Halibut, SFI, Salmon Head Recovery Program, Coho Regs, Shore Fisheries

Halibut: You will be glad to know that we can continue fishing for halibut until the end of December. 

This results because the total allowable catch of 1,100, 950 pounds for sport fisheries was not reached 

by the end of the sport lodge fishery that ends early in September.

As the Victoria area is the largest sport fishery in BC, and we fish 12 months of the year, we are the

lucky recipients of the excess. See Fishery Notice FN1060-Recreatoinal. If you want to query the 

DFO staff person, phone: Devona Adams at 604-666-3271; or Rob Tadey 604-666-9033.

DFO and the Sport Fish Advisory Board Halibut committee meet through out the season to assess 

the figures. Thank you Martin Paish et al. The fishery will continue at the same limits announced in 

Fishery Notice FN 0221, which are: maximum length of 133 cm; the daily limit is one; possession 

limit is two, only one of which may be greater than 83 cm; the annual limit is six per licence; and 

each must be recorded on your licence at the time of catch.

Sport Fishing Institute (SFI): If you want to attend the SFI policy meeting and fundraiser on 

November 25, time to get in touch with them. It takes place at the Pacific Gateway Hotel in 

Richmond. It is a key forum for politicians, public servants and those in the sport fishing industry

 to come together and share their knowledge on issues facing sport fishing and receive updates of 

the Salmon Outlook that lists stock strength for 2017.

Speakers will cover a broad range of topics, with lunch, and continue until the Annual Big 

Splash Fundraiser in the evening. Email: info@sportfishing.bc.ca. 

Salmon Head Recovery Program, DFO: I just received text from DFO on a couple of salmon 

heads I turned in to them. Marked (adipose fin removed) chinook and coho belong to either fish

 clipped for a fishery, or clipped and with a coded wire tag. So, sometimes you get information o

n the hatchery the fish came from, and others, as the fish don’t have tags, you get none.

Do send them in as they help in stock assessment and enhancement, as well as CDN/USA 

treaty discussions. Here are my two heads:

1.      Trial Island, Jan 2016, 211051 Chinook 2012, GROVERS CR HATCHERY, WA 1

2.      Trial Island, Jan /2016, NO TAG Chinook.

My records show that I caught both west of Trial, after the ebb, on a pearl or green-glow bait head and a Purple Onion flasher, as well as bites on a White Lightning Coho Killer. Other fish in the same area, also on anchovy, green-glow head and a Lemon Lime flasher.

The tagged fish came from the Grovers Creek Hatchery in Washington. It is in Puget Sound, north west of Seattle near Poulsbo.

If you click on the attached letter and tables, you will be able to get a better idea of all fish in all areas. As we know, in the winter, most of our chinook now come from Puget Sound (in the past, rivers like the Cowichan comprised a much higher percentage of our catch, but not so anymore, as there are not enough Canadian fish to comprise a fishery anymore), an arrangement they accept because Alaska targets our chinook, and thus it is quid pro quo.

We also protect their Nooksack and Samish river spring chinook, with our retention limit lower than the plus 20 pound returnees in March and April. So it works out.

You can contact Erik Grundmann at 1-866-483-9994 for more information. Do look at the tables, as they are the stats that matter for our fisheries in the Sidney to Victoria to Sooke area.

 Sorry, I could not load the Angler Letter and its tables. Send me an email, at gmail, for a PDF.

Coho Regs: We are now in the end of the season for in-ocean coho retention. The current coho regs in our areas may be found at: http://www.pac.dfo-mpo.gc.ca/fm-gp/rec/tidal-maree/a-s19-eng.html#coho. In the Victoria area you can now retain two, one of which may be unmarked. If you fish the inside of Port Renfrew harbour, it is four fish, two of which may be unmarked.

Coho For Shore Anglers: it is time to do the Port Renfrew saltwater lure section of the river, with the bridge being the arbitrary saltwater boundary. In Sooke, the silver bridge is the boundary, and below it, saltwater rules for coho and chum retention apply. Zero above the bridge. The time honoured spot for the salt gear-chucking fishery is Billings Spit. Think pink and red, with wool on a spinner a typical rig. In Port Renfrew even the time honoured Buzz Bomb catches fish. On the first day of the monsoons, float the San Juan from the Harris Bridge or confluence pool.