Fishing in Canada

Canada has always been an exciting destination for us and each year we take anglers to Prince Edward Island to target giant Atlantic bluefin tuna. Everyone who does this trip is blown away with the sheer size, power and numbers of these massive fish.  It’s a fishery that is highly regulated and the crews do everything in their power to make sure the bluefin in that area are looked after for future generations. This, in my eyes, is one of the best places in the world to wrestle with fish over 250kg every day you are on the water.

While in Canada tuna fishing in 2017, we did a recon trip up to Haida Gwaii in the far northwest region of Canada (near the Alaskan border) to fish at Peregrine Lodge for salmon and halibut.  The trip was amazing, starting with a spectacular helicopter flight to the purpose-built five-star lodge that overlooks its own private dock and followed by catching some of the massive king salmon this region is famed for. We knew this would be a special destination for years to come.

So after fishing both these world-class fishing locations, I thought I had picked the best out of the Canadian fisheries and had all my options covered.  Well, that was until I got talking with some well-travelled fishing friends and they told me about a fishery in the Fraser River only an hour away from Vancouver’s International Airport. 

The fish, they said, were massive – some over 150kg – and powerful with runs and jumps like a marlin’s.  The fish they were talking about is the giant white sturgeon.  My first thoughts were, ‘Yeah right!’ but I was interested, so I did some more research.

I contacted a Canadian guide who had some great on-line reviews from this area and started asking him a few questions.  The first question was what was the best time of the year.

“August,” he said. Perfect, I thought, I will be in the area.

Second question:  “What sort of tackle do we use?”

“130lb braid,” he replied.

“Really? It’s a freshwater fish! No freshwater fish required 130lb line, surely…”

He came back,: “Yes they do – they are big!”

I am now getting highly interested, prompting a third question: “What is the average size of these fish?”

 “50-150kg, with some much bigger.”

“Really?” I’m still thinking this is a joke.

And my last question : “How many bites a day would you expect at this time of the year?” Maybe it is a rare fish and captures are infrequent.

He replied, “10-25 bites a day and I will send you some photos.”

By then he had me and after receiving his email with the photos, my reply was quick and simple: “BOOK ME IN!”

After I booked the trip I had many sleepless nights thinking about these massive sturgeon, what tackle to use and what it would be like to fight a big fish in a river. Would we even catch a fish? I felt completely out of my comfort zone to be doing something I had never done before.

So off Bea, Sami and I went. We departed Auckland International Airport for Vancouver to try this new fishery out before our guests and friends arrived for the Peregrine Lodge and Prince Edward Island leg of the trip. 

I remember rocking down to the launching ramp on the first day with my Shimano Talica 25 spooled with 130lb braid and getting ready to learn something new, while still thinking I was over-gunned for this freshwater adventure. 

The trip was a great success – we caught 21 sturgeon over 2.5 days of fishing, with most being in the 1.8m to a whopping 2.55m length range and the longest fish estimated at around 150kg. They catch them up to and over 280kg.

My two guides, Sacha and Peter, where very experienced and helpful.  The jet boats were very well appointed, and we got full safety briefings each morning. The skippers always had a plan in place for the day, which was reassuring you and gave you confidence that they were on top of their game. 

We spent one day fishing the Fraser River canyon area, another day in the middle sections of river and the last day right in the middle of the city.  I really wanted to fish the canyon area, as it was a little more remote and I had this perception that’s where the biggest fish would be, but to my surprise the best fishing we had was right in the city.

For a half a day’s fishing in Vancouver, we caught nine fish, including the 2.55m monster.  I remember looking at the buildings and streets from the river and thinking 99.9% of the people walking around would not have a clue how good the fishing is right at their doorstep with the thousands of giant sturgeon swimming past them in the brackish waters of the Fraser River.

The sturgeon is a strong fish with blistering runs and jumps just like a marlin. It is prehistoric looking and a very slow growing (some of the fish we released would have been over 40 years old). The fishery is managed very well and it’s a catch and release only. 

This was a trip I will never forget and it opened my eyes a little wider to fishing in different destinations. It was the perfect way to start our Canadian adventure for 2018. 

Thank you Canada for showing my family and all our guests an amazing trip this year, from the monster king salmon to the giant bluefin tuna and now the underrated and mysterious sturgeon fish of the Fraser River.