Pacific Angler Summer Super Sale
Well, loyal angling community. The day is here!! The Summer Super Sale starts today! NEW HOURS FOR SALE WEEKEND: 9am – 7pm Fri, Sat & Sun!
This is the hottest angling sale of the year in Vancouver. At no other shop can you receive the same level of expert advice whether you are selecting the best flasher, hoochie combo for your new downrigger going for Chinook at Thrasher Rock, tying beach flies for pink salmon beach fishing in Howe Sound, putting together a spinning rod with lures for that hiking trip to the top of Garibaldi or refreshing your chironomid set up for the lake season…we are here, we can help and we love doing it!
Come and see us every day this weekend, enter to win one of the two amazing raffle trips we are giving away!!
TWO AMAZING RAFFLE PRIZES THIS YEAR!
1. 2DAY/2NIGHT STAY AT STONEY LAKE LODGE (Value $1121)
2. 2 PERSON FULL DAY GUIDED STURGEON FISHING WITH RANDY BECK (Value $650)
NOTE: We have been told by many of our RETAIL customers that they did not know we also do fully guided saltwater salmon charters off the Vancouver coast (Burrard Harbour to Gulf Islands) as well as fly-fishing trips for steelhead, salmon and trout in local rivers (Upper Pitt) and sturgeon on the mighty Fraser river!
BOOK any Charter/Guided Fishing trip during the Summer Super Sale and receive 10% OFF!!
Click here for all details on the Pacific Angler Summer Super Sale!
Friday Fishing Report May 31, 2013
Outlook
The tides this weekend look like they will be perfect for heading out to the salt and chasing chinook or the coho that are showing up now! In the Georgia Basin, Saturday wind light becoming northwest 10 to 15 knots late in the day. Sunday wind northwest 15 knots and on Monday, wind northwest 5 to 15 knots. Fuel up that BBQ and get out there (after you hit the till at the SALE!).
Merritt Weather forecast is calling for a steady barometer and should spell out some great fishing! Always do that last minute check on the weather reports as last weekend while it was calling for rain on saturday we had a gorgeous day on the water in the Kane Valley and the rain held off till sunday afternoon.
Locally here on the coast the Vancouver weather is intermittent on the weekend with sun/rain/clouds…sound familiar? I always plan my trips around local weather forecasts here in Vancouver…ok, that was funny. Seriously, who really believes in weather reports here? Sorry Madriga, you are a great guy but I may as well play the lottery! JUST GET OUT THERE and FISH!
Stillwater Report:
Reports from the Cariboo are that Valentine, Watch and Hammer lakes are fishing well with temperatures right and small black (size 18) chironomids being the flavor of the day.
Ernest lake has turned over as have Hatheume and others in that region. We heard Hatheume did fish slower last weekend but it should be shaping up soon and provide its great fishing when you get there.
Courtney Lake put out a few fish over the weekend as well and will continue to put good sized fish into the nets of the patient anglers who launch there.
Kane Valley – Bryce Franks
Dale and I got up to Kane Valley on saturday morning and met our other friend Gordie at Harmon where our base camp was going to be. Gordie was all set up and greeted us with baileys and coffee…THAT’s a way to greet fellow fishers! We surveyed Harmon and decided to give it a shot as Gordie had got into 7fish on Friday although none were in the lunker category that we know haunt this water. We fished from 930am till 1pm. It was a slog. My only hook up was a 4″ shiner. We moved every 20min. Worked different depths with chronies, shrimp and microleeches from 21ft to 6ft, on shoals and off in the channel where the fish cruise. Water temps were 56 and conditions seemed perfect. Wish the fish had agreed.
At 1pm we packed the boats to head to Lower Kane. We got on the water at 2pm and the first thing that got me excited was the sheer volume of chronies coming off. Brown/copper or silver ribbing and chromers with red/black ribbing. I made a bee-line for spot I had my eye on and set up the boat, wind to my back and chronies set under the indicator at 16 & 18ft. First five casts…5 fish. None less than 3lb. GREAT action! Gordie moved in behind and thus begins the frustration. I love to hook up…and even more, when my friends get the same results. It was weird….Gordie is an experienced angler and 40ft behind me, same depth, same chronie and only one hit…no fish.
First release of double header!
The bite stopped at the original spot so I packed up and moved to the east side of the big shoal…anchored in 25ft of water, spotted fish at 17-21ft in they water column and set my indicators at 19 & 21ft. I was looking back at Gordie and heard a “clink”…glanced back and saw my rod tacking towards the water! Grabbed and set the hook! It was as deep strong pull and felt heavier than the rest…5min into the fight my other rod jumped and I was now into a decent double header!
At this point I was into about 8fish between 3-6lb and only one other person got into fish that I could see…its LK and she is moody and a tough lake to fish!
My day at LK was proof…that time and persistence pays off! Easily my best day on that lake! We fished Englishman on Sunday…and I will let you read the results in the Newbie Report by Dale 2 sections down in this weeks report!
Popping indicators,
Bryce
Chironomid Feature by John Kent
When it comes to designing a new chironomid sometimes you achieve a result that is totally different than what was originally intended. The Green Hornet is a prime example.
While living and working at Tunkwa it doesn’t take long to observe a particular colour of chironomid that hatches several times over the course of a season. While spending time at the cleaning bench observing a client’s success I often had the advantage of checking stomach contents of harvested fish and it was in the spring of 2001 that I first noticed a natural that looked like a typical black chironomid……that was until you held it up to the sun and noticed it was a deep, deep olive colour.
Green Hornet Chironomids
During the course of attempting a reasonable facsimile I achieved several different results using black and green as my base colours. Utilizing flashabou that was black dyed over pearl seemed like a natural progression but it wasn’t until a couple years later when I started using rust coloured thread as a base that this pattern really came into it’s own. Thank goodness the fish have better eyesight than us mere humans because I didn’t think much of it until I started producing good quality macro photos and then the magic of this pattern was revealed as you can plainly see from the photo that accompanies this writing. The base thread colour definitely bleeds through the semi-translucent flashabou and enhances the multi facetted colour of this pattern.
I’ve enjoyed success with this pattern all over the Interior but particularly Tunkwa, Leighton and Roche. Tie one on, fish it with confidence and I think you will enjoy the results
Regards,
John Kent
The NEWBIE Report: This is a new feature part of our fishing report where we will randomly collect images and stories from the “newbies” in the fishing community from one level or another. We never stop learning so while you may be an experienced and a new fisherman…this section is designed to highlight those “newbie” moments you experience while on the water! Dale Popowich is the featured newbie in this weeks report!
Last year I took a chironomid class Trevor Welton put on and had all the information saved. It was invaluable on this trip as I learned how to fish shoals, depths and techniques for boat position and how to work a lake. We also covered the entomology of a chironomid hatch and how the fish will feed on them over the course of a day, and how it differs during the season as the water temperature increases.
Humminbird 120 $225 at Pacific Angler
I spent over a week beforehand learning everything I could about chironomid angling on the net, and then I went to 3 different fishing shops for advice on chronie fishing as well as talked with experienced fishing buddies on proper gear. I geared up with the exact fly rod, lines and flies I needed. Not at all expensive! Actually I also got what I thought were “luxury items” but found that they are necessities when lake fishing. An example was a side scanning fish finder! With the money I actually saved on gear, I ended up picking up one of these and WOW was it ever useful!I went fishing with a very good buddy of mine who is an expert chironomid fisherman and introduced me to another buddy of his on the water who was also as skilled.
The first day I caught nothing. Yes…Nothing. But I watched my buddies get into fish and learned not only what chironomids to use, but how to properly present my chironomid, pump a fish, how to read and work the water…WHILE ON THE WATER. My buddies also critiqued me on my casting and presentation skills and gave me invaluable advice which would help me the next day.
More chats in the evening over a great dinner and breath taking scenery we tipped back a few drinks and called it a night. I was so unbelievably eager for the next day, I barely slept! I knew without a doubt that tomorrow (rain or shine) I would get into fish!
scenic shots and FIRST fish on a chironomid!
It happened!It was a double digit day and rainbows ranging from 1-3 lbs were tight on my line the entire time! For me it was a complete success because I didn’t just catch a few fish and had fun. I can now with confidence duplicate this day again and have a very good opportunity at even better days. I know for a fact, my gear is good. My technique was sound, with plenty of room for improvement but the key is that I know what I need to improve on! So my focus for the next trip is specific! I learned so much from how to read the lakes and how to adjust my presentations depending on feeding habits and the weather.
Tight Lines
Dale
7 Half Diamond Ranch: Our friend Anne was at Batstone Lake last weekend and had an amazing time! The got into good numbers of fish using chironomids, mayflies and leeches…whatevever they wanted to fish with, there was the opportunity to use. Anne has been going to 7 Half Diamond for years and raves about the hospitality of Jim and Heather. It does of course help that she gets pictures of great fish like this one here and has stories to spin about the ones that broke her off!
Nice Bow from Batstone!
BC Brothers still water report:
The lakes are in their form now with the progression of may flies and early caddis hatches in lower lakes that provide them. Upper elevations 4000ft plus are done their turn over and are on the chironomids. With the spotty weather all May the season is a little behind schedule. The 100 mile area should be on coming up.
Jason with a nice rainbow trout from a previous season.
Don’t be afraid to try things like May flies and bigger depths than usual. Big fish are there to be had in lakes like Sheridan, Valentine, Courtney, Pass, Scuitto, Fred, Palmer and Howard Lk.
Good luck,
Jay and Der
Nicola Valley Report – courtesy of M. Sabatino
Bryce,
Hope the weekend was productive for you up in the Kane Valley. The fishing experience at Nicola Ranch’s SX Guest house was good. The ranch house is very nice and accommodated our 2 families very well. The local caretaker was very helpful and had some flies for us to use that he assured us would work and they did. Fishing was mainly trolling around the lake with big dragons as there were huge ones emerging on the reeds around the lake and this proved productive as we landed about 8 fish on Garcia Lake (the larger of the 2 lakes on the property). The boats were decent and there was one trolling motor that we could use (not a big deal for us as we were just 2 anglers who could share the boat).
I did try some chironomid fishing and tried to put into practice some of the tips from the course. Unfortunately I did not manage to get any takes as the lake has some very deep drop offs right near the edges (about 30 feet deep) so I did not feel I was getting the presentation down deep enough. But I will persevere the next time I am out.
Regards,
Michael Sabatino
River Report:
Capilano: The river came up late Sunday night, and was in full freshet Monday, subsiding today. We have had a steady inflow of coho to the ladder/trap, as of today we have 140 fish some good size 5-6lbs. We are sitting on two S. Sthd. in holding.There has not been a lot of chatter lately of summers being angled up. – Courtesy of Greg from Cap Hatchery.
Fraser River: Although she is running high, one of our customers ventured out and was rewarded with 13sturgeon this week while fishing the lower reaches of the Fraser.
For updated reports on the other rivers please check in with our friend Fishing with Rod!
Saltwater Report:
JT’s Report:
Was out on Chasin Tales, our new Grady White Gulfstream with some of our regular clients yesterday. This group always books a few days late May and early June for some of the hot chinook fishing at Thrasher Rock.
There was a strong bite in the morning and by 10:30 am we had four nice chinook in the boat! The SE winds came in hard around that time and it was a little rough out where the fish seemed to be so we headed for calmer water. The fish we caught in the morning were offshore of Thrasher in 300-800 feet of water. The water was dirty and it was overcast so the fish were shallower than they have been in the clear water we had most of last week. 90-130 were good depths on the riggers.
Three of the fish came on “Ricker Super Glow” spoons I was test fishing. I have never seen a spoon glow like this before. I don’t know what kind of glow paint they are using but it is truly unbelievable. You have to see it to believe it. The fourth fish came on the chartreuse glow spatter back hootchie. We were using glow flashers on all our lines.
I don’t know when the “Ricker Super Glow” spoons will be going into production, but when they do, you will be the first to know if you are on our Newsletter and we will definitely be selling them here at Pacific Angler.
The calmer water I was referring to was over at Grande. We had a two shots at nice fish there but they didn’t stick and a bunch of little guys!
Check out the picture of these 4 beauties from the morning bite
JT’s loaded box on May 30, 2013
The Salty Dawg was out of the water for maintenance so Eddie headed out fishing on his day off. Read his report below.
Eddies Report:
Eddie with a couple slabs!
Well aside from the unsettled weather and bumpy rides across the Georgia Strait the fishing has been pretty good . Our seals back at the dock by the cleaning table are getting fat. We are mostly focusing our efforts across the Strait but a few days ago I revisited the Hump on a local 5 hour trip. Overall it was slow that day but we still managed to hook at least one fish which tells me some can still be found there. It hit a 4″ Irish Cream at 120′. I was the only boat there that day but it would have be interesting to see the numbers if more boats had worked that area.
Since the Salty Dawg was on the hard deck getting her bottom scrubbed, top deck polished, waxed and engines serviced, I took the opportunity to join my fishing buddy Jimmy on “Bluebird” to do some research and development (That’s what I told my wife). We got a late start and thought we had missed the morning bite. We started offshore with the intention of trolling in closer to shore but a fish that really thumped the rod and got away made us stay. Since trolling into the wind and wave was really difficult, we pulled the gear and ran upwind to try another troll over the same area. Wasn’t long before we hooked one, then another followed by a double header which limited us out in just under 40 minutes including the time it took to run back up!
Box of success…
We found them a little higher as all the hits were at 90′ to 106′. Early on in the fishery spoons were my weapon of choice and my hoochies were lagging behind. Lately it’s been the Hoochies with the Spackle Back and Spackle Back Double Glo working best for me. Unfortunately Jimmys boat did not have any Double Glo but I rummaged through his tackle box and found a white one with specks that looked similar. The fish really liked that one. Hope I can find more of those for further testing.
Tight lines,
Eddie
Jason, Matt, Dimitri, Andre, Eddie and Bryce