Vancouver Island

[Morph1]

I just have general question,
I will be going to Victoria for about a month, what are the trout lakes like out there , I only fish lakes and may try some streams, does anyone have any reference to the island and fresh water fishing.

thanks for any info guys,

Cheers

[dss44]

I'm not too familiar with Vic area...but I know up island there are ridiculous amounts of lakes full of tasty cutthroats wanting to be caught....

[BBJTKLE&FISHINGADVENTURES]

as well here not to sure down by Victoria but kniow a few good spots up island campbell river ares and qualicum beach, heck theres a few places outside of Qualicum beach with Bass and I tell you thats alot of fun.

[fishman]

There is a lake right beside the road from Sydney to Victoria that has cutts in it i fished it and had good luck, only lake i have fished in that area

[Unregistered user]

That's elk lake, bass in it as well. Thetis lake is great trout and bass too. Many bikinis in both.

[maligne]

from the elk lake derby. theres tons of trout fishing out here.
http://www.sportfishingbc.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=9149

[fishing101]

I wouldn't waste your time fishing for trout on the island. If you want to catch little tiny dinks then try it out, but the best bass fishing of the season is starting. If you have a boat elk and beaver should be on fire. There is a ton of other lakes on the island with really good bass fishing. Take a look at this website. www.wcba.ca. It will have all the information you need. Also, check out this site a lot of the guys live and fish on the island. www.bassfishingbc.com.

[Josh IVC]

I have a related question I was going to post anyway: I am heading to Tofino in late June. A day will be spent trying to learn how to surf, but the rest I plan to spend fishing. Anybody flyfished around there that can offer info? I've been reading up on it, but some firsthand info can't be beat. We are chartering a boat for a day too, so any advice/stories on that would also be appreciated.

First big fishing trip of my life, so I want to make the most of it.

[Islander]

There is good fishing in several lakes/rivers around the South Island. Good rainbows in a small lake on the top of Triangle Mtn near Colwood. Also Matheson Lake near Sooke has some nice rainbows and cutts. I usually used bait while out with the boy on those lakes. I preferred to float tube/flyfish up around Cowichan on the small mountain lakes, especially during the summer. I grew up fishing the Cowichan River as well, and thats usually a good bet. The Backroad Mapbook for the Island has a fair bit of info on the fishing in the area.
Good Luck:)

[hondo40]

I'd love to be in the Victoria area right now as the smallmouths should really be getting active. I've had some good luck in Prospect Lake, casting along shore, especially under docks, while laughing at all the trollers using their expensive gas searching for small trout. In recent years, I "discovered" Shawnigan Lake which is about 1/2 hour N. of Victoria. On my initial trip I landed 2 bass that came close to 5 lbs. each in the first hour or two. Both came out from under a dock to grab my wooley bugger. It's exciting fishing, to say the least, especially when they take to the air, which can always be expected. Another of my favorite trips is to Salt Spring Island. The road to the ferry is only a short distance N of the turn-off to Shawnigan. St. Mary's Lake gets the headlines, and they are well deserved. You can often catch a lot of feisty smallmouths in a hurry, but the average size is much smaller than in Shawnigan. An added bonus are the husky rainbows that occasionally grab your fly. I also like Cusheon Lake. Hit it right and you should hook some bruisers from under the docks. And there are even a couple more lakes to explore. I'm salivating now as I wait for the lakes here (Invermere, BC) to thaw out.

[Remi]

I went to University in Victoria and although I spent way more time playing hacky-sac than I did fishing, I did manage to find a few good spots close to Vic to fish. I always did well at Dougan Lake (the one right off the highway on the way to Duncan, I think someone mentioned it). Good sized CTTR but noisey. I really liked fly-fishing for small-mouth bass in Durrance Lake (on the way to Sidney). Don't know if it's any good anymore but back when I was in school it wasn't too crowded (not like Thetis, Elk or Prospect) and the smallies hit minnow patterns hard! A bit further in the same direction is Pease Lake. Beautiful little lake (next to impossible shore fishing, due to lilly pads and big-ass trees, but great with a belly-boat). The trout in there aren't huge but easily caught. If you like river fishing you should hit the Cowichan (it's got it all). For maps you should look at the BC Fish Wizard http://www.fishwizard.com/. Hope this helps.

Now I'm going to hi-jack this a bit - I'm going to Vic in June and I'm wondering if there are any good opportunities to fish the salt then (middle to end of June). Does anyone know a good site to get some salmon or halibut info? Thanks.

Remi

[lenardobc]

try sportfishing bc forums. lots of good info on the salt as well as freshwater too! cheers, hope this helps. len.

[Morph1]

thanks guys for replies,

I had a look at the bc forums, and hey I'll try some bass fishing LOL,

Cheers !