Vancouver Island report

[fishingbc]

Winter Chinook fishing all around the Georgia Strait continues to be strong. Large schools of salmon seem to be content with hanging around feeding on the massive amounts of herring in the area and with literally hundreds and hundreds of tons entering the Georgia Strait to spawn in the next few weeks these fish should fatten up nicely over the next couple of months. More and more anglers are getting word of the opportunity and have chosen to dust off their gear and hit the water in all areas from Campbell River to Nanoose Bay. Many are hooking into as many as twenty fish if the weather and tides co-operate. Good sized fish are being landed in areas like Lambert Channel, Eagle Rock, off the lighthouse in Campbell River, the “hump” off of Kitty Coleman, Tribune Bay, Flora Isle, French Creek and the waters in and around Chrome Island. Fish are hitting over a wide range of depths, from 75 ft all the way down to 320 ft but most fish are being hooked around 160 ft. Kermit Coyote spoons trolled behind Betsy flashers (gold or silver) have kept us busy most days, although every day out seems to require some sort of gear and or color change, but regardless the fishing is as good as it has been in a long time. With no virtually no commercial herring sets made north of Qualicum during the roe fishery last year it should serve as a reminder to ALL that if there is feed for migrating stocks of salmon in the Georgia Strait the fish stocks will increase, it’s a no-brainer…..more feed more fish….Every year about this time thousands of large migrating Chinooks enter the waters on the east coast of Vancouver Island hot on the trail of the billions of herring and some of the best fishing of the year is just around the corner. Having landed many fish in the 30 + range outside of Flora Isle (Hornby) in March and April, one would expect more of the same in the next month or two. Make sure to have your spools full as these fish are for the most part are right on the bottom at 200-230 ft can have you chasing them around for quite some time. Trolling large (6-7”) Wonder spoons or 5-6” silver prism Coyote spoons without a flasher, and stay right on the bottom dropping your deep lines down constantly to stay deep. The reefs just outside Whaling Station Bay (just north of Flora Ise) should not be overlooked as tide changes push bait up from the deep into areas where feeding salmon can be targeted as they chase the feed around. This is a great opportunity to do some mooching with your favorite setup. G&M FISHING CHARTERS (250) 954-6500 Toll Free at 1-800-577-6966 www.fishingbc.ca