Sooke Fishing Adventures - Salmon Fishing - Wildlife Watching - West Coast Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
Sooke Fishing Report
Welcome to the Sooke Fishing Adventures website! On this page, we will post regular updates on what's happening with Sooke fishing, Vancouver Island fishing, and other news of interest to our fishing friends from around the world.
Gord from Foghorn Fishing Charters reports some fun days fishing for halibut. He has found the halibut at 150-250 foot depths,using Bluewaterbait mackerel and sardines. However, he reports the dogfish have been bad so far, very early for them in numbers. The photos are from some happy clients, including Danny from up island with his first halibut!
Here's the "Sooke Hookers" (Dave, Jamie, Aaron, Brad) with some dinner after a day's "chicken farming" just west of Sooke this weekend.
Salmon fishing is still spotty, though better than in February. Trevor from No Bananas Fishing Charters passes on a hint of some great reports coming from Albert Head and McAulley Point in Victoria. (Trevor also passes along a photo of some happy anglers with some tasty looking halibut)
DFO has set a "slot limit" regulation for salmon fishing in Juan de Fuca, meaning no wild salmon can be kept over 67cm (26"), somewhere towards 8-10 pounds. Larger hatchery salmon can be retained. This slot limit is in place until May 21st.
The salmon fishing in Sooke is reported to be pretty slow these days. There are reports of a few smaller winter springs up to 10 pounds, but the fish and the reports are few and far between.
Those venturing out on the waters lately have mostly been chasing halibut. There haven't been any really big ones reported yet, but there's regularly "chickens" caught from out front of Sooke Bluffs, to the west to Jordan River, and to the east to Victoria and out to Constance Bank.
The spring weather has started early, with mild temperatures and sunshine, but also with some wind. So...pick your day weather-wise, and it's a beauty out there.
On a non-fishing note, Sooke has caught Olympics fever. Check out the sooke2010.com website, Sooke is hosting a booth at the O-Zone facility in Richmond. Drop by and say hi to the volunteers at the booth. There's an excellent contest giveaway on the website, make sure you sign up...2 fishing trips as well as other great prizes. And check out this video, it really nicely highlights Sooke's natural beauty and the abundant recreation on the ocean and around the town.
There have not been too many salmon fishing reports around Sooke this week. From the sounds of things, Sooke's salmon fishing is a bit slow.
Quite a few reports of halibut caught from Sooke to Victoria though. With the recent Feb 1 opening, anglers seems excited to chase these tasty flat fish.
The photo to the right is from "Striper Jack", out for his first trip this year and got the lucky day he was due -- picked up three halibut at East Constance Bank. He was fishing in 170-195 feet depths and caught halibut weighing 18, 19.5, and 24.5 pounds. He says "I took the picture with small guys to help make the fish look bigger". :-)
Trevor from No Bananas Fishing Charters reports two excellent days of February halibut fishing off Albert Head. The first day, they landed 5 fish and lost a couple of others, with the halibut 20-35lbs. The second day they fished for 4 hours and landed 8 halibut, as well as losing a couple. Lots of dogfish to wade through, but the halibut were there. Lots of action...in 270 foot depth, using mackerel bait, salmon bellies, and mudracker jigs.
Beautiful sunny weather and calm seas so far this week....get out there and try your luck!
Fishing in Sooke and in Victoria has slowed down over the past week. There are still salmon around, but the action isn't as steady and the winter springs a little smaller. Still, there's a nice one here and there.
Gord from Foghorn Fishing Charters sent in this photo of a fun day with some visitors from the Ukraine. These fish were caught off the Victoria Waterfront. Gord reports most success at 135-175 feet on the downrigger, using bait, spoons, and hootchies, in green colours and purple colours.
On the plus side as well is some nice sunny weather for a change...note the blue sky in the photos!
The salmon fishing in Sooke continues to be steady. The winter spring salmon are mostly not all that big, but there's lots of them, so there's lots of action and still some tasty fish to take home for the table.
Most of the action in the past week has been towards Possession Point and Secretary Island, though good reports have come in from the Sooke Bluffs and all the way to Otter Point. Most anglers are using glow flashers with hootchies with some glow in them, though there's reports of anchovies and spoons too. It might not matter what you put down there....these feeder spring salmon are actively feeding, and if you put something food-like in front of them, they will bite at it.
Fishing with lighter gear this time of year makes for more fun, especially without the added drag of a flasher -- either with anchovies in a teaser head or a spoon.
The salmon are generally found 10-20' off the bottom, mostly at 130-150' on the downrigger in 140-160' depth.
Rob Wilson provided a New Year's Eve report on the sportsfishingbc forum: "Out yesterday off the harbour mouth to Secretary Island, lots of 20" class fish and the odd big one, we got lucky and got a 19lb, one that we didn't weigh that was in the 10-12 lb class on the fly rod and a couple 7-8lbers. All 120ft -140ft on the rigger in 120-160ft of water, all on bait today, purple haze and watermelon. Not sure it matters much though, Bulldog used Bug Eye flies the other day and they fished equal to the bait. Lots of fun on the fly rod, even those 20" are pulling line out." The photo is the Wilson family affair...brother Terry, dad Mick, and son Aiden, with a shiny silver 19 pound chinook salmon....Sooke's finest, good day! A few reports of small halibut caught off the Sooke Bluffs on the eve of the annual January closure to allow them to spawn. Halibut fishing is closed until further notice -- hopefully to open on January 31st as normal, but we'll see.
On a non-fishing note, a holiday hike in East Sooke Park produced the following pictures...nice to get some perspective from land now and then. You can access this viewpoint from Pike Road in East Sooke.
Good luck out there, and may your 2010 year be productive and fun!
Some fun winter spring salmon fishing to be had in Sooke these days. The action is best towards Possession Point and out past the southern side of Secretary Island....though it will change day to day, depending on where the bait is. As usual for this time of year, the chinook salmon are generally right off the bottom, 130-160'. Most anglers are using hootchies with glow in them, along with glow flashers, but bait and spoons are said to be working well too.
Here's a report from yesterday:
"I had a good little solo session...two chubby 8 pounders right off the bat, done in an hour. Both at 150' in 160' of water between Possession and Secretary. First one red glow flasher, white glow hootchie. Second one a little blue/glow spoon, no flasher, on fly rod...fun! Bellies of both full of little anchovies...about 15 in one of them.
Beauty afternoon...nice and warm, sweatshirt only, no jacket needed, regretted not having sunglasses...nice problem to have this time of year."
The salmon are smaller, mostly under 10 pounds, though you hear about a bigger one once in a while. However, you won't taste a better table fish than a fresh caught winter spring salmon.
If you have the time, it is definitely worthwhile to get out there and get a line wet.
