Fishing Report Week Ending October 2, 2016

 SALTWATER


OVERVIEW – Salmon fishing was GOOD  this past week. Coho are the target fish salmon as the chinook run is coming to an end. In some areas, small feeder (winter) springs are showing up in large numbers.  Halibut fishing was GOOD this past weekend.

For the latest details on recreational fishery openings and closures in your area:

  1. A) Call 1-866-431-FISH or 604-666-2828 (24-hour phone line);

  2. B) Visit our web page http://notices.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fns-sap/index-eng.cfm to find applicable fishery notices; or

  3. C) Follow our sport fishing Twitter account https://twitter.com/sportfishingbc


Visit our Facebook page to see reports, news and videos by our guides and staff from their most recent trips. 

SOOKE – The salmon fishing was GOOD for coho but slow for springs. Otter Point, Possession Point and Secretary Island were the hotspots.  The coho fishing has been very good and many of them are large. The hatchery fish were running from 8-16lbs and some of the wild, unmarked coho were even heavier.  The best coho fishing has been out on the tide lines with white/glow hootchies and Irish cream Coho Killers being popular lures this past week.  Anchovies are still a good choice for bait and good choices for teaser head colors are UV Green, Chartreuse, Bloody Nose and Purple Haze.  For flashers, Super Betsey, Madi or Bon Chovi have been effective recently.

BECHER BAY – Salmon fishing was GOOD this past week. Although the Springs are slowing down, some nice Cohos are coming in.  The coho fishing has been steadily improving and anglers are catching lots of wild coho with a few 7-18 lb hatchery fish.  Those who targeted coho did quite well using Coho Killers and the Mongoose Coyote spoon this past week.  Anglers using bait are finding anchovies in glow teaser heads have been working best.  Also good are spoons, such as the G-Force and Skinny G, in Bon Chovy or Outfitters’ colours.  For flashers, the Betsey, Lemon Lime and Twisted Sister have been good.  Kirt Rompain and Kurt Horne caught 3 Coho and a surprise 24lb spring caught between the Head and the Bedfords in 400' of water 82 feet down using anchovy.kurt

PEDDER BAY –Salmon fishing was GOOD this past week. The coho fishing is out at the shipping lanes where there are a lot more hatchery springs than in close.  Most of the hatchery coho have been from 8 to 14 lbs and even larger unclipped fish have been caught as well. The bite periods have been early in the morning, on the tide changes and late in the evening.  G Force spoons in Outfitters and Irish Cream were the top bait this past week.  For those using anchovies, good choices for teaser head colors are UV Green, Chartreuse, Bloody Nose and Purple Haze.  Flashers that are popular include the Betsey, Lemon-Lime and Madi.

HALIBUT – Halibut fishing was GOOD this past week. The best areas were Race Rocks, William Head, 27 Fathom reef and Constance Bank. Anglers that were fishing were using extra large herring, salmon bellies and/or octopus for bait. Berkley Gulp and Powerbait soft plastics also work very well. You can also use Mudraker, Lucky or 9” Jumbo Squids if you want to stay away from the dogfish.

VICTORIA – Fishing for salmon was FAIR this past week. The cohos have slowed down since the rain over the week. The wild coho were as large the mid teens in size and hatchery coho up to 12 lbs were caught. There were good bites at times and other long periods were there was nothing happening. The best depths have been 40 to 75 feet on the downrigger. Good areas have been Macauley Point, the V21 buoy (green can), the breakwall, Brotchie Ledge and Clover Point. Most of the springs have been from 8 to 15 lbs in size but some big ones were caught as well. Spoons have been successful in getting hook ups and Anchovies have been a good bait to use as well.  Bloody Nose, UV Green and Purple Haze have been the most popular colors for teaser heads. Green Spatter Back UV Coho Killers and 3.5” Cop Car spoons have brought good results in Victoria.

HALIBUT – Halibut fishing was GOOD this past week with the best areas being Constance Bank, Border Bank and the Mud Hole. Anglers that were fishing were using extra large herring, salmon bellies and/or octopus for bait. Also working well, and discouraging to dogfish, was the 9” Jumbo Squid in Green Glow. Thomas Thiele caught a nice, 127cm, Halibut weighing in at 52lbs.  He caught it at Constance Bank (West) at a depth of 280ft using Salmon Belly.thomas

OAK BAY – Salmon fishing was GOOD this past week. There were more winter springs showing up however the cohos have slowed down this week since the rain . Most of the salmon anglers who fish Oak Bay have moved over to either Sooke or the waterfront. Good trolling lures have been Coho Killers, Bon Chovi or Outfitters Skinny G spoons.  Anglers jigging have been using Needlefish Darts, Point Wilson Darts or Deep Stingers.

HALIBUT – Halibut fishing was GOOD this past week. However, most anglers that were fishing for halibut were using extra large herring, salmon bellies and/or octopus for bait. Also working well was the 9” Jumbo Squid in Green Glow. Also working well, and discouraging to dogfish, was the 9” Jumbo Squid in Green Glow.

SIDNEY- Salmon fishing was SLOW this past week. The Pender Bluffs produced some coho as and a couple of springs in the high teens but the bite periods were infrequent. The coho were suspended at 80-90 feet. There were small, undersized springs off Hambley in 130-140 feet of water. The springs are being caught on anchovies and the Bloody Nose teaser head have been working best.  Anglers using spoons found Coho Killers, Gibbs Needle G the most successful spoons this past year. Anglers jigging have also been caught springs using Needlefish Darts and Deep Stingers. The Powder Wharf and Shag Rocks area are popular for jigging salmon.

Notable Catches –

Kirt Rompain and Kurt Horne caught 3 Coho and a surprise 24lb spring caught between the Head and the Bedfords in 400' of water 82 feet down using anchovy.

Thomas Thiele caught a nice, 127cm, Halibut weighing in at 52lbs.  He caught it at Constance Bank (West) at a depth of 280ft using Salmon Belly.

Please send photos (in jpeg format) and descriptions of your notable catch to our email info@fishingvictoria.com  

FRESHWATER


OVERVIEW – Fishing is GOOD in most lakes for both trout and bass. All streams within Management Units 1-1, 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, and 1-6 are opened once again for fishing. Effective immediately to 23:59 hours Friday September 30th 2016 the Nitinat River will open to recreational angling for chinook and coho.  The daily limit will be 4 salmon per day of which: • Two (2) may be chinook, of which only one (1) may be greater than 77 cm. in length, and• Two (2) may be coho, marked or unmarked.

TROUT – Trout fishing is GOOD on most lakes in the South Island area. Shore anglers are catching trout on Powerbait, Gulp Eggs, or worms while fishing close to the bottom. Chartreuse and Fluorescent Yellow have been good choices recently for Powerbait. Fly anglers are fishing Pumpkinheads, Wooly Buggers, Leeches and Micro Leech patterns on full sink fly lines. Trollers are catching trout with Gibbs Gang Trolls and Gibbs Wedding Bands.  2” Tomic Plugs have also been working well for Trout.

BASS - Bass fishing is EXCELLENT. During the day, soft plastics rigged Carolina style work well and crank baits can work well too. Soft plastics rigged “Carolina Style” are also a good choice when fishing drop offs and docks. The most productive colors in 4” Yum baits are Smoke or Pumpkinseed. Langford Lake, Shawnigan Lake, Prospect Lake and Elk and Beaver Lakes are the best local bass lakes. St. Mary’s Lake on Salt Spring Island is also a great lake for bass fishing. 

Notable Catches – Please send photos (in jpeg format) and descriptions of your notable catch to our email info@fishingvictoria.com

FISH TIP OF THE WEEK 

Lots of anglers are now targeting hatchery coho as the fish of choice. Be sure to increase your trolling speed, shorten your leaders and fish shallower if you want to get in on the coho action. Coho feed much closer to the surface and like a much faster moving lure than Chinook. And for some real excitement, try trolling bucktail flies right on the surface in the wake of the boat.

2016 Island Outfitters Leader Board

Halibut

1) 76.4 lbs – Jordyn Dornblut – Race Rocks – August 13th

2) 75.8 lbs – Walker Grant – Waterfront – Herring - March 27th

3) 73.9 lbs – Jeff Brohman - Sooke Bluffs – April 30th

4) 71.3 lbs – Marty Antcil – William Head – April 30th

5) 68.9 lbs – Kevin Hicks – Trial Island – April 30th

Trout

1) 5 lbs – Simon Arney – Langford Lake – Powerbait - July 24th

2) 3 lbs 14 oz – Kody Stofer – Elk Lake – Salmon Eggs - January 26th

3) 3 lbs 9 oz – Ron Flower – Quamichan Lake – Wedding Band- April 23rd

4) 2 lbs 11 oz – Matt Beeby – Duncan – Black Leech – April 30th

5) 2 lbs 4 oz – Ryan Rock – Duncan – Black Leech – April 30th 

Salmon

1) 42.2 lbs – Kevin McKenna – Anchovy – Port Renfrew- August 22nd

2) 40.2 lbs – Kayden Tyler – Anchovy – Victoria – August 3rd

3) 38.5 lbs – Dalton Laubru – Anchovy – Sooke – July 29th

4) 36.2 lbs – Ban Tran – Anchovy – Victoria – August 1st

5) 34.5 lbs – Thomas Brandwood – Anchovy - Victoria - September 5th

Island Outfitters starts and ends the year with the free for fun and prizes Salmon, Trout and Halibut Leader Boards. Simply weigh your catch in at Island Outfitters and the top five fish in each category on December 31st wins a special prize.

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