Vancouver Winter Chinook Fishing Report
Well, we have a few more weeks left of Vancouver winter chinook fishing. This season has sure flown by, probably because the fishing has been pretty awesome overall. If you haven’t made it out yet, don’t worry there are still 3 weeks left!
To check out some of the action we have had this winter, watch this video of Jason and the BC Fly Guys, chasing down some winter chinook in Howe Sound. It was a true winter chinook day, windy with a good dose of rain and cooler temps, but the fish sure didn’t seem to mind!
Looking ahead, there will be plenty of chinook around the next few weeks in local waters and the Gulf Islands. Howe Sound was a touch slower this past week, but it was quite good over in the Gulf Islands when conditions allowed a crossing.
Over the next few weeks is when Vancouver Harbour can also really come alive. In years past there has been good to extremely good fishing for chinook in mid to late March off the “Bell Buoy” and around “The Freighters.” It’s not every year that this happens, but when the chinook do decide to hang out in these areas and feast on the abundant herring, it has made for some of the best fishing of the winter season. It will be interesting to see if it lights up this year.
Another area worth checking out in March is South Bowen from Cowan up to Roger Curtis. When we were open for chinook fishing in April and May, this area was the place to be as many of you know. It is also worth a look mid to late March, especially that last week of March, so keep that in the playbook.
Prawning has been solid to perhaps a bit leaner in the most popular spots. This is to be expected as the easiest spots to access on the way to the most popular fishing grounds have now been hit hard by our traps for over 4 months. There are still plenty of spots a bit further up Howe Sound that receive a fraction of the effort, so a little exploring can go a long way. Crabbing is also picking up with more legals in the traps recently and this trend will continue until mid-June when the commercial fleet shows up.
When it comes to weather, this weekend looks a bit dreary, but the long-term forecast looks great, with some double-digit temperatures on the way! It’s been a while since we have seen that. Those are going to be some very fun and very comfortable days on the water, “winter” chinook fishing and prawning, so give us a call to book your trip and take advantage of our special winter rates.
Our Winter Chinook Charter Special runs until the end of the month and we still have some openings. Give us a call on our charter line at 778.788.8582 or email kathryn@pacificangler.ca to book your trip. Winter Chinook Special Rates – 8hr trip 1-4 guests – $1,199+GST 5-6 guests – $1,399+GST
See you in the shop or on the water!
Good Luck out there!
Jason Tonelli