The Calm Before the Storm?
Published on October 4th, 2012 by Rodney
While many British Columbians are enjoying this exceptionally warm, dry and sunny weather in early October, it is not all good news. Coastal rivers across this province are getting lower each day and returning adult salmon are running out of time to enter their spawning streams. The rain will come, but when it does, it may also cause more trouble for returning salmon. If you have fished for quite awhile, you should remember that in 2006 we also experienced very warm and dry weather throughout most of October. When the rain arrived, the ground could not absorb it fast enough. As the rain fell, river rose to flood level. This sudden changes in discharge can be deadly for both spawning salmon and those eggs that are already in redds. It also cuts down fishing time because the rivers will not recover for many weeks. With that being said, salmon always somehow overcome these environmental extremes and return in large numbers. In fact, we are experiencing some excellent coho salmon returns so far in 2012. Hopefully, the weather will cooperate in the next few weeks by gradually cooling down and sending down some needed water in small quantity each day.