by Chris Hopkin

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In the theatre of your mind, picture a pair of sport fishermen fishing salmon near the Tsawwassen ferry slip. With tides and wind it can be a bit tricky as to which side of the border you're on at any given moment.

Without Loran or GPS, it would be very easy to stray into one country or the other without knowing. Whether they launched or started from Canadian or US shores also has a major bearing on things. A fisheries officer from either side would have quite a challenge trying to sort everything out. If they catch a chinook near the border, do they keep it? How about a coho? If they have any difficulty identifying the different species they're really in trouble.

The somewhat absurd situation arises from the different closures in the area for each country. Chinook are open in Canada while coho and sockeye are not. On the US side (could be 30 metres away) chinook are closed and coho and sockeye are open. The only thing constant is the requirement for barbless hooks. The reason it becomes an issue is because a small run of coho has moved into the area, with the shore fishermen and trollers off Point Roberts getting and keeping one or two each time out. For health reasons, I haven't been out lately but if I were fishing on the US side which I often do, you can bet I would be releasing all coho. These fish might well be heading for the Fraser River.

It's ridiculous that grown men and women (fisheries scientists) on either side of the border can't agree on which salmon to protect. There are no Stuart River sockeye near the border at the moment but they could show up any day.

Talking about things showing up, Active Pass is completely barren of spring salmon and Porlier Pass is apparently not much better at the moment. It's high time some fish moved into these areas. (Killer whales have been around Active too much lately!)

One very positive piece of news came from a chat with chief of Recreational Fisheries, Terry Gjernes, who said there are plenty of chinook entering the Fraser River with sport fishermen there doing quite well. By the way, if any sports folks are caught with even one sockeye along the river bank, the whole river could well be shut down.) These chinook must be sneaking through in deep water across Georgia Strait from Johnstone Strait as they certainly aren't coming near the Gulf Islands or Bowen where most of us fisher folk are. At least they're entering the river which of course is the most important thing.

As mentioned before, Capilano coho are showing up and can be retained. While not all boats are having luck there, the ones that persist and work at it are doing quite well. Use small (seven inch) cutplug herring fairly near the bottom for best results. (Don't forget the barbless hooks.)

With salmon fishing quite slow in our immediate locale, more and more boats over 20 feet have been venturing around to Sooke and Port Renfrew to spend a few days where there's a better chance of getting into some good chinook fishing. Call me at 943-3478 for up to the minute info on these areas, as I have spies on the lookout for me. At about 35 kilometres per hour, it takes about three hours to run around; it's a matter of picking the right weather. Up at Renfrew you can sleep on the boat at the marina, with space for the overflow to pitch a tent on shore.