The fishing at Langara has slowed down from its fever pitch of two weeks ago, but we still expect to see some major runs of Chinooks and Coho coming through. There can be a surge of activity at any time, as happened last night. After a hard day of searching for fish, we finally found bait and tide conditions that lead to a great evening bite at Andrews Point. Intense battles with Coho filled the air with the distinctive ring of our Shimano mooching reels. A few resident Chinooks were in the mix with the largest being in the high 20s. The Chum are starting to show up as well, and I am continually amazed at the fight they put up. Their strength-to-size ratio is the highest of all the tidal salmon, and if you decide to keep one, St. Jean’s Cannery makes great Indian Candy with the meat.
There was a nice joke at my expense three days ago. While I was leading a marginally successful bottom fishing trip off the lighthouse in 300 feet of water, Peter Raja, on his own initiative, dropped down in 90 feet of water east of Langara Rocks and bagged a 78 lb. halibut. I am often asked, “where are the big halibut?” While incidents like this leave an opening for a witty answer, the bottom line is that you can find halibut in the strangest places. Last year I caught a 40 pounder in the kelp beds west of Bruin Bay.
One entertaining spectacle that I think we would be happy to live without is a massive pod of Orcas that was hanging around the east side for the past few days. They were feeding heavily and their effect on the fishing was not good. Luckily I did not see them yesterday, so I wish them well as they move on.
Ken Beatty
Fishmaster, MV Marabell
Langara Island, Queen Charlotte Islands
