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[salmonrook]

Had a good day on the Upper part of the Chilliwack  today but as luck would have it me and a buddy hooked into a few fish
2 were easy to identify as one was a slightly red Coho, hatchery
The second as a chum which I was surprised to see that high in the river .
Normally they are all over the spawning channels down by the train bridge but  I presume because of the low water are trying to find different places to spawn .
The 2 other fish that we hooked I thought  were jack springs , the size of a Coho but heavily spotted , not the size of a full size Chinook .
The first one had a square tail and a smaller mouth and a smaller eye, heavily spotted
I thought for a moment it might be a steelhead but it was slightly red .
Of course didnt have time to get a photo and didnt think to look at the gums in the scramble to release the fish
All fish were released
The last one we hooked was definitely a jack chinook based on the size of the spots and the hook jaw .
Appreciate all the insight and knowledge here and wondering if anyone would have more insight on the ID of the first fish
Which because of the spotting I thought was a Jack  Chinook  , just thought it was unusual to hook 2 of these in the same day .
Thoughts ?

[danielk]

Maybe a coastal cutthroat? A big one     Big bull trout ?   

[RalphH]

cutthroat would have black spots while bull trout spots are white or cream with some pink. Bulls spawn in the fall and could be reddish. Cutthroat are not that  common in the VC - I have caught a total of 2 since the 80s but don't fish that river all too often. Both Chilliwack and Cultus lakes have a history of large cutties to 5lbs or so.  Sometimes there are reports of large resident rainbows in fall and I have seen pictures. I doubt they would be truly residents and likely come from elsewhere perhaps to feed on the plentiful eggs and salmon carrion in fall.

[FlyFishin Magician]

What did this fish smell like? Chinook (springs), particularly the Fall whites, have a very strong odour. I hate having to handle them as they leave a rather nasty scent on my hands, which I always wash off vigorously before touching my bait. Also, chinook will have distinct black gums (and mouth) which you already know.

Square tail would indicate a trout or steelhead. Both steelhead and chinook have spots covering both lobes of the tail. But the tail of a salmon will be more forked.

A picture would have been very helpful. But I appreciate that you released the fish unharmed instead of trying to get a photograph. Perhaps this will become an interesting memory for you - your mystery fish on the Vedder/Chilliwack.

Perhaps one day you will catch another, and put two and two together to figure out what species you released. This happened to me on the Squamish. In 2001 I was flyfishing for pinks and hooked and played a mystery fish. It was chrome, large, and gave me several knuckle busters from my fly reel. I had the fish laying on its side in the water when my leader broke. So the fish casually swam away before I could get a good look at it. I wasn't sure what it was, but years later I've come to conclude with 95% certainty that this was a chinook. I made this conclusion based on the run timing, the size of the fish (estimated 12 - 15 pounds), and how chinook fight on the end of a line.

[Darko]

What did this fish smell like? Chinook (springs), particularly the Fall whites, have a very strong odour. I hate having to handle them as they leave a rather nasty scent on my hands, which I always wash off vigorously before touching my bait. Also, chinook will have distinct black gums (and mouth) which you already know.

Square tail would indicate a trout or steelhead. Both steelhead and chinook have spots covering both lobes of the tail. But the tail of a salmon will be more forked.

A picture would have been very helpful. But I appreciate that you released the fish unharmed instead of trying to get a photograph. Perhaps this will become an interesting memory for you - your mystery fish on the Vedder/Chilliwack.

Perhaps one day you will catch another, and put two and two together to figure out what species you released. This happened to me on the Squamish. In 2001 I was flyfishing for pinks and hooked and played a mystery fish. It was chrome, large, and gave me several knuckle busters from my fly reel. I had the fish laying on its side in the water when my leader broke. So the fish casually swam away before I could get a good look at it. I wasn't sure what it was, but years later I've come to conclude with 95% certainty that this was a chinook. I made this conclusion based on the run timing, the size of the fish (estimated 12 - 15 pounds), and how chinook fight on the end of a line.

there are chinook in the squamish??

[FlyFishin Magician]

there are chinook in the squamish??

Whoops! I let the cat out of the bag! Yes, the Squamish does have a run of chinook. I've also caught a chinook at Furry Creek while fly fishing for pinks in the salt. I don't think it's a large run, it used to be catch and release only. Now it appears you are not allowed to fish for chinook in the Squamish.

[Darko]

Whoops! I let the cat out of the bag! Yes, the Squamish does have a run of chinook. I've also caught a chinook at Furry Creek while fly fishing for pinks in the salt. I don't think it's a large run, it used to be catch and release only. Now it appears you are not allowed to fish for chinook in the Squamish.

good to know, just incase if I catch one that I dont think I'm crazy XD. Sad to hear its so small tho. The loss of opportunities in the fraser valley is truly tragic, especially the young fellas like myself who will never get a chance to experience it. When I hear stories of the amount of steelhead that used to return to the capilano or the thompson or the summer steelhead in the chehalis I yearn deeply at the thought. Now if I wish to experience something like that I need to travel to the skeena or vancouver island

[salmonrook]

Square tail would indicate a trout or steelhead. Both steelhead and chinook have spots covering both lobes of the tail. But the tail of a salmon will be more forked.

Didnt smell anything , the appearance was what struck me later
 The square tail really threw me and the heavily spotted appearance , and the size of the fish , smaller eye but it was also slightly red .
It  definitely was not a full size Chinook but I thought a Steelhead would have been more chrome .
 I did notice the undersize of the mouth had a lot of cartilidge because we had a time getting the hook out , the fish was not harmed .
  A mystery fish indeed ,
Thanks for the responses

[RalphH]

chum and sockeye have the most noticeably forked tail. Chinook the least and in some cases it looks square. Based on probabilities by which i mean what species is more abundant now & most closely matches the description, I'd guess these were jack chinooks.

[4x4]

Hard to tell without a picture but could it be an Atlantic Salmon.

A few years back many escaped pens in Washington State. People were catching them in parts of the ocean in our area as well as the Fraser, Harrison and a few in the Vedder.

https://www.theflyshop.com/travel/atlanticsalmon.html


https://aquatechcenter.com/species/atlantic-salmon/

[clarki]

A few years back many escaped pens in Washington State. People were catching them in parts of the ocean in our area as well as the Fraser, Harrison and a few in the Vedder.

https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/atlantic-salmon-catches-hint-at-widening-circle-of-escaped-fish-in-b-c-waters/wcm/7b0922e4-84f3-4a4f-aa60-13d509f40f4b/amp/

I wasn’t aware that some made it up into tribs of the Fraser too.

Edit: just found this article, that at the time of writing, 8 were caught in the Fraser
https://vancouversun.com/news/local-news/nearly-50-escaped-atlantic-salmon-caught-in-b-c-waters?_gl=1*

[4x4]

Also the Stave and in the White and Salmon on the Island.
The Island systems have had Atlantics for some time. Not sure if they still do though.

[RalphH]

Thought about that too but those articles are 5 years old...not too likely any of those escapees are still around. Ever heard the expression "think horses not zebras"?

[wildmanyeah]

Sent some heads in from chinook I caught on port Hardy. 1 came back as tenderfoot hatchery.

[salmonrook]

 The tail was heavily spotted on both upper and lower and after Ralph's description I think now they were both Jack Chinooks but they were a good size , same as the Coho we caught that morning . Just thought it unusual we caught 2 on the same trip .
Everyone else was getting full size darker Chinook
Thanks for the responses