The early run coho are slipping into the Capilano and there are still some late Steelhead in the river.  The fish are increasing in size and feisty fresh when hooked.  People are tossing roe balls, spoons and flies.   The freshette is steady unless there is a hard rain in the upper watershed. Even with some of the rains the water still seems to stay clear.  So as long as the flow stays up, fresh fish should be in the river a few hours after the high tide.

Took the long weekend to explore the lower Pitt River.  The sturgeon were around but finicky as they can be this time of year.  Headed up to the Grant Narrows boat launch and park and checked out the area.  Some people on Pitt Lake were bringing in trout on the fly.  I checked out the marsh lands mountain biking the perimeter trail.  The bird life was outstanding, with many young geese, swans just building nests and eagles, both bald and golden soaring from the trees into the marsh lands.

These Lupins gave a lesson in genetics and hybridization.  First the dark blue lupins showed up along the dyke and then purple ones.  Finally we came to a grove where there were white ones on one side, purple on the other and dark blue on the third side.  In the middle were the most stunning of them all, that combined the genetic traits of the other three with both blue and white flowers with a subtle purple tinge.  Truly a beautiful sight as spring was unfolding in the marsh lands.  

The fish were around as well.  This area is known for the winding streams that meander through the marshes and contain a local population of bass.  Following the circle tour around the marsh, I came across a number of fisherman pursuing them.  As I walked along I heard and saw numerous swirls in the weeds and along the shoreline of bass feeding on whatever they could pounce upon.  Most were tossing rubber worms or even spinners.  Here a flyrod with a popping plug fly or a minnow or streamer pattern would create an exciting day fishing.....hope your weekend went well......tight lines!

Chilliwack and the Fraser Valley is a vibrant community with both an industrial and agricultural base.  There are many recreational opportunities and outdoor activities from skiing, hiking, fishing, horseback riding.  Cultus Lake is a well known summer playground for camping, fishing, boating, swimming and skiing.  Chilliwack lake is a deep water lake with a sockeye salmon run and trout and kokanee.  The Chilliwack river valley has a long history of logging, mining, agriculture and outdoor recreation.  There are many rivers, such as the Fraser River which is famous for salmon and sturgeon and the Chilliwack/Vedder river renowned for salmon and steelhead fishing in the fall and winter.   This 3.85 acre property is 5.6 km from Vedder crossing along the Chilliwack River Road.  The City of Chilliwack is 100 km (60 minutes) drive from Vancouver which is Canada's gateway to the the west coast and the Pacific Ocean. To view more details on this property go to www.auchenway.com

Sometimes you wanna fish alone and sometimes you want a fishing partner.  Today I checked out the Capilano River and hiked down into the canyon and bumped into another fisherman.  He was just leaving after 4 hours at the hole and let me know he had landed 7 coho and 2 steelhead.  He had been tossing dyed roe.  Quite impressive but I was wondering if it would be worth casting into a hole that had been fished for four hours.

I tossed a fly into the head of the pool and let the line drift when I heard a flapping over my head.  Up in the trees above me I saw a beautiful Golden Eagle take up a survey spot in the trees.  He seemed curious (or hopeful) as to what I was doing.  I figured that if he saw a fish, it would be a good sign.  I kept casting and he kept watching.

I moved a little further downstream and was mending my cast when I heard and felt a whoosh of air beside my head.  The eagle had glided from the tree across the river just past my head and took up a spot on the river adjacent to me.  He stood there watching with great expectations.  As he just sat there watching me I moved further down to the tailout of the pool.  Eventually, I got to the end, and he moved up into the tree above me.  Fishing is cool!  Having and eagle fishing buddy is even cooler!

Cod on the Fly!  Today I headed out to the hump south of Bowen Island in search of some Chinook.  Not very many fish were showing up on the fish finder, mostly between 55 to 100 feet which seemed shallower than I was expecting.  Early on a fish hit but was lost just as it got to the net.  I decided to get creative and try one of the new green fluorescent flies that has worked so well for Coho in the Squamish.  It didn't take long and I landed this Cod. Never thought of Cod fishing on the fly!

Tight lines.

So I'm out on assignment and eventually this will end up being a real interesting fishing story, but everyone has to have their secret spots (at least for now).  Needless to say the warm days this week really kick started spring freshet in most streams and has the Fraser River going and most local rivers starting to run high and muddy.  Still, you can try backwashes and start looking for creeks that are still running clear, or clearer than the main stems.

Speaking of freshet, this means the rivers can change level quickly and if you made it onto a gravel bar, trying to wade back an hour or two later can be a real surprise if there is a quick rise in level and turbidity. This makes some common sense wading techniques very important;

1) Don't go if it doesn't look safe!  Dirty water hides all kinds of debris and rocks that can trip you up.  And it's too late to learn about the physics of water pressure after you have started floating away down stream.
2) Wear waders that have a lace guard that keeps the laces from untieing.  Loose laces can snag in a rock or branch and pull you off balance and trying to bend down and tie laces in fast water will likely earn you a Darwin award!
2) Always, always, wear a floater jacket or inflatable vest.
3) Have felt soles on the bottom of your wading boots.  The cheap rubber waders or waders with boots that have grip but no felt are deadly.  The pressure of the water can send you skating down the river never to be seen again. Felt grips even on slimy surfaces.  If you don't have felt soles, you can buy them and glue them on.
4) Use a sturdy walking stick to prod the depth so you don't get surprised and slip into a drop off.
5) Shuffle your feet as you walk feeling the bottom for obstructions and drop offs. Try not to lift your feet too high as the current can swing your foot away and losing balance is very very easy to do.
6) Do not stand on steep banks, especially ones you see are eroding away in the current.  Each year some people are swept into rivers unwittingly standing on the edge either videoing with a cell phone or just plain standing there looking at the dirt fall into the rivers.
7) Here's a clip where I put this into practice, (click here) (incidentally, this was this week and the river just kept coming up and despite all our care, one fellow went in up to the top of his head in 1.5 degree Celsius water.  A pretty shocking experience.)