Laying Down The Line
The wind was easterly to southeasterly in the morning of Day 1 and it didn’t take long for nature to provide us with the bounty of its waters. The ocean was calm and rippled as the Peregrine Lodge fleet made its way to the fishing grounds. The first boats to stop dropped gear near Cape Naden. Guides Mike and Greg trolled with downriggers and weighted rods, tacking along through the Haida Gwaii mist. The first Chinook caught was 29 pounds by Tom and guide Greg. Tom also kept a Halibut to add to day 1’s catch and won the catch of the day with his 29’er. Dave was happy after he fought and landed a 27 pound chinook, while Peter was not out done by matching Dave’s 27 pound Chinook and raised the bar with a Halibut as well. Four other guests caught and took home Chinook 20 pounds or bigger. Adding to the count were more than 20 Coho between the group, Cod, Sole, and a 30 pound Halibut by Pam. A excellent day one as 3 groups/boats caught their limits for the day of Salmon and many other boats came close.
On day 2 we saw two Tyees caught by two different guests. As the morning low tide dropped out and the west northwest breeze blew through, guide Billy brought Ryan in his first Tyee and Max did the same for his guest William- who gleamed with pride to join in on the Tyee party. Billy and his guests did their bidding for the their Tyee off of Cape Edenshaw and Max and William worked together not far away around the best Salmon fishing spots near shore of Clashwun and Shag Rock. The first Tyees of the trip outshined the much more numerous Coho taken by the group. Among the other species of fish caught on day 2 were 6 Coho that were caught and released by Bruce and Fawn. The westerly north-westerly nautical winds continued in the afternoon and day two proved to be as rewarding for the adventurous group as day one. The catch of the day was shared by Ryan and William with their Spring Salmons weighing in at 30 pounds.
Day 3 was full of Coho, Spring, Halibut, and Cod being caught at various locations, inshore and offshore. After our guest Cody was guided to a Spring and 3 Coho he was guided offshore to Halibut Hill. A 11 foot high tide and 10 knot westerlies established good conditions to fish for the Halibut Cody needed to fill his quota. In the spirit of a recent aforementioned engagement, Cody was guided by his future brother -in-law, Ryan, and caught two Halibut. One that he could keep and the other 118 cm, to big to keep for Cody but not too big to remember as a great catch and release. The best fishing grounds deserve the best stewardship. Bill won the catch of the day with a 29 pound ‘take home’ Spring.
Day 4 is always a short day on the water for our guests, but non the less 2 Tyee’s were claimed on the water and released back into the wild. Billy guided Ramone to a 36 pound Spring Trevor guided Hans to the 42 pound Spring and claimed the biggest catch of the trip with a 42 pound Spring Tyee. Ramone and Billy teamed up again on day 4 to catch and release a 36 pound spring to challenge Hans for the title. Ramone joins the Tyee club and will go home knowing he contributed to the resilience of our precious Haida Gwaii ecology.
Thanks again to all of our amazing and gracious guests. Our shared memories, on and off, the water will stay with us forever as you tell of your fishing adventure to your friends and family.
Your trip has made ours brighter.