Posts tagged 'Sturgeon'

Atlantic salmon fishing has a great legacy of time-honoured traditions and Canadian anglers are blessed with ...

The tip of the Shimano Clarus twitched ever so slightly. From where it rested in the jet boat's rod holder it could easily be just a reflection of the pulse of the North Saskatchewan River's demanding current - brown and swollen with mountain run-off and the inevitable June Alberta rains. 

Even though the lake sturgeon of the North and South Saskatchewan river systems is Alberta’s largest game fish, few anglers know much about it.

I had always imagined the Fraser as a huge river with a very swift current, rapids, waterfalls and drop offs. Actually the river itself is quite similar to our North Saskatchewan River in northern Alberta in many respects. It's the scenery that really sets the two rivers apart. The mountains, hundreds of bald eagles, and the salmon jumping at this time of year, make this boat ride an adventure in it itself. Although I have fished lots of lakes over the years and drifted the Bow and Red Deer Rivers in a drift boat, I gained a whole new respect for the guides who are navigating jet boats in this ever-changing river.

A fishing life usually starts like this. A new angler decides to go fishing and to begin with any species or fishing opportunity will do. The real goal is simply getting out and catching a fish, never mind what type or how many. A bend on the end of the rod is the measure of a good day. That's how I started and I can't count how many days I spent fishing the banks of the Fraser River near Chilliwack, BC. I caught suckers, bullheads, pike minnows, carp and on very rare occasion, trout. My experiences were very typical of a new angler.

The Fraser River near Chilliwack BC was the river of my youth. I fished it often, but almost exclusively from shore. As a kid dunking a hook and worm, I caught bullheads, suckers, pike minnows, catfish and if I was real lucky, the occasional trout.