Coho Salmon Fishing in Cowichan, BC

Coho fishing in Cowichan runs on a clear schedule. Numbers build slowly through spring while resident bluebacks feed out in the Gulf, dip a little in early summer as schools scatter, then ramp hard from August into a sharp September peak when mature Cowichan River fish stage off the estuary waiting on fall rain. October sees that abundance collapse as fish push into the river, and from November through winter you are down to a thin baseline. Plan your trip for June through October, and if you want the heaviest concentrations, aim at September.

We cover 12 spots that hold coho here. Active Pass, Cowichan Bay Flats, Cowichan Bay Reef, Danger Reefs, Enterprise Reef in Stuart Channel, Genoa Bay Area, Maple Bay at the mouth of Bird's Eye Cove and Maple Bay off Burial Islet all give you structure and moving water within a short run. Go at first light. The bite is strongest from just before sunrise through the first two hours of daylight, and again as the light fades in the evening. It tails off under a bright midday sun. Fish the run of the ebb or the flood, not the turn, and look for at least 1.5 knots. Dead slack is the worst of it.

Trolling dominates. Work flashers with hootchies, trolling spoons or anchovies in the top 60 feet off Sansum Narrows and the estuary. Bucktailing fast behind the boat draws hard strikes off the river mouth in late summer, and drift mooching cut-plug or whole herring works the tide lines and drop-offs of Satellite Channel.