OUTLOOK
The first day of Fall is just around the corner! It Is one of the best times of year to be an angler in BC and the reports that we have been getting all week confirm this.
To celebrate the end of summer and the upcoming fall we are having our Fall Fishing Sale this weekend. It is designed to let anglers restock after the summer and get ready for the next two months of fall fishing. Everything is on sale! Keep an eye on your inbox for the Full Sale List to be released later today.
We’ve been busy this week getting prepped for the sale but don’t worry we have a great report. This week we look at the river fisheries that are starting to ramp up, the saltwater fishing continues to be going strong and we tune in for the lake anglers with a quick prelude of the fall interior lake fishery. When everyone is thinking about fall salmon fishing it is easy to forget that the interior lakes are amazing as well at this time of year.
On to the report and we’ll see you in the shop this weekend for the Fall Fishing Sale!
INDUSTRY EVENTS AND UPDATES
Join Our Retail Team Today!
We’re Hiring! We’ve a got an interesting hybrid role here in the shop with room for growth. This full-time role will be split between the retail sales floor directly interacting with customers and the office managing our incoming product. If this sounds like the role for you – have a look at the full job description here and send your resume and cover letter in to kathryn@pacificangler.ca
CLASSES AND COURSES
Introduction to Fly Fishing
This course is specifically designed to give the new fly fisher the basic knowledge, casting skills and fly fishing strategies to effectively fish our local BC waters. This course is comprised of two sessions; 3hr evening seminar and a 3hr casting session. The dates below show the seminar date first and casting date second.
Dates: Sept 19 & 23 – SOLD OUT
Cost: $175.00+GST
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Casting Time(s): 10am – 1pm or 1:30pm -4:30pm
Introduction to Fly Tying
There is no greater satisfaction than catching a fish with a fly you tied yourself. This Introduction to Fly Tying course is specifically designed to give you the fundamental skills needed to tie proven fly patterns used here in BC for trout, salmon, and steelhead.
This course consists of 3 sessions; each session is 3hrs.
Students are required to supply their own vise, tools and materials. A 10% discount is available on fly tying materials and tools purchased for the course.
Dates: Sept. 27, Oct 4, 10 – 3 spots left!
Cost: $100.00+GST
Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Fall Salmon River Fishing: Floats, Spinners, & Spoons
This 3hr evening seminar covers float fishing, spinner fishing and spoon fishing; the three most productive techniques to catch BC salmon in a river.
Seminar: Sep 25, 2023 – 3 spots left!
Cost: $60.00+GST
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Fly Fishing for Salmon in Rivers
Fly fishing for salmon is one of the most exciting fisheries in the Lower Mainland. Let us teach you the techniques and the hot spots to catch salmon on the fly in our local rivers. In the 3hr evening seminar you will learn about rod, reel and line, sink tip, and fly selection. Then put the skills into practice during a fully guided day on the water where you will learn how to read water and swing the fly!
Seminar: Oct 11, 2023
Guided: SOLD OUT
Custom Trip Dates Available
Seminar Only Cost: $60.00+GST
Seminar & Guided Walk’n Wade Cost: $300.00+GST per angler, minimum of 2 anglers per guided day on the water.
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Guided: Full Day
Fly Fishing Egg Patterns
This course is designed to teach you the secrets to one of the most productive presentations in the BC fly fishermen’s arsenal; nymphing egg patterns. This deadly method can be used for different species of trout, char, and salmon. During a 3 hour evening seminar we will teach you key concepts, strategies, and gear that will give you a well-rounded foundation during the seminar portion of the class. Then you will put those skills into practice during a fully guided day on the water.
Seminar Date: Nov 21, 2023 – 3 spots left!
Guided: Nov 25 or 26, 2023
Cost: $300.00+GST
Seminar Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm
Guided: Full Day
FRESHWATER FISHING REPORTS
Chilliwack/Vedder River Fishing Report
It’s mid-September, and there are good numbers of springs and pinks pushing into the C/V system, alongside a few early coho. Unfortunately, the complete lack of significant rainfall means that the river has continued to drop and is now running extremely low and clear; the current forecast calls for no changes in the weather for at least a week, so it looks like this is just the way it’s going to be for a while.
I’ve heard decent reports of pinks and springs in the lower river, which makes sense considering how low it is- but having said that, there will also be some springs that have pushed up into the mid and upper stretches of the river, so they will be an option if you’re looking to get away from the pinks… or the crowds that are usually associated with the pinks.
As usual, the low and clear conditions mean that you’ll want to downsize your presentations and consider fluorocarbon leaders to avoid spooking fish. Also consider avoiding brightly colored clothes or making any sudden movements near the water, as both of these can spook fish and put them off the bite. Stealth can be key under these challenging conditions, so don’t be clomping around the river like an elephant, especially if you manage to find some water that doesn’t have anybody else in it.
This should be close to peak for the pink run, and the chinook should be in the system thick by now, but it’s likely that the unfavorable conditions may delay things a bit- one of two things can happen in these situations… either the rain comes and all of the fish pile into the system at once, thus creating incredible fishing for a fairly short period of time, or the fish start running out of time on their “biological clocks” and they end up pushing into the system anyways; usually a few weeks later than usual. It ended up being the latter option last year, so I’m hoping we can avoid that this year, but we’ll have to wait and see.
Taylor Nakatani
Squamish River Fishing Report
The Squamish River is in a transitional stage, but still offering solid angling opportunities.
Pink salmon fishing for the most part is finishing off, with most fish being on their last fins.
Char, trout, and coho fishing is starting to pick up, naturally, with anglers starting to encounter a mix of fish during their piscatorial pursuits.
Similar to pinks, most fish found on the Squamish system are fully catch-and-release, with some in season opportunities and changes being tentative so be sure to check out the regulations link below.
With September reaching the midway mark, and October just around the corner, many anglers will start to switch to coho. As of today the Squamish and tributaries are open for coho opportunities with a retention limit of one hatchery coho per day. Before you hit the water be sure check out the Region 2 Regulations (click on the link and scroll until you find the name of the particular body of water you are fishing).
All your spoons from pink salmon fishing will be great options for coho, along with your coho spinners and spoons. Don’t forget your twitching jigs as well. Gibbs Koho spoons, BlueFox Vibrax spinners, Mepps Aglia Brights, and Gibbs Crocs are all great offerings. Twitching jigs in a variety of colours are always a great choice as well.
When tossing feathers and fur, small to medium sized flash flies are great for activating laid-up and resting fish in back channels and pools. For prospecting travel lanes and moving water, your larger profile swing flies are great options, with larger spoons making an appearance for the gear anglers.
Colorado blades in various sizes and colours are also great options, and are versatile enough to drift under a float, or to cast and swing.
With the Fall Fishing Sale happening this weekend, come by the shop to load up on spoons, beads, leaders, flies, and accessories- it’s all on sale (rods, reels, and line too)!
When you’re in the shop come talk coho with me- I’d love to walk you through some of my favourite rods, reels, and techniques.
Cheers,
Jordan Simpson
STURGEON FISHING REPORTS
This past week we had more exceptional sturgeon fishing. The sturgeon are now in full fall feed mode! They are definitely keyed in on the millions of pink salmon that are now in the Fraser, making for some great fishing for large fish in comfortable fall conditions.
There is lots of time left in the fall season with many more productive days ahead of us.
This time of year is great, as it isn’t too cold yet, so if you want to soak up a bit more sun and do battle with some behemoths, give us a call to book a trip. 778-788-8582.
STILLWATER FISHING REPORTS
Interior Lake Fishing Report
The nighttime temps in the Merritt and Kamloops areas are now in the single digits and up in the Cariboo there have been some minus nights already. This is welcome news for the fall lake angler. Water temps are cooling down quickly and the fishing on many of the lakes in those three regions picked up noticeably this past week.
Lakes that have fall chironomid hatches are now fishing well and others are starting to fish well on fall staples like bloodworms and leeches.
We still have lots of fall season ahead of us, in fact things are literally just getting started, so stay tuned for more fall lake fishing reports into October.
Jason Tonelli
SALTWATER FISHING REPORTS
Vancouver Saltwater Salmon Fishing Report
Well, it’s mid-September and we are right in the middle of peak migration for the larger “white springs” that are headed to the Harrison and Chilliwack Rivers as well as the Capilano.
Typically, most of these fish go up the South Arm of the Fraser, so if you can access those waters you will usually have the best fishing. The T-10 and Bell Buoy will also produce fish, but they usually start to slow down a bit this week as most of the “red springs” have pushed up the river and there just aren’t the same number of fish in those spots anymore.
We are also seeing quite a few coho around, which is normal for this time of year as waves of coho will show up over the next 4 weeks, headed to the Fraser tributaries like the Chehalis and Chilliwack, among many others. You can retain 2 hatchery coho per day and all wild coho must be carefully released.
The pinks are around, but I was out on Thursday and didn’t find them to be too plentiful, in fact we only hooked one, so I suspect most of them are in the Fraser now and the seine boats are scooping up the rest.
The most productive depths for us have been 35-65 on the riggers and bait always works very well this time of year.
We haven’t spent much time at the Cap Mouth yet, so don’t have much to report there. This fishery usually picks up right about now as chinook start to show up on the flood tides pretty much daily. If you are looking for a quick fish close to home, it’s time to start fishing here.
A reminder if you are looking for a deal on some tackle, we have a sale this weekend!
See you in the shop or on the water,
Jason Tonelli
