By all early season indications 2009 could be one of the best salmon fishing seasons in many years. Currently the southern coast of Vancouver Island is on fire for early season Chinook, many of which are heading our way to the Fraser. If the runs remains strong we could be seeing an early opening on the Fraser. Our charters departing from Vancouver are also doing better than average catching good numbers of Chinook in the 12 to 20 lb range.

The Fraser River is scheduled to open July 1 for 1 Chinook per day, size restriction is in effect with 1 fish under 77cm, as of August 1st the size restriction is lifted and you can retain 4 fish per day, 1 over 62 cm. We are expecting a sockeye opening late July early August with a limit of 2 fish per day.

Cancellation policy waived - Because of the uncertainty surrounding the opening date for sockeye, any guests that books a sockeye fishing trip Between August 1 - 21 will have the option to cancel and receive a full refund or move the date if the fishery is not open on the date of their trip. So there is no risk to you if you book a date now to ensure your day on the water with STS. Our best guess is August 5 - 21 so book your no risk trip early to ensure best dates.

Our 6th annual Finns & Skins Tournament will be held on August 15, 2009 at the Sandpiper Golf Club in Harrison Mills. This is a 10 boat tournament where guests will golf 18 holes, fish 5-6 hours with a guide, then return for a Barbeque dinner and prize draws. Everyone receives a tournament gift & a chance to win some great prizes.

Cost is $375 per person
Only 2 boats are available
Call or e-mail us to book your boat.

STS is excited to get the 2009 salmon season under way, our guest will be using some of the best fishing tackle available on the market today.

Pure fishing is one of the worlds largest tackle manufactures, products such as Fenwick, Penn, Abu Garcia, Flueger, Berkley, Spiderwire, Shakespear, Mitchell, Stren, Johnson to name a few. Enter our free draw and you just might get some products along with our STS Swag.

We are giving away some of our new STS Swag, if you would like to enter our FREE draw to win STS hats, shirts and sweat shirts, please send us an E-mail with "Enter Free Draw" in the subject line. Be sure to include mailing address.

Daily Jet Boat Tours begin July 21 through until August 31. You can book a single seat or you can book as many seats as you like for this incredible price of $99.00. This trip is a 4-5 tour departing from Hope, barbeque lunch is included in the trip. You can view our Tour Schedule.

Our new 28ft twin-engine jet boat will also be used for guided fishing on the Fraser for salmon or sturgeon and Fraser Canyon Sturgeon fishing. Maximum Capacity is 12 for Jet Boat Tours, 8 - 10 for guided fishing tours.

Although this specialty boat is designed for larger groups, smaller groups who prefer luxury and space are more than welcome to request this boat. The daily rate is slightly higher than our regular jet boats so be sure to request a price quote. On larger groups, each tour or guided fishing trip will have a driver & deckhand to ensure we maintain our high standard and quality experience.

Salmon - the 2009 salmon season is shaping up to be one of the better runs in many years. Large runs of summer and late summer sockeye are expected and 2009 is another Pink run with 15 to 20 million extra salmon in the river.

Salmon, Trout, Steelhead & Sturgeon

Quick overview - The 2009 Salmon runs are expected to be excellent. DFO early season forecast is one of the better forecasts I have seen in the past 4 or 5 years. They are predicting large returns of summer and late summer sockeye, strong returns of summer and late Chinook and 2009 is our Pink Salmon run with an estimated run size of 20-30 million fish. The only fishery that looks like it may require some tight management is the early run of Chinook in April/May. This run might result in some size restrictions similar to 2008. The Fall Chinook and Chum runs are expected to be strong as usual so October & November is always a good bet.

What to expect & when to book.

June

Early summer Chinook runs are not expected to be that great so bar fishing in May & June will be limited. For those customers wanting salmon only we will mainly focus on our saltwater charters trolling for salmon in Howe Sound, Vancouver Harbour and Strait of Georgia. We will also be keeping a close eye on the Fraser system.

Fly Fishing For Large Sea-Run Bull Trout

This fishery is as high of quality as you get in the fly fishing world. Getting there is half the fun, fishing the Upper Pitt is an experience you won't soon forget, some say addicting. These sea-run Bull Trout average size is between 3 to 8 lbs with good numbers of fish in the 6 to 10 lb range. Our peak fishery is between May 21 and June 30.

To maintain the high quality experience STS will limit the number of anglers per day offered by our guiding service. You must book early if you are wanting to fish this spectacular river during primetime. Fishing weekdays is far more relaxing and gratifying although we will offer guided trips on Saturday & Sundays. Please book early to experience this great fishery.

June sturgeon fishing can be excellent in the Mission area once the ulichons arrive into the Fraser to spawn. Action can be fast and furious with many fish between 2 to 5 feet. Last year we saw some incredible fishing in June which is not usually the case so we will have to wait and see how it transpires this season. We will also be offering Fraser canyon sturgeon trips until water conditions become unfavorable. Our team of guides will continue to scan and tag sturgeon throughout the season. For those of you who have helped us tag fish in the past, you will be happy to know that we now have 38,000 sturgeon tagged in the Fraser with a 50% recapture rate. Thanks to all of our customers who have helped with the tagging program.

June - August

Fly fishing and spoon fishing for sea-run trout is at it's peak on the Upper Pitt River. As mentioned above, book early as we limit the number of anglers we take on this river per day. June is by far the best month for this worldclass fishery, July can also be good if water levels remain favorable.

Chinook fishing on the Fraser is usually very good, we will have to wait and see how the run comes in this year. Water conditions can also be an issue but regardless of fish or water conditions we will continue to offer guided salmon trips. If the Fraser is not producing results we will offer all of our customers the option to fish the ocean out of Vancouver.

August is expected to be a great month with large returns of sockeye salmon returning to the Fraser. Those of you who have fished with us in the past but have been disappointed the past two seasons will once again experience the great sockeye fishing the Fraser can offer. If all goes according to plan, August 5 to 20 should be peak for this incredible fishery.

Fraser canyon Sturgeon fishing is at it's best. August is by far the best fishing in the canyon due to an abundance of sockeye. If you're looking for a wild and wet ride up the canyon with some spectacular sturgeon fishing book August or September. If your staying with us for multiple days, make sure you take atleast one day to experience the Fraser canyon.

September - November

As many of you already know these 3 months are the best of the best. Salmon, Trout, Sturgeon fishing is spectacular. You can fly fish,, spoon fish, bait fish, pull plugs, Jig, or float fish with eggs and yarn.

The 2009 Pink Salmon run is expected to be in the 10's of millions with peak fishing between Sept 5 to 25. The late run Chinook Salmon co-inside with the Pink run so you can potentially fish for both in the same day. The Chum salmon are just starting to show up in the Harrison in late September with peak fishing between Oct 5 –25. There is also a late run of Chum that enter the Fraser in early November which offers what I think is some of the best fishing for Chum.

What can we say more about the sturgeon fishing? Just look at our photo gallery and check out some of those trophy fish. The majority of those trophy fish were caught between June & November with our best fishing being Sept, Oct & Nov. 2008 was amazing season for many of our guides reaching personal bests. 5 fish over 9 feet, 2 over 10 and 1 over 11, all landed and tagged. With the continued success of the catch & release program we only see this fishery improving year after year.

The STS Team would like to thank you for your continued support, hope to see you in 2009.

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