The 2008 summer fishing season is in the books and it doesn’t make for much of a read. As predicted in all the pre-season forecasts the fish numbers were down last summer. Depending on where you fished in B.C. last summer the fishing ranged from mediocre to poor. The lack of salmon was a direct result of unfavorable environmental conditions for spawning salmon 4 years ago. Summer and fall droughts at that time kept many B.C streams virtually dry well past the normal spawning period for salmon. Many salmon died waiting for the rain that would have filled the rivers and allowed them to swim up and spawn. Sadly the few that did last until the first good rains came were caught in a wicked twist of fate. Shortly after the steady rains began and the fish finally moved upstream, there was a very strong and wet storm system that moved onto the coast. It caused floods on a scale that scientists say happen on average about once every hundred years. The salmon which were already in a weakened state now had to contend with massive flows of runoff and debris that made being in the water very dangerous. Needless to say, it was not very favorable conditions for successful and fruitful reproduction of fish.
Our heaviest Chinook salmon last summer were taken during our July trip into Nootka Sound. We will again offer trips up in Nootka next July and early August during that areas peak Chinook (king) salmon fishing period. We took a good number of fish in the low 30’s, (pounds) in fact it seemed like 32 pounds was the cookie cutter size in Nootka. Not only did we take a number of fish between 31 and 33 pounds, but so did the other guides working from the lodge. Not a bad cookie cutter size! Our largest Coho salmon of the season was a 16 pound hatchery Coho taken at Muir Creek on September 20th by Robert Moss. Robert also had to release a larger wild Coho on the same trip. David and Alice Caputo enjoyed some of the best fishing that occurred in Sooke last summer. They took home their 8 Chinook limit during their annual August trip. The best action on a single day happened for Andy, Garth and Bob on July 30th in Nootka Sound. They landed 7 Chinook out of 12 that hit the gear.
Halibut fishing was very good at times. The halibut season opened late in 2008 and closed early. Normally the sport fishery for halibut is open all but the month of January. This is when halibut move into deep water to spawn. For the first time the fishery opened March 1st and closed again on October 31st. This was done in an effort to keep our sport catch within our reduced (2008) allocation of 1.2 million pounds. A quota allocated to us by the Pacific Halibut Commission. During the periods of slower salmon fishing many fishermen turned their attentions to halibut fishing. The increase in halibut fishing effort was coast wide. The result was that the sport halibut catch reached about 1.7 million pounds, even with the shortened season. (500,000 pounds over our quota) This increased fishing effort and the resulting increased catch has created a problem for the 2009 sport halibut fishery. (more info in the 2009 forecast)
A record halibut was taken this summer right off the Sooke bluffs in about 75 ft of water. A 320 pound barn door (double wide) was landed late in the summer by a couple of lucky local anglers. That fish beats the previous largest halibut by about 85 pounds. Rumor has it that the big fish had a whole 25 pound salmon in its stomach. Well that fish makes for a good story and gives bragging rights to the fishermen who landed it, but I doubt that the meat would have been very tender and tasty. The salmon in its stomach might have been the best part to eat.
About a week later a freak bear attack occurred in Port Renfrew. A fisherman sitting in his boat which was tied up at the marina docks was attacked by an older and sick black bear. Six other fishermen who witnessed the bear heading for the man came to his rescue. They used knives, fish clubs and gaffs in an effort to fend off the bear. The bear continued its attack until the armed fishermen were finally able to inflict a fatal blow. The badly injured man was air lifted to Victoria for treatment and later recovered. What a story to be able to tell the grandkids! I can hear it now: "Yah, right grandpa!"
On a positive note, there is a bright side. Next season was originally predicted to be a somewhat of a below average year for Chinook salmon as well. That has now changed and the most recent predictions call for improving returns for the next 3 consecutive years. Also we are now getting some help from the Alaskans as they have agreed to reduce their commercial take of B.C-bound Chinook salmon by about 30%. That is a large number of fish that in the past has never been available to us. That move in itself will improve fishing everywhere south of Alaska and will also put more fish on the local spawning grounds as well.
There are still important issues to deal with if salmon runs are ever to return to their historic levels. Without going into boring details I will let you know how you can do your small part in helping the cause:
DON’T BUY FARMED SALMON RAISED IN OPEN SEA PENS!
The sea lice infestation associated with these open pens is directly responsible for the loss of up to 80% of some wild salmon runs. Now as a result, the lack of salmon is impacting Killer Whales which are showing signs of stress and weight loss as a result of not finding sufficient numbers of fish in their traditional hunting grounds. Tell your friends, spread the word….if the farmed salmon market softens it will force that industry to address the problem. Farmed salmon is used extensively in the restaurant industry; ask your waiter if the salmon is farmed or wild!
Next season is also the year for the strongest Sockeye runs returning to the Fraser River. The 2009 sockeye cycle should provide openings for sport fishing sometime in late July and into early August. Many consider Sockeye to be the finest eating of all the salmon. In my opinion they are not only very good eating they are the best looking salmon as well. Clean, silver, firm and deep red flesh are there trademarks. On the rod they are a funny fish, either both acrobatic and hard fighting like a wild Coho or absolutely offering no fight what so ever. They change from day to day, almost as if they have mood swings.
The 2009 season is also a Pink salmon year and our waters will be full of them from late July into early September. Pinks are always plentiful and offer up non stop multi fish hookups on and off all day long. While not regarded as the best eating of the salmon species they are good scrappers and offer a lot of action and fun for kids. Pinks are also big time bleeders, leave the good cloths at home!
We haven’t heard much for Coho predictions yet for next fall. We are due for a good fall Coho fishery and hopefully next year will deliver. Limits on salmon will remain the same as 2008, 4 total salmon per person per day and a 2 day possession limit (of which 2 per day may be Chinook).
The challenge for next year will be for the halibut fishermen. The total catch quota for the B.C. sport fishery could be reduced to a little as half of the 2008 quota. This means we could see reduced daily limits, reduced possession limits, the introduction of annual limits and even spot closures. Final fishing plans for the 2009 halibut season will be announced sometime in the spring. You should know that there are no conservation or stock concerns with halibut at this time. The problem lies with a political decision made about 5 years ago that gave 88% of the total B.C. halibut catch to the commercial fishery. We were given the 12% balance of the catch and recent findings show we are now taking about 16 to 18%. At the time when the quota system was being forced upon us (which we opposed), we strongly suggested a 80% -20% framework. Had the fisheries minister of the time taken our advice the halibut sport fishery wouldn’t be facing the crisis looming a short 6 years later in 2009. I will update this forecast with the latest halibut regulations for 2009 when they become available.
All in all, next year looks promising with more Chinook salmon returning than we have seen for a few years. Combine that with a strong Sockeye cycle year and also 2009 being a Pink salmon year, things look good for anyone targeting salmon. The Canadian dollar has dropped again and anyone from down south booking and paying for a trip early can take advantage of about a 20 to 25% discount on the exchange rates.
There you go, not all things with the recent economy are bad news. Want even more good news? Our May and June special from 2008 is being offered again in 2009! Book 3 days of fishing in Sooke and you only pay for 2 days.
That’s almost as good a deal as Fountain Tires 4 for 3 deals. You save $750.00 plus 5% GST. Fuel prices have also dropped drastically which is good for everyone. You can drive here if you choose and not have to take out a loan to fill the tank and I don’t have to raise my prices.
I’m taking bookings now for both Sooke and Nootka Sound. More info about Nootka Sound can be found on our brand new sister site at www.nootkafishingcharters.com.
Tight lines and I’ll see many of you again this coming summer. In the meantime, the best of the coming season to all! ...Rollie
