Weekly Fraser Valley Sport fishing column; Jan 13 to 20, 2014

I recently listened to a five-year-old as he told me about going fishing and not even getting a bite. I asked him how long he fished. With bright eyes and a dead serious look, he explained, ?I fished five minutes and didn?t catch anything.? Jimmy Houston from his book, Catch of the Day.

We all laugh when we read that passage; yet how many of us began fishing thinking it would be a whole lot easier than it is. I often wonder if some of us do ourselves a dis-service by setting the bar too high, with all the raving about our exceptional catches and embellishing all the others. To be fair to those following us, we need to explain that while we all strive for the perfection of a fish every cast, such perfection is seldom achieved. A preacher friend of mine addresses this subject with a story about a group of professional fishermen.

Simon Peter said, ?I?m going fishing.?

?We?ll come too,? they all said.

So they went out in a boat, but they caught nothing all night.

Fishing is a challenge, a challenge to our ability to outwit a fish. The truth is; we only catch the dumb ones.

The Report

With record warm afternoons in the forecast for the rest of this week, fishing on our lower mainland lakes is going to be great. Concentrate on the north east sections of your favorite lake with a slow troll or retrieve. Try: Wooly Bugger, Big Black, Micro Leach, Baggy Shrimp, Dragonfly Nymph, or Halfback Nymph. Afternoon dry (floating) fly is in the mix too; try: Lady McConnell, Tom Thumb, Griffith Gnat, Black Gnat, Renegade, Irristible or Elk Hair Caddis.

The Fraser River is fishing is good for Dolly Varden and cutthroat. For Cutthroat try: Professor, Anderson Stone, American Coachman, Rolled Muddler, Black Gnat, Griffith Gnat, Zulu, Hares Ear, Renegade, or Irresistible. For Dolly Varden try: Zonker, Flat Black, Big Black, Eggo, Clouser's Deep Minnow, Bucktail, and Lefty's Deceiver.

The Vedder River is good for Dolly Varden, rainbow, and steelhead. For rainbow try: Czech nymph, Kaufmann Stone, Hares Ear, Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Eggo, Zulu, Soubou, Irresistible, Elk Hair Caddis, Tom Thumb, Black Gnat, or Renegade. For steelhead try: Steelhead Nightmare, Flat Black, Kaufman Stone, Rolled Muddler, Steelhead Bee, Irresistible, October Caddis, or Stimulator.

The Harrison River is good for cutthroat.