Capilano river BC Canada

Zubi45

New Member
I heard that it's good salmon fishing under bridge in Capilano river BC Canada so how exactly do I get to this spot and where do I park?
 
My friend tried fishing a few times already but no fish yet but I guess later will be better
I heard you should wear life vest cause a few guys have drowned in past few years
A guy drowned last year
When fishing is good under bridge ---how good is fishing under bridge??
 
The Cap River is a crazy fishery. It makes my head want to explode everytime I go. The close proximity to the city brings out a very interesting range of people and you will see LOTS of instances of wilful disregard for any rules/regulations. Littering is prolific. Using bait during the bait-ban time is commonplace. Those poor fish get every lure in the book thrown at them. Anyway, that doesn't quite answer your question...

You'll find that access to the river can be challenging in spots. The river runs in a steep rocky canyon from above the Hwy 1 bridge to the fish hatchery. The rocks can be slippery and fisherman slip and fall in to the river every year.

Fishing is dependant on the river flow and the ocean tides. The fish seem to move in pulses. At this time of year there can be an early run of small coho that arrive. Typically they are caught in pools at first light (at this time of year that's like 4:30am).

As @jim morrow mentioned you can access a spot under the Hwy 1 bridge by parking near the Chevron and finding the trail/stairs down to the river. I think that when the river level is up this spot kinda goes away but I don't tend to go there.

Most people congregate up at the Cable Pool which is just below the fish hatchery. There is a pedestrian bridge over the river there. Note that fishing is not allowed above the bridge.

My advice is this:
1. use small flashy lures
2. go for a walk and find spots to fish
3. beware of the slippery rocks
4. don't go if seeing the worst kind of fisherman behaviour will bother you (This is the reason I rarely go now).

Good luck!
 
The crew at Highwater Tackle on Lonsdale in NVan have nearly endless patience to help people with the Cap. They'll set you up with a few lures and some techniques and send you to a spot. Go spend a bit of money with them and get some info!
 
Fished Dog leg pool on Wednesday, say a couple fish get taken early (5am) then it switched off for the rest of the day
 
I saw a couple of guys walking down to the river around the Hwy 1 bridge this morning at 5:20am....I think you've gotta go earlier than that...like around first light for these fish
 
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Guys - I am new in Canada, did a lot of fishing in Arabian Sea but new to Salmon fishing -- Reading all regs closely have some gears too --- Thinking to go to Capilano River mouth to try some luck any tips/suggestions will be greatly appreciated
 
Guys - I am new in Canada, did a lot of fishing in Arabian Sea but new to Salmon fishing -- Reading all regs closely have some gears too --- Thinking to go to Capilano River mouth to try some luck any tips/suggestions will be greatly appreciated


Shariq, I still stand by what I wrote further up in this thread. Definitely go see the crew at Highwater Tackle on Lonsdale Avenue. Buy a bit of gear, get some specific advice.

You can fish on the gravel bar estuary at the mouth of the Capilano River during low tide. Access is from the Ambleside park area. First light is best.

Tides are available here:
https://www.waterlevels.gc.ca/eng/station?sid=7795
 
Looking it up is mostly helpful, but they don't really tell you which areas are on reserve and thus off limits to the average sport angler.

Yea I know this first hand! nothing in the reg book says you cant fish upstream of rail bridge, but boy did i get yelled at by an angry native... once i had explained that i was new and just moved here things went better, but sheesh what a way to be welcomed to the area
 
Yea I know this first hand! nothing in the reg book says you cant fish upstream of rail bridge, but boy did i get yelled at by an angry native... once i had explained that i was new and just moved here things went better, but sheesh what a way to be welcomed to the area
There is a decent amount of signage around the area, but it wouldn't hurt to add more signs and larger ones at that.
 
There is a decent amount of signage around the area, but it wouldn't hurt to add more signs and larger ones at that.
yea i saw no signs....parked beside all the other trucks and walked down to the shore....i know better now though.
 
There is FN lands overlay for Google maps https://www.nrcan.gc.ca/data-canada-lands-surveys/11092#CLGoogleEarth

I have used in in the past for other FN lands, but to be honest I'm having a little trouble with the interpretation of the Capilano Reserve area.

A good resource, at any rate
There wouldn't be any need for interpretation, except that the Ambleside portion of the estuary is definitely open to sport fishing, and I wasn't aware of that fact that it is reserve on that side (I should know these things as well since I am a Squamish Native myself).
As I am not an administrative official, I wouldn't advise you to use my word as legal proof, but I do suggest calling the Squamish Nation and asking for information regarding fisheries and that section of the estuary which lies below the train trestle on the West Vancouver/Ambleside side of the river in particular, if you are still feeling unsure about fishing there. Try to be patient with them as there are sometimes poorly trained or poorly informed receptionists or admins working in the band office, but if you can get a hold of the fisheries management employees for the nation they should help (failing that, I would suggest calling the DFO for info regarding that area, although I find they require more of ones patience at times, as you may be patched through to clueless office admins in Ottawa).
Also, be advised that it is fairly late in the season for Cap River, I don't know how it has been this year as I don't live on the mainland anymore and haven't visited due to ongoing events of this year.
 
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