New girl

[Sioban M.]

Hi everyone,

I am new to fishing but I'm prepared to learn! I am planning a few fishing trips this summer around Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands (Gabriola Island).
I am trying to be as proactive as possible to set myself up for success and wanted to start by joining this online community.

A few things:
1. What questions might one ask when preparing for a fishing trip?
2. What are the best apps/systems one should have ready? So far I have FishingBC, Nautide, Fishangler installed).
3. I will be using a single kayak, as will my partner (so two single kayaks) so we will likely stay within 50 m depth maximum fairly close to shore.
4. My basic starting kit will includes: radio, two kayaks, paddles with leashes, PFDs, pliers, bait, fishing rods, nets, line cutters, bucket. Is there anything else that is a must?
5. Timing: following the tides4fishing.com guidelines for the best bite chance, I will be aiming for early morning and late evening sessions.
6. Are there any other forums or ways to get in touch with other experienced anglers in the area before we head out?
7. Following government rules/regulations, we will see what we can expect to catch and what we must release with the licenses we have purchased.

Any recommendations or advice would be greatly appreciated!

Sioban

 

[tinboatrobb]

I would recommend you use the Murray's tables to look at currents as opposed to just looking at the tides.

 

[Hot-Streak]

I used to kayak fish locally and would recommend you learn the names of the areas you are fishing so that if needed you can call coast guard on your VHF radios and tell them were to find you (good on you for having radios)

I would also look at getting a crab trap. There is a vancouver island kayak facebook group you can join https://www.facebook.com/groups/1430455033905710 as well as this group https://www.facebook.com/groups/117007365605330 I also used to use a small tenis ball sized fish finder. If you only plan to go out for 2 weeks download the navionics app but DON'T pay for it. use the free 2 week trail as your chart/planning app.

A few more ins and outs but this should get you started. If you have more questions or want to chat more on facebook messenger then shoot me a PM

 

[Eden Island]

I used to kayak fish locally and would recommend you learn the names of the areas you are fishing so that if needed you can call coast guard on your VHF radios and tell them were to find you (good on you for having radios)

I would also look at getting a crab trap. There is a vancouver island kayak facebook group you can join https://www.facebook.com/groups/1430455033905710 as well as this group https://www.facebook.com/groups/117007365605330 I also used to use a small tenis ball sized fish finder. If you only plan to go out for 2 weeks download the navionics app but DON'T pay for it. use the free 2 week trail as your chart/planning app.

A few more ins and outs but this should get you started. If you have more questions or want to chat more on facebook messenger then shoot me a PM

I don't know how how experienced you are as kayakers, but I'd suggest first doing some paddling in the areas you plan to fish. Think about your "bail-out" plan if you are overcome by weather and/or current/tide - when tide and wind are against each other, nasty conditions can develop in a hurry. There's no shame in bailing out, and hitching a ride back to the car, or waiting for better conditions, Fishing comes second to your safety.

There are some experienced kayak fishers on this forum -- I'd do some searching and see what they have to say - and approach them on the forum or PM them.

 

[Old Blue]

Before planning location look at the regs....pretty restricted on the inside until at least September

 

[ValorFish]

Definitely checkout bcmarinetrails.org great resource for Kayaking and trip planning.

 

[ziggy]

Windy is an excellent app. You have the added benefit of webcams as well as predictions. Deep zoom is a good site to check out as well.

 

[searun]

Predict Wind is also a great app...I also always check the nearby Ocean Buoy Reports to see what the actual sea conditions, wind wave height and period are. Gaining a wider picture of the conditions and predicted changes is a great pre-trip discipline to have. Fishing is always best on either side of a slack tide, so I would concentrate your efforts around tide changes...also less current making paddling easier. Good luck.

 

[Bill 310]

Do you have:

a) one radio for two kayaks, or
b) one radio per kayak?

Visibility issues - kayaks are hard to see.

Hi-Viz clothing is called that for a reason, consider wearing it and I have found the iridescent colours are visible from the greatest distance

Black and dark blue boats are hard to see

You may want to consider getting a radar reflector on your boats

https://seagrant.umaine.edu/extension/radar-reflectors-and-sea-kayak-visibility/

Happy Paddling

 

[Deepaaaar]

I do a fair bit of kayak fishing around the southern end of the Island and they key is making sure to understand the currents as best you can and to pick your days wisely. I won't try to go out if the forecast is volatile and/or calling for wind > 10kts, or I'm wanting to fish a high-current area and the tidal coefficient is high (lots of water movement). Fishing kayaks can handle some pretty nasty weather, but the fun drains out of it pretty quickly.

When do plan on coming? There are a TON of kayak fishing opportunities throughout the summer, but timing your trips to coincide with the best chance of catching migratory salmon will help. Reading through the archived reports will give you a lot of info.

 

[Local Hali Hunter]

Learn the rules of the ocean freecourse.ca

 

[Sioban M.]

I used to kayak fish locally and would recommend you learn the names of the areas you are fishing so that if needed you can call coast guard on your VHF radios and tell them were to find you (good on you for having radios)

I would also look at getting a crab trap. There is a vancouver island kayak facebook group you can join https://www.facebook.com/groups/1430455033905710 as well as this group https://www.facebook.com/groups/117007365605330 I also used to use a small tenis ball sized fish finder. If you only plan to go out for 2 weeks download the navionics app but DON'T pay for it. use the free 2 week trail as your chart/planning app.

A few more ins and outs but this should get you started. If you have more questions or want to chat more on facebook messenger then shoot me a PM

I used to kayak fish locally and would recommend you learn the names of the areas you are fishing so that if needed you can call coast guard on your VHF radios and tell them were to find you (good on you for having radios)

I would also look at getting a crab trap. There is a vancouver island kayak facebook group you can join https://www.facebook.com/groups/1430455033905710 as well as this group https://www.facebook.com/groups/117007365605330 I also used to use a small tenis ball sized fish finder. If you only plan to go out for 2 weeks download the navionics app but DON'T pay for it. use the free 2 week trail as your chart/planning app.

A few more ins and outs but this should get you started. If you have more questions or want to chat more on facebook messenger then shoot me a PM

Thanks so much for reaching out! I just joined the two facebook groups and we already have two crab traps set up ready to go! Will download navionics before we go out