It has been some time since I posted a sturgeon story and this could have been one of the best, but it is about the one that got away and the consolation prize which was still a great experience.  With the chum run in full swing the sturgeon are getting one of the last kicks at the can of gorging themselves on salmon carcasses that the fall season has to offer.  October and the first two weeks of November can be absolutely fabulous for sturgeon fishing in the Fraser as these great fish give themselves one last feast before they settle into the winter during which they will migrate out to salt water or into deep holes in the big lakes such as the Pitt and the Harrison.  This is also the time when some of the largest fish are in the lower Fraser which makes it anybody's guess as to how big the next bite might be!

Tuesday was spectacular weather, sunny, warm and clear with little or no wind and the perfect October tides where the Fraser Currents are often just steady enough to maintain the scent flow from the bait and keep the fish in the biting mood.

We deployed our baits using both a circle hook and a regular hook to test the difference between rods and performance.  The baits which performed the best were fresh coho gills and body parts however it would have been good to have some fresh chum but that was not available . Our first fish of the day chose the bait on the circle hook and the rod was a very stiff stick yet it was a determined bite so I lifted it and the fight was on.  Within a few seconds as is typical at this time of year the fish broke surface and our jaws hit the deck as we realized what we were in for.  This fish was truly massive and based on my experience was likely north of 9 feet long.  A quick scramble to get the anchor line up and we began to drift.  The fish broke water twice and each time it just looked even bigger with a massive head and girth and a huge sickle shaped tail.  It took a run straight towards the boat and then our worst nightmare came to fruition.....the line went slack!

As I cranked up the line the weight showed up but the leader line was gone from the swivel........one of sturgeon fishings worst sins had occurred.  It looked like the knot let go and there is no way to describe how dumb that feels.....but, that is fishing and it happens to the best of us.

 When all else fails and the fishing gets tough, the tough keep fishing.  We pulled anchor after a while and went to a new location with the clock ticking down rapidly towards pulling anchor and heading home.  The new spot had slacker current and the newly baited lines were tossed. 

Before too long my rod indicated a few tentative bumps but then nothing.......the lines were pulled in, the bait checked and after about three more declarations that "this is the last cast"bthe last cast was made.  Just before the last cast was about to be pulled in Art's rod did the deep bend as another fish sucked in his bait and the circle hook went to work. 

The hook was set and the reel began to scream.  This fish did not break water so there was no telling just how big it was.  This was definitely another "pull the anchor" fish and as we drifted downstream with the fish towing the boat in circles my estimate as to its size steadily began to increase.  Eventually after about 25 minutes and a kilometer downstream this beast began to tire and I was already there, but managed to hang on so we could tow it to the beach and get a good look at it.

At just over 2 meters (6.5 feet) in length this fish was seriously smaller than our first fish but we got it to the beach and really appreciated the battle it gave us. 

​An interesting note in the slide show just above this text is the fact that the boat behind us is drifting farther and farther from the beach.......note to file, always drop the anchor to secure the boat BEFORE YOU START TAKING PICTURES.!!!  It was not till the boat was completely gone from behind us and just starting to drift downstream with the main current that we twigged onto what was happening and I am happy to say the water was not above my chest waders when I raced out into the main river and was able to retrieve it!! (rookie moves to be sure!)

So if you want to see what the battle was like, just click on the buttons below.

If you ever want to learn how to catch fish it's highly recommended that you watch an expert.  Today I was able to take a stroll along a stream to check for spawning salmon in support of surveys being conducted for Stream Keepers.   

Every fall, Stream Keeper volunteers from various walks of life and backgrounds head out to local streams to observe spawning salmon.  In the spring they go back to the same streams to document emerging fry and smolts to provide information regarding spawning success and fish recruitment.  The information they gather is sent into central locations, co-lated and assessed to provide data for projects which will help determine where enhancement resources should be or can be spent.

Stream Keepers is working hard to bring salmon and trout and thus the wildlife they support back to the urban streams from which many had disappeared.  If you can spare time, sign up and join the effort.

Along the streams I surveyed there are challenging features for fish to navigate and overcome in their quest to start the cycle of life over again.  Today I was able to see one of them and I hope you enjoy the photos and videos.

​As I was standing and leaning against a large cedar I noticed some motion in the pond at the far bank just below a small falls.  As I was able to focus on the shape I began to recognize a familiar shape that I had seen in the ocean near this stream.  It was a very large and hungry sea otter that had made its way up the stream to the falls which provided an impediment to migrating chum salmon.  Click on the buttons to see the videos.

I'm not sure if this fellow understands the concept of a catch limit, but keep a close eye in the water of the pool as the action gets pretty fast!

Obviously this character has a good thing going and will be laying on the pounds!

 The weather was perfect for fishing this Thanksgiving weekend but salmon were few and far between so the odd coho in the Vedder River was a welcome treat.  This has been a tough year for the Fraser and Vedder systems and the number of pinks, coho and springs has been slim.  Typically the middle two weeks of October are the finest for fishing the Vedder so hopefully more coho like this one will show up, especially if there is some rain to bring water back up and add some color.  The test fisheries on the Fraser are showing that lots of chum are in the system but not many have showed up in the Vedder just yet.  Perhaps they are waiting for the rain which is forecast to arrive tonight?

Since the Vedder wasn't too hot I also did a check on the Squamish hoping that some of the feisty coho and chum that come like silver bullets right out of salt water were in the system.  Unfortunately, the drought has dropped the Squamish to levels that are possibly even lower than is typically seen during freeze up in February.  So, I decided to head upriver and see if the low water had opened up access to channels in the river that are not normally accessible to a walk and wader.  As I headed upriver I kept my eyes open to see if anything else was also wading the river.

The glaciers had a slight dusting of snow but the water coming into the river kept it at a highly clouded grey-blue tint so I was wondering if there would be enough visibility for some bull trout to see the lure.  After carefully working an upper Squamish pool with no results I was about to give up when I saw a fish rise.  A couple of casts into the area and the rod bent like a run-away train had latched on to it.

Bull trout are fall spawners and this buck had the beautiful salmon spots and the golden orange belly and white stripes on its fins.  This fish pushed close to 24 inches and rocked my rod into a beautiful arc as he made several mad rushes for rough water.

I was hoping where there was one nice bull there would be more and a few casts later an even larger doe bull trout anchored the end of the line and pulled like a race horse for deeper faster water.  After a scrappy battle, I was able to coax it in for some nice pictures!

he fishing below the rapids turned out to be even better than above the rapids and the first cast over the boulders felt like it had locked the fly to the river bottom until the bottom started to move and head downstream in a big hurry.  The largest fish of the day was a heavy doe bull trout that went north of 24 inches and took some considerable convincing to come to the shore for a photo shoot.......In the end, great sunshine, glacier views and some monster bull trout.......a great way to wear off the Thanksgiving turkey!!!