Every Fall since the mid 70's I've gone north to Skeena country to chase steelhead. Back in the good old days there were more fish then people. It was normal to have 5 fish mornings, sometimes more, and usually you had the river to yourself. It was a bottomless cornucopia, and me being the naive fishermen I was, for some silly reason thought the good times would never end.
Then came the internet and the lodges and the guides in their jet boats and all of a sudden that fountain of joy wasn't so joyous anymore. You had to get cagey with your movements, scrambling down into canyons at dawn with miner lamps strapped to your head to maybe get a fish or two before the guides showed up in their 20 foot sleds bristling with rods and cigar chomping high rollers.
Then climate change and the interception of Skeena-bound steelhead up in Alaska came in and really spoiled the party: what had once been a run estimated at 35,000 fish was in 2023, projected to be no more then perhaps 11,000 fish ---- a bit less then 50% of what the biologists had determined was the minimum escapement needed to maintain this world reknowned steelhead run
So this October I went north with heavy heart. Should I even fish at all on a run so dramatically reduced? To hedge my bets, I booked a spot for my truck and camper on the BC Ferries boat for Haida Gwaii. The plan was just to dabble on the mainstem Skeena on the way to Prince RUpert---just go through the motions for a few days or so....see what happened. I could explore Haida Gwaii and maybe get a few coho . Haida Gwaii would be my real Fall trip. That's how I approached October this year
Meanwhile, steelhead fishing is all about timing. The entire Skeena system had been plagued with low water all of September. The day I arrived there was a big bump in Skeena water volume from rain in the upper reaches. That was definitely a good sign. And the dropping temperatures were bringing the river down fast
