2024 Fishing Season Report

The 2024 season is in the books and looking back the fishing was as good as you hope it could be. Lots of nice Chinook during the early spring when each April and May I target Chinook in the protected and calm waters in the Sidney area. Sidney is close to the Victoria airport and the ferry terminal that connects to Vancouver. April and May can be breezy months on the west side of Vancouver Island, making trips from there less comfortable for guests or even the risk of not getting out. The past 2 seasons we have found Chinook up to 27 pounds during this time period. This year, our largest Sidney Chinook went 23 pounds. The other consideration is that from April 1st until August 1st you cannot retain a Chinook salmon in Sooke waters (except for a very small area in Becher Bay). In Sidney and Victoria waters, you can retain 1 hatchery Chinook per person from April 1st to May 31st. Most people prefer that option.

Sidney is a tide change fishery with most of the action happening either side of the current’s swing in direction. That means it is not always an early morning fishery. Depending on the week in a month it is very possible to catch an early ferry from Vancouver, drive the 10 minutes to Sidney to meet me there at the dock, hit the tide and go back the same day. Just call and ask me what the tides are doing and I'll let you know. Most of the Chinook at this time are in the 9- to 18-pound range with a minimum size limit of 62 cm or 24 1/2 inches. There is no upper size limit but it does have to be a hatchery fish to retain it. Most of the trips at this time are 4 hours long with the tide change in the middle of the trip. Any longer and you have a long wait for the next tide change with not much activity until then.

As of June 1st we move back to Sooke waters to fish for the large mature Chinook migrating in from open waters and through Juan De Fuca Strait on the way back to their native rivers to spawn later in the fall. For the past few years it has been a catch and release fishery until August 1st except for Coho salmon, of which you are allowed 2 hatchery fish per person at this time. Prior to August 1st we typically target the larger Chinook so customers can battle these hard-fighting fish and get a picture of them along side before being turned loose. Towards the end of the trips we switch tactics and gear and look for some Coho to bring back for a fresh salmon meal or two. Coho at this time are 3-6 pounds. The nice thing about fishing during this period is that we often have the local Chinook hot spots almost to ourselves as many locals wait until August 1st before fishing these spots. I'm guessing most can't justify the rising costs of fuel and bait to fish for something you can't bring home. I can understand that but my thinking is, "I'm not going to give up years of my fishing passion because I can't keep them. We all only have so many fishing seasons before we can't fish anymore. I'm not wasting any of them". Besides, fishing is supposed to be 80% fun and 20% bring fish home. If the 80% isn't important then just go to the store and buy it...it is cheaper. Most people I take out agree with this.

This summer my largest Chinook we let go would have been just under 30 pounds. Any fish over 30 pounds has become rare in the past 15 years or so. I didn't do a 2023 report so I will mention that on one day in July that summer we landed and released 6-7 Chinook with one over 30 pounds and one that would have gone 40. So they still exist but you have to be out there on the right day at the right time. On that day I was the only boat at this spot all morning. The odds go way up in your favour when no one else is catching them first. Another reason I like fishing during this time.

Of course it all changes on August 1st when every person with a boat that has seen little use all summer hit the water. It's lucky for everyone that August is one of the best months for many runs of larger Chinook. Even with the heavy boat traffic and gear in the water we still manage to get good numbers of fish. In August, you are allowed 1 hatchery Chinook up to 80 cm or just under 20 pounds on average. You can also still keep 2 hatchery Coho in August and they have grown with most being 5 to 12 pounds and the odd one even larger. The Chinook fishing this past August was stellar with good numbers of fish in the boat most days. We released 18 fish for the month over the 80 cm limit and kept our per person limit that were under 80 cm most days. Towards the end of the month some nice larger Coho salmon showed up (up to 13 pound) but most were wild and had to be released.

Once we got into September the daily limit is increased to 2 Chinook per person with no upper size limit and you can keep both wild or hatchery fish. At this time Chinook numbers are still good but bites are shorter in duration with the starting to become more fussy. Many early September Chinook are white flesh salmon from the Harrison River, now marketed as Ivory salmon. This instantly made them trendy and worth more per pound. Oh, those marketing people! They are good table fish and often are the largest we see all season. The largest from the area in my time went 67 3/4 pounds and was taken in late September. I know of others over 60 pounds that were caught in September as well.

By the middle of the month more effort is put into targeting the more plentiful Coho which are now full grown and heading towards their spawning rivers. Coho run in good numbers until about the 3rd week of October. On October 1st daily limits increase from 2 hatchery per person to 4 per person of which 1 may be a wild fish. This fall many Coho were larger than average. Lots of 10 to 14 pound fish. However I didn't see anything over 15 pounds this past fall. In previous years I've had them up to 23 pounds and lost one at the side of the boat that was larger than that. It was wild and would have had to been released anyway but it would have been nice to have got a picture to verify the story! So you never know as those big guys are out there at that time. There are trips at this time when fishing Coho that it is non-stop action. And I mean non-stop...no time for a coffee just fish after fish as fast as I can get rods in the water. I took my website guy out a couple years ago and in 5 hours we played 69 Coho, keeping our 6 hatcheries, 2 wilds and releasing the rest. We were exhausted after, at least I was.[Note: Website guy was completely bushed too - that was EPIC in anyone's book!!]

November is the quietest month of the year summer spawning salmon are in the rivers and winter Chinook have not quite arrived yet. November is typically wet and windy so it is a good time to take a break anyway. The winter Chinook fishery begins for most locals in December and extends into early May. From September 1st to March 31st you are allowed 2 Chinook per person with just a minimum size limit in place. If lots of bait moves into Juan De Fuca Strait during this time, which it often does the fishing is off the charts. These are feeding and aggressive fish which are also in prime condition for the table. This winter so far has been very good with some nice size fish hitting the marina cleaning tables. Any winter Chinook over 10 pounds is a nice fish and one that fights like crazy on light tackle. They will get up over 20 pounds you just have to find them.

Our boat the "Spring Fever" has a comfortable enclosed cabin, cabin heat, a toilet and good music if you want it. That means even in winter, you are warm and dry and enjoying the time on the water. Obviously all trips are weather/wind dependant and as I get older and maybe smarter my decisions to go out or not is based on...will it be enjoyable and fun or miserable and going out just to get paid. It has to be fun and if not try again another day when it will be. 2025 is my 39th year in business as a full-time fishing charter operator/fishing guide. My god, I'm getting old!!! I'll have to think of something special for 2026 when I hit 40 years.

I hope to see many of my long time fishing clients again this year...because you are not getting any younger either!!! lol!

Cheers everyone and tight lines, I hope 2025 is a great year for you all!

...Rollie Rose