2023 Central Coast Reports
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Wondermur
Crew Member
….It’s quiet in here…
Will be in central coast end of July.
Starting in Prince Rupert 19 July and boat camping down thru Camaano and Laredo sounds then a week in Shearwater @23-30 July and boat camp down thru Hakai and Rivers inlet then to Port Hardy.
We fished North coast for the last week. Started in Dundas 19 June and We were getting quite a few coho. We were told it’s the earliest they have been in for a number of years up North.
Hopefully bodes well for jigging them up near Shearwater. Last year there were not many around in central coast spots we have done well at in the past. Maybe they were late.
Should be a good season.
Will be in central coast end of July.
Starting in Prince Rupert 19 July and boat camping down thru Camaano and Laredo sounds then a week in Shearwater @23-30 July and boat camp down thru Hakai and Rivers inlet then to Port Hardy.
We fished North coast for the last week. Started in Dundas 19 June and We were getting quite a few coho. We were told it’s the earliest they have been in for a number of years up North.
Hopefully bodes well for jigging them up near Shearwater. Last year there were not many around in central coast spots we have done well at in the past. Maybe they were late.
Should be a good season.
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bryce
Crew Member
Cohos are in in Rupert now last year was late usually by end of June there around pretty heavy
We are in Rivers Inlet at the old Goose Bay Cannery, docking here for the night with the approval of the owners. Very cool place. We fished Cranstown for an hour this morning on our way into Rivers. We were quiet but we did see 3 or 4 fish being netted. Apparently it was hot here just after the last rain and then it has been quieter since. We fished for Lingers in Smith Sound and got 4 legal but smallish ones so we released them as we have enough in the freezer for now and we don’t want to have to deal with the packaging etc until later in the trip and we are 3 or 4 days from Hardy. Chovies and white hoochies ar what has been getting the springs apparently. We did catch a few nice ones in Toba on our way up here also on White Hootchies. We will fish tomorrow morning and see what happens!
Chuck
Active Member
Well be running down from Kitimat on the July 23-29th. See how the weather is and hit Campania over to Aristazabal fish our way down to Milbanke. If weather doesn’t cooperate well run down the inside and start at Milbanke, then Seaforth, Hakai and possibly down to Rivers camping on the boat as we go. Been going through there for several seasons so know most areas. There will be 3 of us on my boat. If you guys are interested to be in radio contact or even raft up? Increase our catches.
Chuck on 16 or 68
Let me know.
Wondermur
Crew Member
Hey Chuck.
We will be down around Camaano sound Compania probably by 21st. Milbanke shearwater by 24th. In a double Eagle 206, f225 on back
I’ll flick you a direct message
Fishing24/7
Active Member
I'll be coming up from Vancouver leaving on the 25th and back on the 7th. I'll make sure to check into channel 68. Does anyone know if the ice plant in Bella Bella is open for us?
Fishing24/7
Active Member
Thanks for the update! Do you know if the Bella Bella ice plant is open for us sporties?
saanauk
Well-Known Member
Interested in the ice question as well. Headed that way August 3rd for a week and would be nice to know if there is ice available.
Wondermur
Crew Member
There is block ice at the grocery store in Shearwater. I don’t know what Bella Bella has.
Gas is 2.42/L
Lots of needle fish around and in the stomachs of the salmon we have kept. McInnes and purple bluff and Cheney we kept some fish all feeding on needle fish. Same at Cultus, but quite a bit of weed there. Weed and Jelly’s at Cheney but struck some decent springs there also.
Caught up with @Chuck in Caamano Sound bottom of Campania Isl. and also in Shearwater.
Fished image isl. and Idol and bit both a bit quiet for us. Just a few coho. Lots of coho around this year.
Cheers
Gas is 2.42/L
Lots of needle fish around and in the stomachs of the salmon we have kept. McInnes and purple bluff and Cheney we kept some fish all feeding on needle fish. Same at Cultus, but quite a bit of weed there. Weed and Jelly’s at Cheney but struck some decent springs there also.
Caught up with @Chuck in Caamano Sound bottom of Campania Isl. and also in Shearwater.
Fished image isl. and Idol and bit both a bit quiet for us. Just a few coho. Lots of coho around this year.
Cheers
saanauk
Well-Known Member
Like your style rolling with a full tote!
Fishing24/7
Active Member
oh right! We're cut pluggin
Wondermur
Crew Member
Cultus McInnes Cheney purple bluff Spider etc needlefish spoons were good. AP needlefish about 3” long was good. Skinny g’s also. Coho killers.
Ran 4” tubby tomics quite a bit on the bottom rods and needle fish spoons on the top rods.
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Buddha
Crew Member
Did my first ever trip to Bella Bella with a buddy. What a beautiful place,
Day 1. Landed and headed out to Cultus from Shearwater. What a cool run out through the flat calm channels and inlets. Worked the tack and scratched up a chinook each in a few hours with a few boatside releases and called it a good warm up day and headed for check in. Guide pulled a classic p2b spoon and matched it with a Betsy flasher that got most of the action.
Day 2. Headed to Cultus for a full day exploration. Tubbed 3 total and caught and released a smorgasbord of fish using the full artillery. Have to give @Wondermur the assist on most of the fish hooked as I brought some needlefish hoochies after reading his post. A radiant glow green gator back needlefish hoochie was on fire until I lost it early in the fight due to a failed crimp. It was the biggest takedown hit of the trip as all three of us heard the tip thumping into the water but broke off on its first long heavy run.
Day 3. Headed to Cheney Point for King Pacific’s changeover day. Awesome fishing that long tack with much fewer boats for the day. Worked bait all day with lots of action. We kept only 1 fish that was hooked through both lower and upper lip and decided that was enough fish for the trip.
One of my favourite trips all time. 6 chinook between the 2 of us. Nothing bigger than 22 lbs kept. Only disappointment was on our flight home. We booked the flights last December at the highest fare class, checked in online the day before, and arrived an hour and a half before our flight to check our luggage. As they are being checked in we were abruptly and rudely told that there was a weight issue and asked what we were checking in. We said just the 2 free checked luggage we got with our fair class and that 1 of the 4 was a rod case that weighed less than 15lbs. We were told that 2 people would be pulled off the plane completely and others might be asked to have their luggage sent out the next day in the afternoon. We offered to have all our luggage sent the next day as we had long weekend plans starting Friday night and we were abruptly told that’s not how it works. Lo and behold the plane arrives and our names get called. We didn‘t fight it but simply wanted an explanation on how this happened and what they would be doing for us for our unplanned overnight in Bella Bella and got nothing but attitude and brief abrupt information fired at us. Big shout out to the locals in Bella Bella. We needed some help for our changed itinerary. One took us to town to ask the grocery store if they could store our fish until our flight out. Coincidently one of the employees was a lovely lady that we chatted up on the flight in. No problems. Got us on the taxi to Shearwater and back to the airport. Same person was working at the airport and I asked her where we were sitting as I had no booking information. Her answer was a seat on the plane as she handed our boarding passes. It was at that point that someone who might have been a manger gave us some promo codes and I thanked her and advised that Ive been a happy repeat customer and that they have surveys I submitted to prove it. She then left and came back gave us a card that went over a process on how to request a refund. I assumed it was another full flight and to just be thankful. When the door closed there were several empty rows and single seaters down the left open and me and my buddy were squished into a side by side. It will be an interesting phone call on Tuesday.
Day 1. Landed and headed out to Cultus from Shearwater. What a cool run out through the flat calm channels and inlets. Worked the tack and scratched up a chinook each in a few hours with a few boatside releases and called it a good warm up day and headed for check in. Guide pulled a classic p2b spoon and matched it with a Betsy flasher that got most of the action.
Day 2. Headed to Cultus for a full day exploration. Tubbed 3 total and caught and released a smorgasbord of fish using the full artillery. Have to give @Wondermur the assist on most of the fish hooked as I brought some needlefish hoochies after reading his post. A radiant glow green gator back needlefish hoochie was on fire until I lost it early in the fight due to a failed crimp. It was the biggest takedown hit of the trip as all three of us heard the tip thumping into the water but broke off on its first long heavy run.
Day 3. Headed to Cheney Point for King Pacific’s changeover day. Awesome fishing that long tack with much fewer boats for the day. Worked bait all day with lots of action. We kept only 1 fish that was hooked through both lower and upper lip and decided that was enough fish for the trip.
One of my favourite trips all time. 6 chinook between the 2 of us. Nothing bigger than 22 lbs kept. Only disappointment was on our flight home. We booked the flights last December at the highest fare class, checked in online the day before, and arrived an hour and a half before our flight to check our luggage. As they are being checked in we were abruptly and rudely told that there was a weight issue and asked what we were checking in. We said just the 2 free checked luggage we got with our fair class and that 1 of the 4 was a rod case that weighed less than 15lbs. We were told that 2 people would be pulled off the plane completely and others might be asked to have their luggage sent out the next day in the afternoon. We offered to have all our luggage sent the next day as we had long weekend plans starting Friday night and we were abruptly told that’s not how it works. Lo and behold the plane arrives and our names get called. We didn‘t fight it but simply wanted an explanation on how this happened and what they would be doing for us for our unplanned overnight in Bella Bella and got nothing but attitude and brief abrupt information fired at us. Big shout out to the locals in Bella Bella. We needed some help for our changed itinerary. One took us to town to ask the grocery store if they could store our fish until our flight out. Coincidently one of the employees was a lovely lady that we chatted up on the flight in. No problems. Got us on the taxi to Shearwater and back to the airport. Same person was working at the airport and I asked her where we were sitting as I had no booking information. Her answer was a seat on the plane as she handed our boarding passes. It was at that point that someone who might have been a manger gave us some promo codes and I thanked her and advised that Ive been a happy repeat customer and that they have surveys I submitted to prove it. She then left and came back gave us a card that went over a process on how to request a refund. I assumed it was another full flight and to just be thankful. When the door closed there were several empty rows and single seaters down the left open and me and my buddy were squished into a side by side. It will be an interesting phone call on Tuesday.
kaelc
Crew Member
Heading to Hardy today and Rivers tomorrow. 3 boats, been 30 years since I’ve head out north of CR on the water. Any reports? I’ve been keeping an eye on Duncanby’s Facebook page but would love some info. A few weeks ago chatted with a guide, purple flasher and teaser head for a couple 30lbers.
CBsqrd
Well-Known Member
We got back Friday after a week and a half north of Cape Caution. Mostly fished north of Hakai to Cultus Sound, but did hit the east side of Calvert for coho and south of Rivers for halibut on the run down at the end of the trip.
As others mentioned, most of the bait we found was small - 2” herring. Small spoons (Gold Nugget Skinny G) produced as well or better than anchovies for us, and caught all our springs. Most springs were in the 18 - 20 lb range, with one 27 lb. One spring had a 12” herring / pilchard / juvenile herring in its stomach, but still went for the Skinny G. Didn’t run hoochies, but I’m sure they’d work too.
Lots of pinks this year, especially on the “outside” (north west side of Hakai). I was using up our bait on the last day and went through four packs of anchovies to catch 3 coho… Unless you’re going to the head of Rivers, I wouldn’t bother bringing much bait. Coho were noticeably smaller this year, most in the 5 - 7 lb range, not the 10 - 15 lb we normally see up there this time of year. I was catching bigger coho in Vancouver the week before we headed up. At first I thought it was due to all the pinks competing for forage, but we’ve been up there other pink years and found good size coho so who knows.
We did get one spring about 16 lbs fishing for coho in the east side of Calvert, but we had our limit so sent him back. Lots of humpbacks as usual in Fitz Hough Sound, had about a half dozen feeding all around us that day.
Saw lots of blue sharks on the outside while fishing for halibut. Had at least four circling the boat at one point after washing blood off the deck.
As others mentioned, most of the bait we found was small - 2” herring. Small spoons (Gold Nugget Skinny G) produced as well or better than anchovies for us, and caught all our springs. Most springs were in the 18 - 20 lb range, with one 27 lb. One spring had a 12” herring / pilchard / juvenile herring in its stomach, but still went for the Skinny G. Didn’t run hoochies, but I’m sure they’d work too.
Lots of pinks this year, especially on the “outside” (north west side of Hakai). I was using up our bait on the last day and went through four packs of anchovies to catch 3 coho… Unless you’re going to the head of Rivers, I wouldn’t bother bringing much bait. Coho were noticeably smaller this year, most in the 5 - 7 lb range, not the 10 - 15 lb we normally see up there this time of year. I was catching bigger coho in Vancouver the week before we headed up. At first I thought it was due to all the pinks competing for forage, but we’ve been up there other pink years and found good size coho so who knows.
We did get one spring about 16 lbs fishing for coho in the east side of Calvert, but we had our limit so sent him back. Lots of humpbacks as usual in Fitz Hough Sound, had about a half dozen feeding all around us that day.
Saw lots of blue sharks on the outside while fishing for halibut. Had at least four circling the boat at one point after washing blood off the deck.
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