Posted on April 02 2015
Exploratory Steelhead in British Columbia
Just home from a little visit to the remote central coast of British Columbia with my good buddy, Yvon. And when I say remote, I mean a
35-mile open-water boat ride in a 17-foot skiff from “town,” and a
near-complete lack of infrastructure. But that’s pretty much what it
takes these days to chase steelhead in places where you don’t see any
other anglers. That’s Yvon and our host, Will, checking out the solitude
in front of camp.
Lack of infrastructure means it takes a little effort to even get to the fishing. From camp, we had an hour run to the mouth of the river, then
hauled personal rafts up to the put in. Then we dragged the boats down a
little tributary to the main water, and due to lack of rain, dragged
them many more times throughout the day. Above, Will and Yvon look for
enough water to float.
But the river itself–and the surroundings–are spectacular. Tannin-stained water, old-growth spruce and cedar forest, large,
unsilted cobble everywhere. We worked our way downstream, stopping to
fish every bit of swingable water. The lower we floated, the better it
got…and better yet, not another angler in sight. In fact, some of these
runs probably haven’t been fished in years, if ever. Below, Yvon goes
old school with a floating line and comet.
Finally, as we neared the mouth, the tide ran out, revealing a series of perfect pools. And the tide had brought us some gifts. To be continued…
original content Dylan Tomine