Weekly Fraser Valley Sport Fishing Column, Sept 7 to 14, 2015


The first import of brown trout for stocking North American streams, arrived in 1880. It was believed that these European trout would blend well with the western rainbows, which were being used to repopulate depleted eastern streams. Neither fish was widely accepted as a replacement for the native eastern brook trout. The browns further added to the animosity of resident anglers, by being uncooperative to North American fishing methods.

Another import remedied the problem of the uncooperative browns; John Harrington Keene. Keene was an entomologist, writer, and fly tier; who was well schooled in the ways brown trout. As the son of, one of Queen Victoria?s chief water keepers, Keene had received a good British education, not only in the ways of trout, but in english and science as well. Upon immigrating, Keene made full use of his British education, by contributing regularly to North American sporting magazines, and developing flies, that worked for both resident and imported game fish.

Keene?s innovative flies and angling methods often ran opposite of what was popularly accepted, and he often openly criticized North American tackle dealers and their ideologies. In a chapter he wrote for George Shields, in the book American Game Fishes, Keene had these words to say about the grasshopper fly, marketed by the Orvis Company.

?? It certainly resembles no grasshopper in the sublunary sphere??



The Report

Our lower mainland lakes are fishing well. 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 fishing very well. 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 good. 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 Fraser River is good for pink and spring. For pink try: Pink Eve, Cathy?s Coat, hot pink Wooly Bugger, or Happy Hooker. For spring try: Big Black, GP, Flat Black, Squamish Poacher, Popsicle, or Kauffman?s black Stone.

The Harrison River is fair to good for cutthroat and pink. For cutthroat try: Rolled Muddler, American Coachman, Tied Down Minnow, Stone Nymph, Eggo, Cased Caddis, Czech Nymph, Hares Ear Nymph, or Irresistible.

The Vedder River is good for: Pink and the odd spring.

The Thompson River is fair to good for spring, jack, and rainbow. For spring and jack try: try the spring patterns suggested above along with Kauffman's Golden Stone. Try: California Blond, Rolled Muddler, Kaufmanns Stone, Stimulator, Joe?s Hopper, Tom Thumb, Irresistible, or Elk Hair Caddis.