Sport fishing column for Jan 10 to 17, 2011

Week three into the brave New Year; be it good or bad, there is no turning it back. The only positive option is to press on. Solomon wrote, "to everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:"

As person and an angler, though I acknowledge there is need of it, winter is my least liked season. It is the end of things past, with a silence and scent of death, which must come before life begins again. Throughout our province on the banks and the areas surrounding our salmon baring streams are decaying carouses from last seasons salmon run. Though some might find this unsightly, it is the established order of these ecosystems. The decaying bodies of parent fish; feed wild life, resident fish, and microorganism that will become food for salmon that will hatch in the warmth of spring. Beyond the ability of some to comprehend, our west cost salmon have an unwavering faith that at the appointed time, winter will pass, spring will come, and life will begin again. It is an amazing study in a timeless circle of life. In studying this circle one can find confidence, that in spite of man's fears "The universe is unfolding as it should."

The report

The ice should be off our lower mainland lakes by the weekend. Try a slow retrieve or troll with: Big Black, Woolly Bugger, Micro Leach, Sixpack, Dragonfly Nymph, Halfback, Doc Spratley, or Zulu..

Our lower mainland beach and estuary fisheries are doing well for sea-run cutthroat. Try: Epoxy Minnow, Tied Down Minnow, Muddler Minnow, Clouser's deep Minnow, Lioness, Grizzly King, Mickey Finn, Coachman, Knudson's Spider, Zulu, Purple Joe, or Borden Special.

The Fraser River and soughs are slow to fair for cutthroat and dolly varden. For cutthroat try: Rolled Muddler, Mickey Finn, Eggo, Tied Down Minnow, Epoxy Minnow, Winter Stone, Flesh Fly, Professor, Lioness, Coachman, Zulu, Chez Nymph. For dolly Varden try: Large (#4 to #1) Eggo, Dolly Whacker, Bucktail, Epoxy Minnow, Big Black, Muddler, or Zunker.

The Vedder River is good for steelhead, dolly varden and rainbow. For steelhead try: big Black, Popsicle, Steelhead Nightmare, Polar shrimp, GP, Thor, Squamish Poacher, Kaufmann Stone, Purple Peril, or Eggo. For rainbow try: Rolled Muddler, Mickey Finn, Eggo, Flesh Fly, Kaufmann Black Stone, Black Gnat, Zulu, Chez Nymph, Big Black, Sixpack, or Renegade.

The Stave River is good for rainbow and cutthroat.

The Chehalis River is slow to fair for steelhead and cutthroat.

The Harrison River is fair to good for cutthroat, and rainbow.

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