Sport fishing column for Aug 4 to 11
Of the many things during the era of the 1930’s, that boosted the fame of our BC sport fishery, one I find houmous was the extraditon of Roderic Haig-Brown from the USA. Their loss was our gain when due to the denial of an extention ot his working visa Haig-Brown he left the Washington State Forest Company, and traveled to the Nimphksih Valley. Finding Canada more hospitable he settled in the township of Campbell River in 1934, where he later married and puchased twenty acres in Campbell River itself. During the fourty years he lived on the bank of the Campell, Haig-Brown penned twenty five books and numerous magazine articals. While he refered to himself humbly as writer who fished, he was much more than that. He was a pioneer in the fields of both environmental education and conservation. Like his colleges Nole Money, Bill Nations, A. Bryan Williams, and Tommy Brayshaw, Haig-Brown is a legend in the world fly fishing and an icon in the history of our provincial sport fishery.
Trout fishing on our lower mainland lakes remains good thanks to the rain last week. For better success stick to early mornings and evenings. For wet (sinking) fly fishing, try: Miro Leach, Pheasant Tail Nymph, Doc Spratley, Green Spratley, Dragonfly Nymph, Coachman, Carey Special, Zulu, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry (floating) fly fishing, try: Tom Thumb, Renegade, Lady McConnel, Elk Hair Caddis, Adams, Griffith Gnat, Brayshaw’s Fancy, or Royal Coachman. For bass or panfish, try: Clouser’s Deep Minnow, Bucktail, Whitlock’s Crayfish, Poping Bug, Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Tom Thumb, or Stimulator.
Our interior lakes are fair to good. For wet fly fishing, try: Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Nation’s Silver Tip Sedge, Halfback, Souboo, Sixpack,Butler’s Bug, 52 Buick, olive Matuka, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry fly, fishing try: Lady McConnel, Irresistible, Double Hackled Peacock, Goddard Sedge, Tom thumb, Adams, Royal Wulff, or Black Gnat. For kokanee, try: Bloodworm, Red Abbis, Royal Coachman, red Tom Thumb, or Double Trude.
The Fraser is good for spring. Try #1 or #2 Eggo, Popsicle, GP, Flat Black, or Kaufman Stone.
The Vedder River is good for spring and rainbow. For rainbow try Stonefly Nymph, Cased caddis, Elk Hair Caddis, Tom Thumb, Zulu, Irresistible, Adams, Renegade, Grasshopper, or Stimulator.
The Harrison is good for cutthroat. Try Rolled Muddler, Tied Down Minnow, Clouser’s Deep Minnow, Bucktail, Stonefly Nymph, Cased caddis, Coachman, American Coachman, Lioness, Zulu, Black Gnat, Souboo, or Sixpack.
The Chehalis River is fair to good for rainbow, and steelhead. For steelhead try Kaufman Stone, Joe’s Hopper, Big Black, Irresistible, Elk Hair Caddis, Tom Thumb or Stimulator.
The Thompson is good for rainbow and fair for spring. Springs are open on weekends (Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday). For those big Thompson bows try Joe’s Hopper, Kaufman Stone, red bodied Tom Thumb, Irresistible, Chernobyl Ant, Elk Hair Caddis, or Stimulator.