Fantasy Fishing in BC

[ashtonspoutine]

If you had one week to salmon/halibut fish anywhere in BC, where would you go and why?

ex. Would you go to a lodge? If not, would you rent a boat? Do it from shore? What would you target? Why this particular location?

Lets make the stories and reasons why enticing. Im all about learning whats out there for future vacations!!

 

[ashtonspoutine]

Ill start. Id go to QCI. Ive never been but from what I read, the fishing is INCREDIBLE. Id ideally like to rent a cottage by the water, and either rent a boat or bring my boat with me. I like all inclusive lodges but I much prefer doing everything myself. I like being dirty and not having to see a 'relative stranger' when Im covered in fish blood. Seclusion is good for me when fishing. Plus I can cook my own fish, which is a HUGE deal for me.

I would want the boat in the water at all times so that if I wanted a few crab or prawns for dinner, Id take an hour to drop the traps. Or if the girlfriend wanted to take a scenic boat tour, we can just hope in and go.

Id remove the blinds from my bedroom windows and get up when the sun wants me to. No alarm clock in the cottage. Just sunrise and sunset. Id fish with my 2 bros for springs or whatever is running in the morning, then halibut, ling and rockfish in the afternoon. I would most definately bottom fish for the halibut, lings etc. I think its incredible to feel the strike of a fish instead of seeing the rod twitch. "Oh! Oh! He's playing with it...He's twitching...GOT IT!! FISH ON!! GOT ONE!! DUDE GET THE NET!! HE'S BIG!!" Must be FUN!!
Ideally, Id be there with about 10 friends and family so that they can taste the difference between freshly caught fish, and the market stuff. It probably taste the same, but the feel is different when you're sleeping next to the water that produced these fish.

Id obviously have my camera with me in the boat, because since we've bought our small boat here in Burnaby, Ive realised that when on the water, there is a whole different look and feel to the surroundings. Its one thing to take in nature from the shore line, its something else all together when you're floating between two islands that look like mountains. BC is incredible, especially when you've moved here from NY.

Does anyone know where I can do do this? LOL

Your turn.

 

[fishspoon]

QCI is a great place to visit and fish. good saltwater fishing up there that I went to last June.

 

[Dogbreath]

Lodge or your own boat?

My first choice would be a Milbanke Sound lodge for sheer variety and ease of access, after that the Charlottes, these are places I've already been to.

I had a fabulous price quoted to be for an all inclusive lodge @ Milbanke but passed because things are so slow, this year Salmon fishing there has been terrible/lousy/poor/gawdawful/beyond bad.

No matter where you choose you can end up buggered because fishing is so dependent on so many factors, tides, weather, long runs to the grounds, choose carefully.

 

[Mr. Dean]

In all honesty, I'd find that ANY location that I haven't fished, would be a dream come true... As long as it was being bank-rolled by someone other than myself and willing to hang in there for 2 weeks.

I would supply my own beer...


I've always wanted to fish the Rupert area. Maybe, someday I will and give them guy's in PH a break!

Another thing that would be COOL is to have the time to cruise in and out of 'my' fishing grounds. That would be an excellent vacation IMO. LOTS of interesting water between Van and Hardy. I envy the Americans that can do it from WA and OR. [V]

 

[rigg dogg]

I started planning my dream fishing trip last Jan. I had been up to QC lodge and Naden lodge a couple of years earlier, both nice places but I wanted to get out and try it on my own. I bought an older 26’ Grady with newer Yamaha’s on it. Rented part of a duplex in Masset for the days we would be there. Then booked the ferry from Rupert to Skidegate for 500$$. Dragged the boat 20hrs from Cold Lake, AB to Rupert then the 6 hr ferry ride across. Nice drive to Rupert but could have done without the ferry ride.
For our first trip we went up on May 18th, I knew it would be kind of early but I wanted to get up there and put some time in on the boat. As it was my first time with my own boat on the BIG SEA. Had some pretty NASTY weather, a couple days with 4-5m seas. Stayed inside, drank beer and watched the wind blow. Nothing like getting broke in hard. Managed to catch a few 15lb springs and some hali’s when the wind died down. Nothing big though. Went up again on June 26th for a week. Did ok, but again nothing to big. 23lb spring was the biggest 30lb hali. The coho were starting to get pretty thick. Went up again on July 20th for 10 days with the kids, brother and brother in law. Pretty much same action for the first 4 days. Lots of Coho and some 15-20 lb Springs. Caught hali’s everywhere from 60 to 250 ft but no big ones. Lots of great eating ones though. Then it slowed right down from the 26th to the 30th for springs. Kids got to go crabbing and beachcombing on North beach , had a blast.
Going up for one last try on Sept 6th for a week. More nice weather!!! Getting late for the spring’s but the coho should be a good size and maybe a 50lb Butt. I had already caught a couple 30 lb springs at the lodges in 04 so I had my sights set on a 40 this year. Might have to come back down to earth and appreciate all the good times and the fish that we did catch. We did see a couple nice ones come in to the tables, but a lot of the guides and charter outfits I talked to said there wasn’t the numbers that they usually see.
OH well as long as the wife doesn’t want a divorce after I tell her next years fishing plans[:0][:0] I will be back up for another trip.
Enough babbling.

 

[Last Chance]

How about tuna fishing the canyons off Uclulet? We get BC beauty, Canadian Beer, and if we are lucky, several big smiley Albacore.

 

[KANOOK]

My Favorite trips have been and still would be to Tasu Sound , South Morsbby in The Charlottes.
Great Fishing for Springs and all the bottom fish you could ever want.
Not for the fair weather fisherman as it can get down right nasty out there.
The rewards are well worth the effort.
Our best trip there my partner and myself put 585 lbs of fish on the dock in one day of fishing.This incuded Springs ,Hali and Lings and a few snapper.
Overall our three day trip we topped 1110 lbs.
Enough fish for all our families for the year.

These trips are to a lodge and are Hands on fishing as they use a instuctional type of fishing ,they show you the ins and outs and spend 5 hours a day on your boat ,the rest of the time you are on your own.

First Class operation.

 

[excalibur]

I would drive to Bella Coola, pick up my boat, and head for Bella Bella. Contact Carol @ Whiskey Cove B+B to book a room or a cabin and fish out of that location. (Denny Island) I would run out the Seaforth to St. Johns (Milbank Sound)in the A.M. and fish until we got blown off (usually by 1:30 or 2:00 P.M.) then head back in and fish Idol Point for the rest of the day. 2 or 3 days of that then I would head south. At this point you would have to sleep on the boat or contact Namu Harbour and book a room. South to Cultus Sound, fish Purple Bluff, Spyder Island and area. If not rough, head to Aircobra Rock for Halibut, if rough head through the islands for Hakai Pass. Fish the holes in Hakai and maybe try Odlum Point. Then cross over the Fisher Channel to the mouth of the Koey river and try for some more Salmon. Using Namu as base for 2 or 3 days, fish the mouth and the narrows of the Burke for Halibut, Dock Creek for Crab, or the walls of the Burke for Coho. The return to Bella Coola is a 2 hr. boat ride up the Burke (North/North east).
Having written all this, I agree with a previous poster.(Dogbreath) I have executed the aforementioned adventure in variations at least 25 times in the last 10 years and this year has been the absolute worst in terms of fish catching. I can only hope this is a minor glitch in the grand scheme of things and things will return to normal next year.