Noel Gyger - WEEKLY FISHING REPORTS for Smithers, Terrace, Kitimat and Prince Rupert for the week of April 18, 2010
Dear Fishing Friends:
The photo of the week shows pro angling guide Tracey Hittel helping the lady hold up her huge Chinook (King) Salmon.This fish was landed last season and "is" a reminder that the BIG fish will be here soon.Actually, they are in the lower SkeenaRiver now.Tracey's choice of gear is G-Loomis rod, Ambassadeur 7000 reel, 40lb Maxima Ultra Green line, Gibbs float and Gamakatsu hook.Start making your plans to come out and enjoy now!
BOOK NOW!Let me know if I can be of service to book you with the "best" fishing guide and/or fishing lodges for both river and ocean. There are NO extra charges to book through me, just a lot of free information and advice from a person with years and years of fishing and fish guiding experience. It is like hiring two guides for the price of one. I will promptly answer your questions.
SUMMARY:Weather has been good all week. The air is fresh with the smell of spring.Earlier in the week, the air temperatures were lower than average.This caused water levels to fall to extreme lows, which is not good for fishing but by Thursday the water was on the rise again.Just what we needed.Fishing for Steelhead, Cutthroat Trout, Bull Trout and Dolly Varden Char is fair using both fly, spin and conventional gear.The Chinook (King) Salmon will be here any day now.I have caught them as early as April 20 on the KalumRiver.The SkeenaRiver was on the rise by mid week and fishing for Steelhead and Trout is fair.I have reports of Chinook landed at China Bar!The lower end of the Zymoetz (Copper) River is fishing fair for Steelhead and Trout.The KalumRiver is fishing fair for Steelhead. The water has been dropping and cleaning due to the cooler weather mid week.On Thursday the water was very, very low and tea coloured.Check below for more details on the KalumRiver. The KitimatRiver was low mid week but is now on the rise bringing in some fresh Steelhead and scattering the Trout.Check out the Ron Wakita report below.Chinook fishing in the KitimatHarbour is poor right now and is weather dependent.Crab (Dungeness and King) fishing is excellent.Ocean Chinook and Halibut fishing in Prince Rupert is good.Check out the Jeff Carlson report below.The Smithers anglers are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the BulkleyRiver summer-run Steelhead.Jason Munday in Terrace reports fair Steelhead fishing. Trout and Dolly fishing is excellent also.Check out Jason's report below.
Welcome to Noel Gyger's video clips!Today's show is actually a slide show of some of the BEST fishing photos from 2009.All photos shown were aPhoto of the Week. The slide show starts off with Steelhead, then Chinook (King) Salmon and ends with Coho (Silver) Salmon.Hope you enjoy the show. Click here for a direct link to the video. It is also listed on the Video webpage. Title: 2009 BEST photos and listed in category 2010 Steelhead Clips. Clip #0078. Plays for 5:10 minutes.
Contact me anytime to list your river or ocean front property.Retirement folks from around the world are looking for this type of investment where they can fish the rest of their lives and still be close to home!My FISHING REPORT AND WEBSITE has world wide reach.
Have “YOU” entered the following draw yet?Thank you to those who have. DRAW is end of this month!
Cast on link to view full size http://www.noelgyger.ca/articles/win-a-FREE-driftboat-fishing-trip.doc?
With the participation of some of the Best Dealers (Tackle Shops) in the Northwest I have distributed DVD players and Video clips featuring the Best Fishing in the Northwest highlighting several of the Best Guides and Charters in the Northwest using a variety of the Best Fishing Products on the Market today. The dealers that have the DVD players are: Home Hardware in Kitimat, J&E Tackle and Hunting Shop in Prince Rupert, Oscars Source for Sports in Smithers and Fish Tales Tackle Shop in Terrace.Please visit these shops to watch the shows.
BOOK NOW!Let me know if I can be of service to book you with the "best" fishing guide and/or fishing lodges for both river and ocean. There are NO extra charges to book through me, just a lot of free information and advice from a person with years and years of fishing and fish guiding experience. It is like hiring two guides for the price of one. I will promptly answer your questions.
Many people book three trips per year to our area; one trip in the spring (March-April-May), one trip in the summer (June-July-August) and one trip in the fall (September-October-November).They love having the same guide but fishing for different fish in different areas.
Be sure to check out my website at www.noelgyger.ca for news bulletins, mid week fishing updates, conservation, my history, quality waters strategy, special guided fishing trips, video clips, podcasts, scenic river photos, wildlife photos and others, comments from past guests, informational articles, archived fishing reports from 1996 through 2002 and a sportfishing market place.I hope it meets with your entire satisfaction.I am at your service.
FISHING GUIDE REPORTS FOR THIS WEEK ARE FROM:
Ron Wakita, Ariel Kuppers, Todd Haynes, Gill McKean and Jeff Carlson
CURRENT REPORT and summary for Skeena and Tributaries:
TYPE OF FISH CAUGHT:Chinook, Steelhead, Trout and Dolly Varden Char for river. Salmon, Halibut, Bottom Fish and Dungeness and King Crab for ocean.
Thank you for using barbless hooks! (This is a BC fishing regulation)
FISHING THIS WEEK:FAIR
LARGEST FISH OF THE WEEK:River: estimate 14-pound Kalum River Steelhead.Ocean: estimate 50-pound Halibut from Prince Rupert.
WEATHER:Cloudy. 40 percent chance of showers. High 13. Sunrise 6:25 AM Sunset 8:42 PM. Today’s yearly average temperatures: Maximum 13 degrees. Minimum 2 degrees.
WEATHER REPORTS VIA TELEPHONE:Terrace 250-635-4192 Kitimat 250-632-7864 Prince Rupert 250-627-1155 Smithers 250-847-1958.
SKEENARIVER:More and more anglers are fishing the mainstem SkeenaRiver for Steelhead, Chinook (King) Salmon and Trout.Chinook were caught at PolymarBar (lower Skeena) this week.The water is on the rise but still fishable.
KALUMRIVER:More anglers are heading out to try their luck fishing for Trout and Steelhead. Fishing has been reported as fair to good.The water is coming up slowly.
Apr 9-10-11-12 Hello Noel, A friend and I were recently in Terrace fishing the lower Kalum. The fishing was a little slow but the weather was awesome.We did manage to land a few nice chromers as well as some feisty trout.We tried many techniques from flies to float fishing pink worms and found our best luck was back trolling hot shots. Most of our hits were at the tail end of pools and beside log jams. In total we landed six Steelhead in the ten pound range and lost many others. They're sure good at spitting hooks. All in all it was an awesome trip. Until next time, tight lines and sharp hooks.Sincerely, Steven Coffey
Apr 15 I fished with Ron Wakita and Calvin Nigano for about four hours.Calvin owns Nikka Fishing & Marine http://nikka.ca/store/ in Richmond, BC. My plan was to cover about 20 pools or more with my jet-boat...but...I was very surprised when I got to the put-in.The water had dropped about eight inches since my last time out.I was expecting it to be up at least a foot.This meant I could only get to three pools.The water was also extremely clean, kind of a tea colour not the usual glacial green.Anyway, we fished as best we could.Calvin was the hot rod landing one Steelhead and big Bull Trout float fishing his favourite Loomis rod and Shimano Calcutta reel. I made a video clip of Calvin's 1st Kalum River Steelhead and Bull Trout.I will post the Steelhead one next week.Stay tuned.
Apr. 17 Calvin Nigano dida "walk and wade" to three pools.He reports hooking about four Steelhead and landed one that weighed around 14-pounds.
ZYMOETZ (COPPER) RIVER:Steelhead fishing is reported as fair.The upper section is closed as of December 31 but the lower section below the first canyon will stay open for Steelheaders to enjoy.
Fishing Report from:Gill McKean of Westcoast Fishing Adventures, TerraceBC
Hello Noel, fishing has been a little up and a little down. We just finished up with a large group from the UK, great guys, all spey casters with various “skill” levels.The guides worked hard with the water we had and had success. Someone in the group hooked multiple steelhead on the fly every day. There seemed to be incredible numbers of Dollies everywhere we went. Never had such trout action! The Chinook are on the move. We spent a few days on the lower Skeena hooking a couple of steelhead & “dollies”. We saw Chinook rolling but no hook ups, just a matter of time. The weather has warmed up a little and looks as though we are going to get some run-off. This should get the rest of the steelhead on the move as well as bring the Chinook in!!
Still have some dates open for the up coming Chinook season. Prime time last two weeks in June through July and August.
Please contact Noel to book your preferred dates.Thank you.
Hope your well. Tight lines to all !!!Sincerely, Gill McKean
Fishing is our addiction – Guiding is our passion - Adventure is in our blood
Fishing Report from:Todd Haynes of Nautical West Sport Fishing, KitimatBC
Summary: Fishing conditions continue to be very good for Trout and Steelhead fishing on most local rivers. Weather over the past week has been very warm with temperatures reaching the upper teens for most of the week. River heights have been stable and flowing low and clear. Trout numbers are very good in the Kitimat and Lakelse rivers with more Steelhead entering the systems daily. Ocean fishing is fair to good for bottom fishing.
Report for April 11 - 17: FRESHWATER FISHING is the most popular at this time of year for Trout and Steelhead fishermen. Weather conditions over the past week were exceptionally good along the north coast. All the local rivers have been busy with fishers on the hunt for fresh run BC Steelhead and Trout. The KalumRiver continues to fish well now with fresh run fish being caught on both the upper and lower sections. LakelseRiver reports are great for Trout and a few numbers of Steelhead showing. Lakelse is extremely popular for fly-fishers in early spring. The mainstream Skeena is in great condition and early spring Chinook fishing is now underway. KitimatRiver fishing has seen plenty of fishers over the past week with a fair number of Steelhead and Trout being caught throughout the river system. The low and clear water conditions has most fishers anticipating the rain forecast for the coming week. OCEAN FISHING conditions are fair now. Bottom fishing for Halibut, Cod, Crab, Shrimp and Prawns are the main target species. The first weeks of May should see some good catches of spring Chinooks arriving in the KitimatHarbour. * REMINDER NOTICE to out of town boaters coming to Kitimat this year. The Moon Bay Marina is being closed this April 1st, 2010. For more information, please follow the link provided here: http://www.kitimatdaily.ca/show2491a/RTAS_CONTRADICTORY_ENVIRONMENTAL_POLICY
Please contact Noel Gyger noel@noelgyger.ca to book your next Adventure with Todd Haynes
Fishing Report from:Ron Wakita of Reliable Guide and Charters, KitimatBC
KITIMATRIVER: the river continued to be exceptionally low and clean during the early part of this weekSteelheading on the Kitimat was at best very spotty and she was very difficult to drift with our Drift boats.The KitimatRiver was so low that you could almost wade across the river in "Gum boots".The Steelhead fishing was very tough but there were Steelhead caught throughout the Kitimat but the low water conditions definitely had a negative effect on the fishing results. The lower Kitimat had better results especially on the tide.
April 11 James Wright landed a 13lb Bright Steelhead in the LowerKitimatRiver.James was Float fishing with Roe.
April 12 James Wright landed a Steelhead at the Kitimat River Hatchery run.Congratulations James.
April 12 Derek Downey landed a Steelhead in the upper Kitimat.Derek was Fly fishing and was pretty excited given the low water conditions.
April 17 A group from Valmont led by Wayne Van Velzen and his son Eric landed a Steelhead above the Powerlines and lost another 2 Steelhead.
April 17 I had the pleasure of fishing with my son Brandon and very good friend Doug Rumley.Also in the group was Athan, a summer student who worked in our tackle shop last summer.We did a short drift on the Kitimat on Saturday with the welcomed rise in the river level with pretty good results.We hooked 3 Steelhead and landed one....the last one!Doug Rumley landed this beauty.Well done Doug!
Summary: Trout fishing continued to be very good on the KitimatRiver even though the river was so low.The Trout were in the deeper pools and for the anglers who found them,the Trout fishing was outstanding.The trick was to find them.Ariel Kuppers, Justin Lowes, Trent Vines and their group of fishing partners have fine tuned the art of Trout fishing on the Kitimat.They are catching 20 to 30 Trout on their outings.They catch and release all the Trout back into the KitimatRiver.
The KitimatRiver rose 12" on Friday due to some hot weather we received and then continued to rise on Saturday due to some rain. The forecast is for more rain which would improve fishing conditions and entice more fresh Steelhead into the KitimatRiver. I plan to drift tomorrow with very positive expectations.Stay tuned.
DOUGLAS CHANNEL: We have received many reports of boaters catching bottomfish, Prawns and Crab on the Douglas Channel.We have not received any photos of these bottomfish to share in this report this week. Anglers who wish to submit photos to this fishing report please email them to me at wakita@telus.netPlease submit these photos with the names of the participants and the details of your trip.
Sal****er anglers usually fillet out their catch to utilize the carcasses for Crab bait.Sometimes digital cameras are not readily available.Please be reminded to use the camera on your cell to capture the moment.
I look forward to receiving photos of your catch to share with many other interested anglers.I think we are indeed fortunate to live in an area where we have such awesome fishing almost in our front yard.To be able to do this in the pristine and stock abundant waters of the Douglas Channel leaves me feeling truly blessed.It would be wonderful to share the stories of your catch with other anglers in the vast reaches of the internet.
Apr 22 Special Report: I had the pleasure of fishing with my very good friends Noel Gyger and Calvin Higano on the KalumRiver.Although the river was very low as are most of the rivers in the Northwest, Calvin landed a very nice Steelhead and a Huge Dolly Varden. It was a pleasure for Noel and I to share the experience of fishing in the North West with Calvin who resides in the Lower Mainland.A Big Thank You to Noel for sharing his infinite knowledge of the Kalum and for taking us out in his jet-boat. It was a great morning of fishing!
Thank You to everyone who provided photos and info for this report.It is nice when anglers are willing to share their experiences for the enjoyment of the readers of this report.
Good Health and Good Fishing!
Sincerely
Ron Wakita
PS Any angler wishing to book our Guide and Charter Services please contact Noel Gyger noel@noelgyger.ca
Fishing Report from:J & E Tackle Shop, Prince RupertBC
Hi Noel, more and more reports of some nice fish being caught in the Prince Rupert area. These fish are starting to show in numbers and are starting to make their migration to the SkeenaRiver with reports of Chinook’s of 25lbs being caught on Polymar (China bar).Anglers are starting to get all hyped-up with more and more stories of Chinook (King) Salmon over 20lbs being caught. Crabbing and Prawning has been awesome in the past week. Now is the time to take to the water and enjoy our North Coast Playground.BOOK your charter date now!
To book your charter for Salmon, Halibut and Bottom Fish onboard the Trish-Anne please contact Jeff Carlson of BC STYLE Fishing Charters www.bcstylefishingcharters.com
Hello Noel! Sorry I am late with the report but I had to go fishing with my son Aaron to get some info.Aaron and I left the house this morning at 6:00am to go try our luck. We were down on the Lakelse. As soon as we were at rivers edge the trout were jumping all around. It was so nice and peaceful that time of day! The water level is VERY low but still enough to fish ok. It will be nice to see the water come up a bit. The fry hatch is in full swing as we saw lot's of the little guy's. The fish were a little harder to find this time because of the water being so low but we did find them. We had a great time catching & releasing trout. I searched to see if I could spot some Steelhead spawning but not this time. We caught and released a lot of small Cutty's but we found our fair share of nice ones also. There has been a ton of reports of catching large Dolly's and big Cutty's on the Skeena. Fishers are picking up the odd spring and Steelhead. Happy Fishing to all from Fish Tales Fly & Tackle Shop!!
Cheers!
Jason Munday
Fish Tales would like to take the opportunity to WELCOME Simms into our store. We now carry a solid Simms product line and growing. Fish Tales invites everyone to come in and check out our store display of this top quality product. Comfort is key for a great day on the river!!
Happy Fishing to all from Fish Tales Fly & Tackle Shop!!
Out of town orders are always welcome.Come in for a coffee anytime.
Cheers!
Jason Munday
Fishing Report from:Cory Koenig of Webflyz, Smithers BC
Today is the Day!! Off to Kitimat to fish with Todd Haynes of Nautical West Sport Fishing!!!
Hello everyone! I am off today to see how many steelhead are in the KitimatRiver!
Cory Koenig is takingcustom fly orders for any species now at www.webflyz.com
Highest Quality, Durable, and Competitively Priced Flies for any Species!
CHECK OUT THIS AWESOME ROOSTERFISH FLY ON UTUBE HERE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bwAxjRf5fI
Look for awesome flies, the best discussions, and everything you need to know about SPEY fishing with Webflyz B.C.'s latest sponsor, Dana Sturn, founder of SPEY CLAVE!!!
Webflyz B.C. is also sponsoring flies for 25 year founder of Fins and Skins Media group, along with Hosting Fins and Skins http://www.finsandskins.com/index.php and Fishing the Flats http://www.fishingtheflats.com/index.php?module=newser&func=display&topicnum=&nid=106&writer=0 television shows Henry Waszczuk! COMING IN JUNE on FOX SPORTS and JULY on TSN!!!.Look for beautiful salt and fresh water species being caught by Henry with Webflyz B.C.flies!!!
Currently, I am pushing lodge, internet and local orders out the door for anglers around the world. In between orders I am stock piling Rainbow Alley Flies, STEELHEAD flies, Coho Jigs, and BIG trophy trout flies for Lodges on Great Slave Lake and the YUKON!
I will try to cast a line in at LakeKathlyn today for cutthroat and rainbow, eating most any baitfish imitations you may have! Check out GUMMY MINNOWS and LEECHES for great success, especially for sea-run trout!
BabineLake still has ice on it, but many an angler are awaiting the seasonal CHAR and RAINBOW fishery this MAY/JUNE! There are many small lakes around Tukkii Lodge and the Nilkitkwa road and the entire BabineLake road leading up to BabineLake are filled with an abundance of cutthroat and rainbows. We have many fishing opportunities in the BulkleyValley, time to take advantage!Check Ebay for even better prices on excess stock of flies by WEBFLYZ B.C.
... Need CHAR, BULLTROUT, or PIKE catching flies? How about TOUGH CHINOOK INTRUDERS???Then look at webflyz.com or give me a call 1-250-877-2021 or, ...if you are in need of lures or anything else for ice-fishing, contact Steve Hidber at Oscar's Source for Sports http://www.oscarssports.com/
Anticipation is definitely on spring fishing in the Terrace/Kitimat area for steelhead. Many new anglers/customers are asking about this years steelhead fishing in our beautiful province!
