Sturgeon and Pinks

It is fall in southern British Columbia and the salmon are returning and the sturgeon are out in full force.  This is a Pink Salmon year and finally the run is beginning to show signs of strength.  As of Sept. 12th, an estimated 7,726,900 pink salmon had entered the Fraser River and the daily rate fluctuated to between 616,000 to 1,400,000.  This means that the Pink run has now significantly exceeded earlier pessimistic estimates of only 5,400,000 returning for the entire season.  This week the Fisheries Department opened up the lower Fraser River to fishing for Pink Salmon at 4 fish per day.  Chum salmon were also opened up though their numbers will still be lower for now.

 The Pink Salmon run also heralds an increase in sturgeon which seriously feed on the Pinks.  Some sturgeon become so bloated they start to look like blimps.  This means that if they get too full, they can start getting picky about baits.

On the flip side, the sturgeon in the lower Fraser have not seen as many Pink carcases and still have an appetite.  That appetite can be expected to increase since Chum are also now starting to arrive and that is another favorite of the sturgeon

I was able to take Greg and Julian out for the day and while the tides gave us a slack spot in the day we were able to get Greg two nice sturgeon, and this being Julian's first trip, his third sturgeon turned out to be his own personal world record fish.  Julian did comment that even at this size, his back was a little stiff and sore the next day.

When we landed Julian's fish at the shore (because it was over 5 ft long and by law you can't bring them into the boat) we also had to deal with a double header with a smaller sturgeon.  Both fish drew an interested crowd and gave us a great photo op and a chance to speak to them about the sturgeon and sturgeon conservation.

From now till mid November is prime sturgeon and salmon season.   Pickup locations are only 15 minutes from downtown Vancouver and we can be on the river in about 45 minutes to an hour depending on traffic.  The weather in September is usually some of the best for fishing and if you want to take a shore break there are one or two river side pubs that will help you get your strength back before heading back out for another round of fishing.

 So give me a call at 1 778 870 3241 or e-mail at peterk12@live.com to book a trip today!