Weekly Fraser Valley Sport fishing column, May 4 to 11, 2015


As we saw last week, Spencer Fullerton Baird recruited Livingston Stone to establish a government salmon hatchery in California. Baird hoped that the pacific salmon would be the salvation of the decimated east coast salmon fishery. Unbeknownst to these two men, the project would be a failure; but in the midst of their disappointment, they would discover a new species that would change the taste of North American sport fishing for all time.

It was in the late summer of 1872 when Stone and his party got off the train in the boomtown of San Francisco. Stone was dismayed that no-one from the California Fish Commission or other fish culturist, could tell him where the numerous salmon spawned. Through persistence, Stone found a railroad engineer who directed him to a spot, on the McCloud River, where Indians had been seen spearing spawning salmon during previous seasons.

Stone and his party made their way to the spot he had been shown; twenty five miles from the nearest form of civilization, and fifty miles from the nearest railway and sawmill. Deep in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where teamsters struggled to make twenty miles a day; Stone wrote:

?When we came to the river to erect our house and hatching works, a large number of Indians assembled on the opposite bank and spent the whole afternoon endeavoring by threats ? to drive us away, and afterward several of them ? told me in their dialect, which I had learned a little, that this was their river and land, and these were their salmon; ? and that I ought to go away. Some ? went so far as to give out threats about my being killed? I did sometimes feel slight misgivings, but adopted a firm and conciliatory policy with them which worked so satisfactorily that I am ? satisfied that none of us are in any danger.?


The Report

Fishing on our lower mainland lakes is AAA. For wet (sinking) fly fishing try: Bloodworm, Chironomid, Wooly Bugger, Doc Spratley, Halfback, Micro Leach, Six Pack, Souboo, American Coachman, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry (floating) fly fishing try: Lady McConnell, Big Ugly, Elk Hair Caddis, Griffith Gnat, or Royal Coachman. For kokanee try: Bloodworm, San Juan Worm, Red Spratley, Red Ibis, Double Trude, or small Red Zonker.

Our lower mainland bass and panfish waters are good. For bass try: Wooly Bugger, Big Black, Dolly Whacker, Clouser?s Deep Minnow, Lefty?s Deceiver, Dragon Nymph, Foam Frog, Chernobyl Ant, or Popper. For panfish try: Micro Leach, Bloodworm, Chironomid, Wooly Bugger, Dolly Whacker, Tied Down Minnow, Black Gnat, or Tom Thumb.

Fishing on our interior lakes is good. For wet fly fishing try: Bloodworm, Chironomid, Big Black, 52 Buick, Dragon Nymph, Halfback, Butler?s Bug, Doc Spratley, Green or Red Spratley, Green Carey, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry fly fishing try: Tom Thumb, Double Hackled Peacock, Elk hair Caddis, Goddard Caddis, Royal Wulff, or Irresistible.

The Fraser River backwaters and sloughs are fishing well for cutthroat and rainbow. For either species try: Rolled Muddler, Eggo, Chez Nymph, Big Black, Black Stonefly Nymph, American Coachman, Zulu, Chez Nymph, Mosquito, Elk Hair Caddis, Irresistible, or Micro Leach.

The Harrison River is good for rainbow, and cutthroat. For rainbow try: Rolled Muddler, Zulu, Eggo, Chez Nymph, Big Black, Black Stone Nymph, Micro Leach.