Fraser River's Multi-species Winter Fishery | Fishing with Rod
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- Опубліковано 19 січ 2023
- I spent a January morning exploring fishing options in the Lower Fraser River around Chilliwack with my friend Nick Basok, targeting a variety of species including cutthroat trout, mountain whitefish, northern pikeminnow. There is also a chance of getting into a steelhead, bull trout, sucker. These are great family fishing opportunities on a nice winter day.
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My name is Rod, and I am an avid fisherman, fishery advocate, conservationist and educator in British Columbia Canada. On this channel you will find:
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I think I could listen him to talk for hours and hours and hours! I want to absorb his knowledge!
Everytime I see Nick, it just brings me joy! I enjoy watching him fishing a ton!
Glad you enjoy it!
i love videos with Nick! he is so knowledgeable and a great fisherman
Thanks for sharing this Rod! 🍻 Also thank you for all your conservation efforts and all you do for the local waters. This area truly is one of a kind and thanks to people like you it has a fighting chance of staying that way 👍 please pass a thank you on to Nick as well.
Thank you for all that you do
You are so welcome
Thank you so much for sharing, I have learnt a lot from this channel, really appreciate it.
Nick is one of the great ones... a top rod, advocate for sport fishers and a true gentleman.
Another great video Rod.
Nick has a wealth of knowledge and what a privileged it must have been to spend the day fishing with him and then share it with the rest of us..!
Thanks Glen!
What an amazing video thanks for sharing the video ..
Great fishery
Another great video Rod! Based out of southern Vancouver Island, I can say that there are definitely Cutthroat Trout to be caught in the winter, even out of fairly small creeks.
Enjoyed this video, Lots of fish, I do catch and release
It's like you took me on a fishing trip! Good commentary 😃
Glad you enjoyed. 😃
Would love to see what is on the end of the line! I am trying to learn as much about fishing as I can! Nick is very educational - I wish I could go fishing with him!!
Beautiful fish
One that I never caught when I lived in bc.
Remember first dolly I caught in Squamish I was in aw at it beauty
Let it go so fast as I could not live with hurting it
Good video but I want to mention that cutthroat trout that ingest a hook and get hooked in the throat or esophagus will have a very high release mortality. My experience is this is very common with bait fishing, particularly among less experienced anglers. These fish are not numerous. There may be no more than a couple of thousand in all the streams Nick mentioned. Some may have spawning populations of a few dozen. Personally I think it's best to stick to artificial lures or flies. Flies can be fished on light spinning gear. Leave the eggs and worms for other opportunities. That can help provide fish in the future.
This 💯
I stopped gear and bait fishing at my local spot, switched to fly only. Trout just swallow the hook 9 times out of ten, it’s sad.
Great fishing trip and a few beauties landed too, thumbs up and greetings,, Tony,
These episodes with Nick are awesome! What pin reel is he using?
White fish is great eating fish its good as Trout.
I havent caught my first salmon yet but someday.....! I've had a few of white fish though and they're fun to catch too.
Excellent! 🙂
Great video, Nick is a wealth of knowledge, and a superb angler! In the Columbia River here in Washington Pike Minnows are encouraged to be removed from the system due to heavy predation on salmonid smolts. They even have a program that pays anglers for every fish removed. Is there a concern in the Fraser basin about that? Awesome video, Rod!
So these Northern pikeminnow are in fact native in both the Fraser and Columbia watersheds. They've had this predator-prey relationship with salmonids since the last glacial age, so tens of thousands of years ago. The balance between the two populations shifted in the Columbia River, when dams were constructed. Because of dams, more favourable habitat (slower, warmer water) has been created for Northern pikeminnow, increasing their populations significantly. At the same time, overfishing and other human activities resulted in Pacific salmon declines. So with too many pikeminnows, and too few salmon, a bounty was introduced to balance that out a bit. It really is just a temporary solution because the root of the problem (dams) is still there. With the Fraser, it isn't dammed, so we don't have challenges like what the Columbia has faced, even though our Pacific salmon populations have also been in trouble from time to time.
@@FishingwithRod I see, yes, the slower water makes the smolts more vulnerable to pike minnow. I know that smolt travel from the Snake to the ocean used to take two weeks, now about two months. It is a good thing the Fraser isn't dammed. Thanks, Rod!
I’d pay to see nicks bait fridge
My biggest pikeminnow 25 in pikeminnow in the train Chilliwack in Agassiz
What rod is being used here? Centerpinning seems fun.
Awesome video rod thanks for the tips, by any chance could you tell us where on the Fraser this is?
Without being too specific, we fished the area between Chilliwack and Hope (almost to Hope, I'd say downstream from Herrling Island). Anywhere along this whole stretch would produce, just not all the time. These fish are opportunists, so they will move when food move. You find them one day at one particular spot, and they'd disappear on the following day.
K thanks for the tip I guess you guys must have found the spot then.
Wow, that cutty at @9:23 had a red tip on the dorsal fin. Any idea what that is (part of the bait or an actual marking)?
looks like a wound.
I am interested in fly fishing in this area. Suggestions for possible flies if I do not want to use bait? Also I am used to much smaller water, what were you looking for when picking a spot - water flow, some type of structure?
Hi James, you definitely can fly fish as well, before freshet begins in early April. Whether you're using bait or flies, it really comes down to the same thing, finding fish that are feeding and they could be anywhere. It just depends on where the food is. Usually people just drop by a few of their spots along the Fraser and see if fish are feeding. It could be a slough, a tiny channel, a wide part of the main stem...
Shore fishing in Jan when I am currently angling through 30” of ice? I’m a little jealous-not gonna lie! Tell a little bit about that tackle setup. Is that known as a centre pin rod and reel or some type of Spey rod? Not a setup I see on the prairies, but I could imagine a few effective applications.
Yeah we are quite spoiled in this corner of Canada. Today it was around +5C, slightly wetter, so we decided to stay inside. 😂 Later this week it'll be close to +10C and sunny, so we may pop down to the river again. The setup is a pretty typical float fishing centerpin setup for this region. I may have to do a separate video to explain it more thoroughly.
@@FishingwithRod I was hoping you might do a video about the rig. Enjoy and take advantage of the temperature changes. I will continue enjoying some great ice fishing conditions. Currently, it is all about jumbo perch! Keep up the great work.
How does nick fish his eggs for these fish? Singles? I have a ton of unused singles but not sure how to prepare them without them popping on the hook.
Nicks uses singles that he has cured himself. He puts them in water and heats it up, and takes the pot off as soon as the water boils, then he cures them with Pautzke's Fire Cure. That's just a rough description of the steps from what he told me, so I'm gonna have to make a video of this with him one day.
@@FishingwithRod yes please, sounds good. Thanks Rod.
What where you actually using for bait are they some kind cured salmon eggs and where do I get them? Thanks
Yep they are single water hardened eggs, cured with Pautkze Bait Fire Cure.
Anybody know what model reel and rod Nick was using?
I'll ask him.
What pin reel is Nick using?
I'll ask him.
What kind of these fish can you keep on Fraser?
I would consult the regulations each time you decide to go out because they do change from time to time. Salmon, trout, char and sturgeon have to be released. You can keep whitefish, there is a daily limit. Species like northern pikeminnow, peamouth chub, largescale sucker can also be kept if you enjoy eating them.
HI
it is very nice video
Can we keep any of those fish in Fraser river?
all wild trout including steelhead have to be released. As Nick said the cutthroat hatchery program was terminated, in 2018 ( I think). Unlikely you will ever see a hatchery fish as most would have been caught and killed within a couple of years. Last one I caught was in 2020. Those mature fish he caught shows they can do well without a hatchery program provided anglers release them with care and poaching doesn't become a problem. Whitefish are very tasty particularly in a few weeks when the taste of rancid salmon eggs and flesh is out of them. Filleted they are not boney.
In the non-tidal (above Mission bridge) you can keep up to 15 whitefish, 2 hatchery marked rainbow trout or steelhead (must have a healed scar where the adipose fin was), and as many northern pickminnow as you want to eat. You must release all wild trout/char which include bull trouts, cutthroat and wild rainbows/steelhead. Not sure about the suckers - doubtful you would want to keep them anyways. Tidal has different rules so make sure to check them if you are fishing below the bridge.
I never seen anyone cast with a fly reel like that. In Connecticut I do spool a fly reel with Mono to fish for trout and salmon when we go up to NY to the salmon river. thanks for sharing!
It’s a centerpin reel (free spool) not fly
Centerpin ,no fly reel best precision way of float fishing.
Similar to a fly reel but no drag system (some have clickers) and usually a much larger diameter so you have a bit more line pickup. Allows for the most smooth and natural drift.
@@jackofallfishing all Centerpins have some sort of clickers or they would be no way to stop it from free spooling when not in use And for size wise depending on what kind of reel your using for fly fishing. Most spey reels are bigger than all my centerpins and mine range from 3 3/4” - 5”
@@kenryder6217 some pin reels have tension knobs instead of clickers, and I'm more familiar with wide arbour "spey" reels, but yeah there are larger diameter fly reels that can be bigger than some pin reels. Good thing I said usually :P
What Kind of Eggs was he using?
Looks like marshmallows, doc let's go catch whitefish , since salmon elude me ha ha
Chum singles and chinook cured skeined roe.
can u fish the lower fraer?
Yep.
can you catch pikeminnows at the tidal fraser river right now?
In the 15 years or so fishing in the Tidal Fraser River, I've never caught one between October and April.
@FishingwithRod my 1st time experiencing this. I used to fish for pike minnow n peamouth chub north Richmond on the Fraser. No bites at all even now at langley(fraser river). So all the fish go where ..?
In the winter months they usually retreat to much deeper or fresher water. They'll start showing up around Richmond again in April. In the winter, the Tidal Fraser River is saltier due to the lack of freshwater coming down the Fraser. Northern pikeminnow and other minnow species are freshwater species, so you'd find them much further upstream right now if you want to catch them, like in this video.
@FishingwithRod thanks and makes sense. From what I heard in the video, the young ones(not the trout) run to estuaries(juniors) and others go upstream where there is salmon(dead) food along with eggs. What depth was the bait at when the float was casted?
The depth was about 4 to 6 feet deep. If you come up to the Fraser River around Chilliwack, and find some slow moving water, you should be able to get them.
can you keep the whitefish
OK, here is what you do. Go to this website and learn how to read the regulations synopsis: www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/sports-recreation-arts-and-culture/outdoor-recreation/fishing-and-hunting/freshwater-fishing/fishing_synopsis.pdf You can download it as a pdf & even load it on your smart phone for reference. BTW the answer to your question is YES, up to 15 a day. Good luck with that. They are much harder to catch than trout.
Agreed haven't caught a white fish ever
@@JamesTKirk-yz5ng I'm convinced they school in batches, had several further up near Hope but only 3 years out of 20 fishing each spring summer on rides through. LOL!
Thanks for the video Rod. I just moved to South Vancouver, close to Fraser River Park - would there be cutthroat in this area? If not, any good fishing opportunities here on the Fraser?
Yep, I have encountered cutthroat trout in the Tidal Fraser River around Vancouver/Richmond from time to time over the years, but it's pretty rare compared to years ago. The only times I have caught them, are in early spring before freshet begins, and in September and October.
@@FishingwithRod Thanks Rod - would I be more likely to come across Bull trout in this area?
@@devbru Definitely. There are three main components for the Lower Fraser River bull trout population - Chilliwack, Harrison and Pitt River. Chilliwack and Harrison's populations are not as abundant and are more likely to be lake bound than being anadromous, whereas Pitt River's population is more likely to migrate into the estuaries and sea. If you're fishing anywhere downstream from the Pitt River mouth, you're more likely to catch a bull trout than fishing further upstream.
@@FishingwithRod Great - thanks for the info!
catching doors Giant pikeminnow don't fight any believable hard in the summertime then don't fight in the winter time than bulldog
Huh?
Interesting video Rod 👍🎣👌. If anyone is interested in catching big Pikeminows 🤔, come fish Hayward lk. My P.B last year was almost 6lb , as they are slowly consuming ALL of the fingerling trout. I have spoken to M.N.R officers about this, as THEY don't stock the lk. They an't gonna do ANYTHING 😡. Witch means, within 5 years, all of the natural native trout will be GONE. As it makes me wonder 🤔, where my fishing license money is going.
Andy, Hayward Lake was formerly Stave River but now a reservoir as its intake and outtake are both dammed. Catchable rainbow trout stockings ended back in the late 90s like a couple other salmon bearing streams (Coquitlam, Brunette) as they no longer are good candidates for it. As for freshwater fishing licence revenues, 100% of it goes to FFSBC which is responsible for the stockings they are contracted to do by the province. In addition to stockings, there are lots of innovative projects like having hatchery steelhead reared in Hayward Lake first before being transported down to the Stave for release, so their homing ability would be stronger.
I grew up fishing this lake. Ever since the trout stocking was stopped, the trout population declined rapidly. The pikeminnow and trout have been coexisting in Hayward and Stave lakes for a long time. The cutthroat also eat the juvenile pike minnows. There are small drainages that flow into Hayward lake that have wild populations of cutthroat trout, that the pikeminnows don't inhabit. So there will always be a trickle down of these trout into the lake, but because the lake is so infertile, it will just never be a good trout fishery if it's not being pumped full of hatchery trout.