Island Tides & Currents – January 2010

Saltwater Fishing 2009

Salmon Fishing: 2009 was a fantastic year for salmon fishing on the West Coast of Vancouver Island, with incredible numbers of large Chinook and Coho salmon returning to our area of the coast we definitely experienced some of the best salmon fishing we have seen in the past few years.

Not only did we have spectacular fishing but the average size of the Chinook salmon being caught were larger than in past years, with plenty of Tyee’s (Chinook salmon over thirty pounds) being boated and a good number of those fish were in the 40 pound range with the largest Chinook weighed in by a lodge guest tipping the scales at 44.5 pounds, and the largest Chinook being landed and released was estimated at an incredible 48 to 50 pounds.

2009 also proved to be another fantastic year for Coho returns our to our area with plenty of these great fighting fish showing up in early June through to the end of September. These acrobatic fish provided us with some fantastic fishing action throughout the season.

Halibut Fishing: The Halibut fishing just keeps getting better in our area of the Island every year, with 2009 being one of the best years for halibut fishing we have seen in awhile, and as with the Chinook salmon, the average size of the Halibut was larger than past years, with not only lots of halibut in the 25 to 80 pound range being landed, but also a good number of Halibut over 100 pounds being caught. The largest halibut caught in 2009 (caught and released after being measured) was estimated to be 286 pounds. I am sure that will be a fish story that will be told more than just a few times!

Halibut Fishing – Highlights of the Season:

The lodge record for the largest halibut was also set in 2009 with Bob Cohn landing the big one which tipped the scale at a whopping 164 pounds.

One of our guests hooked and landed a Halibut over 60 pounds on his new electric reel, after watching the replay of the battle on video later that evening, the electric reel made bringing up a 60 pound plus flattie look easy, but for around $625 per reel they should work good.

2009 was a great year for freshwater fishing adventures in our area of Vancouver Island with good returns of ocean bright Chinook, Coho and Chum, and Sockeye salmon into most of our local rivers, providing us with fantastic freshwater fishing opportunities from mid September into late October.

Rafting is the Way to Go: This past year we started rafting one of our larger local rivers on a regular basis with great success, not only did we experience some fantastic fishing, but rafting down a gently moving river stopping along the way to fish pools loaded with ocean bright salmon enjoying a shore lunch and taking in the spectacular scenery is a great way to spend the day.

New for 2010!

In the fall of 2009 we had the opportunity to spend some time exploring some of the more remote rivers in our area of Vancouver Island by Helicopter, and we found miles of pristine water, incredible scenery and pools full of ocean bright salmon that were willing to bite. Now that we know just how good the fishing and the whole experience really is, we will be offering helicopter fishing excursion to anyone who really wants to experience the ultimate in wilderness river fishing adventures. We will also be able to incorporate a day of helicopter fishing into our regular three, four and five day freshwater fishing packages.

Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada Forecasts for 2010

Salmon: Strong returns of both Chinook and Coho salmon down the West Coast of Vancouver Island similar to this past year or even better.

Halibut: More great Halibut fishing in store for 2010 with plenty of these great tasting fish forecasted to be in our area of the coast in 2010. So, it promises to be another great season in 2010 for our guests with plenty of bent rods, screaming reels, big smiles and great memories.

Much to our delight, Carrie Collins will be joining us as our chef in the kitchen again for the 2010 season, so as in past years we can all expect to loosen our belts a notch or two after few days of her fantastic cooking.

New Recipe: Here is one of our new favourite seafood recipes, which I have borrowed from Michael Smith’s new cook book (The best of Chef at Home). This is a great tasting recipe and very simple.

Cook Penne in lots of boiling salted water until al dente, scoop out some of the pasta water putting aside, strain the pasta leaving it a bit wet.

Place the pasta back in the pot adding a couple of splashes of the pasta water that was held in reserve. while the pasta is still steaming immediately add the cream cheese, green onion, dill, mustard, lemon zest and juice and capers, stir until the cream cheese melts and forms a nice creamy sauce.

Stir in the sliced up smoked salmon at the last minute with a dash of ground black pepper and a sprinkle of seas salt and serve. We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do.

We would like to thank all of the people who bought a cedar planking kit or donated in support of the Zeballos Volunteer Salmon Hatchery this past season. We managed to raise just over $700 for the hatchery program this past season. The money raised was used to purchase a new power generator for the hatchery to replace the one that unfortunately was stolen from the hatchery last spring. As the hatchery gets it’s water from a well which provides the incubation trays in the hatchery with a clean and consistent supply of water, the generator is a vital piece of hatchery equipment, so in the event that there is a power failure they are able to keep the pump running with the generator maintaining a constant flow of clean water.

We do have a limited amount of available dates for 2010 through our prime time season, so booking your dates as soon as possible to avoid disappointment is advisable. For the folks who cannot find the time to make it through our prime time season of Jun. 21 – Sep. 7, but still want to get in a fantastic fishing trip in 2010. We do have a couple of other options available that may work for you with our regular season packages:

Spring Fever Packages: From the middle of May through to June 21st, Fantastic Halibut and bottom fishing for Lingcod, Snapper and great prawning as well as opportunities for some early season Chinook and Coho salmon

Fall Favourite Packages: We also have our Fall favourite packages starting in early September through to the last week of September, with fantastic fall Coho fishing in the inlets, calm waters and big northern Coho on light tackle, as well as great bottom fishing opportunities for Halibut, Lingcod and Snapper.

For more information on any of the above packages or to book your 2010 fishing trip of a lifetime contact us at: 1-888-934-6999 or email sshelley@telus.net.

Funny Fishing Stories:

An American investment banker was at the pier of a small coastal Mexican village when a small boat with just one fisherman docked. Inside the small boat were several large yellow fin tuna. The American complimented the Mexican on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took to catch them. The Mexican replied, "Only a little while." The American then asked, "Why didn't you stay out longer and catch more fish?" The Mexican said, "With this I have more than enough to support my family's needs. "The American then asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?" The Mexican fisherman said, "I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, take siesta with my wife, Maria, stroll into the village each evening where I sip wine and play guitar with my amigos, I have a full and busy life."

The American scoffed, "I am a Harvard MBA and could help you. You should spend more time fishing; and with the proceeds, buy a bigger boat: With the proceeds from the bigger boat you could buy several boats. Eventually you would have a fleet of fishing boats. Instead of selling your catch to a middleman you would sell directly to the processor; eventually opening your own cannery. You would control the product, processing and distribution. You would need to leave this small coastal fishing village and move to Mexico City, then Los Angeles and eventually New York where you will run your ever-expanding enterprise."

The Mexican fisherman asked, "But, how long will this all take?" To which the American replied, "15 to 20 years." "But what then?" asked the Mexican. The American laughed and said that's the best part. "When the time is right you would announce an IPO and sell your company stock to the public and become very rich, you would make millions." "Millions?... Then what?"

The American said, "Then you would retire. Move to a small coastal fishing village where you would sleep late, fish a little, play with your kids, take siesta with your wife, stroll to the village in the evenings where you could sip wine and play guitar with your amigos.

Island Tides Fishing Lodge is a proud supporter of the BC Children's Hospital Foundation

We will be participating again this year with the donation of an all inclusive three night / two day fishing trip for two to the B.C.C.H.F. Foundations 2010 "For Children We Care" Dinner and Silent Auction being held at the new Vancouver Convention Center May 8th 2010. The event is expected to attract close to 1000 people.

For more information on the 2010 For Children We Care Dinner and Silent Auction, or to be a super hero and donate to the B.C.C.H, go to www.bcchf.ca.

This past father’s day I was fortunate to have my Dad and one of my best friends fishing with me, and what a fathers day it was as the action was pretty much non-stop from the moment we put the lines in the water. We ended up catching our limits of Chinook and Coho salmon as well as a limit of Halibut by 10:30 A.M.

We had two double headers on Chinook salmon in the 20 pound range and my dad also landed his biggest Halibut to date with a great flattie which tipped the scale at over 55 pounds. What a great Fathers Day!

Family Fishing Packages: Again as in past years we will be offering our special family fishing packages with two for the price of one, for children and teens up to 18 years of age. This is a great opportunity to take the kids on a fishing trip of a life time at an affordable rate.

Guys and Gals Fishing Packages: Customized all-inclusive packages designed with both the guys and gals in mind; hard-core fishing in a very comfortable environment well suited for the ladies who would like to get out and experience Salmon or Halibut fishing at it’s best. Deluxe accommodation, outstanding meal service, boats 22 to 24 feet in length with plenty of cover from the elements and marine heads (toilets) on board, make our fishingpackages the perfect fishing vacation for both the Guys and the Gals. Contact us for special pricing on these packages.

Father's Day Packages: We will be offering some special packages for Fathers Day 2010, this is a great way to spend a little quality time with the people that are so important to you and doing something you love to do together: going on the fishing trip of a lifetime. If you are interested in joining us this Fathers Day (Sunday June 20th), contact us for special rates and packages.