Great fishing througout the entire region

Posted on Jul 29/2014

With a variety of fish in the system this is one of the best times of the year to head out.

Spring/Chinook

There are still some chinook hanging out around the Terrace area in the Skeena mainstream and the late run of Kalum Springs are due to come through shortly. These fish are known for their large size and unusual white meat. Very tasty and they fill the freezer with steaks quickly. The Bulkley is finally doing well for Chinooks although it is still a relatively slow year overall. Idiot rock has been producing well in the early morning and other popular spots are producing as well. Be advised the bait ban is now in effect on the Bulkley River. The Kispiox is also still fishing well for Springs in both the upper and lower sections. The water is very clear and should prove interesting if conditions persist through to Steelhead Season.

Sockeye Salmon

This is by far the target fish for most people now. It is an excellent run with 90% probability of a 2 million return and a 50% probability of a 2.5 million return. Due to the excellent return fisheries has increased the daily allowable sockeye limit to 4 for Skeena River Mainstream to the confluence with the Babine River see this notice for complete details. Note the limit on the Babine River will remain at 2 per day and the sockeye season does not open there for another few days on August 1. Numbers at the fish fence are already at 251,072 (the entire season last year was 312,556. Fly anglers and gear anglers alike are having great success all through the Skeena from the popular Ferry Island in Terrace up to the usual local haunts on the Kitwanga backroad, Anderson Flats etc. Please be advised of potential access issues in Gitxsan territory after August 4th. Aboriginal Relations Minister John Rustad has issued a statement ensuring anglers that their fishing licenses are valid but advise people to be safe and cautious around confrontation (statement here). The area effected is relatively small compared to the entire system and their are many options for access on the Skeena that are not in dispute. The ministry is working to resolve the issue before the August 4th deadline.

All that being said the Sockeye fishery is one of the most fun on the river in a good year such as this. You may need to put in some time waiting for a run to come by but when they do it is phenominal. Bottom bouncing a pencil lead with a long leader is a very productive method. If fly fishing use a quick sinking line and a long leader tied to a simple fly. You will loose a fair number of flies so if you tie your own I would suggest something very simple tied on a Gamakatsu Octopus hook in size 2. Leave the fancy stuff for Steelhead season.

Chum and Pink

This is primarily the fish in the Kitimat right now. They tend to be plentiful and a lot of fun to catch. The river is quite busy.

Steelhead

It is still early for Steelhead but numbers on the test fishery are promising with a recent bump in the numbers. There are reports of steelhead being caught below Terrace and on the Copper River. Rivers are looking in good shape for the coming fall Steelhead season it is difficult to tell at this point if we will have a repeat of the low waters we had last year. The last gillnet opening for the Skeena has passed (baring any change in the forecast) and so we are likely to see Steelhead numbers increasing steadily now.

Coho

Coho fishing is just getting going on the ocean with few fish in the rivers yet but the test fishery numbers are starting to register Coho going through.