Cobb Mayfly Brookie

Fished Cobb Lake today. The wind was not nice. The mayfly hatch was good. The brookies liked my leeches. It was a good day.

Social Distance Tying

With the virus Covid-19 (Coronavirus) creating turmoil throughout the world and everyone distancing themselves socially I chose to deepen my fly choices in my fly boxes.

I have had lots of time at home, the ice is not off the lakes yet and there is little to do during the muddy transition from winter to spring. I have been tying a variety of flies such as scuds, nymphs, dries and of course chronomids in preparation for the soft water season. 

Not much else to report, other than I am hopefully honing a few skills while passing some time. A couple of notes. I need more material (although I can never have enough). Also, I am really liking UV resin. I currently use Solarez Bone-Dry. I would love to explore more types, brands, and colours. I have even ordered a bigger, plug in, UV light that is used in nail decorating facilities. Looking forward to its arrival.

Looking ahead I have a few projects before ice off. More flies, reinforce the bow of my boat for towing and buy some new tires for my truck (better off pavement capabilities).

See you on the lake... but keep your distance!

Fall Frenzy

The last couple weekends have been busy, the weather is cooling off and the leaves are starting to drop. School is back in meaning I am up to my neck in paperwork and my little bit of spare time I find on the weekend has been spent hunting. Well this weekend I decided to get out fishing despite the forcast of rain (which ended up only being a few drops here and there)

I went to a local lake that I had fished once before in August. The results were good and I was hoping for a similar day... which did not happen. However, contrary to what you may now be assuming I had an even better day.

It didnt take me long, maybe five minutes, and I found fish. I had rowed the shoreline in my pontoon and hooked up trolling a red ad black mohair leech pattern. I unbuttoned the rainbow and anchored up. Fanning my casts out in a circular pattern around me I was picking up a fish every three casts or less! There was no pattern to it, just fly in water time. Some were hooked on a fast retrieve, some on a slow and some on the drop after the fly hit the water. I even had a few hook ups where the fly had barely hit the water and the fish smashed it. I pumped one fish and there really wasnt much on the menu to imitate with a fly (see picture), but the leech was working so why change up?

I would fish that anchored spot until the action "died" down (meaning I went ten or so casts without a fish), pull anchor and anchor up just outside my casting radius from my last drop. This would put me back into the three cast or less ratio.
Long story short. The fish shredded a number of flies, I landed 40+ fish (I really tried to keep count but lost count in the 30's) and lost who knows how many. The fish were all rainbows and averaging 16" with some pushing 20". Many were acrobatic giving flying leaps, hurtling through the air, contorting and cartwheeling in an attempt to escape. Others bull dogged and tried to go deep. All were a good fight and I went home with a sore wrist.

It was a fantastic fall feeding frenzy.

Pursuit of Coho

This week I was out on the Skeena system again, this time chasing coho with my single hand fly rod and spey rod.

When we arrived at the Skeena, things looked promising. We set up camp and fished that evening at Ferry Island. There were coho and sockeye surfacing close to shore. Despite the water being colored up, and after a few fly changes, I did manage to hook a sockeye on the fly on a charteuse fly I nick named the "pick your prom dress" (a hybrid between a pick your pocket and a prom dress fly). This was my first ever sockeye on the fly.

The next morning we fished Ferry Island for a couple hours with no hook ups. So off we went to fish the Kitimat river in search of coho. We hit numerous locations and all we saw were zombie chum and spawning pinks. Nothing worth catching. I did manage a small cutthroat and a very nice resident rainbow. We retreated back to Ferry Island where we were camping. That evening we had no more fish to hand on the Skeena.

Thinking that the river may be more clear up stream we drove past the Copper river and found a spot to park way up stream to try our luck. Apparently luck didnt make the drive out with us and were were skunked, and demoralized. This was our last full day out there and nothing really to show for it.
That evening I did manage to hook in to a beautiful chrome coho on the spey back at Ferry Island. I had given thousands of casts over the last few days and only had my fly line knot up a couple of times. As I mentioned earlier luck was not there with us and as I was u tangnling a knot in the fly line near the reel was when the fish hit. I had it on, it turned towards me and I stripped lime mad to keep the tension on the line hoping I could play the fish without having to untie the knot at the same time. Well the coho wanted nothing to do with it and tore off in a big strong run. I had a decision to make. Let the fish run and pull the knot through the eyes on my spey rod or grab the knot before it went through and pray the fish turns. Not wanting the knot to rip off the eyes on my rod I grabbed the knot. Unfortunately the fish did not turn and it snapped me off. After a few choice words I tied back on a new fly and continued to fish. No more action that  night.

Back at camp, demoralized and exhausted we discussed our next steps and decided to leave and hit the Bulkley on the way.

The Bulkley was a little more clear than the Skeena and the dip netters at the Morricetown Canyon were getting sockeye, coho and even a steelhead. The first spot we found we saw a fish in a tail out and I got him to turn to my fly twice but couldnt elicit a bite. So, we moved on. We had a tip on a location and thought we would try it.

The Bulkey was a beautiful river and I cant wait to get back. We found a peach of a run, perfect for swinging flies. There was evidence of coho remnants in the water and two people were leaving with coho they had caught. Our hopes were high and it didnt take too long before I had a fish hit, although it snapped me off after a few head shakes. As the afternoon wore on the fish were rising here and there and we fished a seam where we kept seeing them rise. Out of nowhere I had a big hit on my fly and a brief fight with line peeling before it snapped me off. Awake and pumped I fished through that spot hoping to convince another to bite and it paid off. A fish hammered my fly and promply took off out towards the current giving a nice cartwheel on the way. It wasnt a chrome coho that was for sure, it seemed to have a bit of colour but I was happy I was into a fish. As the fight went on the fish bull dogged and stayed low in the water trying to get into the heavjer current. Eventually I had him on his way in and I got my first good look at him. It was a Steelhead! Nerves were high and so was my excitment as I worked it in and landed it. This was my fist fly caught steelhead and what a beauty. After a couple quick pictures it was on it was back in the river.

A short while after that my fishing partner was into a fish that hit like a freight train. The fish was quickly peeling line and burning his fingers before it broke his fly. It was a tank of a fish. It hit hard like a steelhead and I'm sure it was bigger than mine. Both fish hit on a black and blue intruder style fly.

Cant't wait to get back to the bulkley!

Terrace and Kitimat

This week I was out in the Terrace and Kitimat area with my family on a camping trip. Naturally I took a few rods with me. I mean you can't camp along the mighty Skeena River and not fish it.
The first couple days posed a challenge fishing wise. We fished near the campsite, on the main stem Skeena and got nothing. Not even a bite. Talk to one old guy there who had fished six days with nothing to show for his efforts. The frustrating part was there were fish rolling frequently, close to shore, but none were biting. We tried flies, spoons, spinners and bar fishing. Most other people on the shore were bar fishing and no one was even getting a nibble.

The third day we decided to give the Kitimat river a try. We arrived at the river and hour before high tide in the area thinking a fresh push may come in with the tide. To our amusement, at the end of the gravel road just off the dyke road, there was a sign saying no camping or parking within 30 meters of the river bank (or something to that extent). We had a laugh because just beyond the sign and right on the river bank were a couple of campers. Then we looked to the right where the road turned and our jaws dropped followed by howls of derisive laugher [Bruce]. We saw about fifty more campers just down the road, again right on the bank. We had our laugh and moved on.

When we got out of the truck we hike a kilometer or two and found a nice pool. Out came the rods and not the reels. Unfortunately I left my reels back in the truck so I hiked back to get them. When I finally returned it was time to start working the water. It took us longer than I thought to get the first fish but after that the flood gates opened and many more were landed. We landed a few decent chum and a bunch of very chrome pinks. Three of which came home with us. Among the catches I was also fortunate to hook a real nice looking cutthroat that was about 12 inches long and put up a scrappy fight on the fly rod.

All in all a good day out despite not finding what I really wanted. A big ol' Kitimat chinook. Maybe next time.

Too many project.

Too amny projects to do. Thats what uas got in the way of me fishing. It has also been far too long since I have written on my blog. I have managed to get out fishing this spring. I took a trip to Dragon lake in Quesnel for the day, fished for bull trout on the Nechako River in Vanderhoof and most recently a morning trip to Cobb Lake.
Dragon was a beautiful lake, big rainbows and tight lips. Saw some amazing fish cruise by but none that wanted to play so there isn't much to say there.

The Nechako proved to be fruitful this spring, just after ice off. I found some riffles where the bull trout were hiding and landed six of them unfortunately the biggest popped the hook. A bulldog fly, similar to a redish brown wooly bugger, was the ticket and the takes were aggressive.
Cobb lake was an early morning trip today. I took my pontoon out and found many rising fish early. I lost track of the number of rainbows I caught, and even managed one brookie. All were caught on a black doc spratley fly both trolling and anchored and casting to risers. As the campers started to head on to the lake after their late breakfast the bite slowed.

Unfortunately fishing has had to take a back seat to building a chicken coop, but that will be done soon and the local rivers and streams are opening soon.

Stellar day on the Stellako - Dry Fly Fishing

This morning I woke up to beautiful sunshine as fall approaches at a steady pace. I grabbed my fly rod and off I went to what has to be my favorite trout stream, the Stellako River. Thinking there would be sockeye in the river I packed some egg patterns I could drift under them to entice the many rainbows lurking behind them looking for an easy meal. Along with the egg patterns I packed some stone flies in olive, tan and black (all of which were effective this time last year). Lastly, I threw in some dry flies, and among them a few cinnamon caddis.

When I arrived at the river there were a couple of guys pounding the water near the inflow from Francois Lake. With a smile and a nod I walked on by, down stream, to find some water of my own. I didn't have to go far and I found some pockets of water amongst shallows. Thinking it looked fishy I tied on a cinnamon caddis a sent out my first cast. Should have started the Gopro before I cast because that first cast yielded a 12" rainbow. Oh well, next fish maybe? After releasing the little rainbow I turned on the Gopro and kept fishing the pockets of water as I waded down stream. Every pocket of water gave up fish. Some more than others and some bigger than others. Put it this way, I didn't have to work for any fish today. The rainbows must have got the memo and were hungry. I lost count of how many fish I landed, the majority of which were around 8" but there were some big fish in there too. I landed a handful of 14-16" acrobatic and strong rainbows and fought a beast that I thought was a sockeye before it leaped into the air and showed its chrome.

I had a bunch of new egg patterns I wanted to try out on this trip but couldn't bear to stop fishing dries. Some of the takes were aggressive and the fish flashed up from the bottom and slammed the fly. Other takes were a slap of the fly to drown it and then they would take the fly. I missed a few being too over zealous and trying to set the hook at the sight of the first splash. It's so hard to hold back and wait before setting the hook. The water was crystal clear and you could see the fish holding, flashing or coming up for food. At one point I watched a little rainbow snap at my fly on the surface four times as it skated across the current before it finally got a hold of it. Very fun to watch.

If you are up in this area I would highly suggest a stop at this little gem of a river. Bring lots of flies, they trashed a number of mine.

Carp frustrations

This past week I have been in Osoyoos, BC visiting family. Of course I took a fly rod with me just in case I had time to get out fishing. Well this morning I had a bit of time so off I went. I found a nice spot along a canal, parked my truck and went for a walk. I hadn't gone far when I spotted a handful of carp ranging from around four to seven pounds cruising in a clear pool.

Figuring they would be fun to hook on the fly I began chucking feathers at them. Although, I didn't really come prepared to fly fish for carp. I tried a bunch of different flies but couldnt spark their interest. Cursing myself for not bringing a gear rod with some bait (a method of fishing carp I am much more familiar and sucessful with) I walked the dike a bit. I fished a few more pools and saw some real nice big carp but as with the first pool I couldnt convince any to dance. I did manage to hook a small bass, but that's all I could manage.

Feeling a bit defeated I left to join the family at the lake, already plotting for the next time we are in Osoyoos visiting. Next time I come prepared for carp fishing.

Can you see the carp in the picture?

Pink Tide

Went out to the beach again today, and found some larger schools of pink salmon. It should be the tip of the iceburg with the next couple weeks producing some good numbers, but there were plenty of fish moving through already and some good size schools showing themselves. It didn't take long to get in to a fish and the action was non stop until the tide really started ripping in. Then it died off (although there were still some small schools hanging around.

Same set up as last time with the pink clouser was what was wo4king for me today, but when we start to see numbers like this almost anything put in front of them will catch fish. Even the gear fishermen were hooking lots ;)

Chasing Pinks

Yesterday I went back to a local beach in search of more pink salmon. I had been there on Tuesday and done quite well with eight fish to hand and four long line releases. This time I had my wife and daughters in tow. Well, sort of. They came with me but dropped me off in favour of swimming in a nearby lake. It was hot out and I can't say I blame them. It also meant I got a few hours of fishing in.

The tide was well on its way out and there were people fishing all down the shoreline as one would expect on a weekend. Fortunately, many people were leaving and since I don't like fishing shoulder to shoulder I walked and found some solitude. In fact I found enough solitude and room that I was able to walk up and down the beach chasing a small school of salmon that were hanging around.

Pink salmon fishing is not rocket science and many over think it. The basics of it are; you need to get your fly or lure in front of the fish and they will bite it. I'm pretty sure you could wrap aluminium foil around a hook and trick one into biting. That being said, I find there are patterns that work better than others. Which brings me to my next point. If you walk along and ask the average fisherman what color to use when fishing pink salmon, 99% of the time the answer will be "anything pink for pinks" or something to that extent. Well I can tell you I have caught just as many fish on chartreuse. Pink does work well but if the bite turns off, switch to something different.

Back to yesterday's trip. I walked into my spot, stripped off some line and began casting. It didnt take long for me to see a few fish rise so I waded down towards them and dropped a few casts in front of where the school was moving. Before long, I had a fish to hand. Unfortunately, the schools were small and far between so the action was a bit slow. I did manage to hook two more, one of which I landed. The two I landed are now ready for the smoker.

Flies used today were again a clouser with dumbell eyes. Two of the fish were hooked on a pink fly and one on chartreuse.

Rumor has it the bulk of the run is just around the corner and should start to show up in the next week or so. Im hoping to get out a couple more times before I head back up north.

Feeling Pink

Got together with a few fellow fishermen for fly flinging fun today.

It was in pursuit of some early pink salmon in the Vancouver area. Typically around this time of year there are a few salmon making there way along the local beaches towards their streams of origin. Armed with my fly rod and a box of flies we went out early and found some fish cruising the beach shore. More fish than I was expecting, but it was a pleasant surprise.

Low slack tide worked the best but fish were caught throughout the day. When they are thicker in there, it doesn't matter what the tides are doing. A helpful hint for those that aren't familiar with fishing for pink salmon, a long cast and deep wading is not necessary. No need to bomb your lure out a long way; save your energy and time. Tip number two, your leader (when fly fishing) should be a little heavier than you would think. I typically fish 15 pound mono. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, it helps turn over a weighted fly a little easier. Secondly, and more importantly, the thicker line can take more of a beating on the sharp barnacles which at some point will be contacted either when fighting a fish or on the beach behind you during your backcast. A few knicks in a thicker line will allow you to land your fish, a smaller pound test line is more likely to fray and prematurely snap. Not to mention these fish are not leader shy, so why use lighter line?

The fly of the day was a sparse pink over white clouser minnow fished on a clear intermediate sink tip. I love using this fly on the beach as it rides pointy side up, is less likely to snag and always gets the fish in the upper lip. Not to mention it must also appear tasty to a salmon because it is usually effective.

One of THOSE days

I had one of THOSE days today. No not an everything going wrong, nothing going my way sort of days. One of those fishing days where no matter where you toss your fly your going to get into fish.

This weekend is the nicest weather we have had this year, it hit 23 degrees and I slept in. I knew I was planning on getting to a lake today to toss a fly but neglected (on purpose) to set an alarm. By the time I got up, loaded my gear and pontoon into the truck and made my way to the lake it was nearing noon.
The lake of choice was a local one, Cobb lake. I didn't want to travel too far and it has produced for me in the past.

Upon arriving, I noticed two things. One, there were a lot of campers at the lake and two, the fish were rising. I eagerly got myself set up and on the water with my go to generic fly; a black doc spratley size 12. I barely made it a hundred yards and I was into fish. A good start by any standards. I let the fish go and kept rowing to where I wanted to go. Another thirty yards and I had another fish on. I landed and released the rainbow and made a mental note of where I was, thinking if my destination was not producing I would come back here. Well, long story short, I ended up coming back as my other spot was a dead as a Norwegian Blue parrot being brought back to a certain pet store in Bolton. I anchored up near where I had landed the other two fish and proceeded to catch fish after fish.
I could see the schools direction of travel by where they were sipping bugs and splashing at the surface. A cast a few feet ahead and a couple strips and they hit the fly hard. It was almost too easy. I was literally calling when the fish wer going to strike. 3... 2... 1... HIT!..  and I was pretty close with my prediction many times over. At one point I went seven casts and seven fish. I lost count of the total number of fish caught but I'd say 30-40 or so.
All the fish were rainbow trout ranging from 12"-17" except one 17" brookie that decided to play and gave up a fantastic fight, and all were caught in six to ten feet of water.

It was just one of those days...

Harrison Cutthroat

This last weekend I had the pleasure of drifting the Harrison river in my pontoon. We put in at Morris lake and fished it a bit before heading out into the slough towards the Harrison river. Our target species was cutthroat trout and we were hoping to intercept some chasing salmon fry, as they tend to do at this time of year. There were some fry present but not in the numbers I was hoping for.
In the slough connecting the lake to the river there were some cutties thrashing the surface but I couldn't convince any of them my fly looked edible. In fact, I was unable to fool any fish on this outing.
The fishing may have not been hot but the scenery was stellar, the weather cooperated and the company was great.
This was my first time drifting the Harrison and I must say I will look to do it again. Next time, hopefully, the water won't be quite so high and the fish will be in the mood to feast on the offerings I polietly supply.

Fish Lake

Another day, another lake. With the leaves on the trees turning to bright yellows and reds as they begin their descent through gravity to the ground, fall is in full swing. Figuring I don't have many warm days left this season I took advantage of the sunshine and spent a couple hours fishing the appropriately named Fish Lake.

The lake is a quick 25-30 minute drive north of Vanderhoof towards Fort St James, so it took me no time at all to get there. The lake was quiet and a perfect size for a float tube or pontoon. I rigged up my fly rod with my go to fly for lakes I have never fished, a doc spratley. Seeing this lake had a bit of colour to it I opted for a red one. I barely made it 100 yards from where i launched my pontoon and I had a fish on. Apparently fish lake has a lot of fish in it. I lost count how many rainbow trout I caught. It didnt matter where I fished on the lake I was catching. The fish were not big, averaging 8-10 inches with my biggest on the day at 11", but there were plenty of them.

I didn't stay long as my wife and kids were waiting for me and exploring on shore. However, I did stay long enough to know that if you are in the area and are looking for a great little lake to take the kids where they will catch lots of fish then Fish Lake is a good choice.

Region 7 : Cobb Lake

Well our house move is done and we are now living in Vanderhoof BC. There's a lack of salmon fishing in the immediate area but I am closer to the Skeena system now, which I will visit in the future for sure. For now, there's supposed to be excellent lake and river fishing for other species such as rainbows, brookies and dolly varden (to name a few).

I got out for my first fishing trip up here in region 7 today. It was a late start and i didnt get to the lake until about 11:30. I went out on the lake with my fly rod and a black doc sprately (my go to lake fly). After rowing around a bit (i need an electric on my pontoon) and tiring my arms I anchored up near some fallen trees and began casting. I was hoping there were a few fish hiding under the tree.  I saw a few rise and one even rose to the fly just after it hit the water but I didn't hook into anything. I rowed back down the lake trolling a fly and at the drop off had a rainbow smash my fly. It hit hard and peeled line right away. I landed that fish and circled back. That stretch of water gave up about a dozen bright rainbows of varying sizes. I circled back a few more times before calling it a day.

Not a bad day out for a first trip in the region. The lake was deadly quiet and there was only one other person fishing this so called "urban" lake.

Next week I may take a trip to the stellako river. A class 2 river with a lot of potential...

May long at Sawmill

It's May long weekend and I am in Osoyoos. We drove up Friday after work and I couldn't leave my fly rod at home, it would have got lonely. Despite the long drive and lack of sleep last night I was up early to try out a new lake. With my pontoon strapped to the roof I was on my way to Sawmill lake. I heard there were some good size rainbows in the lake and that spring is a good time to fish it. The road up to the lake is a little rough and I wouldnt want to drive a car up it but i made it up with no problems in my SUV. Upon arriving I took a look around. There is a rustic campsite up there and some beautiful scenery. Standing on the shore looking out over the lake I see what I came here to find. A rotund, good size rainbow launched itself up out of the water  right out in front of me. I was getting even more excited and quickly returned to my vehicle to gear up and get on the water.
I had never fished Sawmill before so my first order of business was to tour the lake to look for fishy spot sporting structure and dropoffs. The lake is a small lake and quite shallow for the most part. I rowed around and trolled a black leech paying attention to what was under the water.
After about a half hour of putting around I found myself a nice shoal on the edge of deeper water where there was plenty of surface action. I anchored up and continued to cast my black leech pattern. No takers, knowing that there were fish feeding in the area I changed patterns to a green sparkle leech with a gold bead head. Two casts later I felt the familiar tug of a rainbow devouring my offering and I set the hook. By setting the hook I mean I simply lifted the rod as the fish had absolutely hammered the fly. A couple jumps and a great fight later I had my fist Sawmill rainbow to hand. Just a note, to anyone wanting to fish the lake it is currently artificial fly, barbless hooks and catch and release only (but don't take my word for it, check the regulations before you go).
As the day progressed the swallows began to show up. They must have known there was a hatch about to happen. Soon after they arrived mayflies began to hatch and the fish responded by sipping them off the surface. I was cursing myself for forgetting to bring mayfly dries. It would have been amazing to watch the trout rise in the clear water to a mayfly dry sitting on the surface. Fortunately, the trout continued to enjoy the tantalizing green sparkle leech I had on and I continued to catch many more rainbows, none of which were under 16" and many much larger ones.
Sawmill is now on my list of lakes to revist and fish again in the future. It was a successful day full of big rainbows and good times. On a side note, due to the warm climate in the area and the shallow lake, this lake is probably best fished in the spring and the fall  before and after the hot summer weather.

Pictures to come, when I get home.

Stave River Surprise

I had the day off work today, and my kids did not have any school, so we decided to go to the Stave River in search of cutthroat and maybe some whitefish on the fly. I decided to take my six weight fly rod, just in case we could find something of size or maybe even an elusive steelhead. The weather was sunny and warm and the kids were happy on the shore with their metal detector.
The first run I tried produced nothing, no sightings in the crystal clear water, no rises and no takes. There were plenty of salmon fry in the river and my fry immitation was looking pretty good swinging through the run.
As we moved down stream and fished spot number two I noticed a couple rises just a little further down stream. The rises were bigger than whitefish and seemed bigger (at a distance) than cutthroat.  I moved down to where I could cast to the rises and confirmed that they were indeed steelhead. This is where I began to get excited.
It only took a few stealthy casts into the relatively shallow run before my heart started racing. As I stripped in my fly I saw a wake and fin (cue the theme to Jaws) cruising up behind it. The fish followed the fly and my anticipation grew until finally.... a splash and.. nothing. The fish either missed the fly or shrply turned and left.
About ten minutes went by, a few risers showed theselves and the birds squabbled on the far bank. My attention wandered and smack! A fish hit my fly hard. A couple of head shakes and a jump and I see a nice chrome steelhead on the end of my line. One more splash at the surface and the hook pops out.
No matter how hard I tried I could not get any more fish to commit to my flies. I tried a few different patterns all to no avail. It was such a tease as for about an hour there were consistent rises and splashes from some good size fish I can only speculate were steelhead. Unfortunately, I had places to be and needed to head home. However, the excitement was enough to make me want to return another day.