Fishing report for to March 23 to 30, 2009

During the 1980's salt water fly fishing for our pacific salmon had evolved from what was considered an eccentric preoccupation, to popular pursuit. In 1985, Bruce Ferguson, Les Johnson, and Pat Trotter released their collaborative work, "Fly Fishing for Pacific Salmon". This book was the first to deal exclusively with salt water fly fishing for our pacific salmon.

1987 saw to books on our BC waters: "Fly Fishing the Canadian Rockies," by Joey Ambrosi and "Native Trout of the West," by Patrick C. Trotter. While Trotter's book does not deal exclusively with BC, it does qualify to mention, due to references made to Haig-Brown, F C Whitehouse, and the work of J R Dymond.

Five books on our BC waters were released in 1988: "The Story of the Tyee Club of British Columbia," by Van Gorman Egan. "Dark Waters," by Russell Chatham. "Fishing the Queen Charlotte Islands," by Bob Long. "Fly Fishing the Trout Lakes," a revised version of Jack Shaw's 1976 book and "Spey Casting," by Mike Maxwell. Maxwell was one the patriarch who resurrected the art of spey casting here in BC and "Spey Casting" was the text he used to teach from.

We finish off the books of the 1980s with the book released in 1989: "Bar Fishing the Lower Fraser," by Hugh Heighton. "Edge of Discovery," by D E Isenor, E G Stephens, and D E Watson, and "My Steelhead Flies," by Arthur James Lingren. The last of these books "My Steelhead Flies," was a privately produced collector's edition, featuring hand colored drawing by the author.

Our lower mainland lakes are fishing well for rainbow, cutthroat, and kokanee. For rainbow and cutthroat concentrate on the warmer water in the north eastern sections of your favorite lake with Chironomid, Bloodworm, Nations Black, Baggy Shrimp, Zulu, Black Gnat, Micro Leach, Halfback, Big Black, or Dragonfly Nymph. For kokanee try Bloodworm, Chironomid, Red Spratley, Red Abbis, Black Gnat, Griffith Gnat, Royal Trude, or Royal Coachman.

The Fraser River backwaters and sloughs are fishing well for cutthroat and dolly varden. For cutthroat try: Eggo, Flesh Fly, Rolled Muddler, Tied Down Minnow, Clouser's Deep Minnow, Bucktail, Mickey Finn, Winter Stone, Coachman, American Coachman, Lioness, Zulu, Souboo, Big Black, Micro Leach, or Sixpack. For dolly varden try: large (#4 to #1) Flesh Fly, Eggo, Bucktail, Rolled Muddler, Zonker, Big Black, or Kaufmann's Black Stone.

The Vedder River is good for rainbow, dolly varden, and steelhead. For rainbow try: Eggo, Kaufmann's Black Stone, Elk Hair Caddis, Tom Thumb, Zulu, Fire Ball, Irresistible, Adams, Renegade, Grasshopper, or Stimulator. For Steelhead try: Big Black, Flat Black, Squamish Poacher, Thor, Polar Shrimp, Popsicle, pink Eggo, Happy Hooker, or Kaufmann's Black Stone.

The Harrison is good for cutthroat, rainbow, and whitefish. For cutthroat try: Eggo, Rolled Muddler, Tied Down Minnow, Clouser's Deep Minnow, Bucktail, Winter Stone, Coachman, American Coachman, Fire Ball, Lioness, Zulu, Black Gnat, Souboo, or Sixpack. For whitefish try: small (size #16 to 12) Eggo, black Micro Leach, black Wooly Bugger, Winter Stone, or Flesh Fly.

The Chehalis River is fair for rainbow, and steelhead.

The Stave River is fair for cutthroat, rainbow, and whitefish.

The Squamish River is fair for rainbow, cutthroat, and dolly varden.

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