, and hardware work well in all these waters.
Alberni Inlet can offer super early-summer sockeye fishing, but
this fishery is subject to spot closures. Lasting only from late June into
early July, this fishery is so popular that local campgrounds and marinas
sometimes have waiting lists for reservations a year in advance.
Starting out from marinas and resorts in both Ucluelet and
Bamfield, fish the offshore banks (Lighthouse, La Perouse, South,
Hayason, and Big) at hotspots with local nicknames like “Turtle
Head,” “Starfish,” “Southwest Corner,” “Gullies,” “Rat’s Nose,” and
“Stinky’s Hole.” Trolling or drift-jigging close to the sandy bottom in
depths around 25 fathoms are good ways to catch halibut and other
bottomfish as well as feeder chinook. Starting in late July, anglers can
find mature chinook higher in the water column – between eight and
20 fathoms – along with swarms of wild and hatchery coho.
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www.suncruisermedia.com 23

Vancouver Island, The Gulf Islands And Mainland
From late July until late August, big
chinook lurk along inshore nooks and
crannies at the edge of the surf line from
Ucluelet to Tofino, looking to ambush your
lures. Some of the favoured spots are Wya
Point, Portland Point, Florencia Bay, Little
Beach, Long Beach, the “red can,” and Wilf
Rock, but be aware of spot closures.
In Ucluelet, take a stroll along the Wild
Pacific Trail with its stunning ocean views
from cliff-top vantage points. Visit the new
Ucluelet Aquarium to learn about – and even
touch – some of the local marine denizens.
The next great sound north of Barkley
is Clayoquot. Anglers who want to ocean
fly-fish for salmon can book with many
charter operations in Tofino, which have
the specialized boats and guide services to
accommodate them. This fly-fishery starts
in May, but peaks during the latter part of
August and into September. Dual offshoreinshore
charters target halibut and chinook
offshore, then slip into protected inshore
waters so fly-flingers can cast needlefish or
herring imitations at swarms of voracious
coho. Local streams offer steelhead and
salmon during the autumn, and resident
rainbow and cutthroat trout fishing all year.
Storm-watching is a favourite late fall
and winter activity, when violent winds
and pounding surf pummel Long Beach in
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve. Strolling
through the gentle waves that lap the same
sandy shores in summer is popular too in this
picturesque area. Book a scenic day-cruise
around Vargas and Flores islands, with a stop
for a natural “spa” soak at Hot Springs Cove in
Maquinna Provincial Marine Park (though be
warned, bathing suits are optional).
The continental shelf narrows to only
a few kilometres at the northwestern tip of
Vancouver Island. The “Salmon Highway,”
which follows the shelf’s incredibly fishy edge
(marked by the 50-fathom bottom contour
line), is only a short run offshore from the
entrances to the island’s three most northerly
sounds: Nootka, Kyuquot, and Quatsino.
In Nootka Sound, several hatcheries
enhance the natural runs of prime chinook
and coho. Mature salmon follow the “highway”
from the northern end of Vancouver Island
to their natal streams; anglers will have
many opportunities to hook a prized tyee or
aerobatic coho only short distances offshore.
Try hot spots like Bajo Reef, Maquinna Point,
Beano Creek, Burdwood Point, Escalante Point,
and Wash Rocks.
With most of the sound’s chinook
heading to the hatchery at Conuma River
throughout July and August, big schools of
mature chinook congregate at hot spots like
Strange Island, Beer Can Bay, Camel Rock,
the Wall, San Carlos Point, and the Conuma
River estuary right within the sound. You’ll
often find these mature spawners at shallower
depths, tight to shore; troll your lures (flasher
and anchovy-in-a-teaser-head or hoochie
combos, Tomic plugs, or big six-inch spoons
fished on their own) at between six and 14
metres.
It’s worth the bit longer drive to Tahsis
or Zeballos to access the uncrowded waters
and quality fishing of the more remote
Esperanza and Zeballos inlets on the
northwestern side of Nootka Island. Shallowtroll
your lures right up close to the rugged
shoreline at Black or Pin rocks, Rosa or
Catala islands, or Ferrer Point. You’ll also find
exceptional bottom fishing around a number
of offshore pinnacles.
You can tow in your own boat, but
with just a gravel road to service the head of
Nootka Sound, and very limited parking and
marine services, it’s easier to book a stay at
a fishing resort right in the sound, or take a
charter out of the towns of Gold River, Tahsis,
or Zeballos.
Kyuquot Sound covers some 50
kilometres of water from Tatchu Point on the
east, just around the corner from Esperanza
Inlet to Clerke Point on the west (at the tip
of the Brooks Peninsula). The Barrier Islands,
the tip of Brooks Peninsula, and the entrance
to Winter Harbour can have “bites” that last
for hours, often with multiple hookups.
Quatsino is the most remote northern
sound. Salmon and bottom fishing is terrific
both inshore and offshore. Quatsino Narrows,
Cliffe Point south to Harney Cove, between
Kains and Pinnacle Islands, and in the open
Pacific, northwest of Cape Parkins, around
Grants Bay and Lippy Point are all great
places to drop your lines. Almost any shallow
underwater reef will yield good catches of
rockfish or lingcod, while deeper waters with
sandy bottoms are stacked with halibut.
With few accommodations, supplies, or
marinas, anglers are wise to book a fullservice,
fully guided fishing charter from a
resort based in the coastal villages of Kyuquot
or Winter Harbour. Guided fishing is also the
safest way to experience the fabulous angling
in these semi-wilderness locations.
Trolling tackle for salmon along the
western coast of Vancouver Island includes:
• long squirt hoochies to mimic sandlance
(early in the season, when offshore banks
are loaded with this bait) as well as octopus
or bigger cuttlefish hoochies in blue or
green glow splatterback, pistachio, Goldstar
OG153R, North Pacific J200, translucent
white, Army Truck, or UV purple haze
colours, one metre behind full-sized UVabsorbing
or glow flashers (O’Ki, Hot Spot,
or Gibbs-Delta), along with octopus or
“plankton-size” hoochies in hot fluorescent
pink, red, or orange colours for pink,
sockeye, and chum salmon
• anchovy in a Rhys Davis or O’Ki JDF teaser
head, or whole herring in a Rhys Davis
teaser head, especially when fishing inshore
(imitation Big Bite herring and anchovy
products from Gibbs-Delta can be an
effective alternative)
• 4.5-inch Gibbs-Delta Hockey Stick or Apex
Hot Spot high-action trolling lures, or
smaller three- to five-inch spoons (like the
Gibbs-Delta G-Force, Razorback, Skinny G,
Coho Killer, Gypsy or Gator; O’Ki Titan ;
Luhr Jensen Coyote; Pesca RSG or SPF) two
metres behind full-sized flashers
• big spoons (Gibbs-Delta G Force or Gator;
O’Ki Titan; Tomic; Pesca RSG or SPF; Luhr
Jensen Coyote; Rip Tide Striker Needlefish;
or Williams Whitefish) in glow green-andwhite,
“No Bananas,” Army Truck, gold,
pilchard, “Bloody Nose” chartreuse with
“Real Anchovy Image,” #500, #602, #639,
or “police car” colours, fast-trolled without
flashers later in the season when mature
chinook mingle with swarms of coho
• seven-inch Tomic plugs (which can also
keep aggressive coho from striking) in
colours #158, #404 P.I., #500, #530 glow,
#JM1, #600, #602, #639, #700, or #900.
A herring or chunk of salmon belly
impaled on a big circle or J hook drifted
behind a heavily weighted spreader bar will
attract the attention of the west coast’s
abundant bottom dwellers. Also effective are
soft artificial baits (like a white 10-inch Gibbs-
Delta Hali Hawg or a Berkley eight-inch Power
Grub). If you want to feel that sudden electric
jolt of a hard-striking fish, try drift-jigging
with a heavy Doug Field’s Halibut Spinnow or
Gibbs-Delta Mudraker.
Also try rubbing, squirting or soaking
lures with fish oil-based commercial scents
(Smelly Jelly, Gulp! Alive!, or ProCure).
These potions are as effective at masking
fish-repelling human odours as they are at
attracting fish.
Recently, several fishing resorts from
all three northern sounds have been making
forays some 40 to 70 kilometres offshore in
late August and early September to pursue
speedy albacore tuna. These smaller, white-
24 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

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Vancouver Island, The Gulf Islands And Mainland
fleshed tuna, weighing an average of about
10 kilograms, migrate into the region from
southern tropical waters starting in midsummer
and into September, peaking in
numbers around late August. While tuna
fishing is truly exciting, it depends upon
weather and ocean conditions, and is best
left to resorts willing to go out with two
or more well-equipped boats that can help
each other out in case of breakdown so far
offshore.
From late September, serious anglers
are just starting to tap into fly-fishing
for salmon and steelhead in the region’s
relatively unspoiled streams. Rivers like the
Gold, Burman, Conuma, Tashish, Tahsis,
Artlish, Kayouk, and Zeballos (along with
numerous smaller streams) have good runs
of salmon and steelhead as well as resident
rainbow and cutthroat trout. Winter
steelheading is consistent well into the
following spring.
Relatively untouched by the last ice age,
the recently established Brooks Peninsula
Provincial Park contains many rare plant
species and unique geological formations,
along with kilometres of unspoiled, sandy
beaches that run to the edge of vast oldgrowth
forests. Sea otters have successfully
re-colonized the region. The descendants of
100 otters relocated from Amchitka Island
in Alaska before A-bomb tests 40 years ago,
these furry sea mammals captivate and
charm nature-watchers with their playing,
feeding, and grooming antics as they float
on their backs throughout the sound. The
Barrier Islands are also a favourite resting
ground for huge herds of bellowing sea lions.
The offshore waters are a major migratory
corridor for magnificent killer, humpback,
and Pacific grey whales.
Northeastern Vancouver Island
Major tidal currents through Queen
Charlotte and Broughton Straits drive wellaerated,
nutrient-rich water between the
B.C. mainland and northern Vancouver
Island. The coastal towns of Port Hardy, Port
McNeill, and Telegraph Cove have renowned
fishing for trophy chinook, coho, and halibut
right outside their ports. The northern faces
of Nigei and Balaklava Islands, around the
Deserters Group, and along the northern
and southern sides of the Gordon Islands are
easily reached hot spots. Productive trolling
haunts just minutes from Port Hardy include
Duval, Daphne, and Dillon points, Deer
Island, Hardy Bay, and the flats in front of
the airport.
From the villages of Port McNeill or
Telegraph Cove, fish the northern faces of
Hanson Island and the Plumper Islands,
both the northern and southern sides of
Malcolm Island, the western side of Parson
Island, and the southern face of Swanson
Island. Offshore, popular bottom fishing
destinations include Farquar Bank, Storm
and Pine islands, and Sealed Reef; Europa,
Weynton, Bolivar, and Ripple passages; off
Keogh and Morgan shoals; and between
Malcolm and Cormorant islands.
At the entrances to Kingcome and
Knight inlets, hundreds of protected
passages in the Broughton Archipelago and
other channel groups funnel and squeeze
dense schools of baitfish through Blackfish
Sound into Johnstone Strait. This feed-rich
region attracts bottomfish like halibut in
addition to massive runs of mature salmon
on their final spawning migrations. During
the summer, pods of killer whales congregate
to feed on this bounty of salmon. Daily
orca sightings are one of the region’s main
attractions, especially at Robson Bight south
of Telegraph Cove.
Trolling tackle for salmon here includes:
• small glow spoons (Gibbs-Delta G-Force,
Skinny G, Razorback, or Coho Killer; O’Ki
Kinetic Titan; Tomic; Pesca RSG or SPF; or
Luhr Jensen Coyote) two metres behind a
full-sized flasher
• bigger glow spoons (Gibbs-Delta G Force,
Wonder, or Gator; O’Ki Titan; Pesca RSG
or SPF; Luhr Jensen Coyote or Diamond
King; Tomic; or Williams Whitefish)
without flashers later in the summer
• anchovy (real, or Gibbs-Delta Big Bite
imitation) or small whole herring, set in
glow, chrome, or green-scale Rhys Davis or
O’Ki JDF teaser heads, two metres behind
a full-sized UV or “jelly fish” glow Gibbs-
Delta Guide Series, O’Ki “Betsy,” or Hot
Spot flasher
• octopus or cuttlefish hoochies (translucent
white, UV purple haze, Army Truck,
Goldstar OG153R, Tiger Prawn, greenand-white,
or glow-green splatterback)
with one-metre-long leaders behind a fullsized
flasher
• five- or six-inch (#158, #404 P.I., #500,
#530 glow, #602, or #639) Tomic, or fourinch
(#306 or #327) Lyman plugs.
Both hardware and fly patterns will
attract mature salmon returning to the
Nahwitti, Kokish, Nimpkish, Keogh, and
Cluxewe rivers. You will find exceptional
beach-fishing at each of these river’s
estuaries from late summer throughout
the autumn. Pick up a free copy of the
Recreation and Logging Road Guide (at North
Island Tourism B.C. information offices) for
directions to dozens of the area’s freshwater
lakes and streams. Victoria, Bonanza, or
Nimpkish lakes hold Dolly Varden char,
rainbow trout, and lunker cutthroat trout that
willingly take trolled hardware. In smaller,
seldom-fished lakes like Kathleen, Maynard,
or Benson, naïve rainbow and cutthroat trout
will strike almost any small lure.
Several fine museums and interpretive
centres are well worth visiting. At the
U’mista Cultural Centre in Alert Bay, on
Cormorant Island, you will learn about First
Nations art, history, and culture. View the
remains of carved canoes and mortuary
poles, and marvel at the massive, exposed
log supports of a huge longhouse, during a
guided tour of Mamalilaculla, an abandoned
First Nations site on Village Island. The
Whale Interpretive Centre, located at the
end of Telegraph Cove’s historic boardwalk,
has a fascinating display of marine mammal
skeletons and whaling artifacts.
Mainland
The long glacier-etched fjords of Toba, Bute,
and Knight inlets are the places to find late
spring and early summer runs of white
chinook weighing 20 kilograms or more.
Later, anglers will also find trophy coho to
10 kilograms. Through August and into early
October, you can take a mixed bag of salmon
when big schools of willing pink and chum
return. Near the mouths of these inlets,
sandy bottoms hold some hefty halibut,
along with other bottomfish.
It’s the remote rivers and their estuaries
at the heads of these magnificent inlets
that attract die-hard fly-fishers for that
heli-fishing trip of a lifetime to cross off
their bucket lists. The broad estuary of the
Ahta River in Bond Sound is one place to
find mature salmon from August through to
October. Try for winter and spring steelhead
in the many feeder creeks and streams of
Knight, Kingcome and Bute inlets (like
the Homathko or Southgate rivers), along
with aggressive searun cutthroat and Dolly
Varden char anytime. The fish are not finicky,
and will hit almost any fly pattern, as well as
hardware.
With the bounty of mature salmon
returning to spawn each fall, these mainland
inlet rivers are black and grizzly bear
territory. Always be bear-aware when fishing
these streams.
26 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Lodge Profile
Westcoast Fish Expeditions
BY DARCY NYBO
Westcoast Fish Expeditions
Are you looking for the fishing
experience of a lifetime? Westcoast
Fish Expeditions could be the
perfect match for you. With over 30 years of
experience as a fishing guide, owner/operator
Matt “Oly” Olcen started fishing in tidal pools
shortly after he learned to walk. Oly lives and
works in the small village of Ucluelet – with its
easy access to some of the best fishing grounds
on the west coast of Vancouver Island.
Getting there is easier than you think.
You can take a B.C. Ferry from the mainland
to Victoria or Nanaimo, and drive to Ucluelet
from either ferry terminal. Or should you
prefer, take a flight aboard a wheeled aircraft
from the South Terminal in Vancouver to
the Long Beach Airport, where you’ll find a
shuttle bus waiting to take you into Ucluelet.
Once you arrive, there are plenty of places to
stay including campgrounds, motels, cabins,
B&Bs, and high-end resorts.
It doesn’t matter if you’re a novice or the
most ardent of anglers, your fishing vacation
is sure to be the experience of a lifetime.
Whether you’re fishing with Oly or one of his
other guides, you can bet your trip will be on
the other side of ordinary.
Some have experienced white-knuckle
thrill rides on the open ocean, whereas to
others, it will seem merely smooth sailing;
everyone will feel the obligatory adrenaline
rush while landing the perfect fish. A charter
with Westcoast Fish Expeditions is about
fishing, and unplugging from today’s hectic
world. Put away your cell phone, listen and
look – you may hear the slap of a whale
breaching, catch sight of majestic sea lions
basking in the sun on a rocky islet, or spot
sleek seals bobbing in the water.
Once you’ve caught your fish, it’s time to
clean and pack them up. This is usually done
immediately after the catch. Bring your own
coolers so you can take all your cleaned and
bagged fish home with you. You can also have
your catch custom-processed, vacuum-packed,
frozen, smoked, or canned. Either way, it will
be a tasty reminder of your fishing adventure.
For more information about Westcoast
Fish Expeditions, go to their website at
westcoastfish.com. Call them toll-free at
1-877-333-8221, or e-mail at
info@westcoastfish.com.
www.suncruisermedia.com 27

Lodge Profile
Story by Steve Fennell
Westview
Marina & Lodge
A Secret Space in Tahsis, BC
Westview Marina & Lodge, located on the
West Coast of Vancouver Island, is tucked
away in the Village of Tahsis, BC at the head
of the Tahsis Inlet and is ready to serve
cruising vessels and sport fishers with its
array of marine services. Vessels up to 150
feet are welcome and reservations are highly
recommended from May to September.
Nonetheless, the full-service marina has 160
slips and will always try to accommodate
transient boaters.
Whether you’re cruising up or down the
island, Westview has many amenities that
haven`t been readily available to you for days.
The marina offers gas, diesel, and propane,
and you can give your generator a break with
the 15-, 30- and 50-amp shore power at the
slips. Laundry facilities, showers, ice, potable
water and free Wi-Fi are also available.
If boat service is required, a marine mechanic
is on-site and 24-hour parts delivery service is
an added bonus.
Anglers will no doubt appreciate the onsite
tackle and bait shop, plus the large cleaning
tables. Yet, when more supplies are needed,
the marina offers a courtesy car to visit Tahsis,
which has a small grocery and liquor store.
While in the village, you can also enjoy the
walking trails, The Tahsis Museum - “The Birth
Place of B.C.” - and the Artisan CO-OP.
At the marina every Friday night, the
licensed Marina Grill House Restaurant serves
a special buffet dinner June through September
from 5 pm to 8 pm, along with live music during
the popular “Rock the Dock,” held on the heated,
covered patio from 6 pm to closing. The marina’s
“dock camp fire gathering” is held nightly and
another area to mingle is at The Island Attitude
Coffee Café, located right at the dock. It serves a
variety of beverages for anytime of the day from
5 am to closing.
Tahsis and Westview Marina & Lodge
has become a favourite place for crew changes
as it’s only a two-hour car ride from Campbell
River on the east side of Vancouver Island. To
get here by boat – heading north up the Tahsis
Inlet – you won’t be able to see the marina until
you reach the very head of the inlet. It’s tucked
in and protected on the west side. Remember,
the marina monitors VHF channel 06 so you
can inform the marina of your arrival.
But whether you arrive by water or land,
Westview offers nightly accommodations
including cabins, suites, vacation homes and
condominiums, allowing visitors to take a
nice break from, and the chance to take in
everything the area offers.
Coordinates for the marina is N49*55’13
W126*39’ 78.5 and for all the details,
Westview Marina & Lodge in Tahsis, BC can
be reached at (250) 934-7672, (800) 992-
3252, info@westviewmarina.com or Watch
the video at https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=yrJYbsfmdg8
28 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Vessels up to 150 feet are
welcome and reservations are
highly recommended from
May to September. Boaters can
socialize and enjoy the popular
patio at the marina.
“BEST KEPT SECRET ON THE
WEST COAST OF VANCOUVER ISLAND”
2018 Charter All-Inclusive Package Special
“Bring Your Large Coolers. You Will Need Them When You FISH With US”
4 person Drive in Fishing/Catching
$1400 ea. CA $$ / $1200 ea. US $$*
• 4 Nights Lodging
• 3 Full days of Guided Fishing/Catching Salmon,
Halibut, Ling Cod & MORE
• Includes all your meals from our restaurant’s menu
while you are with us.
*Limited time offer must be BOOKED by May 15th, 2018 *US $$ at today’s exchange rate
(250) 934-7672 | info@westviewmarina.com | www.westviewmarina.com
www.suncruisermedia.com 29

BY STEVE FENNELL
VANCOUVER, COAST
& MOUNTAINS
Where Fishing Awaits Anglers All Year
30 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Bryce Evans
www.suncruisermedia.com 31

Vancouver Coast & Mountains
With temperate weather
in the winter, blue skies
overhead in the summer,
and a diverse landscape –
like the Salish Sea to the west, and sparkling
rivers nestled in the north – B.C.’s Vancouver,
Coast and Mountains region is one of the
most dynamic, exciting places to fish in all of
North America. When you consider that you
could be downrigging for salmon in the Strait
of Georgia with the Vancouver skyline as a
backdrop one day, then casting for trout on
the Fraser River the next, it makes you realize
just how much this area can offer anglers. The
best thing is that you don’t have to travel far.
You can fish several great, remote spots in less
than an hour with still plenty of time to make
it home for dinner.
Pursuit Sportfishing
The Fraser River Valley and
Coast Mountains
It’s no secret that the Fraser River and its
surrounding lakes and streams rank high on
many anglers’ top-ten lists. No matter what
your game, the region’s expansive watershed
(larger than Washington State) has a salmon
run-count in the millions, and is home to
steelhead, rainbow trout, searun cutthroat
trout, largemouth bass, black crappie, and
monstrous white sturgeon. In the eastern
portion is the Coquihalla River, located just
outside of Hope. It runs parallel to Highway
5, and holds resident rainbow and bull trout,
plus some summer-run steelhead and coho
salmon in the fall. Kawkawa Lake is another
great spot, and is just a little more than four
kilometres east of Hope. There are many
private residences along its shoreline, which
means access is limited, but you will be
treated to its high population of kokanee as
well as the occasional rainbow and cutthroat
trout. As it gets busy in the summer, it’s
large enough at 77 hectares (191 acres) to
escape the crowds at the southeast side or the
northwest bay of the lake. Kawkawa is closed
annually from December to February.
If you prefer to get your feet wet, try
the fly-fishing on the Skagit River. Its clear
waters, towering trees, and snow-capped
mountains will make you feel like you’re in a
scene from a Lotto 649 commercial. It’s open
for anglers from July through October, but
the fishing is best in August and September.
The rainbows will strike on fly patterns, and
use casting spoons or spinners for bull trout
that lurk in the deep pools.
On the southern side of the lower
Fraser Valley, Chilliwack Provincial Park is
48 kilometres (30 miles) from the town of
Chilliwack. Located among alpine forests
and jagged mountain peaks, Chilliwack Lake
is popular for rainbow and cutthroat trout,
kokanee, and Dolly Varden char. The park
has a gradual single-wide boat launch, and
there’s a day-use parking area for vehicles
and trailers. Lakeside casting can also be
enjoyed from the sandbars at Paleface and
Depot creeks on the lake’s east side. You can
also fish for rainbow, cutthroat, and Dolly
Varden at nearby Cultus Lake Provincial Park,
approximately 47 kilometres (29 miles) away.
No matter which park you choose, both offer
camping and several services for outdoor
enthusiasts.
Further west on this side of the lower
Fraser Valley is the Chilliwack-Vedder River
system. Known simply as “The Vedder,” it’s
considered the top choice for winter steelhead
fishing between December and late May.
While runs after July 1 are considered short
and sporadic, the action peaks in the fall with
rainbow, cutthroat, and bull trout along with
hatchery-reared, summer-run steelhead and
mature coho, chum, or chinook salmon.
Flowing north between Abbotsford and
Chilliwack along Highway 1 is the Sumas
River, where basic bottom-bouncing or baitand-bobber
fishing can make for a successful
day. Additionally, Mill Lake in Abbotsford is
a popular place for families or solo anglers
to fish. In summer, the lake is considered a
local hot spot for largemouth bass, crappie,
and sunfish. Thanks to the stocking efforts
of the Freshwater Fisheries Society of British
Columbia, go after actively feeding rainbow
trout in spring or fall.
32 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Peniuk Sportfishing
the wider part of the river to get to mature
salmon returning to spawn.
When trolling the larger lakes (like
Harrison, Pitt, Stave, Chehalis, and Alouette),
seaworthy fishing boats are recommended,
as well as some marine experience, since
strong winds can quickly create white-capped
rough water. You can also cast from shore
at the mouths of feeder creeks to try for
Dolly Varden, cutthroat, and rainbow trout.
Spincast small lures at Doctor’s Point, 20-
Mile Bay, Cascade Bay, or at the mouths of
Cogburn and Hale creeks. At the mouth of
the Lillooet River, you’ll hook into springtime
trout along with mature salmon in the fall.
Golden Ears Provincial Park in Maple Ridge
allows access to Stave and Alouette lakes.
These lakes hold big lake char and good
numbers of great-tasting kokanee. A little
more than an hour from the entrance of
Golden Ears Provincial Park (past Mission on
Highway 7) is Chehalis Lake, where you can
catch whitefish, lake char, and kokanee. The
Chehalis River is also a great spot to fish for
mature salmon in the fall, winter steelhead,
and resident cutthroat trout. Smaller Rolley
Lake (in Rolley Lake Provincial Park, about
20 minutes from Mission) is known for its
rainbow and cutthroat trout, Dolly Varden
char, kokanee, and bullheads.
While it’s great for younger anglers to
experience the water, a terrific side-trip on the
southern side of the Fraser is the Fort Langley
National Historic Site. Here at the birthplace
of British Columbia, and an authentic
Hudson’s Bay Company trading post, kids
can try their hands at blacksmithing or gold
panning and enjoy costumed storytellers of
the 1800s.
Find all the Action on the Fraser
River
The town of Hope serves as a great starting
point to see everything that the Fraser Valley
can offer. If you head westward along Highway
1, a rest area with parking allows easy access
to Schkam Lake (Lake of the Woods). The lake
is stocked with rainbow trout, and can make
for a pleasant afternoon. Or take the Harrison
West Lake Road from Harrison where you
can fish Elbow, Grace, or Weaver. Just to the
northeast of Harrison Hot Springs are two
more popular fishing lakes: Deer and Hicks.
Shore casting with small spoons,
spinners, and silver-bodied flies is popular for
cutthroat trout during the spring, when they
hunt for Harrison River salmon smolts as
they make their way to the ocean. In the late
summer and fall, a boat is needed to access
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www.suncruisermedia.com 33

Vancouver Coast & Mountains
Perry Mack
Pursuit Sportfishing
An interesting fact is that once mature
chum salmon are in freshwater for a few
days, they change from silvery-bright to
recognizable mottled purple-and-green
spawning colours. The look of spawning
males, when they develop hooked jaws with
menacing canine-like teeth, gives these strong
and aggressive fish the moniker “dog salmon.”
They arrive around mid-autumn in the Stave
River (below the Ruskin Dam) or at the mouth
at the Fraser River.
The upper Pitt River can be accessed only
from the very north end of Pitt Lake, and is a
trek for more adventurous, die-hard anglers.
Yet with a strong will, and all the tackle you
need, the area offers highest-quality stream
fishing with light fishing pressure for Dolly
Varden (look for them near spawning salmon,
and in deep holes), salmon, and trout. At
the other end of the fishing spectrum, enjoy
plunking a worm on the bottom for searun
cutthroat trout in the quieter flows of familyfriendly
Kanaka Creek in Maple Ridge.
Heading further westward towards
Metro Vancouver, you’ll find the Buntzen
Lake Recreation Area. Surrounded by
towering, tree-lined mountains with clear
water, the lake is great for families and – with
generous stockings of rainbow trout from
the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC –
for fishing. You’ll also find FFSBC-stocked
rainbow trout at other inner-city lakes,
including Deer, Sasamat, Lafarge, and Como.
While popular on warm, sunny days, it’s best
to arrive earlier in the day, and no later than
mid-morning, as park officials are known to
stop letting people into the park for safety
reasons. It’s best to call the warden’s office in
advance.
One of the most significant facts about
the Fraser River – and there are many – is that
the river is home to monstrous sturgeon. On
July 20, 2012, a British couple landed and
then released a Fraser River sturgeon that
measured 3.76 metres (12.3 feet) in length,
weighing an estimated 499 kilograms (1,100
pounds) – a possible world record for the
largest freshwater fish ever caught on a rod
and reel. In June 2016, CTV news reported
that pro fishing guide Steve Kaye landed a
close second to the 2012 fish, bringing in a
3.4-metre (11.2-foot) specimen weighing an
estimated 340 kilograms (750 pounds).
Even though an average-sized sturgeon
from the Fraser is approximately half of these
lengths, you would swear by the relentless
fight that you were bringing in a recordsetter.
Sturgeon fishing on the Fraser is best
done with professional guides, who have
specialized jet boats to navigate the currents
and traverse the shallows, big-game fishing
gear, and the best baits. These pros will put
you in the prime locations to battle one of
these prehistoric behemoths. Anglers come
from around the world to test their skills in
this catch-and-release fishery. Don’t go home
without booking your own trip in 2018.
Before you hit the water anywhere in this
region, perhaps visit the local tackle shops to
get insider information. Most of the staff are
local, ardent anglers who know the area well
and share their knowledge of what bait to use
as well as when and where to fish that time of
year. Most of all, regardless of your methods,
fishing is a great pastime in this region and
can be enjoyed by anyone, regardless of what
type of freshwater species you’re after.
Vancouver Harbour, Howe Sound,
and the Fraser River Mouth
With such bustling areas as Granville
Island or Robson Street and the city’s
towering skyline, some find it hard to believe
that Vancouver attracts anglers by the masses.
34 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Sewell’s Marina
Delta Skinny G or Razorback, O’Ki Titan, Silver
Horde Coho Killer, Pesca, North Pacific TKO,
or Luhr Jensen Coyote) in colours like police
car, green-and-glow, “Bon Chovy,” “Outfitter,”
“Gut Bomb,” or army truck, with simply a miniflasher
or no flasher at all. Additionally, this
is also one of the best times to set traps for
Dungeness crab, and prawns.
Come spring, May is the time to navigate
three to eight kilometres (two to five miles)
south of Bowen Island for chinook. Use an
anchovy in a glow-green teaser head, two
metres (about six feet) astern, with a full-sized
flasher (like those from Hot Spot, Gibbs-Delta,
or O’Ki). You’ll want to run your rig at depths
between 25 to 35 metres (80 to 115 feet). The
easiest ways to detect schools of bait fish are
to look overhead for seabirds, or to interpret
readings on your depth sounder.
Throughout summer and into November,
the area is the middle ground for massive runs
of mature salmon returning from the Pacific
to spawn. When the temperatures rise in July,
white chinook start their migration into Howe
Sound to the Squamish and Cheakamus river
systems.
To experience these hard-fighting
Squamish River whites, troll slowly along the
shoreline from the entrance of Horseshoe Bay
north past Sunset Beach, using a flasher and
Opportunities for fishing take place within
minutes of leaving shore, and what’s more
interesting is the quality of the fish that
can be caught. A testament to this is the
number of charter companies and plethora of
fishing boats that can be seen in the harbour,
experiencing some of the most active fishing
grounds anywhere.
The winter waters of the Pacific coast
are very clear, which makes them ideal for
anglers to target feeder chinook. These
bright, silvery fish can weigh between four to
seven kilograms. The name “feeder” reflects
their purpose at this stage in their lifecycle:
they are there simply to feed. In other areas,
like Washington State, they are known as
“blackmouth salmon,” but north of the border
they are referred to as juvenile chinook
salmon. Confused yet? Depending on their
size, location, and stage in their lifecycle,
they are also called “kings,” “springs,” “feeder
kings,” and “tyee.” They can be found from as
far north as upper Howe Sound, around the
Defense Islands, Hutt Island, Tunstall Bay on
Bowen Island, and to the south throughout
urban English Bay.
The clarity of the water in winter allows
you to troll a small spoon (such as the Gibbs-
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Vancouver Coast & Mountains
anchovy in a teaser head at depths of 25 to 35 metres (80 to 115 feet).
Be sure to check Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s website (http://www.
dfo-mpo.gc.ca) for the locations of any rockfish conservation areas in
Howe Sound, which are closed to all fishing.
In the summer, freshwater fishing for coho, steelhead, the occasional
searun cutthroat trout, and chinook is found on the North Shore
along the Capilano, Seymour, and Lynn rivers. More efforts can be
made for coho, searun cutthroat trout, and bottomfish by casting
from the beach at Cates Park, Furry Creek, or the mouths of the rivers
previously mentioned.
Some of the key fishing spots are Vancouver Harbour, and in
front of the Fraser River estuary. There’s continuous action from late
July to October, when mature coho and chinook return to the Capilano
River and the rivers of Burrard Inlet.
About an hour from Burrard Inlet, off the shores of Richmond
or Delta, coho, chinook, pink, chum, and sockeye hold offshore as
they wait for the first heavy autumn rains to bring cooler water
temperatures and higher water levels before heading up the Fraser
River and its tributaries.
The lure of choice here is an anchovy in a glow teaser head two
metres (about six feet) behind a full-sized flasher (such as Gibbs-
Delta Bon Chovy, O’Ki Gold Betsy, or Hot Spot UV Purple). Spoons
(custom-bendable Sea Four lures, Tomic, Gibbs-Delta G-Force, Skinny
G, Coho Killer, Razorback, Pesca, O’Ki Titan, or Luhr Jensen Coyote)
in green-and-glow, “kinetic,” “Bon Chovy,” “Trailhead,” army truck,
“Real Anchovy Image,” “Outfitter,” or “Gut Bomb” colours, and white
octopus (#OAL 12R) or double-glow hoochies (OG208R or OG140R)
will work well, too.
A couple of other great spots to cast for pink salmon are at the
head of Burrard Inlet, as the fish make their way to the Indian River,
or at all the previously mentioned beach fishing spots as they travel
to rivers at the head of Howe Sound. Small pink lures such as Buzz
Bombs, Mepps Aglia, Gibbs-Delta Sil-Vex spinners, or flies can be used
to catch this highly popular species.
Sockeye salmon are also a prime catch among anglers for their
deep, red-coloured flesh and excellent flavour. In efforts to net one,
use the same bright red or pink hoochies you would for pink salmon
behind similarly coloured flashers, but you should add more flash with
dummy (also called teaser) flashers – like the Tomic Sonic or Gibbs-
Delta Flashlines – off downrigger weights to simulate a school of
feeding sockeye. As there have been closures for conservation reasons,
always be sure to check Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s website
(http://www.dfo-mpo.gc.ca) before going fishing for sockeye salmon.
Vancouver Harbour and the mouth of the Fraser River hold large
hatchery-reared white chinook, which are popular among anglers
throughout the Lower Mainland. Try using a jumbo whole herring in
a Rhys Davis teaser head, or an anchovy in a green-scale Rhys Davis or
O’Ki JDF teaser head and a flasher, at depths from 20 metres (65 feet)
to the bottom inside the harbour. At the mouth of the Fraser River,
fish at depths of between 15 and 35 metres (50 to 115 feet).
Further north, the Squamish and Cheakamus rivers are noted
for their excellent autumn salmon fishery and winter steelhead. The
Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC also stocks a number of lakes
with rainbow and cutthroat trout in the Squamish, Whistler, and
Pemberton region, while other lakes have healthy populations of Dolly
Varden and kokanee.
If you take Highway 99 north from Vancouver you’ll have access
to many lakes, including Browning, Brohm, Alice, Edith, and Stump
near Squamish. In the resort town of Whistler, try hitting Alpha, Alta,
and Green lakes. Just north of Pemberton, more lakes include Ivey,
Blackwater, Gates, Anderson, and Birkenhead.
If you’re the adventurous type, it’s worth the trip to Garibaldi
Provincial Park to hike to beautiful lakes like Garibaldi, Cheakamus,
and Mamquam. Hire a floatplane and fly to other stunningly scenic
mountain lakes including Widgeon, Fire, Thomas, and Lovely Water for
wild rainbows.
In the suburb of Surrey, the Nicomekl, Serpentine, and Campbell
rivers attract angling crowds, especially during autumn for mature coho
or chinook. Resident rainbow, cutthroat, and steelhead trout are also
game. Many anglers just use a worm bounced off the bottom or drifted
beneath a small bobber. In the spring, try whipping a fly or two in the
mouths of these small rivers (where they drain into Boundary Bay)
when migrating salmon smolts are the target of searun cutthroat trout.
To fill your fishing fix during the week, urban lakes such as Green
Timbers in Surrey or Sanctuary Pond in Vancouver are good bets, as
the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC stocks these lakes with healthy
numbers of catchable-sized rainbows.
What’s nice about this area is that, after an outing of fishing (and
a quick clean-up), Vancouver and its surrounding cities of the Lower
Mainland await with the cool vibes of city life. If you’re a sports fan, the
Vancouver Whitecaps Football Club plays from March to October, while
the B.C. Lions of the CFL is in its prime from June to November at B.C.
Place. Nearby is Rogers Arena, where the Vancouver Canucks vie for
supremacy, albeit rather poorly, in the NHL from October to April.
All the while, Vancouver’s downtown bustles with activity. There
are museums and art galleries, and the shopping on Robson Street is
second to none. Nearby is Granville Island with its popular fresh food
36 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

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www.suncruisermedia.com 37

Vancouver Coast & Mountains
market, art galleries, artisans’ workshops,
craft breweries, restaurants, and marine
supply stores.
Across the harbour, in North Vancouver,
you can learn about the life cycle of salmon
at the Capilano River Regional Park and
Hatchery (admission is free). In the summer,
Richmond hosts its popular Asian Night
Market, held next to the River Rock Casino
and Resort.
If you find yourself in Richmond, visit
the historic fishing village of Steveston, home
to a few National Historic Sites including
the Gulf of Georgia Cannery and Britannia
Shipyards, as well as Fisherman’s Wharf. The
village itself is the setting for ABC’s hit series
“Once Upon a Time.”
The Sunshine Coast to Powell River
The jagged shoreline of this region shifts into
dense, towering evergreen trees that rise up
along the mountainsides. You can admire
Orcas dipping in and out of view, observe
bears grazing for their next meal, or watch as
bald eagles soar overhead. A fishing haven,
anglers troll with downriggers in efforts to
land their monster catch of the day. Being
relatively isolated is the Sunshine Coast’s
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greatest benefit for anglers. The only way to
get here is by boat, seaplane, or a B.C. Ferry
from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale or Comox to
Powell River.
The boating here is excellent. Marinas
up the coast cater to thousands of visitors
all year with transient moorage, fuel, marine
supplies, accommodations, even spas. Fishing
charters are ready for hire and are eager to
take you out.
On the Sunshine Coast, run lines for
feeder chinook in what is known as the “gap,”
the Shoal Channel between Gibsons harbour
and Keats Island, then along the shoreline
from Salmon Rock to Gower Point, around
the corner from Camp Byng and Roberts
Creek to the Trail Islands, Sargeant Bay, and
Halfmoon Bay, just west of Sechelt. In June
to September, mature coho, chum, pink, and
chinook salmon are the prime targets for
many anglers.
Further north, there are many spots
for salmon and bottom feeders. Some areas
include in and around Pender Harbour,
where you can fish at Bargain Harbour, Bjerre
Shoal, Agamemnon Channel, and Quarry
Bay. There are also sharp drop-offs at Ackland
Reef, Nelson Rock, and Fearney Point on
Nelson Island. If you cross Malaspina Strait,
simply troll the east end of Texada Island
(Point Upwood or the “pilings”) or the many
productive reefs and shoals off Sangster (Seal
Reef to Sangster’s Wall) and Lasqueti (Poor
Man’s Rock or Young Point) islands.
With scenery so striking, it’s worth the
break from fishing to go sightseeing. You’ll
enjoy a visit to Egmont, at the mouth of the
Sechelt Inlet, where the tidal currents create
a swirling maelstrom of whirlpools, eddies,
and surf. Visit at the right time of day and
year and you’ll see kayakers riding two-metre
(six-foot) standing waves that form in the
Skookumchuk Narrows.
It’s also worth a side-trip up Jervis Inlet,
including a stop at Princess Louisa Inlet.
While only eight kilometres long (about five
miles), Princess Louisa Inlet consists of an
incredible granite-walled gorge that rises
sharply from the water’s edge up to 2,100
metres (nearly 7,000 feet), attracting hikers
and recreational boaters from all over the
world every year.
A prime time to come is in the spring,
when the melting mountain snowpack
creates up to 60 waterfalls. Forty-metre (130-
foot) Chatterbox Falls is one of the more
popular natural marvels and should not to be
missed. What’s more, the area has a number
of campsites, a ranger cabin, and picnic
shelter. If you arrive with your boat, there is
a mooring buoy, stern pins, and a boat and
dinghy dock.
Services abound in Powell River, which
makes it an ideal starting point for a fishing
trip or to stock up on supplies during one.
If you navigate to Scotch Fir Point to the
south from May to September (between the
“Hulks” breakwater in front of the town’s
paper mill to Myrtle Rocks), you can catch
some action from salmon or bottomfish.
Other hot spots are located on the western
side of Texada Island from Blubber Bay (on
the northern tip) south to Kiddies Point,
Gillies Bay on the centre-west side of Texada
and along the southern side of Harwood
Island, just a few kilometres to the north
across Algerian Passage, and around Rebecca
Rocks.
If you’re not familiar with the area’s local
lakes, perhaps hire a guide in Powell River
to lead you to the mega-sized wild cutthroat
trout (especially in December). While
most lakes are open all year, Powell and its
tributaries, Inland and Goat lakes, close from
November 1 to March 31.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC
stocks many of the region’s stillwaters with
rainbow trout and kokanee. Try your skill
casting lures from the beach or from your
boat at Garden Bay, Hotel, Trout, Mixal,
Carlson, Crowston, McNair, Ruby, and
Sakinaw lakes.
Desolation Sound is another very
beautiful destination in this region. At
8,449 hectares (20,878 acres), it’s the largest
marine park in the province. Among the
many activities that can be enjoyed here,
it’s recommended to take a kayak, and
paddle with a guide to explore more than
60 kilometres (some 37 miles) of winding
shoreline, several islands, and isolated coves.
You won’t regret it.
“The Sound” is a great place for boaters
with its three major anchorages: Prideaux
Haven, Tenedos Bay, and Grace Harbour.
While especially busy in the summer, its
warm waters make it ideal for swimming or
scuba diving. A series of backcountry trails
lead to secluded lakes.
The Sunshine Coast offers excellent
fishing all year, and you can create as many
fond memories as you would like. Add in all
the extracurricular activities in the series of
communities, with arts festivals, parades,
and bike races, and you can enjoy heightened
experiences with every visit. For all of the
details on the activities, fishing and things to
do, visit www.sunshinecoastcanada.com.
38 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

www.suncruisermedia.com 39

Thompson
Okanagan
Similkameen
BY DAVID C. KIMBLE
This fishy nirvana can be all things
to all anglers. The most expert
anglers in the world can gather
here to compete in derbies and
tournaments, like the World Fly Fishing
Championship that was once held near
Kamloops. On the opposite end of the angling
spectrum, beginning fishermen might take
their first lessons in the fine art of angling
at one of the numerous stocked urban ponds
carefully supervised by local outdoor fishing
clubs. Anglers visiting this fabulous region
often combine their sense of adventure with
their desire to catch a variety of sport fish
using a plethora of techniques. The true
enjoyment of bringing family members to
share the marvellous fishing, along with all
the wonderful amenities and activities which
this magical recreational destination has to
offer, bonds families together and creates
lifelong memories.
Diversity best describes the area’s
incredible fishing. With deep-lake rainbow
trout weighing up to 12 kilograms (26.5
40 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

David Wei
pounds), anglers from around the globe will
travel here in search of their “personal best,”
and may well fulfill their dreams. Others will
be casting for steelhead trout in the region’s
mighty rivers, or for fearless bass in lowland
lakes. They may try to catch record-sized
kokanee from Okanagan or Kalamalka lakes,
fly-fish for willing stocked eastern brook char,
or even target mature chinook salmon in
many specific lakes and rivers.
Trophy-sized rainbow trout lurk deep
in the frigid waters of this fishing mecca’s
large, lower-elevation lakes; however, it is the
high-elevation lakes, where anglers can fish
from smaller craft like car-top boats, pontoon
boats, and float tubes, that draw families
as well as solitary anglers. The hills and
mountains that surround these valleys are
dotted with thousands of rainbow trout-filled
lakes. Fly casters can try to fool wary trout
with their special fur-and-feather creations,
and more relaxed anglers can just pull gang
trolls and hooks baited with worms; all are
happy to provide that night’s fish dinner.
Whether visitors want to stay at a luxury
resort, in a rustic cabin, in a fully-equipped
RV, or in a pup tent, it will be the thrill of
catching fish that draws anglers to this
spectacular part of the province.
The area’s marvellous fishing and other
outdoor activities, with accommodations
ranging from economical campgrounds to
luxury resorts, offer growing families some
of the best value for their hard-earned
money. Anglers visiting this part of the world
might well find themselves speeding down
a champagne-powder run in the morning
and battling a giant rainbow trout from
Okanagan, Kalamalka, or Shuswap lakes that
same afternoon. Visitors can take winery
tours, mountain bike along the old Kettle
River railroad trestles, golf some of British
Columbia’s best courses, or combine any of
these exciting local activities with the region’s
sensational fishing.
Thompson
A few drops of water dripping from the
toe of the Thompson Glacier, high in the
mountains west of the small community of
Valemount on the Yellowhead Highway, mark
the birth of a truly awesome fishing river. As
more drops gather, they form a rivulet that
soon turns into a creek and, when joined
by other creeks and rivulets, rapidly bond
into the mighty North Thompson River. The
North Thompson will pass the communities
of Blue River, Avola, and Vavenby before
it is joined by the Raft River and the large
Clearwater River, which drains most of
Wells Gray Park. Already huge, the North
Thompson flows south, picking up more
creeks and small rivers. Fifteen kilometres
(nine miles) north of Kamloops, it is joined
by the South Thompson River – which has
slowly meandered 55 kilometres (34 miles)
from its beginning at Little Shuswap Lake – to
form the now giant Thompson River, which
will flow into Kamloops Lake, and then exit
at Savona. It will continue in a meandering
course westward through a broad, desertlike
valley area. At Ashcroft, the Thompson
Canyon begins, and the river turns southwest
to its eventual confluence with the mighty
Fraser River.
The area is known for its exhilarating
fishing. Anglers can wade and cast along
the magnificent Thompson and its
tributaries, including the Clearwater and
South Thompson. Every steelheader in the
world has heard about the huge, sea-going
rainbows caught near Spences Bridge, and
each year, anglers anxiously check the fishing
regulations for special openings.
It is however, the high-jumping
Kamloops rainbow trout for which the
area is best known. These fantastic sport
fish are found in literally a thousand lakes
surrounding the cities of Kamloops and
Merritt. At ice-off in the spring, anglers
swarm into the region. They can find easy-tocatch
fish in the upper water-columns soon
after the ice clears.
Later, dry-fly devotees can sight-cast
to the surface-feeding fish gorging on
prolific, early- through late-summer hatches
of mayflies, caddisflies, and big travelling
sedges. In autumn, when fish are loading up
for the lean winter months, give them a big,
juicy-looking leech, dragonfly nymph, or scud
imitation … but it’s still a great time to fish
with dry patterns, like the water-boatman.
Along with very special lakes set
aside just for fly-anglers, there are dozens
of excellent family lakes that all include
campgrounds, cabins, and even safe
playgrounds for children. Many of the lakes
are easy to drive to with the family car;
however, always check conditions on the
access roads before you begin your trip.
Some are very steep and rough, requiring the
use of a four-wheel-drive vehicle at certain
times of the year. If you are ever in doubt
about the access, contact your destination
resort; most will be happy to transport you
and your equipment after meeting you at a
specific pick-up point. The Thompson area
also has numerous fishing destinations for
advanced anglers that are accessible only by
horseback or ATVs. There are also specific
wilderness areas set aside just for canoes,
where portaging might well be needed. There’s
something for every angler in the magnificent
Thompson area.
The rolling, arid country surrounding
the Thompson is well-known to anglers as
one of the very best and most diverse sport
fishing destinations in the world. The angling
for rainbow trout (known locally as Kamloops
trout) is so good that the lakes surrounding
www.suncruisermedia.com 41

Thompson Okanagan
the city of Kamloops were used for the 1993
World Fly Fishing Championships. The
Thompson River itself offers good fishing
throughout the year. There are many points
of access to the river along Highway 1 from
Lytton to Savona, or from Spences Bridge
to Ashcroft on the eastern side of the river
along Spatsum Road. During summer, try
fishing for rainbow trout, Dolly Varden char,
and whitefish. Cast flies, small spoons, and
spinners, or drift-fish bait like worms or
single salmon eggs.
Far north in the Thompson region,
Wells Gray Provincial Park is an angler’s
dream destination. The Clearwater River,
which merges with the Thompson River
at the community of Blue River, is totally
mind-boggling for anglers in search for giant
chinook salmon or rainbow trout. Clearwater
Lake is linked to both Azure and Hobson
lakes through a series of portages. The park
is full of trails that lead anglers to wild, troutfilled
lakes that might only see a lure several
times in an entire year. Between Barriere and
Kamloops, anglers owe it to themselves to
drop a line in Johnson, Knouff, Heffley, and
Paul lakes. The Freshwater Fisheries Society
of BC stocks these prolific waters annually.
Northwest of Kamloops, the Bonaparte
Plateau houses dozens of impressive fishing
lakes, with Bonaparte, Tranquille, and Red
lakes offering anglers tackle-busting trophy
trout in some of the most beautiful B.C.
wilderness settings.
Other nearby lakes include Eagan,
HiHium, Loon, Caverhill, Bare, Young, and
Machete. All boast excellent fishing for
rainbow trout to two kilograms (four to five
pounds) in weight. Note that Machete Lake
has a two-fish limit on its wild, unstocked
kokanee. Use a four-wheel drive vehicle,
or hike, to smaller jewels hidden in the
backcountry that have great fishing in
pristine, uncrowded settings.
South of Kamloops, anglers should
definitely check out the fabulous fishing in
the Lac le Jeune and Roche Lake provincial
parks. Both angling destinations offer family
fishing and camping sites, as well as several
premier destinations sought out by advanced
fly anglers.
Near the community of Logan Lake,
many angling tourists seek out Face, Tunkwa,
and Leighton lakes, which offer sensational
trophy rainbow trout fishing along with
resorts catering to either true wildernessseeking
anglers, or family fun getaways.
These fine resorts act as base camps for many
anglers who wish to try the dozens of satellite
lakes (like Mamit, Pasca, Bose, Calling, and
Island) that surround them. And don’t ignore
Logan Lake itself. The little lake, right in the
middle of town, has some surprisingly big
rainbows and excellent late-spring fishing.
Closer to Merritt, there are resorts on
private lakes catering to high-end fly anglers.
The Douglas Lake Ranch offers nine lakes that
past owners created as reservoirs for their
cattle. Someone came up with the brilliant
idea to stock them with rainbow trout, and
the rest is history. The ranch now carefully
manages the stocks of trout itself, making
certain that there is no over-fishing or overstocking.
The results are much larger fish
where only a few anglers might pay to fish
each week. Anglers travel to the Douglas Lake
Ranch from all over the world, and stay at
the luxurious Stoney Lake Lodge. The other
private lake in the area is Corbett, which also
offers exceptional angling on the privately
stocked reservoir lake, and an exceptional
resort with luxurious cabins.
You’ll also find great rainbow trout
fishing in the turquoise chain of Kentucky-
Alleyne Lakes, on your way south through
picturesque Aspen Grove via Highway 5A
towards Princeton. West of 5A, Edna Lake
(off Iron Mountain Road), the chain of small
scenic lakes along the Kane Valley Road
(Harmon, Little Harmon, Englishman, Upper,
and Lower Kane), and Shea Lake (off Voght
Valley Road) hold eastern brook char and
rainbow trout. Some of these lakes open
for winter ice fishing. Northeast, along 5A
towards Kamloops, Nicola, Stump, Peter
Hope, Lundbom, Marquart, and the Pimainus
Lake chain hold willing rainbows to two
kilograms (four to five pounds) with the odd,
much larger lunker. Travel north off Highway
5 to Lac Le Jeune, McConnell, Surrey, Stake,
Lodgepole, and Walloper lakes for plenty of
easy-to-catch, stocked rainbows.
In addition to rainbow trout, Black and
Horseshoe lakes (in the Roche Lake chain)
are home to chunky eastern brook char to
two kilograms (four to five pounds). These
colourfully spotted char rise readily to dry
flies, and are equally willing to strike lures or
bait while ice fishing.
Freshwater salmon fishing can be
excellent in the Thompson River system
as the runs of mature chinook come up
the Fraser River and then branch into the
Thompson, the North Thompson and its
tributaries (especially the Clearwater), and
the South Thompson and Shuswap rivers.
Limited salmon openings can be found on
these various river systems as well as in
Mabel Lake, east of Enderby. There are always
more salmon in Mabel Lake than the small
hatchery at Kingfisher can utilize; and those
salmon, trying to get up-river past the Wilsey
Dam on the upper Shuswap River (where
unfortunately, there is no fish ladder), will
just die without spawning.
Okanagan
The Okanagan Valley is one destination where
many visiting anglers combine their sport
with many of the dozens of other exciting
activities that the Valley has to offer. There are
fancy spas, gourmet restaurants, and unique
wine cellars. There are mountain bike trails
and ATV trails. In addition to the fantastic
downhill skiing areas, there are trails – crosscountry
ski, snowmobile, and backpacking
– that allow people to disappear into the
wilderness for days. And in summer, don’t
forget that people come just to lay on the
beach, stock up on the abundant fresh fruit,
and do a little swimming or golf. Whatever
the personal reasons, combining any tourist
activities with the magnificent local fishing
makes for even more memorable Okanagan
vacations.
Many visitors will include a few days of
guided fishing on the large lowland lakes as an
important part of their Okanagan vacations.
Other visitors will drive up to one of the many
higher-elevation resorts in the surrounding
hills that rent boats, cabins, or even camping
sites individually suited for everything from
huge RVs down to very small pup tents.
While camping is fun, the combination of
camping and great fishing is better. Much
better. Fishing destinations in the Okanagan
are distinctly divided between large, valleybottom
lakes, and smaller high-elevation
lakes.
Big lakes of the Okanagan include
Shuswap, Mara, Mabel, Kalamalka, and
Okanagan. Each lake has specific reasons
for anglers to choose them. Often, it is
the species of fish the anglers are seeking.
Shuswap, Mara, and Mabel lakes have healthy
populations of rainbow trout, lake char,
bull trout (char) and kokanee salmon, with
most anglers targeting the rainbow trout,
which often weigh up to 4.5 kilograms (10
pounds). Kalamalka is known for huge lake
char weighing up to 18 kilograms (40 pounds)
and very large kokanee with fish over three
kilograms (six or seven pounds) caught each
year. While Okanagan Lake also contains
many large kokanee, it is the giant rainbow
trout – weighing up to 12 kilograms (26
pounds) – which attract truly avid anglers.
42 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

CLOCKWISE: An elderly
couple enjoy fishing from one
of five public fishing docks on
Yellow Lake. Beaver Lake on
the Aberdeen Plateau. Rental
boats and canoes await
guests at the Beaver Lake
Resort east of Lake Country.
David Kimble
David Kimble
David Kimble
The best bet for visiting anglers pursuing their
personal best fish on these very large lakes
is using a local guide service. Local guides
provide safe, comfortable boats, the proper
tackle, and the knowledge of where, when,
and how to catch trophy fish.
The higher-altitude lakes found in the
foothills surrounding the Okanagan Valley get
the heaviest fishing pressure; however, thanks
to the Freshwater Fisheries Society of British
Columbia (who stock about 800 lakes and
streams with over eight million trout every
year), these lakes all offer excellent fishing.
Resorts with either cabins, or campsites
suitable for tenting and RVs, service many
of the Okanagan’s high lakes. These resorts
also rent boats and motors, and many of
them even rent rods and reels to entry-level
anglers who wish to give fishing a try for the
very first time. The resort owners are also
free with advice about the fishing in nearby
lakes, including how to get there, and what to
use in each lake in order to catch your limit
of excellent rainbow trout. Every resort has
cleaning tables, and they will be happy to
show you how to clean your fish if you are new
to the sport. The fancier resorts will even cook
your catch, along with some gourmet side
dishes, for your dining pleasure. However,
rolling your cleaned trout in flour and panfrying
them, especially over an open campfire,
just can’t be beat.
Northeast of Kelowna, there are several
lakes in the area known as the Aberdeen
LAKE TURNOVER by David Wei
Hungry after winter’s deprivations, the
fish of early spring will hit just about any
bait, lure, or fly. About two weeks after
the ice completely melts, lakes’ deeper
waters charge to the surface. This denser,
oxygen-depleted ‘turnover’ water slows
the fishing for about two weeks. Vigorous
winds, stirring up the surface to mix and
re-oxygenate lakes, signal the start of the
main fishing season. Warming water, along
with increased oxygen levels, bring the
first major hatches of the larvae of aquatic
insects like chironomids, dragonflies,
damselflies, caddisflies, and mayflies, along
with invertebrates like leeches and scuds
(Hyalella and Gammarus shrimp) – the main
sources of food for trout, char, and kokanee.
www.suncruisermedia.com 43

Thompson Okanagan
CLOCKWISE: Yellow
Lake borders Highway
3 east of Keremeos. An
assortment of flies.
.
David Wei David Kimble
Plateau which are especially popular with
visitors to the beautiful Okanagan Valley.
Beaver Lake is easy to get to, and offers a safe
environment for families to introduce the
children to the great outdoors. Nearby is the
Dee Lake chain, which was actually visited
by many Hollywood movie stars in its past
history. Other lakes on the fish-producing
plateau include Oyama and Nicklen, both of
which have full-facility resorts. The Aberdeen
Plateau has several hundred wilderness lakes
for more advanced anglers, many of whom
use the resort lakes as a base camp while they
explore a new lake each day.
Mabel Lake Provincial Park, north of
Lumby, is a very popular park where campers
FLY FISHING By David Wei
While you can troll for fish using hardware
like a gang troll and worm, or spincast with
bait, spinners or small spoons, early spring
is one of the best times to fly-fish in this
region. Despite hatches of mature insects
boiling off the surfaces of lakes, most of
your success will come from using wet
patterns that imitate larval forms rising
through the water from bottom.
44 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018
often include fishing as a major part of
the fun. On the north end of the lake, the
Kingfisher Community (just east of Enderby)
includes an excellent golf course and a landing
strip for small planes, along with a large, fullservice
marina where visiting anglers with
larger boats can moor them safely between
their fishing forays.
Northwest of Vernon, in the foothills
surrounding Falkland, anglers can find
excellent facilities at Bolean, Pillar, and
Pinaus lakes, all of which offer safe wilderness
resorts. Most high-altitude lake resorts offer
camping, cabins, and boat rentals, and are
thus fun places to introduce your family
members to the great lifetime sport of fishing.
Boundary/Similkameen
The beautiful Similkameen River has its
headwaters in Princeton, and passes through
Keremeos before dropping south to cross the
Canada/U.S.A. border just west of Osoyoos
Lake. There is excellent trout fishing in the
Similkameen River, as well as in the nearby
Ashnola River. Dry-fly casters can wade
both rivers, casting very small floating fly
imitations upriver trying to get that perfect
natural-looking drift, while other anglers drift
down sections of the rivers in float tubes or
inflatable rafts.
This area is also excellent for those
anglers who enjoy exploring the fishing on the
high-mountain lakes by horseback. Hearty

anglers can tackle the hiking trails, some of
which reach astounding elevations over 2,153
metres (7,000 feet), as well as special ATV
trails found in both Manning and Cathedral
provincial parks. Cathedral has a group of four
small hike-in lakes (Quiniscoe, Lake of the
Woods, Pyramid, and Ladyslipper) that boast
excellent fishing for aggressive cutthroat and
rainbow trout amid splendid mountain vistas.
With many points of access, anglers can
wet a line in the Kettle and West Kettle rivers
– as well as in picturesque creeks like Boundary
and McRae – for rainbow trout, eastern brook
char, and whitefish. The Kettle is popular for
canoeing as well as floating on inner tubes
and air-mattresses, although runs should be
scouted in advance, as there are some hazards
depending on the water levels at the time. With
many spectacular viewpoints along the Kettle
Valley Railway trail, the reasonably gentle
inclines and descents of this de-activated rail
bed route are not too arduous for fit hikers and
mountain-bikers.
The region’s high-altitude lakes offer fine
fishing all summer. Near Westbridge, Conkle
Lake – surrounded by extensive grasslands
and fragrant pine forests – is a popular hiking
and camping spot during the summer, with
excellent angling for stocked rainbow trout.
East of Greenwood, Jewel Lake Provincial
Park is situated in beautiful wilderness with
excellent fishing, swimming, boating, and
family-oriented camping. Years ago, Jewel Lake
was rumoured to have given up a humungous
rainbow trout weighing over 25 kilograms
(55 pounds) … but, more realistically, anglers
will find good fishing for stocked rainbow
and eastern brook char, with the odd threekilogram
(six- to seven-pound) trophy. During
the winter, both Jewel and Conkle lakes are
popular for ice fishing.
Anglers can also find abundant pan-sized
rainbows, eastern brook char, and whitefish
that are suckers for flies, bait, small spinners,
or spoons in the Granby River and its tributary
creeks, the Almond, Lynch, Burrell, and Miller
creeks near Grand Forks.
Bass fishing for either largemouth or
smallmouth bass is popular with anglers in the
area between Osoyoos Lake – which actually
straddles the Canada/U.S.A. border along
Highway 97 – and Christina Lake, just east
of Grand Forks, and north to Penticton. The
province’s largest largemouth bass, weighing
just over five kilograms (11 pounds), was
caught in Osoyoos Lake back in the late 1960s.
The north end of Osoyoos is still a popular
and productive bass fishing area. Osoyoos
and Christina lakes are about the only lakes
in the area where American-style bass boats
are regularly seen fishing along the weed beds.
Vaseux Lake, just south of Okanagan Falls, is
by far the most popular bass fishing lake in
Boundary country. The lake has large numbers
of both largemouth and smallmouth bass that
can easily be caught from shore, or from boats
without gasoline engines. Skaha Lake, south
of Penticton, has become a great smallmouth
bass destination in the last decade. Smallmouth
bass over two kilograms (4.5 pounds) are quite
common, and are found schooling near deep
rock piles. Casting jigs with soft plastic worms
or crayfish usually entice strikes; however,
crankbaits and spinners can also work wonders.
The Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Centre near
Osoyoos attracts visitors interested in the
history of the Osoyoos Indian band, and in
learning about life in the semi-arid shrubsteppe
environment known as Canada’s
“Pocket Desert.” Be sure to enjoy some samples
in the world-renowned Nk’Mip Cellars Winery
while you’re there.
The Thompson, Okanagan and Boundary/
Similkameen area offers visitors literally
everything they might possibly wish for, along
with outstanding fishing. Many anglers come
just for the fishing; however, many also come
to combine skiing, golf, wine-tasting, or the
many other outdoor activities for which these
sunny areas are so perfectly suited. Many of
these vacationers will include family fishing
as an essential part of their fun. The great
memories from a sensational fishing trip to
this beautiful region will last a lifetime.
Fishing Techniques for
BC’s Interior Lakes
Whether fishing the glorious ranchland of
the Chilcotin or the rolling timber area of the
Cariboo, the Thompson or the Okanagan,
the fishing techniques will be very similar.
There are over one thousand small lakes in
which anglers fishing from the shoreline, from
bellyboats, and from car-toppers can catch
feisty rainbow trout, eastern brook trout, and
delicious kokanee. Anglers often cast small,
weighted spinners or spoons from shore, or
even simpler but effective bobber-and-worm
combinations. Bellyboaters usually troll large
wet flies such as Doc Spratleys, Carey Specials,
or Muddler Minnows. Patient fly-anglers
will rig chironomid larva or bloodworm fly
patterns on long leaders under strike indicators
to slowly inch up and down very close to the
bottom of the lake…with exceptional success.
Anglers with smaller craft can often
successfully catch trout by trolling a small gang
troll, such as a Willow Leaf or a Ford Fender,
followed by a short leader to a hook baited
with a bit of worm or a couple of maggots.
Also effective is trolling with small spoons
like the Mepps Syclops, Little Wolf, Dick Nite,
Gibbs-Delta Gypsy, or Luhr-Jenson Kokanee
King. Other trolling favourites include small
Spin-n-Glows, and Apex Trout or Kokanee
Killers – especially in various shades of pink,
red, orange, or chartreuse. Tip any of these
lures with worms or maggots, and kokanee or
medium-sized rainbow trout will seem to flock
to them.
Fly-fishing purists cast nothing but dry
fly patterns, including common flies like Tom
Thumbs, Elk Hair Caddis, Parachute Adams
and, in rivers, large foam-bodied Stimulators.
For the rest of us average fly-casters, nearly
every lake in the Interior has one- to fourkilogram
(two- to eight-pound) rainbows that
will readily devour wet flies 90 percent of the
time. Fly boxes should include a variety of
wet fly patterns, including chironomids and
bloodworms, as well as leeches, damselflies,
and dragonfly nymphs. A red- or black-bodied
Doc Spratly fly does not imitate any real food
source for trout; however, whether cast or
trolled, these popular flies always put fish in
the boat.
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www.suncruisermedia.com 45

Cariboo
Chilcotin Coast
Story and Photos by David C. Kimble
Within short moments of
wetting your line in the
superb Cariboo Chilcotin
Coast region, you’ll be
pinching yourself to be certain that you
haven’t died and gone to an angler’s Valhalla.
It might be casting dry flies upstream to a
high-jumping rainbow trout, or dropping a
one-kilogram (two-pound) weight and bait
for a massive halibut in the 120-metre (400-
foot) depths off the Central Coast. It might
be fly-casting your own uniquely created fly
to a gargantuan steelhead trout in the famous
Dean River, or waiting – with every muscle
tensed – for a big coho salmon to slam into
your bucktail fly, fast-trolled just six metres
(20 feet) behind your boat in Hakai Passage.
Whatever anglers desire, they’re likely to
find that this stellar region is where all their
angling dreams will come true.
There are numerous fly-in or boat-in
resorts along the spectacular Central Coast,
from the famous Rivers Inlet to well north
of Shearwater and Milbanke Sound. Visiting
anglers, amazed by the abundance of salmon,
halibut, and lingcod that are caught annually,
will think it’s all a marvellous dream. The
incredible fishing is real, though, and coolers
full of tasty fillets to take home will be there
to prove it.
Keep your camera ready. Anglers
are sometimes surprised when an elusive
Kermode bear appears while waiting for their
next salmon bite. They might also get up
close and personal with orcas, grey whales,
humpback whales – or all of the above. The
haunting, almost surreal rainforest between
the central coastline and the towering
peaks of the majestic Coast Mountains is
interlaced with dozens of fertile rivers and
streams that are the spawning destinations
of all five species of Pacific salmon, steelhead
trout, Dolly Varden char, and high-jumping
coastal cutthroat trout. Popular, more
accessible spots on legendary rivers like the
Dean, Atnarko, and Bella Coola may witness
numerous anglers who are hiking, wading and
casting. However, a short helicopter flight up
these prolific rivers offers amazing wilderness
fishing from guided drift boats in hidden
pools where few other anglers have ever cast
their lines.
Climbing up and out of the magnificent
Bella Coola Valley, the Alexander Mackenzie
46 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Lac des Roches from
Highway 24.
Highway (#20) passes through
Tweedsmuir Park, and proceeds
eastward through the ruggedly
beautiful Chilcotin Country. Before
1953, residents of Bella Coola could only
access their community by boat, and winter
storms often left them stranded for months
without supplies. Local residents – many of
them loggers with some heavy equipment
– decided to build a road up the nearly
impossible 18% grade, gaining 1600 metres
(5000 feet) to connect with Highway 20 at
Anahim Lake, and thus have the ability to
drive inland via Williams Lake to access the
rest of British Columbia. They called their
humble road the “Freedom Highway.” When
B.C. Highways took over the maintenance of
the road, they re-named it after the Scottish
explorer Alexander Mackenzie, who had first
reached the Pacific Ocean using this overland
route some 12 years before the more famous
American explorers, Lewis and Clark.
The region between the Coast Mountains
and the Fraser River is called the Chilcotin
Country. It is known for its wide stretches
of grasslands, range cattle with real working
cowboys, and numerous sawmills utilizing the
wood from the forests that stretch to every
horizon. It is also known for the pristine lakes
and streams loaded with hard-fighting
rainbow trout, along with many resorts
that cater to all anglers’ whims and desires.
The Interior Plateau east of the Fraser
River is called the Cariboo. The odd spelling
is said to be a corruption of the French
word “cariboeuf.” Its rolling hills, carpeted
with fragrant evergreen forests, offer a wide
range of fishing – from peaceful, hidden
pothole lakes (which can be easily fished
from car-toppers, canoes, or float tubes) to
immense, glacier-carved lakes better suited
for deep-trolling from a cruiser outfitted with
downriggers. Anglers who prefer moving
water will find hundreds of creeks and rivers
flowing into the Fraser River basin that offer
exceptional, uncrowded fly-fishing and spincasting,
either from shore or from a drift
www.suncruisermedia.com 47

Cariboo Chilcotin
boat.
People interested in exploring more
of our province might enjoy driving the
Discovery Coast Circle Route, which starts
from the Lower Mainland north to Williams
Lake, then west along the Mackenzie Highway
to Bella Coola. The B.C. Ferries “Discovery
Coast Connector” will take them south
(visiting Bella Bella, Shearwater, Ocean Falls,
and Klemtu along the way) to Port Hardy,
on the northern end of Vancouver Island.
The Inland Island Highway will take them
south to Nanaimo or Victoria, where they
can catch a B.C. Ferry back to where they
started. An equal number of tourists, of
course, will prefer to drive this loop in the
opposite direction. Either way, the words
of Alan Moberg’s famous song “Williams
Lake Stampede” must be correct: “They’ll
come from far and wide, bring all the kids,
watch the cowboys ride, at the Williams Lake
Stampede.” This year, Williams Lake will
celebrate its 92nd annual stampede.
Central Coast
Beautiful British Columbia’s Central Coast
is a region of sublime magnificence. Wildlife
is everywhere you look: orca and humpback
whales, sea lions, and seals might swim
around your boat while you watch the pristine
beaches hoping to spot wolves, Sitka deer,
black bears, grizzlies, or even the rare white
“spirit” (Kermode) bear. The saltwater fishing
is sensational. Between Cape Caution and the
famous Milbanke Sound, there are healthy
stocks of all five species of Pacific salmon.
Marine biologists expect that this is where
the next world-record chinook salmon –
possibly over 45.5 kilograms (100 pounds) –
might well be caught. The area already boasts
of a 37.3-kilogram (83-pound) specimen
caught at the bottom end of Calvert Island,
and biologists have witnessed much larger
chinook salmon in the many spawning rivers
of the Central Coast. Coho salmon are also
known to be among the largest in the world,
and they expect a 13.6-kilogram (30-pound)
coho to be caught here soon. Many visiting
anglers are thrilled when they tie into a
9.1-kilogram (20-pound) coho, and find that
that size is quite common in these waters.
Three major spawning rivers – the
Chuckwalla, Kilbella, and Wannock – feed into
the headwaters of renowned Rivers Inlet, and
all three are known to contain numerous fiveand
six-year-old chinook salmon. The vast
majority of mature chinook salmon spawn at
four years. The older salmon, having one or
two years at sea to put on weight, often weigh
a hefty 27 kilograms (60 pounds) and some
are much larger. To sustain the inlet’s trophy
chinook fishery, and to enhance the wild
stocks, the local Oweekeno First Nation have
allied with the sport fishing resorts to fund
and operate the Wannock River and Shotbolt
Bay salmon hatcheries.
The headwaters usually have a thin layer
of milk-coloured glacial meltwater over the
top of the inlet’s saltwater, and salmon feed
just beneath that layer. Both sides of this
deep fjord – which curves some 50 kilometres
(30 miles) into the mainland – provide
plenty of uncrowded, protected fishing spots,
notably around Draney Narrows, Kilbella
Bay, and Wadham’s Point. Most of the largest
salmon strike a cutplug herring trolled just
behind the boat.
The mouth of Rivers Inlet offers more
consistent angling throughout the season
at a number of popular hot spots: “Wall,”
“Dome,” and “Triangle;” along the craggy,
indented shoreline of Fitz Hugh Sound; or the
channels, islets and main islands of Penrose,
Ripon, and Wallbran (on the northern side
of the inlet.) Healthy runs of all five species
of Pacific salmon often congregate at these
locations before continuing south, or working
their way up the inlet to spawn.
Nature’s Jewel in the Cariboo
www.FishingHighway24.com
North of Rivers Inlet, on the western
shores of Fitz Hugh Sound, Hakai Passage
offers its own brand of fabulous fishing,
especially for early season chinook, and
great-tasting northern coho salmon later in
the season. The tyee-sized chinook salmon
weighing over 13.6 kilograms (30 pounds)
are usually found on the western sections of
this famous passage at hot spots like Odlum
and Barney points, the “Racetrack, the “Gap,”
and Spider Island. As the season moves
on, anglers start concentrating on eastern
sections like Bayley Point and the eastern
shore of Hecate Island, for coho salmon along
with enough chinook salmon to hold anglers’
interests until the very last day of the season.
Just off the western entrance of Hakai
Passage, Queen Charlotte Sound dishes up
myriad great-tasting bottomfish.
The community of Namu is just
northeast of Hakai on the eastern shores of
Fitz Hugh Sound. Namu can also be accessed
with one of the B.C. Ferries. This area boasts
some of the most prolific runs of coho, chum,
and pink salmon on the coast, with good
numbers of chinook salmon passing right
under their docks.
Farther north, Lama Passage separates
Hunter Island from Denny Island, and leads
avid salmon anglers north to the productive
waters out of Shearwater on Denny Island,
and the Heiltsuk First Nation’s community
of Bella Bella on Campbell Island. Both
Denny and Campbell islands have land-based
airfields that service the area’s fishing resorts.
Schools of chinook and tail-walking coho
salmon are waiting for anglers in these waters
all season long, and it remains one of British
Columbia’s most productive areas deep into
the autumn as well. Seaforth Channel leads
anglers west to famous Milbanke Sound,
where numerous record-sized salmon have
been delighting anglers for a century. From
Cape Mark, Cape Swaine, Cheney Point, and
Rage Reefs off Wurtele Island; Idol Point on
Dufferin Island; Purple Bluffs and Cultus
Sound; across the sound to Day Point or
McInnes Island; or to offshore bottom fishing
holes, this area definitely puts smiles on
anglers’ faces, and great memories etched into
their minds.
Princess Royal Island is a relatively short
boat ride north of Milbanke Sound. This is
where anglers are sometimes distracted from
catching salmon by the possibility of getting
a photo of the rare white Kermode bears.
Often, their screaming reels quickly bring
them back to the task at hand.
Back south to Bella Bella or Shearwater,
48 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

take the time to go on a sightseeing tour
of this spectacularly beautiful part of the
province. In Dean Channel, visit the cairn
that marks where First Nations guides led
explorer Alexander Mackenzie to the Pacific
Ocean in 1793, then continue on to Bella
Coola, one of B.C.’s prettiest coastal towns.
Along the way, take a detour up Roscoe Inlet,
and watch for ancient pictographs, painted
in red ochre, that grace towering cliffs lining
this magnificent glacier-gouged fjord. Before
you return, relax with an invigorating dip
in a mineral hot spring amid mist-shrouded
mountains at Eucott Bay. Along the entire
journey, there are seemingly countless bays
and points that teem with schools of salmon.
Throughout the Central Coast area,
the bait of choice is herring, usually cutplugged
and rigged with two single, barbless
hooks. This rig is usually either clipped
to a downrigger cable, or a sliding weight
is rigged about two metres (6.5 feet) in
front of the bait. When a salmon takes the
herring, anglers must notice the subtle
strike, instantly put the motor in neutral,
and feed the salmon a metre or two of line.
Patiently allow the salmon to eat the bait.
Slowly reel in, with the rod low and pointed
at the fish until you feel the salmon, and
only then set the hook. From the moment of
the hookset, the salmon takes charge of the
battle. When professional guides know that
there are plenty of salmon in the area, they
will often switch to artificial baits like Tomic
plugs, flashers with hoochies, or big spoons.
Big salmon often hit these artificial lures so
hard that anglers will have trouble getting
their rods and reels out of the rod-holders.
Some purist anglers prefer to fly-cast to these
formidable sport fish.
Bottomfish but can be caught anywhere
along the Central Coast. While most anglers
enjoy taking home fillets of these delicious
white-fleshed fish along with their salmon,
try to limit your catch of slow-growing and
late-maturing rockfish as well as lingcod,
whose resident populations can be easily
overfished.
Chilcotin Region
The fabulous Chilcotin region, named after
the Tsilhqot’in First Nation, is best known
for its huge herds of free-range cattle
carefully tended by hard-working cowboys.
It also enjoys a world-wide reputation for its
spectacular freshwater fishing. The general
borders are the Coast Mountains on the west;
the Fraser river and Highway 97 on the east;
Highway 20 between Tweedsmuir Park and
Williams Lake on the north; and Highway 12,
from Whistler through Pemberton to where
it joins Highway 97 just above Cache Creek.
Most of the Chilcotin region is defined as
the western Fraser Plateau. It is drained by
the Chilcotin River, which joins the Fraser
River just north of the huge 16,000-squarekilometre
(6,200-square-mile) Gang Ranch.
Many of the world’s greatest angling
aficionados make annual trips to savour this
unique fishery.
Most anglers from the Vancouver area
will drive eastward to Hope and follow the
Fraser River northward on Highway 1 to
Cache Creek, then continue in the direction
on Highway 97 to the Chilcotin. Other
Vancouver anglers, however, take a shortcut
using Highway 12 past Whistler and beyond
Pemberton to access the excellent fishing
in the Bralorne and Gold Bridge area. Gun
Lake is often a destination here because
of the fantastic numbers of medium-sized
rainbows. This would be the southwest corner
of Chilcotin Country. Following Highway 12
east, anglers will join Highway 97, just above
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• Delicious home cooked meals
• Box lunches, beverages and bait
• A beautiful lounge and sun deck
• Heavy-duty Wetskin raingear and boots
• Complete fish care: filleted, vacuum
sealed, flash frozen and boxed to be
flown back with you
• Rods and reels all in A-1 condition
• Complete boat care: boats are
cleaned and fueled every time you
come in
• Bait and tackle for both salmon and
bottom fishing
Trips Starting As Low As $2,500 Per Person
CALL TOLL FREE 1-888-452-8822
email: doug@joessalmonlodge.com | www.joessalmonlodge.com
www.suncruisermedia.com 49

Cariboo Chilcotin
Cache Creek. Turning north onto Highway 97
takes our anglers to the unofficial southeast
corner of the Chilcotin, at Clinton.
Travelling north from this point,
remember that access roads to the west take
you into Chilcotin Country while the access
roads to the east are accessing the Cariboo.
Big Bar Lake, surrounded by the beautiful
Big Bar Provincial Park, is just northwest of
Clinton. It is a superb family destination, with
easy limits of smaller rainbows and the odd
tackle-buster to hold dad’s attention. Farther
north, Beaverdam Lake on the Meadow Creek
Road has excellent fishing, and a particularly
beautiful campsite. The road continues west
to smaller Little White Lake, which has no
facilities, but offers bellyboaters some terrific
fly-fishing for numerous rainbows up to three
kilograms (6.5 pounds).
Travel north on Highway 97 and turn
west at 83-Mile. A short road takes anglers,
hikers, and canoeists to Eightythree Lake,
where they can access a series of lakes
starting at Bullock and continuing through
the Flat Lake Provincial Park. There are plenty
of one-kilogram (2.2-pound) trout in all
these lakes, with a few real monsters to keep
anglers on their toes.
The Moose Valley Provincial Park is
just west of 100 Mile House, as is Valentine
Lake, well-known as an excellent family lake
where many nice fish are caught all year long.
Slightly south of Valentine, Gustafson Lake
also has a reputation as an excellent trout
lake.
The 108 Mile Ranch borders Highway
97 just north of 100 Mile House. The ranch
offers just about anything a visitor might
desire: horseback and ATV rides, golf, crosscountry
skiing, and every kind of water sport
one can imagine, including excellent trout
fishing. This all-together package makes it one
of the truly great family fishing destinations
in the province. Just north of the ranch is Lac
La Hache, a deep lake with numerous resorts
and campsites. This highly productive lake is
19 kilometres (12 miles) long, and offers up
huge numbers of one-kilogram (2.2-pound)
rainbows, prolific kokanee, and lake char that
often weigh in over 12 kilograms (26 pounds).
The lake freezes over most winters, making
it a wonderful winter destination for those
wishing to combine snowmobiling or crosscountry
skiing with some superb ice fishing.
The northern border of this prolific Chilcotin
fishing region is the very rugged wilderness
on either side of Highway 20, which heads
west out of Williams Lake on its journey to
the snow-capped mountains of Tweedsmuir
Park. Williams Lake, for which the town
is named, lies right next to Highway 97
for about ten kilometres (six miles). With
plenty of motels and campsites, it is a great
destination for families who enjoy fishing for
its copious numbers of small to medium-sized
rainbow trout. Of course, the world-famous
Williams Lake Stampede – a huge rodeo with
plenty of skills and spills to entertain even
the most civilized city-slickers – is one of the
region’s biggest draws.
West of Williams Lake, access to the deep
interior of the Chilcotin is through the many
forest service roads (FSRs) that lead north
or south from Highway 20. The FSR at Riske
Creek leads anglers south past many small but
bountiful lakes, ending up at the huge Gang
Ranch, which has many well-stocked private
trout lakes available for guests. The FSR
continues and emerges in Lillooet.
The next jumping-off point from
Highway 20 is at Hanceville. Shortly after
crossing the Chilcotin River, the FSR splits
into two branches. The left branch of the road
takes anglers south to Fletcher Lake, which
Lac des Roches from
Highway 24.
50 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

is reputed to have rainbow trout over three
kilograms (6.6 pounds). There is a campsite,
and some rental cabins on the lake. The FSR
then joins the Big Creek Road, which leads to
Mons Lake or to Willen Lake, a prolific flyfishing
destination. The right branch is called
the Willen Creek Road, and quickly joins
the Taseko Lake Main. This road will take
anglers southward for about an hour before
reaching the Davidson Bridge recreation site.
From here, the road splits once again, with
the left-hand route taking anglers into Fish
Lake or to a small lake called the Onion, both
lakes having profuse numbers of enthusiastic
rainbows to two kilograms (4.4 pounds).
This branch ends up at Taseko Lake, which
has a resort offering fishing, hunting, and
horseback trips. Taseko Lake is difficult to
fish because it is filled with milky glacialrunoff
water. Casting large spoons into the
clear creek outlets, however, can produce
some very large bull trout. The right-hand
(westward) branch from Davidson Bridge
leads anglers past Konni Lake, and ends up at
the famous Chilko Lake in Tsylos Provincial
Park.
It’s important to remember that
highways 97 and 20 are paved, but all the
access roads that lead off these highways are
good gravel roads. In the summer, that means
dust. If you are driving into a particular lake,
and see a loaded logging truck coming toward
you, pull over and stop until the dust has
cleared. These trucks often travel in pairs and,
using their radios, will tell each other exactly
where you are. Thus, you’ll be safe as long as
you wait for the dust to clear.
Before arriving at Tweedsmuir Park,
Highway 20 will take anglers west to Nimpo
and Anahim lakes. Visiting anglers often take
commercial flights into the airfield at Anahim
Lake, and are bused to Nimpo Lake where
floatplanes fly them to destinations like the
upper Dean River, the Redfern River Lodge
or the Moosehead Lodge, or the many hidden
lakes and rivers within Tweedsmuir Park
itself. Don’t forget, however, to drop your line
into Nimpo Lake, with its healthy population
of eager rainbows up to three kilograms (6.6
pounds).
Cariboo Region
The Cariboo is a trout angler’s nirvana, with
far more great fishing lakes than any writer
could possibly mention. It’s an area of rolling
hills and tall timber and lies east of the Fraser
River, with slightly higher elevation than the
Chilcotin country to the west, and extends
eastward to the border of the Thompson/
Okanagan. We’ll begin our investigation
of this sublime fishery at 70 Mile House,
where we’ll head east from Highway 97 onto
the Green Lake Road. Just before arriving
at Green Lake, the North Bonaparte Lake
Road takes anglers eastward past Tin Cup,
Crater, and Pressy lakes. They feature superb
year ’round trout action, with many locals
snowmobiling to reach them for winter ice
fishing after deep snow closes the road. The
excellent gravel road continues east, where
anglers can turn right onto the Eagan Lake
Road to access either Eagan or Sharp lakes
on their way to the western end of famous
Bonaparte Lake. Lying at an elevation of
1,170 metres (3,800 feet) above sea level,
Bonaparte stays cool, with big, up to sixkilogram
(13-pound) rainbows that will strike
and fight all summer long. If anglers don’t
turn onto Eagan Lake Road, the Bonaparte
Lake Road continues north, passing Crystal
and Rutherford lakes before it connects with
Highway 24 near Lone Butte.
Highway 24 is referred to as the very
backbone of the Cariboo, but thousands of
Trophy Salmon Fishing
Hakai Pass, British Columbia, Canada
Hakai Lodge is a rustic hideaway floating in the heart of the Hakai
Luxvbalis Conservancy Area (British Columbia’s largest marine park)
world-famous for its unsurpassed salmon fishing. For thousands of years,
huge runs of Chinook (King) Salmon, Coho (Silver) Salmon as well as
Sockeye, Chum and Pink Salmon crowded through Hakai Pass from the
open Pacific Ocean headed for the rivers and streams where their life
began. Besides salmon, there’s good Halibut, Lingcod, Red snapper and
Rockfish fishing. There is no commercial fishing in area which offers a true
wilderness experience amid spectacular scenery and abundant wildlife.
With a friendly staff, world-class fishing, and comfortable
accommodations, Hakai Lodge assures you of the very best fishing and
that you will be hosted by friendly and professional owners who own and
operate the resort hands-on for over 45 years. Space is Limited. Plan
ahead and Save! Don’t forget to sign up for a free fishing trip
For fishing dates and prices visit:
www.suncruisermedia.com 51

Cariboo Chilcotin
anglers over many decades have nicknamed
it, “The Fishing Highway.” This famous
97-kilometre (60-mile) route starts just south
of 100 Mile House at Highway 97, and draws
adventuresome anglers eastward through
the trout-rich region to Little Fort, on the
Yellowhead Highway (#16). Many articles
have been written about this most important
access road for fishing in the prolific Cariboo.
Just past Lone Butte, Horse Lake Road
leads anglers north to marvellous Horse Lake
with its fantastic trout fishing, along with
consistent production of tackle-busting
lake char that can top the scales at
over ten kilograms (22 pounds). This
road can also take intrepid anglers
eastward to the Mahood Lake Road,
which in turn leads back northward
to such famous trout waters as
Deka, Sulphurous, and Hathaway
lakes on its way to Canim Lake.
Back again on the Fishing
Highway, the road into Fawn Lake is
a left-hand (north) turn, just west of
Sheridan Lake. Fawn Lake has a lovely
resort with camping and cabins, and is
a destination lake for many fly anglers. Its
protected waters are perfect for bellyboating
and fly-casting for abundant medium to large
rainbow trout.
Sheridan Lake has five resorts that are
an indication of the lake’s excellent fishing.
A four-kilogram (nine-pound) rainbow from
Sheridan doesn’t even garner bragging
rights, where every year it seems that at least
one rainbow trout over eight kilograms (18
pounds) gets weighed in.
At the eastern end of Sheridan Lake, a
road to the north takes anglers past Roe Lake
and ends up on the north end of Bridge Lake.
Whether fishing on the north, south, east or
west of large Bridge Lake, anglers will find
excellent fishing for rainbow trout, lake char,
and some really great-tasting kokanee. Once
again, from the Fishing Highway, the rough
gravel Machete Lake Road bears southward,
just east of Bridge Lake, past pretty Montana
Lake and a trail into Tobe Lake, on its way to
Machete. Machete holds some surprisingly
large rainbows for anglers willing to work to
get their boats into it.
Lac des Roches, east of Bridge Lake, has
two excellent resorts offering cabins and RV
camping for those who do not wish to drive
their fishing rigs on gravel roads. Access is
easy, and the rainbow fishing is fantastic.
Highway 24 continues east, down a long hill
to Little Fort in the North Thompson country.
The Canim-Hendrix Lake Road leaves
Highway 97 just north of 100 Mile House.
This road leads anglers into the western and
eastern shores of Canim Lake, which offers
all kinds of water sports as well as excellent
spring and fall fishing for big rainbows and
lake char, and healthy numbers of kokanee
throughout the summer.
Another good access road turns east
Liquid Lace Sockeye Fry Fly
out of Lac La Hache, following signs to the
Timothy Lake Ski Hill. This road passes
Greeny and Timothy lakes, both offering
good camping and fishing. Sprout Lake Road
branches northward just before Greeny Lake
and takes anglers past Rail and Sprout lakes,
which have excellent fishing for rainbows.
Departing Highway 97 north and east
of 150 Mile House, Horsefly Road is the last
and most northerly road worth mentioning
to access the northern Cariboo. The road
is paved all the way to Horsefly, where it
changes into a wide, well-maintained gravel
road. There’s a large campground and a good
boat launch on Horsefly Lake for both tenters
and RVers. The lake offers great trolling
for rainbow trout often weighing over 4.5
kilograms (10 pounds). The good gravel road
continues to the south junction of huge
Quesnel Lake (deepest fjord lake in Canada),
with its excellent populations of rainbow
trout, bull trout, lake char, and kokanee. Troll
for these trophy fish with big spoons, plugs,
and crank baits. When sockeye salmon are
spawning in the feeder creeks, Dolly Varden
and rainbows will readily hit lures that
resemble salmon roe. Just before arriving at
this junction, there is a cluster of incredible
fly-fishing lakes – including Jacques, Hen
Ingram, and Keno Lakes – which anglers
often discover when wind keeps them from
fishing on Quesnel Lake; none are ever
disappointed.
Other great Cariboo trout lakes include
Tyee, Crooked, Big, Morehead, McLeese,
Klinne, Jackson, Dragon, and Doreen. Forest
Lake, north of Williams Lake but south of
Tyee Lake, has a distinguished reputation
for some of the largest rainbow trout
in the Cariboo, with prize fish to four
kilograms (nine pounds) and the
occasional brute that can top nine
kilograms (20 pounds). For some
incredible sightseeing and fabulous
fishing in virtually untouched
waters, arrange to fly into Ghost
or Mitchell lakes, high in the
Cariboo Mountains, or take a jetboat
to Ghost, Mitchell, Roaring, or
Quesnel Rivers. Observe a colourful
autumn spectacle as thousands of
crimson sockeye return to spawn in the
Horsefly River.
Three massive provincial parks define the
far northeast sector of the Cariboo. Wells Gray
Provincial Park covers 5,250 square kilometres
(2,027 square miles). It is joined at its northern
border with the Cariboo Mountains Provincial
Park with 7,600 square kilometres (nearly
3,000 square miles). Joining its northern
border is the Bowron Lake Provincial Park at
1,492 square kilometres (576 square miles).
In this park, the rugged angler will discover a
special fishing adventure in a chain of 10 lakes
and short portages that form a 116-kilometre
(72-mile), rectangular canoeing circuit that
you can access with a special permit. The lakes
contain rainbow trout, Dolly Varden, lake char,
kokanee, and whitefish in an unforgettable
wilderness setting. Together, that’s 14,342
square kilometres (over 5,600 square miles) of
prime wildlife habitat. Thank you to the past
governments of British Columbia.
When you catch a real trophy-sized
salmon, trout or steelhead trout, please enjoy
the battle, and carefully handle your prize
while someone else takes photos. But keep
only smaller fish for your dinner table, and
respectfully release bigger fish back into the
depths to reproduce more of their kind for
our future anglers. The Cariboo, Chilcotin
and Central Coast are very special angling
destinations; they will only stay that way
if we all strive to maintain the high-quality
fishery.
52 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

Lodge Profile
Hakai Lodge
is located at
Hakai Pass,
approximately 496
kilometres (308
miles) north from
Vancouver.
By Steve Fennell, Photos Courtesy of Hakai Lodge
HAKAI LODGE
Hakai Lodge has been in operation
since the early 1970s, and has greatly
expanded over the years to become
one of the longest standing go-to fishing
lodges on the BC coast. One thing that hasn’t
changed, however, is the action-packed fishing
grounds that keep anglers coming back for
more every season.
Located at Hakai Pass, approximately
496 kilometres (308 miles) north from
Vancouver, B.C. and 160 kilometres (100
miles) northwest of Port Hardy on Vancouver
Island, the lodge is accessible only by plane
from three convenient locations: Vancouver,
Seattle, or Port Hardy.
“One of the biggest draws for guests is our
father-and-son (or -daughter) packages. We are
also popular for family group trips,” said Clyde
Carlson, owner of Hakai Lodge. “It’s great to
see how much they enjoy themselves, and
the kids now return with their children and
families. It’s a tremendous experience.”
During your journey here, you’ll fly over
lush forests, uninhabited islands, white sand
beaches, and sparkling water where trophy
chinook and coho salmon – as well as halibut,
lingcod, and Pacific yelloweye rockfish – lurk
below the surface. The B.C. coast offers some
of the best fishing on the planet, and the
lodge’s fishing season from July to September
is a true testament to this.
“The average weight of chinook salmon
caught here is about 13.6 kilograms (30
pounds), and the average weight for coho
is 7.3 kilograms (16 pounds),” said Carlson.
“One of the great things we teach our guests
is about the area, its history and most of all,
we teach them all about its salmon fishing
with our expert team. Once they have the skill
down, they go out on their own and create
their own experiences.”
Each of the lodge’s fleet of Boston
Whaler Montauks – powered by 30- or 40-
hp Yamaha four-strokes – comes with rod
holders, 2.4- to 3.4-metre (eight- to 11-foot)
mooching rods, levelwind or single-action
saltwater reels, insulated bait boxes, and
tackle. Orientations are also provided, and
guides are available.
When it comes to dining, you won’t be let
down. A professional chef and baker prepare
all the menu items for lunch and breakfast,
while dinner features hearty, made-to order,
full-course meals.
There’s no doubt you’ll also appreciate
the series of accommodations, which consist
of upgraded guest cabins with a rustic appeal,
just steps from the water’s edge. Spacious
and comfortable, the fully-furnished cabins
accommodate groups from two to 12, making
them ideal for entertaining or relaxing with
friends or family after a day on the water.
Father-son (and -daughter) packages
are popular at the lodge.
“Over the last seven years, we
have invested more than $1,000,000 of
improvements into the lodge,” said Carlson.
“We refurbish all of the existing boats
and motors, and upgrade our professional
fishing gear every year. We also did major
improvements to the commercial kitchen, as
well as to the guest cabins. Guests here can
pretty much enjoy the best of what we offer.”
For all the details, call Hakai Lodge at
1-(800) 538-3551, or visit them at
www.hakai-lodge.com.
www.suncruisermedia.com 53

Lodge Profile
By Steve Fennell
Catch the
Action
BC’s Rivers Inlet
Sportsman’s Club
The Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club
has been owned and operated by
the Kelly family since 1984. It
enters its 35 th season of leading
die-hard anglers to their fishing fights of a
lifetime. Although the Kellys can’t guarantee
breaking the club’s record of landing a
monster 32.9-kilogram (72.5-pound)
chinook salmon, they do their best to
instruct guests on how to catch big fish, and
provide experiences that will last a lifetime.
Located on BC’s central coast
approximately 483 kilometres (300 miles)
north of Vancouver, or approximately 148
kilometres (92 miles) north of Port Hardy,
the Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club is a strictly
fly-in fishing lodge – which means there are
no roads, and crowds are practically nonexistent.
Taking the 90-minute flight (via a
Cessna Caravan) from the South Terminal
of Vancouver International Airport is just
the beginning of the journey north. Arriving
at The Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club means
stowing your personal smart phone, and
enjoying everything the region has to offer.
There is, however, WiFi available for those
very important calls that need to be made.
“The reason we are located on Rivers
Inlet is the fact that very large salmon can
be caught here, and productive salmonbearing
rivers like the Kilbella, Chuckwalla,
and Wannock feed into our system,” said
owner Barbara Kelly. “According to the
fishing reports that we receive from Fisheries
and Oceans Canada (DFO) throughout the
season, more salmon congregate in this
area during the peak fishing season than
anywhere else on the BC coast.”
With an expert staff – which includes
Kelly’s son Simon, his wife Stephanie
d’Artois (who share the operation manager’s
role), Cathy Drew, the office and accounts
manager, and a team of up to 20 to include
seasoned fishing guides and on-site staff –
guests’ questions are always answered, and
their needs are always addressed.
Fishing trophy-calibre waters for
salmon during the peak run from June to
September is about as exciting as fishing can
get. To properly educate guests (and to make
the most of their time), the guides regularly
54 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

LEFT: Fishing trophy-calibre
waters for salmon is about
as exciting as fishing can
get. RIGHT: A first-hand
45-pounder that was caught
near the lodge.
Eric Berger Photography.
Rivers Inlet Guest
present seminars on “everything they need
to know about the area and salmon fishing.”
Topics range from water safety and handling
heavy tackle to landing any one of coastal
species that include chinook, coho, lingcod,
and halibut. Most importantly, successful
fishing is mixed with comfort. The lodge has
a fleet of fully loaded, custom-built boats
designed for coastal fishing; professional
fishing gear; full accommodations; scheduled
full-course meals; and more.
“Although some of the best fishing
on the coast is only 10 minutes around
the corner, we strongly suggest going out
with a guide who is fully acquainted with
the region,” says Kelly. “What’s appealing
to a lot of people is they can go out in the
morning, come back for lunch, then go back
out in the afternoon. They can have dinner
and go out again. We generally have calm
seas – guests don’t have to travel an hour on
rough seas, or stay out all day. Guests get in
a lot of fishing time.”
Exploring this area has its merits
as well. Without the masses, visitors can
experience nature at its purest. Accessible
by boat from the lodge, nearby trails lead
through temperate rainforests, and there
are beautiful beaches to enjoy an afternoon
on the shoreline. Double ocean kayaks are
available to explore the series of coves and
bays, or admire the vast range of marine
wildlife (from whales to bald eagles) up close
and personal.
Nevertheless, salmon fishing is the name of
the game here. As it may be common to see
repeat guests during a visit, it’s definitely for
a reason. As Kelly explains, “It’s all about the
experiences.”
“You have to do a good job for your
guests so they want to come back,” says
Kelly. “We have been doing this for 35 years
now, and we learn from our experiences
what our guests want. This is what makes us
competitive, and it’s the reason why we’ve
been around for three-plus decades.”
To learn about all the details of The
Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club, its
accommodations, and several services,
visit www.riversinlet.com
www.suncruisermedia.com 55

56 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

BY David Y. Wei and Suzanne L. Clouthier,
Photos Courtesy of Kingfish Westcoast Adventures
NORTHERN
BRITISH
COLUMBIA
British Columbia’s expansive
northern region includes more than
half of the province’s total area –
approximately half a million square
kilometres. How large is that? It’s nearly the
size of France, and more than the entire state
of California.
This vast landscape is characterized
for the most part by unspoiled, imposing
wilderness. A collection of over 60 parks
and protected areas, with two UNESCO
World Heritage Sites, preserve a formidable
portion of the area from urban and industrial
development. The incredibly rich natural
diversity – geologic features from towering
cordillera to ancient lava beds; animals
from chubby marmots to ferocious grizzly
bears; and forests as far as the eye can see
– are protected for posterity by proactive
government programs.
Northern B.C. also abounds in history.
The legacy of First Nation societies weaves
a unique cultural fabric that reaches back
well over ten thousand years. Some of their
ancient ancestors arrived by boat from Asia,
fishing the riches of the Pacific Rim, while
others pursued big game across Beringia. Their
extraordinary history, art, and contemporary
cultures are on display at galleries, heritage
sites, and museums across the region.
There are just three major highways (#16,
#37, and #97) that link the cities and towns
of northern B.C. and wend their way – along
with B.C. Ferries’ car- and passenger-service
to the Haida Gwaii archipelago – through
the northland. There are countless places to
discover by boat, hiking, horseback, or air …
with plenty of naïve fish to fool.
Haida Gwaii
From its remote perch on the western edge
of the continental shelf, the Haida Gwaii
archipelago — some 50 to 130 kilometres
from the B.C. mainland — is a consistent
producer of saltwater sport fish, both in
numbers and in trophy sizes. The cold,
nutrient-rich water of the North Pacific
fosters bountiful schools of baitfish: herring,
needlefish, krill, and squid. This abundant
feed (which concentrates salmon and
bottomfish within some of the very first
angler-accessible shallows they encounter in
the open Pacific), combined with the splendid
isolation of Haida Gwaii, are two of the
factors that make this fishing destination so
special.
Brawny chinook averaging 10 kilograms
are the rule here, not the exception. When
done right, fishermen have an excellent
chance of hooking into a tyee-grade chinook
weighing more than 13.6 kilograms.
Trophy northern coho are notorious for
peeling the line from the reel, and for
almost instantaneous reversals of direction
punctuated with impressive displays of
airborne leaping agility that will leave you
breathless. Opportunistic pink or chum
salmon will attack any dangling bait, even
right beside your boat.
Downrigger-equipped boats can troll for
salmon using baits and lures at depths down
to 50 metres. Try:
• cutplug or whole herring
• anchovy (real, or Gibbs-Delta Big Bite
imitation) in Rhys Davis Anchovy Special
or Bullet Roll teaser heads; O’Ki JDF
teaser heads; or small Jughead Shaker bait
holders, astern flashers
• herring strip in Rhys Davis teaser heads, on
their own or astern flashers
• five- to seven-inch Tomic plugs (#493,
#500, #530UV, #602, #639, #639bd; #700,
or #803); True Roll Lure; or Lyman wooden
plugs
• big spoons (Gibbs-Delta Irish Cream,
No Bananas or Trailhead G Force, 50/50
Wonder, Clendon Stewart, and Gator; O’Ki
Titan Real Live Anchovy Image or Kinetic;
Luhr Jensen chrome Superior, Coyote, and
Diamond King; Williams “Nu-Wrinkle”
Whitefish; Tomic “Honeycomb” #500,
#512g, #545, #546, #574, #576g, #600,
#602, or #639bd; or five-inch Pesca RSG
Clupea or Gut Bomb)
• small three- to four-inch high-action
spoons (Gibbs-Delta Razorback, Skinny G,
Coho Killer, or Gypsy; Luhr Jensen Coyote;
AP Tackleworks Herring, Sandlance or
Anchovy; Williams Savant Crusher; or Pesca
Gut Bomb) behind flashers
• wobbling lures (Gibbs-Delta Hockey Sticks,
or Apex Hot Spots)
• hoochies (Army Truck, glow-green
splatterback, Pistachio, Irish Cream, Tiger
Prawn, Yozuri six-inch squid, or North
Pacific J200) astern full-sized flashers
• flashers (Gibbs-Delta Highliner Guide
Series Moon Jelly UV glow or Kitetail
Chartreuse Glow; O’Ki Big Shoter Fire
n’ Ice, Footloose, Betsy, Jelly Fish, or
Frenchie; or Hot Spot UV Purple glow).
If you still want attraction, but don’t want to
dampen a salmon’s fight using a flasher, try
using a big, hookless spoon (like a Williams
Whitefish) two metres in front of small
www.suncruisermedia.com 57

Northern BC
spoons, or an anchovy in a teaser head; or
use a dummy flasher off the downrigger
cannonball, and attach your favourite spoon
or plug about 1.5 metres above it.
Haida Gwaii’s deep offshore banks
and numerous rocky shoals are a bottomfisher’s
dream. Every season, these areas
produce monster “barn-door” halibut to more
than 50 kilograms, in addition to “chicken
halibut” (five- to 20-kilograms) that are more
manageable in the kitchen.
Don’t underestimate the stalwart lingcod
(a member of the greenling family). This fish
is rapacious and known to pugnaciously attack
almost any bait or lure, and even another
hooked fish if it feels it can swallow it. Pacific
yelloweye rockfish are also aggressive feeders,
and will strike almost any lure or bait drifting
within five metres of bottom. Anglers are
encouraged to release really big lings and
halibut, as these are usually female. Quickly
vacate any rockfish haunts as well, since these
fish are very susceptible to mortality after
being caught, even when carefully returned to
the water.
The most convenient and safe way to
fish Haida Gwaii’s fabled waters is to hire
an experienced charter boat operator out of
Sandspit or Masset, or to book space in one of
the land-based or floating resorts located near
the most popular fishing spots.
The kelp beds at the northern end of
Graham Island – in shallow bays and deep
rock crevices – provide game fishes’ perfect
cover for shelter and ambush. Popular hot
spots in this area include Cape Edenshaw at
the entrance to Naden Harbour, in Virago
Sound, and further west to the Bird Rocks.
When weather and sea conditions
permit, anglers can often experience fabulous
salmon and bottomfish action along the
untamed western flanks of Graham and
Moresby islands. From Sandspit, day charters
can fish Marble Island in Cartwright Sound,
and other destinations close to the western
end of Skidegate Channel. Book a multipleday
stay at a floating or land-based fishing
resort to access exceptional sport fishing
around Kano Inlet, Port Louis, Hippa Island,
and Englefield Bay.
At Langara Island, just off the
northwestern tip of Graham Island, there are
a number of floating and land-based resorts
that offer either unguided, partially, or fully
guided fishing. Find excellent salmon and
bottom-fishing just off the kelp beds that
line the protected waters along the eastern
side of Langara Island. Cohoe, Andrews, and
McPherson points are always top producers.
Drift-fish narrow Parry Passage, located
between Langara and Graham islands, for big
halibut. Troll or motor-mooch for salmon at
nearby Guinia Point or at Bruin Bay, which
also offers some protection if southeast winds
pick up.
The western and northern sides of
Langara are more exposed to the open ocean,
but offer excellent fishing when seas are calm.
Hang just offshore at Lacy Island, the Langara
Lighthouse, or the area around Langara Rocks.
Dead-drifting a whole herring well offshore in
the “O-zone,” while following the 100-metre
bottom contour, can produce explosive salmon
and bottom-fishing action.
Some of the finest stream-fishing for
trophy steelhead in British Columbia can
be found in the rivers of Haida Gwaii. This
fishery starts in the autumn, and continues
throughout the winter well into the following
spring. You’ll also find phenomenal coho
fishing in the fall, and searun Dolly Varden
and cutthroat trout fishing throughout the
year. On Graham Island, drive to rivers such as
the Yakoun, Tlell, or Kumdis, or to the Copper
River on Moresby Island. Keep in mind that
there are also remote island lakes and creeks
accessible only by boat or helicopter, where
you’ll find yourself standing knee-deep in
virtually pristine fishing territory.
Make arrangements to see the remaining
memorial poles at the ancient Haida village
of Ninstints (or SGang Gwaay llnagaay, which
means “Red Cod Island”) – now a UNESCO
World Heritage Site. Just east of Langara
Island, on the northern end of Graham
Island, you’ll find a weathered 30-metre-high
sandstone spire called Pillar Rock. Along
the shores, you stand a good chance to find
colourful wave-polished agates and, if you are
really fortunate, Japanese glass fishing-net
floats that have washed in from the other side
of the Pacific. These sandy beaches run the
shoreline for almost 100 kilometres, and fall
under the jurisdiction of Naikoon Provincial
Park. An extensive display of the indigenous
Haida First Nation’s traditions, art, and
culture is housed at the Haida Gwaii Museum
and Haida Heritage Centre at Kaay Llnagaay
in Skidegate.
Prince Rupert and the
Northern Coast
Every winter, hurricane-force southeast gales
bring in epic storms that hammer the north
coast. This unpredictable weather tends
to keep serious sport fishing to the more
pleasant spring and summer months. Fishing
resorts usually begin saltwater operations
toward mid-May, and wrap up by mid-
September; however, a few stay open from
November until April to offer river-fishing for
steelhead, salmon, cutthroat trout, and Dolly
Varden.
From Prince Rupert, you have access to
several major salmon runs entering the Nass,
Kitimat, and Skeena rivers. At the mouth of
the Skeena, halibut, lingcod, and rockfish
congregate just offshore to feed on schools
of baitfish. A big charter fleet operating out
of Prince Rupert’s small-boat harbour offers
excellent single- and multiple-day fishing
expeditions. There are also several remote,
full-service resorts that provide world-class
fully guided or self-guided fishing.
Moving north from Prince Rupert, you’ll
58 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

encounter Nass and Skeena River tyee – with
the added bonus of trophy coho – at Dundas
and Zayas islands. On the northern side of
Zayas Island, immense kelp forests are the
perfect cover for salmon to ambush hordes
of needlefish that often hover just below
the surface, and allow for remarkable ocean
fly-fishing. Close to the mouth of the Nass,
salmon and bottomfish abound in Work
Channel and Portland Canal. To the west,
Chatham Sound and surrounding islands
of the Tree Knob Group have consistently
produced good salmon and bottom-fishing
action. South of Prince Rupert, Goble Point is
a good place to motor-mooch or troll for coho,
chum, and tyee-sized chinook – especially
when big tidal flows form a powerful back
eddy that concentrates both salmon and their
prey in the slick current.
Kitimat and the Douglas Channel
Kitimat boasts both fresh and salt water
fishing. The Kitimat River has plenty of
fish stocks all year round with the Kitimat
River Hatchery enhancing the chum, coho,
chinook, steelhead and cutthroat populations
in the river. There are many ways to fish
the Kitimat River – fish the mouth of the
river in a jet boat, fish the length of the river
in a drift boat, drive to a hot spot on the
riverbank or hike to a secluded spot. Local
guides have evolved several techniques and
lures exclusively manufactured for fishing
the Kitimat River. Conventional tackle, hot
shotting techniques or fly-fishing can be used
for all species in the Kitimat River.
www.suncruisermedia.com 59

Northern BC
The Douglas Channel, one of BC’s longest
inland fjords, provides access to unbelievable
salt water fishing adventures. With the
Kitimat River and many more feeder creeks
and rivers producing migrating salmon along
this 90 km stretch of ocean, the well protected
waters of the Channel offer exceptional
fishing for chinook and coho salmon, as well
as snapper, cod, crab, prawns and some of the
largest halibut found on the BC coast. With
the option of launching your own boat at
the marina or booking one of the many wellequipped
charter companies in Kitimat, your
experience of fishing the Douglas Channel
will be favourably remembered. When the
challenges of catching your trophy fish have you
exhausted, relax in the sulphur free, natural hot
springs of Bishop Bay, Shearwater or Weewanie.
Since mature salmon in this expansive
region are returning to spawn, they are often
found at depths from eight to 20 metres –
well within the reach of power-moochers
using cutplug herring astern 6- to 10-ounce
mooching weights. Downrigger-equipped
boats can troll:
• cutplug herring, or whole herring in Rhys
Davis teaser heads or large Jughead Shakers
bait holders
• real anchovy (or Gibbs-Delta Big Bite artificial
anchovy) in Rhys Davis Anchovy Special or
Bullet Roll teaser heads; O’Ki JDF teaser
heads; or small Jughead Shaker bait holders,
behind full-sized flashers
• flashers (Gibbs-Delta Guide Series Moon
Jelly UV glow, or Kitetail in Green or
chartreuse glow; O’Ki Betsy, Jelly Fish, UV
glow Footloose, Frenchie, or Fire n’ Ice; or
Hot Spot UV purple glow)
• plugs (seven-inch Tomic – #493, #500,
#530UV, #576G, #602, #639, #700, or #803
– or Lyman)
• big spoons (Gibbs-Delta G Force, Gator,
Wonder, and Clendon Stewart; O’Ki Titan
Kinetic or Real Live Anchovy Image;
“Honeycomb” Tomic; Luhr Jensen Superior,
Coyote and Diamond King; Williams
Whitefish; or Pesca RSG and SPF) fished on
their own
• small three- or four-inch high-action spoons
(Gibbs-Delta G Force, Razorback, Skinny G,
Coho Killer, or Gypsy; Williams Savant; Luhr
Jensen Coyote; AP Tackleworks Herring,
Sandlance or Anchovy; or Pesca RSG) two
metres behind a flasher
• hoochies (translucent white, Army Truck,
Pistachio, Tiger Prawn, Irish Cream, J200, or
glow-green splatterback) one metre behind
a flasher.
While you’re in the area, take some time to
visit the North Pacific Historic Fishing Village,
near Port Edward on the Skeena River. This
national historic site preserves one of the last,
mostly intact salmon canneries on the British
Columbia coast. A charter boat tour to the
Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary, north
of Prince Rupert, will get you “up close and
personal” with the magnificent Ursus arctos
horribilis … an experience you’ll not soon
forget. For a scenic cruise-and-drive from Port
Hardy to Prince Rupert through the Inside
Passage, consider taking the B.C. Ferries’ M.V.
Northern Expedition. Railway enthusiasts
can book space aboard VIA Rail’s spectacular
Skeena Line from Jasper.
Highway 16
Highway 16 (the Yellowhead Highway)
traverses the province from east to west
through McBride, Prince George, Fraser
Lake, Smithers, Terrace and, finally, Prince
Rupert on the west coast. To find rainbow
trout, try travelling from Prince George to the
confluence of the Fraser and Nechako Rivers.
You’ll see that the rivers run more clearly
and shallower – good for holding rainbows
or whitefish. Similar water and fishing
conditions are found on the Bowron, Willow,
60 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

and Chilako rivers, and on Cluculz Creek.
Around the towns of Smithers, Burns
Lake, Houston, Vanderhoof, and Fraser Lake,
which lie west of Prince George, numerous
lakes are within reasonable proximity and
furnish enjoyable, lake-hopping day-trips.
Larger lakes (like Babine, Burns, Takla,
Trembleur, Stuart, Fraser, and François) offer
good-sized lake char, kokanee, whitefish, and
burbot, as well as fine fishing for rainbows.
Tezzeron, Little Bobtail, Tachik, Finger, Pinchi,
Grizzly, Tatuk, and Nuiki are smaller lakes with
prime fishing for kokanee and rainbow trout.
Use float tubes or pontoon boats, and look for
terrific ice fishing after freeze-up.
In smaller streams, rainbow trout, Dolly
Varden, and whitefish willingly hit small
spinner lures (Gibbs-Delta Sil-vex, Mepps
Aglia, Blue Fox Vibrax, or Worden’s Rooster
Tail).
On lakes, troll with:
• Apex Hot Spot Trout or Kokanee Killers
• Gibbs-Delta Gypsy or Razorback, Worden’s
Triple Teazer, Dick Nite, or Mepps Little
Wolf spoons
• Wedding Band spinners
• Worden’s Flatfish, Rapala X-Raps, or Luhr
Jensen Kwikfish
• a worm and spinner behind a gang troll.
• Fly-fishers will find that almost any popular
pattern (Pheasant Tail, Doc Spratley,
Black Gnat, beadhead chironomid, Royal
Coachman, Tom Thumb, Adams, 52 Buick,
ant, mayfly, damselfly, sedge, caddis, or
leech) is effective.
The Freshwater Fisheries Society of
BC stocks trout in many lakes in the area to
maintain a robust fishery. Stocked lakes include
Opatcho, Shane, Ferguson, Carp, and Eena
around Prince George; Hart in Crooked River
Park; Johnson and Dunalter outside of Houston;
Round and Tyhee in the Bulkley River Valley
close to Telkwa; and Ross east of New Hazelton.
Perfect for family outings, these lakes present
beginner-level fishing. For the more advanced
angler, Richmond Lake (east of Burns Lake),
Hobson and Chief Gray lakes (about 90 km
from Vanderhoof), and Duckwing and Duckbill
lakes (near Moricetown) require hiking in – but
with limited access, can often furnish trophy
rainbows.
The powerful Skeena River and its
complex system of tributaries – the Kispiox,
Bulkley, Suswa, Babine, Morice, Zymoetz,
Copper, and Sustut rivers – all offer excellent
year ’round fishing. Come in mid- to late
summer for huge chinook salmon, and from
September to October for big coho salmon.
You’ll also find fine fishing for resident
rainbow trout and Dolly Varden.
The system is also renowned for
its trophy, pink-tinged steelhead,
many weighing in excess of
10 kilograms. With warmer
late summer water
temperatures, earlyrun
steelhead have a
higher metabolism,
and will even rise to
a dry fly. When the
water temperatures
cool in the fall,
more conventional
bottom-hugging
fishing strategies
prevail as the famed
steelhead fishery
continues throughout
the winter and well into
spring.
For salmon and steelhead,
bottom-bounce big rivers using:
• heavy spoons (Gibbs-Delta Koho
or Kit-A-Mat; Luhr Jensen Krocodile;
Williams Bully; Len Thompson 5 of
Diamonds; or Blue Fox Pixee)
• spinners (Gibbs-Delta Tee Spoon; Luhr
Jensen Bang-Tail; Mepps Aglia; or Blue Fox
Strobe).
• If you occasionally bump bottom, you’re
fishing deeply enough. Goad a non-feeding
salmon into striking by back-trolling
high-action wiggling lures (Blue Fox Foxee
Fish; Cotton Cordell Wiggle “O’s”; Luhr
Jensen Hot Shots or Kwikfish; or Worden’s
Flatfish) right in front its nose. Float-drift
bait (cured salmon roe or dew worms),
Gibbs-Delta Gooey Bobs, or Worden’s Super
Spin-N-Glos just off the bottom along the
edges of gravel bars.
Fly-flingers should try using big, flashy
rabbit-fur and marabou-feather wet patterns
(like the Popsicles, Steelhead Bee, Steller’s Jay,
Egg-Sucking Leech, or General Practitioners)
to tempt trophy steelhead and other
salmonids into striking.
Around Terrace, Onion and Kleanza
lakes are popular for their willing and
plentiful rainbow trout. In the deep waters of
Kitsumkalum, Treston, and Redsand lakes,
find piscivorous cutthroat and Dolly Varden
char that will attack fish-imitating lures with
reckless abandon.
In Hazelton, at the convergence of the
Bulkley and Skeena Rivers, learn about the
history of some of British Columbia’s First
Nations at the ’Ksan Historical Village and
Museum. The neighbouring villages of Kispiox,
Gitanyow, Gitwangak, and Gitsegukla have a
splendid self-guided tour among 50 traditionally
carved totem poles. The dizzying, single-lane
Hagwilget Canyon Bridge, 80 metres above the
Bulkley River, is considered one of the highest
suspension bridges in the world.
Journey north of Terrace to witness the
stark moonscape of Nisga’a Memorial Lava
Bed Provincial Park. This location was the
site of a massive volcanic eruption that is
estimated to have killed approximately 2,000
aboriginal people only about 250 years ago.
Omineca-Peace River
The northeastern corner of the province features
the Rocky Mountain Trench. This geologic
formation lies between the Omineca Mountains
on the west and the Northern Rockies on the
east. The river systems running into and out
of the area are impacted somewhat by the
W.A.C. Bennett Dam on the Peace River, which
stems the flows of its two major tributaries,
the Finlay and Parsnip rivers, to form massive
360-kilometer-long Williston Lake.
The dam is worth a tour. Located near
Tumbler Ridge, it is one of the world’s biggest
earth-filled structures – towering 180 metres
high, and spanning two kilometres across the
Peace River.
Also worth visiting is Monkman
Provincial Park, 60 kilometres south of
Tumbler Ridge. You’ll find excellent fishing in
the Murray River, along with unforgettable
views of spectacular Kinuseo Falls, which
www.suncruisermedia.com 61

Northern BC
cascades some 60 metres over a geological
fault to the riverbed below. Tumbler Ridge is
a UNESCO-recognized Global Geopark, with
7,722 square kilometres sheltering a geological
heritage that includes 97-million-year-old
dinosaur tracks along the banks of Flatbed
Creek. The town’s Dinosaur Discovery Gallery
presents fascinating exhibits of Mesozoic fossils,
and a full-scale re-creation of the prehistoric
environment. Be sure to get your souvenir photo
taken in front of Dawson Creek’s remarkable
Alaska Highway Mile 0 signpost.
While the Peace River flows east across
the Continental Divide, the Liard River –
which runs alongside Highway 97 (the Alaska
Highway) – and other prominent rivers in this
part of the province flow north. All contain
fish that are commonly found in both the
Yukon and in northern Alberta. The gamut of
game fish catchable in rivers and lakes include
northern pike, lake char, spotted Arctic
grayling, whitefish, walleye, bull trout, and
rainbow trout.
The Racing, Halfway, Buckinghorse,
Tetsa, Liard, Smith, Sikanni Chief, Prophet,
Muskwa, Trout, and Toad rivers, as well
as McDonald Creek, are easily accessible
from Highways 29 and 97. These waterways
offer up grayling, bull trout, whitefish, and
northern pike.
Lakes like Azouetta, Gwillim, Moose,
Heart, Moberly, Jackfish, Foot, and Sundance
(along with the Burnt, Pine, and Sukunka
rivers) are only a short distance from the
resource towns of Hudson’s Hope, Tumbler
Ridge, Fort St. John, Chetwynd, and Dawson
Creek. These waters hold Arctic grayling,
northern pike, lake char, Dolly Varden, perch,
goldeye, rainbow, and eastern brook trout.
Cast small spinners (Gibbs-Delta Sil-Vex,
Mepps Aglia, Worden’s Rooster Tail, or Blue
Fox Vibrax) and small spoons (Gibbs-Delta
Gypsy or Gator, Williams Dartee, Mooselook
Wobbler, Mepps Syclops, or Blue Fox Pixee)
for smaller species of fish. Fly-fishers will
find small Royal Coachman, Adams, Black
Gnat, ant, or Tom Thumb patterns perfect
for attracting whitefish, Arctic grayling, and
stocked rainbow trout.
There’s hardly any lure too big for
aggressive northern pike. Try:
• Blue Fox Pixee, Husky Dardevle, Luhr
Jensen Krocodile, Len Thompson 5 of
Diamonds spoons, or Williams Bully
• big crank baits (Rebel Fastrac, Creek Chub
Pikie, Rapala Super Shad Rap, or jointed
Canadian Wiggler)
• flashy marabou streamer flies with lots of
yellow and red
• top-water lures (Rapala Skitter Pop or
Creek Chub Super Knuckle Head).
Be sure to partake in fine ice fishing
during the winter months.
Though walleye are not common in B.C.,
the Omineca-Peace River area is one of a few
locations in the province where you can land
one. Find these delicious and much soughtafter
game fish in the Beatton, Fort Nelson,
and Peace rivers, or fishing the underwater
structure of Charlie Lake. Use:
• small leadhead jigs tipped with
nightcrawlers, garden worms, shiners, Yum
Walleye Grubs, or Mister Twisters
• Storm’s weighted Wildeye Live Minnows
• diving crankbaits (Rapala Fat Rap, Frenzy
Flicker Shad, Poe’s Cruise Minnow, or Wally
Diver).
The north of B.C. is also noted for huge
lake char. Find these saggy-bellied brutes
at Muncho Lake (Mile 437 on the Alaska
Highway) along with rainbow trout, whitefish,
Arctic grayling, and Dolly Varden. Fly-in
destinations (like Tuchodi, Fern, Gataga,
Netson, Redfern, Fishing, Long Mountain,
Tetsa, Wokkpash, Dall, and Fairy lakes)
available out of Muncho Lake or Fort Nelson
have excellent fishing for Dolly Varden,
grayling, rainbow trout, and trophy lake char.
Northwest Corner
In British Columbia’s far northwest, many
mountains are glacier-capped, and skirt
narrow valleys that drain via turbulent rivers
plummeting down steep inclines. The Spatsizi
Plateau Wilderness Park joins with Tatlatui Park,
the Stikine River Recreation Area, and Mount
Edziza Park to form an extensive wilderness
sanctuary. The Stewart-Cassiar Highway –
otherwise known as Highway 37 – begins at the
village of Kitwanga, just off Highway 16, and
trucks north to the British Columbia-Yukon
border. Magnificent boreal forest stretches for
hundreds of kilometres on either side of this
lightly travelled route.
Some of the fantastic lakes in this remote
area have fish that have seldom seen any kind
of lure, and will strike at almost anything.
Lakes and streams in the northwestern corner
of the province hold rainbow trout, burbot,
Rocky Mountain whitefish, and Dolly Varden.
Northern pike, Arctic grayling, and the inconnu
(or sheefish) are also inhabitants of local waters.
Monster lake char can reach up to 20 kilograms
in Atlin Lake, Tagish Lake, or Dease Lake, all of
which can be fished with downrigger-equipped
cruisers. At Dease Lake, charter a floatplane to
access Stalk, Tatlatui, and Tatsamenie lakes for
trophy lake char, rainbow, or bull trout.
Smaller lakes also have top-notch fishing
for rainbow trout, Dolly Varden char, Arctic
grayling, and whitefish. Gnat, Kinaskan,
Eddontenajon, Kluachon, Ealue, and Wheeler
lakes (along with the Cottonwood and
Tanzilla rivers) have good highway access,
and provide excellent fly-fishing action on
both dry and wet fly patterns.
Book a flight-seeing tour from the
community of Atlin, on the eastern side
of Atlin Lake, for an awesome view of the
Llewellyn Glacier at the lake’s southern end.
King Salmon and Kuthai lakes are well-known
fly-in fishing lakes, with massive rainbow
up to nine kilograms. Dolly Varden to three
kilograms have also been taken there.
The Taku-Inklin-Nakina Rivers have
been known to cede chinook weighing in up
to 30 kilograms. Not too far from Atlin, drive
to creek openings along the shores of Atlin
Lake to cast for small but sporting, energetic
Arctic grayling … you can catch them near
midnight in June! Trophy Arctic grayling (up
to two kilograms) will hit your lures in nearby
Surprise Lake. McDonald Lakes contain lake
char to three kilograms, and scads of small
Arctic grayling. Palmer Lake is full of small
northern pike, but if you’re looking for a
trophy wall-hanger, take the rough fourwheel-drive
road to Gladys Lake.
In smaller lakes and streams, spincast
for rainbow trout, Arctic grayling, and
whitefish using small Gibbs Sil-vex, Mepps
Aglia, or Panther Martin spinners. For the
fly-caster, both small dry patterns (like the
Tom Thumb, Parachute Adams, Black Gnat,
or versatile Royal Coachman), or wet flies
(like the Muddler Minnow, Doc Spratley, or
Mickey Finn) will work well.
For bigger lake char, northern pike, inconnu,
or trophy-sized rainbow trout, troll or
spincast:
• spinners (Mepps Magnum Musky Killer)
• crankbaits (Rapala X-Rap, Creek Chub
Pikie, or Rebel Holographic Minnow)
• spoons (big Len Thompson 5 of Diamonds,
Eppinger Husky Dardevle, or Williams
Whitefish)
• wobbling lures (Gibbs-Delta Hockey Stick,
Apex Hot Spot, or Worden’s Flatfish).
In the bigger rivers, tempt chinook,
rainbow trout, steelhead, and Dolly Varden
with heavy spoons like the Gibbs Kit-A-Mat
or Koho, Luhr Jensen Krocodile, or Blue
Fox Pixee. Fly-fishers should try big wet
patterns (Kelsey’s Hope, Skunk, Steelhead
Bee, General Practitioners, or Popsicle) with a
sink-tip fly-line.
62 The SPORT FISHING Guide 2018

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