British Columbia Fishing Blog

Yesterday I had the opportunity to be part of a rather fun, or dirty, project on the Alouette River. Students from BCIT were learning the process of collecting chum salmon eggs and milt for the Seymour Salmon Hatchery, and I was invited to document it.

As mentioned in an earlier article, 2012’s Fraser River chum salmon run has been better than average so far. 3 to 3.5 million fish are estimated to make their way into the system by the end of the year. Just the Alouette River alone can see up to 250,000 spawning fish returning. I was blown away by the amount of fish that have reached the counting fence at the hatchery.

Each year, Seymour Salmon Hatchery collects eggs and milt from the Alouette River to boost Seymour River’s chum salmon stock. The run has been poor for many usual reasons, including the existing dam, urbanization and poaching. By transplanting more fish, the hope is to rebuild this run to possibly what it once was.

Here are some photographs. Stay tuned for the video feature!

This past weekend, we decided to put our fishing rods down and attended a very worthy local event in Maple Ridge. On Sunday, at Kanaka Creek, volunteers from Kanaka Education and Environmental Partnership Society (K.E.E.P.S.) displayed salmon that are currently returning to this system at the fish counting fence.

Kanaka Creek is a small river system. Unlike larger systems such as the Chilliwack River, it only sees the return of several hundreds to thousands of salmon each year. Meanders through a rapidly developing part of Metro Vancouver, it faces many challenges, including pollution, river discharge fluctuation and poaching. Collectively, these challenges can impact the fragile salmon population if actions are not taken.

K.E.E.P.S. is an active stewardship group that ensures the survival of this stream and its inhabitants. By ongoing work at the Bell-Irving Hatchery, habitat enhancement, river patrol and various outreach programs, it has been responsible for the return of these fish each year.

While we were at the event, visitors also received an extra treat when a black bear decided to make a surprising appearance. I managed to capture the last portion of its visit on video.

I went fishing this evening, at Garry Point Park of course. A couple of days ago a pretty big pikeminnow greeted my 4wt, which was nice. I wanted to see if I could get another one on the tiny fly, but also had my sockeye gear with me (not betties but spinning rod, spoons etc) just in case because they have a tendency to hang in the shallows just after high tide to avoid the strong outgoing current.

The southeasterly wind was a bit strong so most of the spots were unfishable with the fly rod. I reached almost the end of the park and was greeted by Al. While chatting, he told me that there were people snagging on the other side, where I was just about to go. It’s a side canal where salmon have a tendency to stage back once the tide starts going out to avoid the strong current. I went over there after we chatted, sure enough, a few individuals were going at it and sockeye salmon were jumping once awhile in the bay.

Out came the cel phone to file a report at RAPP of course, then the camera followed.

Some were obviously aware of what they were doing. No need to keep turning around and look at me for approval.

Too bad, with a few fish holding that bay, there was a good chance that one of those would hit a fly or lure. I’m sure the same people, if not more people, will be back tomorrow if anyone else wants to go check it out. Just walk to the far end of Garry Point, can’t miss it.

Update: It appears that this video has stirred things up a bit, but the wrong person has been taking the heat. Somehow, people are assuming Marco at Nikka Fishing and Marine was behind this video. Not sure where that idea came from, but it is completely false. I encountered people who were trying to snag sockeye while fishing, was not pleased with it, took the video myself and decided to point out an existing problem in this area. I work hard to promote and improve recreational fishing in this community in many projects so I take personal offence when I see people choose to break the rules.

I do not know who the individuals are in the video so to think there is a personal agenda behind this video is absurd. I’m curious why some have chosen to make this a problem with Marco or the store. Just so it is clear, neither Marco or Nikka Fishing and Marine has anything to do with it. If you have a problem or concern with the video, you are welcome to email me at info@fishingwithrod.com to discuss this further.

When the invitation to be part of this year’s Great Salmon Send Off arrived in my inbox last month, I accepted it without much hesitation. Like the Fingerling Festival, this is another community based event that has generated plenty of interest among residents of Burnaby.

When this tradition started twenty years ago by local resident Jennifer Atchison, Stoney Creek, a tiny tributary of the Brunette River, was void of salmon. Today, spawning salmon can be seen returning each fall, thanks to countless hours of hard work by volunteers of the Stoney Creek Environment Committee.

Stoney Creek is just one of many streams in the Lower Mainland that are overshadowed by both residential and industrial developments. Each day, it faces threats from dewatering to accidental dumping. Unnoticed, its survival depends on programs such as the Great Salmon Send Off. The goal is not just to revive the salmon runs that once exist, but to make sure visitors become part of the solution at the end of the event.

At 11:00am, the release began when Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s community advisor Maurice Coulter-Boisvert opened up the holding tank. Several thousand juvenile coho salmon circled as they emerged from the dark, eager to start their long journey. Hundreds of parents and kids lined up patiently to receive their bag of fish. Once given, they were carried down to the edge of Stoney Creek where they were set free.

Our participation today included setting up a flytying workshop where each kid had a chance to tie a fly with the assistance of my friends Shane and Carlo. We were pretty overwhelmed by the amount of enthusiasm and interest! If you did not have a chance to tie a fly or pick up our fish identification cards, don’t worry because we will be at several more events in June and July.

More photographs from today’s event can be viewed on this page.

Excitement built as we approached Noons Creek this morning, which one would always expect if we were going fishing. This was just as good, we were spending the day to enrich new stewards of our salmon. It was the annual Fingerling Festival, one of many community salmonid related events that take place every May.

Several months ago, organizer Dave Bennie phoned me up as usual, asking if I would like to be part of this year’s festival. Without hesitation, I said yes. Fishing trips lead to my absent in the last several years, the last time I participated was back in 2006, so I was quite eager to see what changes have taken place.

Among all community events in the Lower Mainland, the Fingerling Festival by far has the largest line-up of exhibitors. Over 50 nature groups, community hatcheries, streamkeepers and government agencies gathered under one roof today. It was as grand as a trade show, except the sales were awareness of ecosystems that are becoming increasingly vulnerable due to our everyday activities.

The Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC and my website teamed up again at this event. Mike Gass, who is responsible for community outreach at the Fraser Valley Trout Hatchery, brought an aquarium that was filled with rainbow trout, kokanee and brook char. I brought along a flatscreen TV that broadcasted video of work done to improve recreational fisheries in British Columbia. Throwing in a dozen different fish species identification cards and a table full of colouring papers, we were open for business.

At 11:00am, hundreds of parents with kids and strollers in hand began streaming into the arena. For four hours, we were surrounded by kids who were mesmerized by the aquarium and parents who were surprised by the vast availability of freshwater fishing in the Lower Mainland.

Outside the arena, there was a long line-up outside Noons Creek Hatchery where little white buckets were handed out. Each bucket, where anxious chum fry circled, was carried down to the edge of the creek by both little hands. With one tilt, these fingerlings were pour into the creek, marking the start of a long journey. This process repeated thousands of times throughout the day. Everytime a bucket was poured, a new steward was born. The Fingerling Festival is not just a fish playing game. Under all the fun, there is an important message that every participant takes home – Small creeks among residential areas are not storm drains, but important habitat for salmon and other aquatic living beings.

At the end of the festival, I asked Dave how the turnout was. He estimated it to be around 4,000. This event has grown incredibly since I last participated. What impressed me was this community’s volunteerism. Individuals at different ages, from all cultural backgrounds, came together for the day so this tiny creek will live on.

You can see more photographs from today’s Fingerling Festival on this page. If you missed today’s event, you have another chance! Next Saturday is the Great Salmon Send-off in Burnaby where you have the opportunity to release salmon fry into Stoney Creek, where salmon were absent until twenty years ago.