On Friday, I gave the lower Capilano a try as the river has started into freshet and was rising a bit. The odd early run coho are also in the river and there might be some latent Steelhead as well.  As it turned out my weighted fluorescent green fly tagged a nice Steelhead and I was feeling inspired as dusk settled in.  

So for Saturday, Gabe and I looked at the continuing cool  weather  which has been helping ease the start of the freshet in the Squamish River and we decided to take a crew up Howe Sound to land of the Sasquatch.  The Squamish had had good reports of Steelhead and bull trout on Wednesday so with the forecast of rain for the evening we felt it was a good bet to get there before the weather changed.  As we headed up the upper levels highway we could see the Fraser freshet plume heading around Point Grey into Burrard Inlet so we were hoping the Squamish wouldn't be coloring up Howe Sound.

Turned out to be a good choice as the mouth of the Squamish was still clear and the river level had stayed stable with a very slight tea color though the wading to the first hole was just a little tricky.  However once on the little island the back eddy looked good.  Gabe was into the first bull trout of the day and I headed down a little further to toss my new fluorescent fly in behind some rocks.  This fly had worked very well for late season Coho and I wanted to test it out on Bull Trout.  The bulls are hiding in runs that are two to three feet deep along shore lines waiting to ambush the minnows that are slipping into the main river.  

Looking for areas with sandy bottoms is a good idea as the sand settles in slacker current, which is where minnows congregate to rest and bulls lie in wait on the bottom.   I tagged a nice bull trout (see the video) and then decided I had earned a lunch break. 

I had waded back across and just wanted to sit down when Gabe gave the battle cry and I looked just in time to see his rod pound down and a silver bar erupt from the water.

He had been drifting our new minnow pattern several different times down a slick when a chrome "iron head" just nailed it.  So I hauled my butt and the camera back across the river trying to wade and film at the same time.  (Click here ) The battle ensued and the power of this fish caused some blistering runs and a few nice leaps. (Click here) After I took the camera shots I realized that the fish was so bright that it was actually difficult to see in the pictures because of the glare coming off it. (Click here) It was just a stellar example of the quality of the Steelhead that are in the Squamish River and that only a day or two before were in salt water.  This is why careful catch and release is necessary to preserve this late spring run of fish.  ( I later found the guts of a poached fish!)

We headed further upriver between KM13Up and KM14UP and tried out one last pool and run.  I picked up three more bull trout in a sandy bottomed run a few feet from shore and Gabe tied into another nice one in the last deep run of the day.  (Click Here)  We headed out and I got a shot of some of the fresh spring flowers glistening with the dampness of the rain forest.  Another great day, and remember, if you're heading to the rivers and wading, especially in freshet, wear a floater jacket, have a great day and come home safe!  And oh ya....Tight Lines!

So this is what the early season outlook looks like.  

Chinook Salmon are still hanging around in Vancouver Harbor and around the southern side of Bowen Island to the hump (the rise in the sea floor just south of Bowen Island) 

This April there is the odd Steelhead still hanging in the Capilano River as I just tied into one this evening above the Upper Levels Highway bridge.  This week was a good week for anglers on the Upper Squamish as some very large Bull Trout and Steelhead were reported.  The early run of Coho have begun to appear in the Capilano River in North Vancouver.  

This year has some promising predictions of another good year based on good water conditions that have existed off our west coast.  The earliest bonus could well be in Prince Rupert with northern Chinook stocks predicted to be 25% higher than last year which was a good year.  The Alaskan regulations have increased their daily Chinook retention from 1 to 2 per day so it could be that the seasons are indeed looking promising.

The west coast of Vancouver Island could have another bonus year for Coho and Chinook as a back up to the incredible year last season.

The lower coast and Georgia Strait and Fraser River runs are looking forward to what could be perhaps a year that even beats the 1989 and 2010 Sockeye runs.  Things will get clearer when the test fisheries are held in Johnstone Strait.

Here's hoping there will be many family scenes like this one!

I was wondering why I spent the day washing my truck on the weekend because if things worked out I might get a day off to sneak back to the upper reaches of the Squamish River and the road was sure to be wet and muddy. Trucks, like boats and flyrods hold special places in their owners heart and my last truck was long in the tooth and finally had to go.  As I headed to the dealership for the trade in I prayed the old one would make it to the dealers lot.  It did and its potential successor was parked there off to the side. Sitting there, looking across the desk at the salesman, I must have looked like one of the hardest nosed bargainers he had seen all week.   He had asked for some more fees and stuff. Truth was though, like most people there is sometimes just too much month left at the end of the paycheque so I just sat there staring at him for about five minutes not saying a word wondering how I could expect to get upriver if there was no spirit left in the old girl.  Finally I upped my bid a few hundred bucks.  He left with a sweaty brow to run it past the mystical wizard in the back room that blesses the deals with their magic wand. I'm not sure if he didn't think he was going to be consumed with fire as he walked into the back office.........A few minutes later he came back, obviously relieved, and the deal was done.

So after doing a good job washing it on the weekend I headed to the upper Squamish in the rain.  I stepped out of the truck determined to check out a new fishing hole and after I pulled on the waders it was time to smell the flowers and toss a fly into a very promising looking run.  Being the last day of a long weekend it was pretty obvious things had been worked over and the fellows  walking down the beach said they had landed a few steelhead so I wondered what the hole still might hold. 

I let the crew in a drift boat, well, drift by, looking a little soaked and gave the hole some more time to cool off.  Sitting on the beach just letting the river sound rise up into the mist I tied on a new rendition of my minnow pattern that I have been working on.  So far it has landed coho, steelhead, bull trout and cutthroat trout. On my second cast into the water just upstream of the hole it hit pay dirt and a very nice bull trout started the day off right.  (Click here for the tilt)  

This was not the only fish of the day but the rising water made wading to some of the casting spots a little tricky so I am always glad my fishing vest is a floater (Please take that as a hint, those of you who do river fish wanna make it home at night).  Another run held about a 2 and 8 pounder bull trout who were very camera shy and made good use of the barbless hook.  The final hookup of the day only let me know he was down there so i'm not sure what it was.

Eventually I hauled my butt back into the truck and  as I turned the heater on I could hear it ask if I had landed the big one?  "Nope", I said, "But what a fantastic day"  And then I realized why I had washed my truck,  it's cause fresh mud looks so good on a white background!....tight lines.

The recent and coming rains and warming temperatures are causing spring freshets to start.  So take extra care as rains and snow melt can cause levels and current speeds to increase.  All is not lost though as fish will often move closer to shore to seek out quieter spots.  To make things a little easier before you go out, you can check out the River Level (Hydrometric) Buttons I just added on the HOME page.  Tomorrow might be a good morning to head out as the levels drop and before the next rain hits.  Tight Lines.

Spent most of the afternoon re-stocking my fly supply which is being depleted by the Squamish Bull trout but snuck out to the beaches in West Van for an hour or two and picked up a nice coho for dinner.  Tight lines!

Today was a stellar day to be out on the water and the spring sunshine was spectacular on the glaciers of the Squamish Valley.  With the projected sunny warm days, the water levels will start to rise and the April fishability was just perfect.

Squamish Bull trout love to hang in runs behind rocks or debris waiting for a hapless minnow to drift by.  A weighted minnow pattern will often be tempting beyond its ability to resist.  I passed a new minnow pattern in front of this one and he hammered it hard!

I was able to find five more bulls and also a spunky cutthroat trout. Click here to see the battles.

It's spring, and even the frogs are hanging out.

Spring has come on the Squamish River. Today was a choice between working on the yard in the rain or going fishing in the rain.  Going fishing won out. (As I started out I remembered I had forgotten to renew the licences on April 1st and headed back home to my computer to buy them.  So all of you, click onto the links at the bottom of the  home page and get your licences renewed!  Helps avoid those nasty fines when you get checked by the Conservation or Fisheries Officers!)  Anyways, I headed out to my first fishing hole and crossed a whole bunch of interesting looking tracks and signs of other wildlife including the scat of a very big bear!

I was eager to try out a new minnow pattern as the pink minnows were skittering in the shallow rivulets and the bulls and the cutties were sure to be lurking at the mouths which discharged to the Squamish River.  The first hole proved to be wanting but the second hole yielded a very spunky bull. (For a view of the tilt, click here)  After letting this one go I fixed up the fly and a second and third cast yielded a second and third bull trout.  Further down the run a nice little gravel bar popped out of the water and the slick behind some rocks looked just right.  A few casts later and the rod hammered down.  A big silver bar erupted from the water as the chrome iron head summersaulted and then tore a lot of line off the screaming reel. About 15 minutes later I was able to get him steady enough to shoot some video (which is a challenge when the rain is coming down and a 12 pound steelhead wants nothing more but to head back down to the ocean!) (Click here for the hookup battle.)  (Click here For a view of the landing)..Sorry but fighting and filming in the rain at the same time is tricky!)  As you will note, I made a rookie move and grabbed the line too early!

After three bull trout and a nice steelhead I thought it was a mighty fine day when I started to head home and passed by a swamp.  Lo and behold, some splashing caught my attention as a pair of elk were feeding on the green shoots just starting to pop out of the water along the shore.  These elk have been transplanted to the Squamish River Valley and if you look closely you can see the radio collar on one of the cows.  A little further a nice blacktail doe popped out of the trees and headed for some evening feeding.....Another great day fishing in beautiful British Columbia!  Tight lines!