15th November 2012: FISHING REPORT: Port Alberni Inlet, Barkley Sound, Ucluelet (West Coast), Somas-Stamp River System.

by Doug Lindores of Slivers Charters Salmon Sport Fishing
Toll Free Number: 1- 888 214 7206

Guide Nick shows this chrome Fall Steelhead before putting it back into the water. Picture of the Stamp River which has great Fall Steelhead fishing from October through early December

It is only mid November and many guides and avid sport fisher persons are no longer thinking about the past summer and great days of fishing that occurred on local bodies of water but are gearing up and preparing for the summer of 2013. Pre Season 2013 forecasts for local Sockeye, Coho and Chinook returns look like average returns. The big migratory salmon runs swimming to the big southern watersheds to the South look rather promising for next summer. There will be more information about the 2013 summer salmon runs in the early part of the New Year.

The best fishing in the local area at this time of year (mid November) has definitely been the Stamp River. The early fall weather was unbelievably dry. Drought conditions lasted almost until the 15th of October. The mid and west coast areas of Vancouver Island went well over eighty days without any substantial rainfall. Fishing offshore and in the pristine and protected waters of Barkley Sound and the Port Alberni Inlet had perfect weather days. Many offshore fishermen were taking advantage of the perfect water conditions and were fishing up to fifty nautical miles offshore for Tuna. Rain finally came to the area on the 12th of October which was badly needed for the many migrating Chinook, Coho and Chum salmon which were headed into many of the big west coast watersheds to spawn. The Stamp River is one of these big systems and is known as one of the best, if not the best, fresh water river fishing systems in the world. Fortunately the rains came to Fall Steelhead landed by happy father and son from Victoria B.C. The Fall Steelhead fishing will continue for another three plus weeks on the Stamp River. The winter Steelhead should begin to show by mid December. Steelhead fishing on the Stamp can often begin in late or even mid August for summer run fish and continue right to the end of April for Winter Steelhead.

Fall Steelhead landed by happy father and son from Victoria B.C. The Fall Steelhead fishing will continue for another three plus weeks on the Stamp River. The winter Steelhead should begin to show by mid December. Steelhead fishing on the Stamp can often begin in late or even mid August for summer run fish and continue right to the end of April for Winter Steelhead.

the West Coast of Vancouver Island and inland areas at the right time. The Chinook and Coho returns were not as high in number as they have been in past years. The counters are now down at the Stamp Falls. The Somass-Stamp River System is a key stream for Sockeye, Chinook, and Coho. The counters entering the Sproat and Great Central Lakes showed about eight hundred and forty thousand Sockeye entering the two lake systems. This number was less than the one time forecast high of one million plus. With only a few glitches in the counting system the final count on Chinook returns was fifteen thousand and for Coho thirty thousand. The numbers of returning Chinook to the system was low but the reason is not due to poor returns but due to the fact that the catchable total before entering the system was too high. Robertson Creek was able to obtain its egg count of approximately fifty-seven million eggs by the third week of October. There was also a sufficient natural spawn in the river. Coho returns were fairly close to the actual forecast. Fisheries and Oceans Canada in partnership with the Hupacasath First Nations facilitate a counting operation from late May through early November. The fish way is open daily and the salmon (Chinook and Coho) are counted by trained observers. The salmon migration is video taped and with this counts are ninety-five percent accurate. With continued conservation and protecting all stocks a continued strong migration of spawning salmon will continue in the Somass-Stamp River system.

The Fall Steelhead fishing is well underway on the Stamp River which is close to Port Alberni British Columbia. The Coho are spawning and the Steelhead are actively feeding on single eggs floating in the river. This Fall Steelhead was landed by happy guest from Vancouver using imitation single egg patterns in the Upper Stamp River.

Water Levels in the Stamp up to the middle of October were at record lows. The Stamp River system had not been as low as it was in well over twenty-five years. Fortunately the heavy fall rains arrived and the system filled which was crucial for the migration and spawning of the Chinook and Coho returning to the system. The river has been up and down in terms of height levels. Over the past week water levels were at normal heights with great clarity. The best fishing in the system is now for Summer-Fall Steelhead. The fishing over the past ten to fourteen days could easily be described as mediocre. This is not to say that there have not been some very good days. On average there have been five to eight hookups per day on Steelies and five to six trout hookups. The Fall Steelhead are still moving into the system on a daily basis especially on the high tides. The Coho are spawning and the floating eggs are a good food source as the Steelhead are feasting on the single floating eggs. There is lots of wild Steelhead in the system and over the past few days there have been bigger numbers of hatchery fish moving in. The Steelhead are in great shape and are very chrome in color. The Fall Steelhead should begin to spawn within the next month before they swim back down the river and make there way to the Pacific Ocean. With water levels at almost perfect conditions and with the weather looking more than perfect for this time of year there should be some very good fishing over the next few weeks. The best fishing will occur in the Upper River and the boat pressure during the week will be average but on weekends will be quite high. As we get closer to the last ten days of November the fishing close to and also above the Ash River should be very good. For anglers not in a drift or jet boat the bridge area above Great Central should be very good. As more and more Fall Steelhead enter the system and as the first of the Winter Steelhead find their way to the system the Lower River should begin to pick up again and will take some of the pressure off of the Upper River. Those anglers fishing above the bucket are reminded that using bait is prohibited. Good artificial lures are four in Pink Worms and spoons in green and blue. Spin’glos in bc orange and regular orange colors are good, small gooey bobs, and corkies are all working very well. Fish egg imitations are also a must and are currently very popular. Steelhead fishing will continue in the Stamp right to the end of May. The first runs of winter Steelhead should begin to show in the next three weeks. Booking a trip to fish the Stamp River is easy. Call the toll free number listed on this report anytime.

Salmon fishing in late August and early September was fantastic on the Port Alberni Inlet. Ian (pictured) and his daughter from Vancouver, B.C. fished with guide Doug from Slivers Charters Salmon Sport fishing and had an excellent day of fishing. This salmon was landed using anchovy in a green haze rhys davis teaser head.

The winter months for fishing the waters of the Alberni Inlet are very quiet. There are Sport Prawn fishing openings. One needs to check with the DFO regulations on an ongoing basis to find out about openings. Usually prawn fishing in Barkley Sound is more consistent as of late and openings are for a longer period of time. When prawn fishing does open in the Alberni Inlet most sporties will fish close to China Creek, the narrows by the old fish farm, and Cous Creek. There have not been any recorded salmon catches for at least six or seven weeks but often in December, January, and February some Winter Chinook will move up as far as China Creek but more often as far as the Nahmint-Franklin area if bait is in the area. Most winters have some good fishing down off the Franklin Wall and Ten Mile Point. This only happens if good amounts of bait move up from Barkley Sound. In mid June of 2013 we should see some good sport fishing again take place. Sockeye returns are only preliminary but average size returns are expected. The Sockeye begin to school when the river water and inlet water warm up to approximately eighteen degrees Celsius. Sockeye fishing is an amazing and really a fun family activity. Sockeye fishing on a good year can start just before mid month in June and continue to the first week of August. Those individuals who have plans to come to the Alberni Valley in the summer of 2013 and are planning on using a guided boat should arrange their trip fairly soon as guides and boats can be very sparse by the beginning of June. People often plan very early.

Barkley Sound is one area on the West Coast that is protected on the east and the west shorelines. It is definitely a fantastic area that can have comfortable water for winter fishing. Winter or feeder Chinook fishing usually begins to pick up in December and continues well into April. The rule for Winter Chinook is “where one finds the bait the salmon will be there”. Winter Chinook are usually in deeper water from 115 to 140 feet. Great areas to fish can be Sarita Bay, Pill Point, Swale Rock, the Port Alberni side of Canoe Pass, and Vernon Bay as well as summer hot spots like Kirby and Sanford and also the Bamfield Harbor and the Bamfield Wall. Sometimes these local Bamfield spots will have plenty of feeders but the salmon are not quite in as deep of water as the other mentioned locations. The best lures when fishing feeder Chinook are hootchies in blue, green, and various whites and blue-green colors. Of course there are many days when hootchies just do not work and anchovy is an absolute must. A variety of three and three and a half inch spoons are also recommended to have in ones tackle box. There have been reports of a few feeder Chinook being picked up. Swale rock has had a few fish in the eight to twelve pound range as has Meares and Austin Island. When the salmon were biting in these areas there was definitely an abundance of bait fish in the areas.

Walt and brother John from Michigan U.S.A. fished with guide Doug of Slivers Charters and had a wonderful day in the fall in Barkley Sound. Walt landed this Coho Salmon using a white AORL 12 hootchie along the Bamfield Wall

Ucluelet is one of those west coast areas in British Columbia that one can land a salmon up to twenty plus pounds every month of the year. The Ucluelet area, especially inshore locations, has already experienced some reasonably good feeder Chinook fishing. Areas right out in front of the Ucluelet Harbor in October had feeders up to thirteen and fourteen pounds and also some great Ling Cod up to fifteen pounds. With weather patterns changing dramatically on the Canada’s west coast in the fall it can be difficult to get offshore. The Inner South Bank on two perfect West Coast days in early November had a report of feeder Chinook in deep water feeding on needle fish. Two local fisher persons with guests in two different boats landed four salmon each weighing fifteen to eighteen pounds. Those fisher people that have been able to get out on the water and have fished close to the Harbor or inshore spots have trolled near the red can, Mara Rock, and the Lighthouse Bank and have had success using white hootchies and various needle fish hootchies. Needle fish hootchies in green seem to be the best lure. A variety of coyote spoons are also working. Green glow and green nickel in four inch size behind a green or red glow hotspot flasher have produced a few feeder Chinook. During the winter months Ucluelet offers some great prawn and crab fishing and also some fantastic bottom fishing. Fisher persons however must remember that the Pacific Ocean, during the late fall and winter months and for that matter the summer months, can have some storms that suddenly arrive. Safety is always a priority before heading out onto the water.

We are looking forward to the summer of 2013. Good summer fishing usually gets underway in May out on the west coast. Ucluelet most years is a fishermen’s’ paradise. Big schools of Chinook and Coho pass outside the Ucluelet Harbor backyard during the late spring and summer months. Most of the salmon are migratory fish headed to the big watersheds to the south. The migratory salmon can be described as early, mid, and late summer salmon. The best fishing on the west coast out of Ucluelet is often from the second week of June through mid August. Fishing in 2013 is expected from early forecasts and indicators to be quite good.