Part two as was busy working on some plans for
operation barby. Keep your eyes peeled as you may spot us tomorrow and do not forget to wave.
And before I forget thanks Bantam_50 for your tip, passed it on.
Back at the scene of trout fishing it was so nice, it was only me and a couple of seals that kept checking me out, looking for an easy meal from the end of my line I quess.
I think back to a few years fishing the same spot a seal came up and tore a piece of the pike minnow a boy I had fishing was brining over the edge of the boat. You should have seen the boy's eyes.
I was actually filming at the time but I moved the camera to the side as the seal came up so missed his head in the frame.
Anyway the action was none stop as I must have landed at least 3 dozen pike minnows, 6 chub, 2 bullheads and 2 steelhead smolts.
The cutts I were after were a lot harder to catch as only got one feeder hatchery of about 10 inches and the catch of the day a lovely fresh searun wild fish of about 14 inches that put up a good fight on the trout pole.
To take a bit of a break and the tide was quite low I went for a lure hunt among the snags and was pleased to find 11 Kit A Macks etc and
13 Tee Spoons for a total of 24.
With a little polish will have a good supply of spoons for trolling for springs next year.
The time was 6:30 so I thought I would head back to the bar as the tide was coming in. I have found in the past the tide seems to push more fish in than with a falling tide in the lower river.
We have found we catch a lot more fish bar fishing then rather than a falling tide.
Heading back to the same spot I started the day and as the Leaf Craft knifes through the water pass the "line" of sockeye fishers we observe a few more sockeye being hauled up on the beach by the excited lucky ones. I also see the FN nets are in and being put in all the way along the stretch of water we travel.
Once again the good Doctor is at work plying his trade in 6 to 7 feet of water. As I settle in to the lawn chair more excited yells vibrate across the bars telling of more sockeye being landed by the line of fishers below.
Flocks of geese leave their afternoon resting place with excited chatter of their own, similar to the anglers below them as they head for their supper at a newly cut pea field somewhere in the Sumas Prairie area.
How fast the young grow as it seems just yesterday they were small fluffy goslings and now they have learned to fly and seem the same size as their parents. Well life seems to pass by all of us too quickly doesn't it?
Time has passed on this trip for me as well as the sun is ducking behind the mountains in the direction of Westminster Abby that I see in the direction of Mission.
I also see a string of nets with the dying rays of the sun reflecting off their white topped corks as they bob in the ebb and flow of the Fraser across from me.
A FN fisher paces above them anxious to check them before darkness sets in.
I decide to wait and see what may be in the nets and watch closely with my binoculars as he moves along the net line in his small boat and to my surprise he finds nary a fish.
Very unusual I think as I too have come up empty for a salmon anyway as I reel the good Doctor in for the last time of the day.
Leaf Craft does not seem to want to leave as she is very cranky to start, thought we may have to spend the night under the tarp.
Might have been nice to see the metor shower as well but I have no food or coffee.
LC finally sucumbes and jumps to life and we leave the bar behind.
Arriving at the launch guys are proudly cleaning their catchs of sockeye and Dave a old bar fishing buddy shows me a 25 pound spring he caught after work. He was bar fishing of course and reported he had seen RS with a jack spring. Good I thought as they are starting to run and should be in the Thompson in good numbers for our trip in a week or so.
My trip of about 15 hours comes to a close, I may have been the only one on the river with no fish to take home but I probaley caught more fish, found more agates and salvaged more lures than anyone else that day thus fish galore and much more that I enjoy each trip somewhere in the beautiful valley.
O yes I as well caught the most beautiful fish of the day on the river I believe, in my mind anyway, which is what I set out to do, a lovely bright, chunky, fresh sea run cutty that made the day for me.
It will not be long until I once again will be out on the water but tomorow I will be flying above it.
Stay tunned for the results of that trip.