A Hot Day of Fishing with Dad
Published on April 30th, 2014 by Rodney
The first “heat wave” of the year arrived this week. Our recent trip to Ucluelet was pounded by heavy rain during the entire time, so I have been looking forward to taking my own boat out for a day of fishing under the sun. Since my dad is currently visiting from Taiwan, yesterday was the perfect day to get out and catch some trout.
Originally I was considering bringing him to one of the lakes near Merritt as the fish are generally bigger and stronger compared to the fisheries available in the Lower Mainland. At the end, we decided to stick to somewhere local as a one day trip that involves at least four hours of driving in total can be quite tiring.
I decided to take him to Hicks Lake at Sasquatch Provincial Park, which is relatively close for a day trip for anglers from Metro Vancouver yet provides pretty productive fishing consistently. Hicks Lake is part of GoFishBC‘s catchable rainbow trout stocking program, it yields a different result than the Fishing in the City lakes. Beside newly stocked Fraser Valley rainbow trout, you also like to catch fish that have been overwintering in the lake. These fish, after spending one or two more years in the lake, are much bigger. Cutthroat trout, which were once stocked until several years ago, kokanee, and native rainbow trout are also common encounters.
We began our day pretty slowly by arriving at the lake at 10:30am. The first boat trip of the season also takes awhile to get going, after all the accessories have been collecting dust in the garage so things are easily forgotten. Just before leaving, Dad reminded me that he still needed to renew his freshwater fishing licence, so I hopped upstairs, renewed it online in a few minutes. It’s always important to check your licences before heading out, so your day would not be ruined.
As we made our way out, fish could be seen splashing on the flat surface. A light breeze was keeping us cool. The view from the middle of the lake could not have been more spectacular. Two islands in the middle of the lake, with the snowy mountains and cloudless sky in the background, Dad could not stop commenting on it. The landscape in this province is grand and cannot be found in most parts of this planet. Too often we take it for granted until a visitor renews that appreciation.
Our choice of bait was single eggs and cured krill. Trout usually find these irresistible. We began by fishing on the bottom at the depth of 20 feet. While there were bites, it was not consistent.
After hooking and losing a couple of fish, I decided that we should switch to a float rig and suspend the bait at around 6 to 8 feet deep. There were fish rising around us, so luring them closer to the surface should not be too difficult.
That change indeed made a big difference as we, or mostly Dad, were watching our floats dipping constantly. The hook-ups were also non-stop, plenty of fish were brought to the boat. The number 6 hook did not seem too small for the fish, as all of them were not hooked deeply and could be released quickly.
I spent most of my day practicing my underwater photography and was able to capture a couple of satisfactory shots.
The fish we caught were a mix of stocked and native rainbow trout. Both can be identified quite easily by their behaviour and physical appearance. The native rainbow trout are skinner and less spotted, while the stocked Fraser Valley rainbow trout are fatter with a heavily spotted body. Native rainbow trout jump many times when they are hooked, while Fraser Valley rainbow trout do not.
Dad was also very satisfied with his catches and the limit of fish he could bring home to enjoy. He rarely fishes for trout, so being able to catch and eat his own is in fact quite especially, regardless whether they are stocked fish or not.
With one good lake trip down, I am looking forward to the next two months. Hopefully you will also get a chance to experience our fabulous lake fisheries this spring.