Checked out the Squamish on Sunday and the fishermen and the fish were sparse, though a nice wild coho graced my line.  It took a lot of effort to find fish as the water had just come back down from the last hard rain but the river was still really turbid so a bright big fly was necessary to entice the fish.  Once it hit though the battle was on!   So, if you can handle the crowds, the Vedder is coming into full swing with springs and the coho are starting to show.   If you want lots of room to cast and don't mind hunting for fish, then the Squamish will suit you but look for cleaner tributaries where the clearer water increases visibility and has some slack water that coho love.....though in about three weeks it will give the Vedder a run for the money when the coho and chum are in full force.

Thought I would start with the numbers for Springs in the Fraser.  As the graph shows, there is still a very strong run entering the Fraser.  These fish will now be headed for the Harrison and the Vedder Rivers and the numbers are still very strong.  As late as this weekend, boats on the tidal waters around the Fraser were still pulling them in.  Most automatically commented on how great it has been in the last few weeks, especially end of August.  Now the big whites are heading into the system and if there are any more rains to help with water levels, then increasing numbers should be building in the Vedder and Harrison system along with increasing numbers of coho.

This last weekend the Capilano River took a big jump rising well over two feet with the weekend rains but surprisingly stayed very clear.  This is because the hyper dry water shed was mostly absorbing the rain and moistening the soils but enough was finding its way into the reservoir that the spill over provided a much needed freshet to allow the coho, pinks and springs to fire up river and start filling the multiple pools.  In two adjacent pools I observed 5 springs being landed, the smallest being about 10 pounds and the other four in the 15 to 20+ lb range.  One fisher claimed he saw a 45 pounder pulled out further upstream.  The biggest problem is that most of these fisherman were ignoring the bait ban which runs from Aug. 1, to October 31.......some DFO officers are bound to catch onto that very soon if you know what I mean!

My roundest catch of the day was this great Spalding basket ball!  Would take pretty long to cook and need a lot of seasoning but hey, beggars can't be choosers

While I was under the watchful eye of a great blue heron, I also managed to drift a fly slowly through one of the deep pools and was rewarded with a nice tilt from a wild coho which agreed to pose for  a photo before I sent it on its way upriver.

What is really nice to see is how the pinks are making good use of the many small streams along the West Vancouver Shore line.  With a premium in spawning space, these two were carving out a new Redd among some of the priciest pieces of real estate between West Vancouver water front homes.

As this photo from the shores of the Vedder/Sumas river system taken this evening shows, the rising abundance of salmon and salmon carcasses are attracting fishers of all types.  Best to be ware of your surroundings as a mother with cubs can literally wreck your day....and your waders among other body parts if you are not careful.......Tight lines!

DFO has re-0pened most of the tributary rivers in the lower mainland (region 2) and Vancouver Island (Region 1) .  In the Lower Mainland, only the Seymour river remains closed and on Vancouver Island, the Cowichan remains closed.  If you have any specific questions regarding openings/closings you should go to the DFO web site.  

Chinook fishing is peaking in Burrard Inlet and the Banana at the mouth of the Fraser.  Guides are reporting great days on the water with one saying "This has been the best Chinook Fishing in 10 years!".  The runs measured at Mission shows a good peak starting at the beginning of September.  These are good Red Springs and soon to be followed by the massive White Springs headed for the Vedder and Harrison Rivers.                      

Sockeye numbers as still tracking very low, so there will be no opening for sport fisherman or for First Nation Food and ceremonial fishing.  Pinks continue to enter the Fraser River and the daily numbers past the Mission counting station vary from highs of 600,000 per day down to about 117,000 per day.  The coming forecast of cooler wetter days later this week bodes well for bringing fresh fish into the tributary rivers such as the Vedder and Chehalis and Harrison systems.

Of sadder not is the recent toll the legal and illegal gill net fishery and the sport fishery has been taking on sturgeon.  Recent posts of people catching and mishandling of sturgeon has prompted the B.C. Ministry of Environment Sturgeon conservation program to send out an e-mail to all guides warning of the problems.  They even posted photos of the offending actions.  Remember, keep the sturgeon in the water, make sure there is enough to allow the gills to breath, never lift large sturgeon (over five feet in length) out of the water or beach them so that their belly's flatten on the bottom.  Take the photos quickly and then release them!  For more information see the BCMOE Sturgeon Handling Guidelines or the B.C. sturgeon Society Video or go to the page on this web site.   Otherwise, have a great day and some good fishing!