Skip to content

WELTZ: No one controls the fish

Fish did not want to cooperate in helping achieve a personal best

Okay, so I got skunked on the Methow; roll the tape back to the first week of our vacation in the B.C. Cariboo. Kim and I were back at our favourite lake where a year ago we caught 100 brookies in three hours. The goal this year was to set a better personal best; the fish on the other hand had different ideas.

We got away on vacation later in August than usual. This put us at said lake in the middle of a moon phase, instead of the peak, fifth, day after the full moon. The lake level was lower than a year ago and there was a strong wind blowing, which hampered our sight fishing abilities. Undaunted we motored back to our favourite spot. Wanting to pick up on last year's success, I started with a Williams Green Sedge and was into a nice fish on the first cast; it would be many more casts before I set the hook on another. Kim began with an Olive Irresistible. We received hits on almost every cast, but solid hook sets were frustratingly hard to achieve.

I changed flies often in search of that out-of-reach panacea. To her favour, Kim stuck with the Irresistible. In the end Kim landed 20, I 10; a good evening's fishing by anyone's standard. The goal was not achieved, but that's fishing. Thanks goes to the fish for affirming once again, that no one short of God himself is the master.

 

The report

Our Lower Mainland lakes are fishing well. For wet (sinking) fly trout fishing try: Coachman, Zulu, Wooly Bugger, Dragonfly Nymph, Damsel Nymph, Sixpack, Doc Spratley, Pumpkinhead, or Baggy Shrimp. For evening dry (floating) fly trout fishing try: Tom Thumb, Irresistible, Royal Coachman, Renegade, Elk hair Caddis, Black Gnat, Griffith Gnat, or Lady McConnel. For kokanee try: Red Ibis, Double Trude, Blood Worm, San Juan Worm, Red Spratley, or Red Carey. For bass try: Zonker,

Clouser's Deep Minnow, Lefty's Deceiver, Dolly Whacker, Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Foam Frog, Poppers, Chernobyl Ant, or Crayfish. For panfish try: Wooly Bugger, Micro Leach, Bucktail, Dolly Whacker, Bloodworm, Chironomid, Poppers, Turks Tarantula, Tom Thumb or Irresistible.

Fishing on our interior lakes is good. For wet fly fishing try: Chironomid, Halfback, 52 Buick, Pumpkinhead, Big Black, Micro Leach, Coachman, Green Spratley, Damsel nymph, Dragon nymph, Carey Special, Souboo, Sixpack, or Baggy Shrimp. For Dry fly fishing try: Lady McConnel, Black Gnat, Double Hackled Peacock, Griffith Gnat, Black Gnat, Elk Haired Caddis, Irresistible, Sofa Pillow, or Tom Thumb.

The Fraser is fishing fair to slow for cutthroat, Dolly Varden, and spring. For cutthroat try: Rolled Muddler, Professor, Anderson Stone, Zulu, American Coachman, Renegade, Tom Thumb, Black Gnat, Chez Nymph, and Irresistible. For dolly varden try: Zonker, Eggo, Clouser's Minnow, Big Black, or Dolly Whacker, in sizes 4 and 8. For spring try: lead-heading with size 4 to 2, Eggo, Big Black, Flat Black, Wooly Bugger, Kaufmann Stone, Squamish Poacher, or Red Spratley.

The Harrison is good for cutthroat.

The Vedder is good for rainbow, and cutthroat. For rainbow try: Kaufmann Stone, Big Black, Black Gnat, Souboo, Zulu, Renegade, Tom Thumb, Chernobyl Ant, Foam Hopper, or Irresistible.

The Thompson is good for rainbow.