Weekly Fraser Valley Sport Fishing Column, July 27 to Aug 3, 2015


?I overhauled my possible sack, found a few course hooks, a bit of gut, and some thread?

Shouldering my gun strode off ? to look for a ? ruffed grouse, soon stirred one up, bagged him, hauled out his glossy bottle-green frill; selected some feathers ? I thought would turn a decent hackle, picked out a couple of brighter ones for wings, some red wool from my blanket for dubbing, and with these materials I tied a fly.? Passage taken from John Keast lord?s book; The Naturalist in Vancouver Island and British Columbia, publish in 1866.

John Keast Lord was a British naturalist, appointed to the British Columbia Boundary Commission, in 1858. Lord is a significant character in the history of North American, and in particular, sport fishing in the Pacific North West. In his two volume book, The Naturalist in Vancouver Island and British Columbia, Lord wrote extensively on the fish and wildlife he encountered in the British Columbia Territory, before the 49th parallel was agreed on as the boundary between Canada and the US. Lord is further credited with developing the very first trout fly, ?The Red Shirted Trapper,? for fishing in our region.

?I have tried various expedients-more as experiments than anything else-to find out what baits these trout really preferred.

Grasshoppers they took readily? the white meat from the tail of the river crayfish is also a very favourite diet, earth worms I could not try, because they do not exist in British Columbia. But all my trials and experiments failed signally in discovering anything that could at all compare with my first fly.? John Keast Lord, 1866.



The Report

Fishing on our lower mainland lakes is slow to fair. For better success try fishing early mornings and late evenings, concentrating on shadowed areas. For wet (sinking) fly fishing try: Chironomid, Wooly Bugger, Doc Spratley, Halfback, Micro Leach, Six Pack, Souboo, Pumpkinhead, Damsel Nymph, American Coachman, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry (floating) fly fishing try: Lady McConnell, Big Ugly, Elk Hair Caddis, Griffith Gnat, Irresistible, or Royal Coachman. For kokanee try: Bloodworm, San Juan Worm, Red Spratley, Red Ibis, Double Trude, or small Red Zonker.

Our local bass and panfish waters are fair to good. For bass try: Foam Frog, Poppers, Chernobyl Ant, Stimulator, Adult Damsel, Adult Dragon, Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Dragon Nymph, Pumpkinhead, Dolly Whacker, Lefty?s Deceiver, or Clouser?s Deep Minnow. For Panfish try Bloodworm, Chironomid, Micro Leach, Pumpkinhead, Popper, Black Gnat, Trico, Mosquito, or Royal Coachman.

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

The Thompson River is good for rainbow. Try: Rolled Muddler, Kaufmann Stone, Stimulator, Joe?s Hopper, Tom Thumb, Irresistible, or Elk Hair Caddis.