Vancouver Saltwater Salmon Fishing Report
I hope you received my special chinook report on Thursday. If not, stop reading this report and check it out here. It is critical you check out the proposals for our area and write a letter of support. I am hoping we get some areas opened up and this will give us some opportunity as we continue to push hard for larger scale opportunities like marked selective fisheries for the Salish Sea.
Okay, back to straight up fish talk. Well they sure showed up. There are all sorts of chinook around now and there was some good to awesome fishing this past week off South Bowen and over at Thrasher. Hot depths really depended on water colour as some areas had more algae than others, but basically the range was 120-180 on the riggers. More algae and less sun mean shallower, less algae and more sun mean deeper.
Hooked up offshore at Thrasher last Sunday.
I was fishing in very clear water and at times I could see my flasher down 63 feet! So, for me, the hot setup was a black or UV purple flasher such as a CB55, Madi, or purple Phantom and a Silver Knight Herring Aide spoon or Gibbs G-Force Herring Aide spoon. These setups were on fire in the ultra-clear water and sunny conditions.
Others were fishing in more algae stained water and were doing well on more traditional gear for this time of year and by that, I mean chartreuse. So, all your green and chartreuse flashers were working and similar green glow spoons or hootchies. Also keep in mind with all the fish around you are going to get hits on a wide variety of gear, but colour selection definitely matters and will affect your overall productivity.
Crabbing has been good for the most part and the prawns are getting hammered hard with some calm and sunny days out there. DFO has been out a lot, checking traps, etc. So, make sure your name and phone # is on your float and you aren’t set on a sponge reef. They confiscated a fair number of traps this past week, they were set on the sponge reefs. Update that chart plotter micro SD card or get the Navionics app on your phone. Really no excuse to set your gear in a closed area with today’s tech.
Don’t forget to write that letter! It doesn’t have to be long, just a quick paragraph in your own words. Details on what to say and were to send it are in that special chinook report.
See you on the water or through the window at the shop.
Jason Tonelli