STS Guiding Service Fishing Report, British Columbia, Canada, 5-17-10

[Saltwater Fishing]

Fraser Valley, British Columbia Fishing Report
for May 14, 2010

Salmon forecast for 2010 - The 2010 salmon season forecast is looking pretty good considering the dismal sockeye returns of 2009. Believe it or not, fisheries are saying that there is a good chance that the late summer run of sockeye is going to be large and we could see a sport fishing opening in Mid August. We will accept bookings based on this opening, we can always target Chinook Salmon as well. Speaking of Chinook Salmon, the summer run that enters the river in late July is looking strong so there is a very good chance we could see some excellent salmon fishing in Mid August. Once this begins we will continue to fish both salmon and sturgeon from August through to November.


Spring Special Extended

Since the Fraser river will not open for retention of Chinook Salmon until July 15, we have decided to extend our special rate of $500 for up to 4 anglers fishing 6 hours to July 15, we have also added an additional special rate for our 8 hour charters. $640 for up to 4 anglers fishing 8 hours, a savings of $120 per day on both 6 and 8 hour charters.

If you would like to fish for salmon prior to July 15, we are still offering Saltwater Salmon charters out of Vancouver Harbour. Just call or e-mail us for details.

Fraser Valley Report

Fraser River

Sturgeon





Fishing for sturgeon has been excellent so far this Spring. We are averaging 10 to 15 fish per trip with some very nice fish being landed. Our largest this week has been 7 ft 6 inches which gave us an incredible battle. The last few days we have seen some larger fish move into the lower river so fishing has been spectacular. Yesterday we had landed 5 fish over 5 ft in the first 2 hours with 2 of them over 6ft. We expect fishing to only improve over the next few weeks so it's definitely not too late to book your spring trip. If your looking for a Fall trip and want to join us during some of the best fishing of the season, don't wait as September and October are getting very busy.





Although there is still lots of great sturgeon fishing remaining in May/June, our next peak sturgeon season is in August when we begin our Fraser Canyon Sturgeon Adventures. The Fraser Canyon offers spectacular scenery with some excellent fishing opportunities. Not only that we have the safest boat on the water for taming those infamous rapids like Saddle Rock, Sailor Bar and Little Hells Gate.






Fraser Trout Fishing

With the water rising and poor visibility on the Fraser you will have to move to tributary rivers like the Vedder, Harrison, Dewdney Slough, Lillooet, Pitt or other smaller rivers. The salmon fry are on the move so watch for rising and feeding fish. This past week we saw more fry moving down river than any previous week.




If you tie your own, they are quite easy to make. One of my favorites is a simple mallard flank pattern like the Egg & I or Tied Down Minnow. You can find several other cutthroat patterns on our website at fly patterns


Vedder River Steelhead





The Vedder is now open for Fly Fishing Only from the Vedder Crossing downstream and closed above Vedder Crossing. The best is to call Hubs or your favourite tackle store up to date water conditions as water clarity changes from hour to hour and the river can rise substantially overnight.





Trout fishing in the Valley

The Upper Pitt River sea-run Bull Trout fishery is almost hear. End of May through the month of June is best. Book now as we limit the number of anglers per day on this river. Last year our biggest trout was 12 lbs but we did manage quite a few fish between 8 to 10 and lots of 4 to 6 lb trout. Our best day was 40 fish on the fly so don't miss out on this world-class fishery. Check out these fish from last year.

Harrison River

The Harrison River can produce some good results for cutthroat trout during the spring months. Salmon fry are migrating down river to the ocean so all those fry coming from Harrison lake are moving through the Harrison River. Minnow patterns work best, check out our fly gallery lots of fly patterns to choose from.



Book Now for July and August Salmon Fishery.


STS Guiding Service is committed to providing current and future clients with the highest level of service and quality angling experiences at the lowest price possible. We pride ourselves on our personal and friendly service, our ability to catch fish on 95% of our guided charters. We are fishing the area 12 months of the year. For us fishing is a year round commitment, not just a summer job.





Extraordinary Fly-fishing for Sea Run Bull Trout

BOOK NOW FOR JUNE 2010

45 minutes from Vancouver is one of British Columbia's best-kept secrets. The Upper Pitt River is located at the north end of Pitt Lake, North America's only freshwater tidal lake. Each spring the Upper Pitt River receives thousands of Sea-run Bull trout heading back to their home waters in Garibaldi Park to spawn. Each high tide brings a fresh run of fish into the lower reaches of the Upper Pitt River. We begin targeting this bright chrome fish in mid May with fantastic fishing opportunities through June until mid to late July. Some of the best fishing occurs between May 21 to Jun 31. These fish reach as much as 14 lbs with an average size of 4 to 8 lbs. incredible action on the fly and light spinning tackle. We are now booking for our May - June 2010 Sea-run Bull Trout Fishery. This trip is limited to 2 boats per day so book now for best dates.

Vancouver Saltwater Report

We have experienced the best fishing so far this year over the last 10 days. We have been getting good numbers of chinooks in the 10-17 pound range and the odd fish over 20 pounds. We landed a 21 pound chinook last week and a 20.5 pound chinook this week. Very good quality for the early spring. We have been focusing our efforts off the south end of Bowen Island, Howe Sound, and Vancouver Harbour. The spring offers some of the best chinook fishing of the year in the Vancouver area. Crabbing has been phenomenal in the harbour and traps are dropped on every charter.

Don't Let Damaged Line Be The Reason The Big One Got Away

When professional anglers speak, other anglers listen. As the pros continue to extol the virtues of respooling their reels on a regular - even daily - basis, other anglers wonder if stripping line delivers real or imagined advantages. More than anything, professionals will tell you it's an insurance policy.

It's not only the winter spent in the closet that causes fishing line to degrade, it's the day on the lake and river that wears line out. Sunlight, rough lake bottoms, sharp objects, structure and rod guides all combine to weaken the structural integrity of fishing line. These weaknesses could be the difference between having the fish of lifetime or just another fish story about the one that got away.

To avoid potential line failures, professional anglers inspect line after each use and look for indications of damaged line. One indicator is physical wear and tear resulting from line contacting rocks, logs, sand, rod guides, boat rivets, propellers, fish or any other sharp or abrasive object. Most of this contact is found within the last two to three feet of line and can be the most easily detected line damage. When line has absorbed wear to the point it is visible to the unaided eye, it is safe to assume that the line should be replaced.

"It's easy not to bother with respooling after a bad day. But even when you aren't catching much, your line gets worked over. The repeated dragging through the rod guides causes the line to wear," said Berkley® Pro Team member Gary Klein. "When the line gets worn, it not only gets weaker, it also tangles more. It's hard to manage because it twists in the reel. And it just doesn't lay right when it's twisted and its surface is scratched up."
"Professional anglers also look for line that becomes less manageable with repeated cycling from wet to dry," said Clay Norris, Line Product Manager for Pure Fishing. "Fishing line that is used on the weekends and allowed to dry either during the week or overnight goes through significant changes on a molecular level. New line quickly loses its springiness and tendency to coil after it is used for a short period of time. But the older the line gets, the more time it takes in the water for the line to regain the level of manageability that the angler prefers. At this point, the line needs to be replaced."

"Respooling is very important," Klein said. "A lot of people think they'll save a few bucks if they don't change it. But how aggravating is it to break off a nice fish or pick out backlashes? It's really worth it in the long run."



Vic Carrao
STS Guiding Service
www.guidebc.com
sts@guidebc.com
1 604-671-3474
British Columbia