Spent a couple of frustrating hours fishing the Capilano this afternoon. The guy next to me was casting way upstream from where he was standing, having a big belly on his line and then leaving his line sitting in the tailout.
To assist other newbies in having an enjoyable time and perhaps even catch a salmon here is a few do's and don'ts.
1) Do not cast way upstream from where you are fishing. It's a waste of your time and energy. The most productive part of the drift is when the lure is directly in front or downstream from you.
2) Do not have a big belly of line in the water. It creates a unnatural drift. If you do get a strike it will be virtually impossible to set the hook with all the slack line in the water.
3) When you finish with your drift, reel in and cast again. Do not let the line sit waggling in the tailout.
4) When there is group of people fishing the same stretch of water, the guy furthest downstream cast first followed by the second guy furthest downstream and so on. Do not cast out of sequence or else you will have the mother of all tangles.
5) When you hook a fish, yell "Fish On" so other fishermen can reel in your line.