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Now you can follow us on Instagram @FishOnAdventuresCharters We’ve had some amazing days on the water over the past 2 months. On a few of the trips, we had 20+ fish to the boat with many pushing 16-17lbs! The fish have been arriving in waves which meant we had a few trips 'in between' where we had to work a lot harder to find fish. We also had a few stretches of very strong NW winds that prevented us from targeting the prime areas we normally like to fish this time of the season. Once those winds dropped though, we experienced some spectacular fishing days which are continuing as I create this report. The best fishing has been at our more distant locations that are only feasible with charter durations of 8+ hours with the 10 hour option being the most ideal to target these areas. On some of these trips, we had situations where it was very difficult to get a second line in the water before the first rod went off with a nice fish ripping line off the reel! We’ve been hitting most of the fish on either herring imitations (spoons, hoochies, plugs) or by running bait (herring & anchovies). In some areas the bait has been thick. In the sonar photo below, you can see the large schools of herring (red/orange circular clusters) with smaller red arches around the outside edges … those orange arches are feeding salmon targeting the herring. Coho (i.e. Silvers) salmon have just started to show up in local waters over the past few days. They are a bit late arriving on the scene compared to last season but they’re a welcome addition to the local fishery. We had a very nice 7lb hatchery fish for guests to take home the other night. The average size is typically in the 5-7 lb range and guests can retain up to two hatchery marked Coho per license.
The first Pink salmon have started to appear and are expected to be more prevalent as July progresses. This should be a decent year for Pinks which can be a ton of fun to catch. There’s no question when you’re in a large school of these fish. Double and triple headers are common. They average 4-7lbs and guests can retain up to 4 Pink salmon per license (i.e. a combined total of 4 salmon per license, 4 of which may be Pinks). Chinook (King) salmon retention openings are starting on July 15 in certain areas and will be accessible on our 8 hour or longer charters. Additional area openings will occur on August 1st with further openings mid August. And all our target areas will be open for Chinook retention as of September 1st. There’s been a lot of interest for August & September dates as these are the biggest fish of the season with the average size being 18-25lbs and the largest fish pushing into the mid 30lb range. So if you’re thinking about a trip later this year, please call us to secure your charter while there are still days available. Tight lines! We've had some great fishing through April and it's getting even better as we head into May. As is typical this time of year, we have a large number of Chinook salmon present in local waters. On the past few trips, it's been common to have double and even triple hookups! These fish are full of energy and are aggressively feeding primarily on herring and anchovies. The average size is between 8lb to 12lb but we've had a few fish in the mid teens to the boat recently. On the upper end, there are reports of the occasional fish in the upper teens approaching 20lbs. We will see the average size continue to increase over the coming weeks with these fish growing quickly. Coho salmon have started to appear in local waters. There are reports of a few early Coho showing up in the Capilano River system which is great to hear. As May progresses, we'll see more of these fish arriving and holding in our local waters. By the time we get into mid June, we should see large numbers of Coho locally which makes for frantic action on the water! When the bite is on, these fish hit almost anything and are often jumping all over the water behind the boat before you can get to the rod. It's a great time. Guests can retain up to 2 hatchery marked Coho per license. Since April 1, the regulations have not permitted retention of Chinook salmon locally. While this restriction is in place, we are bringing Chinook on board to obtain a DNA sample and then safely releasing them back to the water. We continue to await the overdue announcement from DFO (Department of Fisheries & Oceans) that would allow retention of hatchery marked Chinook salmon. Many of the fish we are currently releasing are hatchery clipped fish that have been raised and released from hatcheries specifically for retention. So we continue to wait anxiously for what, by all accounts, should be a fairly common sense announcement from the Minister of Fisheries & Oceans. At FishOnAdventures.com, we've been a long time member of the DFO Avid Angler initiative to collect DNA samples from Chinook salmon for analysis. The intent of this program is to provide scientific data to support informed management decisions for west coast salmon. It should be noted that many other guides we work with on a daily basis also participate in this initiative. Guests joining us on the water can see and participate in this program first hand. Once on board, a small DNA sample is taken from the tail of the fish along with a measurement and a notation as to whether the fish is hatchery marked (clipped adipose fin). Following a quick photo, the fish is safely released back into the water. Collected samples are then submitted to DFO scientists for analysis. It's important to note that without these volunteer efforts from the recreational sport fishery, DFO would have no means of obtaining the critical DNA samples required to understand the migratory movements of Chinook salmon after they leave local river systems as juveniles.
On a separate note, we are pleased to announce that we've had our first dose of the Pfizer shots at FishOnAdventures.com! As soon as we're able to get our final dose, we'll be off to get the jab right away. As always, safety is a priority. And we'll continue to do our part to ensure a safe experience for guests on the water. Now is a great time to book your charter. The fishing is great and the weather has improved significantly making for some amazing days on the water! The days are getting longer now and we seem to be through the recent cold snap. We’ve had to pick our days to get on the water with some recent strong winds that moved through. But we’ve managed to find a few calm opportunities and even the occasional sunny day to enjoy our local winter fishery. There has been plenty of bait around and these fish have been putting on weight as a result. We’re seeing more fish in the 9lb -12lb range now. The herring spawn is underway in Howe Sound and will continue into March which is bringing in more Chinook to gorge on the large schools of herring. Fishing will continue to improve as we head into the spring and the average size will continue to increase. It’s not unusual to encounter fish in the 15lb - 20lb range as we head into April & May. The Coho salmon will arrive late May/early June as well and are always good for crazy surface acrobatic fights.
It's been a long year for all of us having to wear masks, social distance, and listen to continuing Covid-19 reports on a daily basis. Many people have been negatively impacted by the virus in significant ways and have lost family members. We are hopeful the vaccine deployments will ramp up quickly to control and ultimately eliminate the virus spread over the coming months. In the meantime, we are fortunate to have the opportunity to get out on the water in the open air to experience the amazing scenery and great fishing while continuing to employ safe practices. The fall salmon runs are well into our local river systems now and, with the days getting a lot shorter, we’re officially into the early days of our winter Chinook fishery. These fish range in size between 5lb - 10lb and are feeding aggressively on herring and anchovies. The strategy is relatively simple ... find the bait, find the fish. There’s been a lot of baitfish around so far which is great to see. Our winter rates are now in effect with 6hr and 8hr charter options available. We’ll start dropping crab traps again on 6hr charters in December and both crab & prawn traps on 8hr charters.
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