Sport fishing column for Oct 4 to 11, 2010

"As a Presbyterian, my father believed that man by nature was a damn mess, and that only by picking up God's rhythms could we regain power and beauty." Norman MacLean; A River Runs Through It.

Salmon season is upon us again and soon all our lower mainland rivers will be teaming with fish. Where retention is allowed the river banks will over flow with anglers, each one anxious to catch his or her limit of salmon, in the age ritual of hunt and gather. Mankind in his arrogance likes to believe that we have progressed from a blood spattered predator to some higher plain of existence. Yet we only need to see what this season can bring to understand that without laws and regulation, we are not that far removed from the bears.

Enjoy the season, but please obey the laws and respect your neighbor.

The report

Fishing is good on our lower mainland lakes. For wet (sinking) fly fishing try: Big Black, Nation's Black, Baggy Shrimp, Coachman, Cased Caddis, Halfback, Dragon Nymph, Carey Special, Zulu, or Doc Spratley. For dry fly fishing try: Tom Thumb, Renegade, Black Gnat, Foam Ant, Griffith Gnat, Royal Coachman, or Elk Hair Caddis.

Local bass and crappie fishing is good. For bass try: Size #4 to #1 Wooly Bugger, Big Black, Blood Leach, Matuka, Popin Bugs, Chernobyl Ants, Crayfish, Clouser's Deep Minnow, Epoxy Minnow, Deceiver, Muddler Minnow, Dolly Whacker, Turk's Tarantula, Bucktail, Hair Frog, Irresistible, or Tom Thumb. For crappie try: Black Gnat, Lady McConnel, Coachman, Royal Coachman, Ant, chartreuse Boobie, Wooly Bugger, Trico, Griffith Gnat, or Irresistible.

Fishing on our interior lakes is very good. For wet fly fishing try: Chironomid, Pumpkinhead, 52 Buick, Wooly Bugger, Micro Leach, olive Matuka, Butler's Bug, Halfback, Baggy Shrimp, Sooboo, Sixpack, or Green Spratley. For dry fly fishing try: Lady McConnel, Irresistible, Big Ugly, Double Hackled Peacock, Tom Thumb, Royal Wulff, Goddard Sedge, Sofa Pillow, or Elk Hair Caddis.


The Fraser River is good for spring, chum, and coho. For spring try: Kaufmann Stone, Eggo, Popsicle, Squamish Poacher, GP, Big Black or Flat Black. For chum try: Popsicle, Christmas Tree, Mat Green, Happy Hooker, Squamish Poacher, Big Black, Mat red, Eggo, or Holliman. For coho try: Christmas Tree, Rolled Muddler, olive Wooly Bugger, Coho Blue, Blue Christmas, Bite Me, Eggo, or Egg Sucking Leach

The Vedder River is good for spring, coho, and chum.

The Stave River is good for chum, coho, and cutthroat.

The Harrison River is fair to good for spring, chum, coho, cutthroat and rainbow. For cutthroat or rainbow try: Rolled Muddler, Mickey Finn, Eggo, Tied Down Minnow, Kaufmann Black Stone, Professor, lioness, Coachman, Zulu, Chez Nymph, Black Gnat, Souboo, Irresistible, Elk Hair Caddis, or Stimulator

The Thompson River is closed.

The Nicola River is good for rainbow.

You can find more at "The Reel Life Press" by Jeff Weltz.