The Mighty
Columbia River
Wild
Rainbows in BC’s “Wild,
wild West”
The
Columbia River, in BC’s interior,
is home to one of the finest, yet
unexploited, trout fisheries in the
world. Tens of thousands of large
wild rainbows swim these waters, just
waiting to sip on your fly! The section
of Columbia R. that flows from Castlegar,
BC to the US border is one of the
last free-flowing stretches on this
large and beautiful system. The dams
that feed this river provide a year
round fishery. This is a large river
that is best navigated with a jet
boat, which greatly increases your
fishing success.
Dry
Fly Fishing Times
The
fly fishing methods used for these wild
trout depend on the time of year that
you will be visiting. The months of
May - October provide dry fly action,
with the best fishing period being from
the end of June to the end of August.
The caddis hatches have to be seen to
be believed! Other insects that the
fish target are mayflies, cicadas, flying
ants, and stoneflies. The dry fly game
is best played with a 9ft 5-6 weight
rod, with floating lines, and long leaders
tapered to 5x. The sight of so many
large fish showing themselves so readily
will leave you shaken at first, but
you will be challenged as you start
picking out the fish that you want to
target. This can be a very exciting
time to fish, as you watch with anticipation,
as the large rainbows rise to the surface
to feed. This fishing is best done with
two anglers in the boat, as you will
be fishing the large back eddies and
drifting in the boat as you are casting.
Wet
Fly Fishing Times
 The
Columbia, being a tailrace fishery,
is fished from August, through the winter
months, and into May. Many of the largest
fish are taken during the spring, when
these bruisers, weighing up to 10lbs,
are feeding heavily on the baitfish
and large stonefly nymphs. You’re
not going to catch 10lb fish every day,
but they do average a very hefty 4-5lbs!
Even the smaller fish will leave you
breathless. Sometimes, all you can do
is watch your line disappear from the
reel as the fish swims for the other
side of fast flowing river. One of the
favored techniques is the use of spey
rods, which help you, get a little more
distance on this wide river, and also
aid in the mending of your long line.
You will be swinging your fly as you
would for steelhead…down and across…
and the take of these brute, fish will
surprise you every time! The lightest
tippet that you will be using for this
type of fishing will be 10lbs, as anything
less will have you being broken off.
The favored flies are sculpin and baitfish
imitations, stonefly nymphs, and any
of the popular steelhead and Atlantic
salmon flies, which can be effective
as well. Single hand rods can also be
used, but you must go up in size, with
8-9 weight rods in the 9-10ft range
being the most useful.
There
are three main types of Trout that reside
in the system. Gerrad, Cutbow and Redside,
along with some triploids that enter
from the US side of the river. Our professional
guide, Bruce Kruk, is a very well respected
Spey caster and an equally accomplished
single-hand angler. He will guide you
to the fish aboard his center-console
jet boat, which is perfect for fishing
2 anglers in the large back eddies of
the river. When swinging flies from
shore, we can comfortably accommodate
three anglers and the fishing gear.
If you would like some tips with your
Spey casting, Bruce will be more than
happy to help, teach and explain!
If
you like to fish on uncrowded and pristine
waters for wild, large and hard-fighting
trout, then the Columbia River is a
fly fishing adventure that you must
experience. Not to mention the unbelievable
and breathtaking scenery.
For
more information on booking this Adventure
with us or adding it to your existing
trip please contact us. we can arrange
flights (approx. 1.5 hours) from Vancouver
International Airport. For the more
adventurous and mobile angler, it is
a scenic 6 hour drive from our location
in Chilliwack BC.
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