Weekly Frazer Valley Sport Fishing Column

Weekly Sport Fishing column for Jan 4 to 11, 2010

Last week I touched on the subject of passing your passion for sport fishing onto your children. I am always taken back when I come across parents who put this simple act of spending quality time with their kids off. Some will say; their children are too young to grasp the skills needed, or that kids are too impatient. Others (I kid you not) have told me that children get in the way, and can compromise quality fishing time. What a shame! I personally have found that kids, particularly ones own, can bring some of the greatest rewards in the sport fishing.

My own daughters (permit me to brag a bit please) were fishing with my wife and I when they were still in diapers; catching fish by themselves at age two, and tying flies at five. My oldest had her first sport fishing article published at age eleven, while my youngest has become a keen competitive angler. They, along with my wife, are the ones who encourage me to keep my mind open to new challenges and when I am old they will take me fishing.

?Train a child in the way he or she should go, and when old he or she will not depart from it.? This is not only wise advice, it works.

The Report:

The ice is off the majority of our lower mainland lakes and with clear skies in the forecast, we can expect good winter fishing for the weekend. Focus your fishing close to shore on the north east sections of you favorite lake, from late morning through early afternoon. Try: Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Micro leach, Baggy Shrimp,Coachman, Bloodworm, Chironomid Cased Caddis, Zulu, or Doc Spratley.

The Fraser River back waters and sloughs are fishing well for cutthroat and rainbow. For cutthroat try: Flesh Fly, Eggo, Rolled Muddler, Mickey Finn, Tied Down Minnow, Professor, Lioness, Winter Stone, Coachman, Zulu, Chez Nymph, or Souboo. For rainbow try any off the above along with: Red Spratley, Red Carey, Kaufmann Stone, Royal Coachman, or Black Gnat.

The Stave River is fair to good for cutthroat,rainbow, and whitefish. For whitefish try: small (#14 to #20) Eggo, Souboo, Fleshfly, Griffith Gnat, Stone Nymph, Chironomide, or Caddis Nymph.
The Harrison River is fair to good for cutthroat and rainbow.

The Chehalis River is fair to good for steelhead, cutthroat, and rainbow. For steelhead try: Squamish Poacher, Thor, GP, Popsicle, Big Black, Flat Black, Polar Shrimp, Eggo, Steelhead Nightmare, Purpil Peril, Kaufmann Stone, or Steelhead Spratley.

The Vedder River is good for steelhead, cutthroat and rainbow.

The Squamish River is fair for dolly varden and cutthroat. For dolly varden try: Large #4 to #2, Zonker, Eggo, Bucktail, Big Black, or Clouser's Deep Minnow.

Until the next time, ?Keep your fly in the water.?

I for one, am happy my grandpa and dad got me out on the water. My Grandpa was primarily a spin fisher but my dad was shopping for fly fishing equipment and ended up buying me the same rig he bought.

I was little standoffish at first because it was awkward but now I feel very fortunate I was introduced to fly fishing at a younger age (14).

I have had large gaps of time from my first years fly fishing to the last couple years but I remember everything.

I went from fishing on rivers like the Frying Pan and the Animas and smaller feeder rivers to the East Coast where I shifted to ocean fishing and surf casting and now back to the western mountain streams.

I have never lost the love for the fight....