Pink Salmon, video

[flickr video=3865446133]This video shows pink salmon fishing on a tributary of the Nash River in British Columbia.

Bull Trout, video

[flickr video=3864226290]The video shows a bull trout, commonly known as a Dolly Varden. I caught it at the confluence of French Creek and Deese River. The tourist guides and locals all call the fish, Dolly Varden. The regulations make a point of clarifying there are two distinct species, Dolly Varden and bull trout. There isn't much obvious difference between the two. The bull trout has a flatter, more triangular head (like a bull?) and a downturned mouth. The head is more dominant relative to the body. Typically only one species exists in a drainage. The Liard River/Peace River/MacKenzie Rivers ultimately flows into the Arctic Ocean and only contains bull trout, not Dolly Varden.

Arctic Grayling, video

[flickr video=3864165418]Caught my first Artic Grayling. They generally live above 60 degrees latitude. They occupy roughly the same biological niche as trout, but in a colder, more northern environment. Like trout, they hold in the river and primarily eat insects. They seem to like the slower water and their bite isn't as fast or definitive as a trout. This video shows a grayling I caught in Blind Creek.

Trip Home

After one more try for sockeye, we drove to Gandisle and Topley and took the Yellowhead Highway east to Prince George and then south on 97, eventually crossing the border and taking I-5 back home.

Babine River

On the advice of a friend, I wanted to fish "Rainbow Alley." As we checked into a cabin at Ft. Babine Lodge, the manager asked if we were here for the sockeye. She directed me to the "fence," an area downstream (north) of Babine Lake where the Nilkitkwa Lake empties into the River. Sure enough, cars filled a parking lot and a line of fisherman were throwing flies at sockeye salmon. From the bridge, you can see the salmon moving around. The "fence" is  a fish counting station.

After watching awhile and talking with the locals, I grabbed my rod and hurried down to the river. Lots of peple were catching salmon. The best beats were all taken. I found myself casting in swift current, trying to get my unweighted fly to the bottom. Nonetheless, I soon hooked one and broke my leader as the fish jumped in the air. I got several more strikes, but no fish to the net. I decided to move to another spot and tripped while straddling a tree that had fallen into the water. I was now wet with several liters of water in each wader foot. I went back to the car, took everything off and wrung it out. I found some heavier tippet and returned to the river. I fished another hour with many strikes and views of salmon leaping in the air in front of me, some with my fly in their mouth. Just before I left, I had one on and played it enough to get it into the shallows. But it too made a great final leap and broke my line. I thought about the advice I received on the Skeena: if you have the right equipment and you know what you are doing….

The following morning,

Smithers

Drove to Smithers and stayed the night. Got provisions an washed the car. Cute town. Good place to start a vacation.

Kispiox River

Drove from Terrace to New Hazelton and stayed the night. In the morning, the woman at the visitor center directed us  to the Kispiox River near the village of Kispiox. I fished the stream downstream of the rodeo grounds. The river was thick with pink salmon and I caught quite a few.

Skeena River

From Nass Camp, drove to Terrace on the Skeena River. Terrace is a (relatively) large town with auto dealerships, Canadian Tire and grocery stores. I visited the local fly shop and was directed to the Island Campground. On the northeast end of the Island, the fishermen were stacked up. I met a fisherman who talked with me while he put his (5-meter, 16-foot?) spey rod and related tackle together. He said the Island was as good as anywhere else on the Skeena and the top of the riffle was the best. The pinks were running; there were some sockeye; and the springers were mostly gone. "If you have the right equipment and the right technique, you catch them. If you don't, you don't. There are lots of fish." He was a tall man and took off with long strides with me struggling to keep up with him. Over his shoulder, he said, "The China man is the best. He is the real expert." Once we arrived to the sand bar and he saw the top of the riffle above the China man was open there was no keeping up with him. Like a lynx after a hare, he bounded forward.

I watched for an hour as the spey rods rhythmically beat the water. My tall buddy caught a fish within ten minutes.

New Aiyansh

Traveled south to Cranberry Junction and followed the Nass Forest Road to New Aiyansh. This is the Nass River Watershed, noted for its First Nation population and wilderness. A new road, the Nisgaa Highway was constructed during the past few years, creating bridges and opening up the area. We stayed at Nass Camp, an old logging camp from the 50s. It has the infrastructure to serve hundreds, but we were the only guests.

The river contained fish, pink salmon. Locals were fishing at the boat launch and at the confluence of the Ksi Sii Aks River (aka Tseax) and the Nass. We took a ride, stopping at the villages to look at totem poles. We drove to the end of the road to Gingoix at the estuary where the Nass runs into salt water, the Portland Canal. After watching the villagers and eagles, we headed back. On the way, we noticed lots of seals and eagles at a particular spot. We crossed a bridge over the Iknoule River aka Xnutsk River, stopped and looked down to see hundreds of pink salmon. After double-checking the (complicated) fishing regulations, we scrambled down through the dense undergrowth and were soon into them. Colored maribou streamers stripped slowly in the seam between fast and slow water did the trick. The following day, we timed our visit to low tide and fished the incoming tide. Around the bend below the bridge are a couple of pools at a bend. Dozens of fish would swim upstream in a pod, working their way to the spawning grounds. They were active and aggressive, visibly chasing down my fly. They were far easier to hook and fight than to land. My 7-weight bent double and the fish just pulled line out the drag. A couple of times bigger fish (or maybe a steelehead) took the fly way downstream. Many fish wouldn't fit into my net.

In the area, we saw lots of wildlife. Lots of eagles, maybe hundreds. I took a short walk after dinner and startled a large, black bear. One morning, we saw a bear cub with its mom. Mom marked its territory on a tree and the cub did the same. Also saw coyotes and red fox.

Stewart

Drove south on the Cassiar from Eddontenejon Lake near Iskut stopping at Kinaskan Provincial Park. Continued west to see Stewart and Hyder, AK. On the way to Stewart, stopped to see Bear Glacier. The Stewart Bear Festival was in progress, but was not particularly interesting. It was raining. The boardwalk on the estuary was enjoyable. Staying at the Prince Edward hotel was comfortable. Sockeye dinner at the Bitter Creek Cafe was wonderful. In the morning, drove 2 km. to Hyder, Alaska. Saw a bear (but not in the fee area for seeing bears). The bear ran, swam and chased some eagles away from a fish. Saw pink salmon spawning in the river. Unfortunately, the road to Salmon Glacier washed out several weeks ago and was closed.

Eddontenajon Lake

Drove south from Dease Lake on the Cassiar Highway to Iskut. Stayed at the Red Goat Lodge in a cabin for a few nights. No goats, only llamas. Canoed around the lake catching average-size rainbows--lots of them, as of 30 or 40 in a day. See www.redgoatlodge.com .

Telegraph Creek

Drove to Watson Lake and stayed in a motel. Took a day trip to Telegraph Creek. The Stikine River carved a narrow canyon that is worth seeing. At the confluence of the Stikine and Tanzilla Rivers is a natural basalt image of a bird with outstretched wings, an eagle. At that place, I watched as two eagles flew along the cliffs, caught a warm updraft, and circled higher and higher until they were almost out of sight.

The land belongs to the First Nation people, the Tahltan. They catch salmon with gill nets for a commercial fishery and have special rules for sports fishermen.

wildflower, photo

Photo taken on Ruby Mountain, near Atlin, B.C.

Fishing Equipment

I didn't know what fishing equipment I would need, but wanted to catch rainbows, grayling, Dolly Varden, pike and salmon. For the two of us, I took six fly rods (1-3 wt., 1-4 wt., 2-5 wt., 2-7 wt.) plus 2 salmon rods, 2 steelhead/pike rods, 2 lake rods and several spinning rods.

To carry all these rods, I built a special rack for the floor of the 4Runner. Made from plywood and 2x4s, it allows several 3" plastic sleeves (irrigation pipes) to hold all these rods. It keeps them available, prevents breakage and hides them from theft.

Dease River and French Creek

Camped several nights at French Creek Recreation Site, about Milepost 415. This small campsite is designed for canoers paddling the Dease River. It's a primitive site. We really like it. One night no one else was there. The other two nights, only one other party was there. Beware, there are lots of mosquitoes in a land where lots of mosquitoes are commonplace.

Caught large grayling, to 16" at the campground. Hiked down to the confluence with French Creek and caught bull trout.

Darkness. Dark, at last. Around 10 p.m. in my tent, in the trees, in the rain and clouds, it was so dark, I used my flashlight to read.

bison, photo

Little Rancheria River

From Atlin, drove back to Alaska Highway. I stopped to check out the Tagish River where it comes out of Tagish Lake near Highway 8 near Jake's Corner. The Marina was flooded out and is now being rebuilt. It was very hot (over 30 degrees) and the fish were reportedly 30 meters down. Under the right conditions, this would be a good fishery. Little Atlin Lake looks like it will be good after road construction stops.

Continued south on AK Hwy through Teslin, stayed at a noisy campground, near the Rancheria River. Fished the Little Rancheria near the bridge and caught grayling. Tried to find main stem by following logging roads to the north, but never did.

The two of us had burgers for lunch with water for $50 at Junction 37 and headed south on the Cassiar Highway. The weather was hot and dry. One local said, "All of the south Yukon is burning."

Atlin

From Whitehorse, drove to Atlin, the "Little Switzerland" of World Was II fame. Stayed at the Art Center with Gernot. Gernot apparently has some international fame as an artist, photographer and teacher. He is an outdoor enthusiast and at 74 is in better shape than most people (me). His school was based upon "living on the edge" whereby students had alpine experiences that influenced the way they see and create art. He personally built all the lodging including a guest house with two one-bedroom apartments. The view is stunning and panoramic. He has a large jet boat for excursions and a wealth of knowledge about the area; he provides charters.

I fished the stream between MacDonald Lake and Little MacDonald Lake and caught lots of small grayling. Also fished Surprise Lake where it drains into the creek and caught larger grayling. Reportedly Palmer Lake holds pike

Whitehorse

Went to Whitehorse to get provisions. Lots of people are in Whitehorse getting provisions, starting a trip, ending a trip and getting outfitted. The airport and visitor center are busy. Many tourists are from Germany and other European countries. Whitehorse is on the Yukon River with mountains all around it. I watched a parade on Main Street as I sat in the barber chair getting a haircut.

Faro, forward

Left Faro, following Campbell Highway. The forest fire was still burning. Checked out several places. Drury Creek Campground (site #10) looks good. Frenchman Road with Frenchman Lake looks good. Tatchun Creek Campground is too close to the Klondike Highway to be appealing (although an outfitter was setting up tents for some German tourists). Across from Tatum Creek is a rough road that leads to a First Nation Fish Camp and the confluence of the creek with the Klondike River. South of there is Five Finger Rapids which is worth stopping for and taking the hike down to riverside.

stone sheep, photo

our route, so far

Our completed route, as of August 7.

Europe When I'm Old

I met an inspiring couple at Whirlpool Rapids on the Liard River. They were gathering firewood to put in their aged camper. He was 78; she was 76. They were from Juneau, AK and were traveling on a road trip. As we talked, we found they were international travelers. In the past few years, they had gone up the Amazon, visited Antarctica, traveled to China, Tibet and Nepal (same trip I took), hiked the Annapurna Trail and spent six months throughout Peru.

When asked about Europe, he replied, "I'll go to Europe when I get old." After reflecting a few moments, he grinned and said, "Maybe, I better go soon."

Yukon Facts

Average Daily Hours of Daylight in July: 20 hours

Motorist Requirement: Drive with headlights on at all times

Population: 33,000

Number Moose: 50,000

Number Caribou: 160,000

Longest River: The Yukon River

Capital: Whitehorse

Blind Creek and Rose Creek

After getting the tire fixed, I fished Blind Creek and caught lots of grayling, mostly on caddis fly imitations. Decided to stay in the town campground. Ironically, the campground was quieter and felt more like the wilderness than the wilderness with the RVs.

In the morning, took an interpretive walk to the waterfalls. Faro was once a larger town of 1,500 people, but is now only 300. A large open pit mind for lead and zinc operated from 1968 to 1998. The town bills itself as Yukon's best kept secret. Aside from the vacant apartment buildings and mine site up the road, it is really nice with good views of the Pelly River Valley and the surrounding mountains.

Fished Rose Creek outside of Faro, above the mine site . Excellent grayling stream. Once you get past (and get over) the mine works, you are in a wonderful wilderness in the Tintina Trench. The Trench today is a migratory route for birds and other wildlife. Supposedly during the Ice Age, it remained ice-free and was the highway to Asia via the Beringia land mass (now the Bering Sea). Anyway, there was a baetis mayfly hatch and