The streams and lakes in the mountains are too turbulent, and fed by too much glacier and snow-water, to make the best fishing grounds. The guide-books of the railway speak highly of the fishing through the mountains, but there is better to be obtained lower down, and my advice to the traveller is to make no stop for fishing purposes until Sicamous is reached, at the head of Shuswap Lake where the Eagle River enters it. The Thompson River flows out of the lake at the other end, and the Shuswap Lake and Thompson River constitute the best fishing district of British Columbia, and will be the chief subject of the following pages.
It should be premised, however, that there is plenty of what may be styled "virgin water" in British Columbia besides the streams and lakes described in these pages. In a few years the Grand Trunk Pacific Railway will render accessible a network of rivers and lakes some four hundred miles to the north of the present line, and the addition to the angler's opportunities by this will, of course, be very great.
The cost of the fourteen-day journey from London to British Columbia will be at most £50 each way; it can be done for much less. There is no charge for the fishing, and ordinary living expenses are not high. One can stop at the hotels along the Thompson for 2 dollars a day, in Kamloops for 3 dollars a day, in the Canadian Pacific Railway hotels at 4 dollars to 6 dollars. There are no extra charges, except at the bar, which in British Columbia it is considered the duty of everyone to support liberally. A stranger will find that a few dollars spent judiciously and with tact in this way will usually be productive of quite astonishing results. In the West a drink puts everyone on equal terms, and at once establishes a feeling of camaraderie. It might be said to correspond somewhat to the old custom of offering the snuffbox.
The natives understand it as a sign that the stranger wishes to be on good terms, that he does not consider himself superior in any sense, that there is no side about him, that he is willing to drink with them as an equal. He will certainly receive a like invitation, and he must on no account refuse; to do so is an unpardonable violation of Western etiquette, even if everyone present insists on taking the part of host in turn. There is, however, no cause for alarm on the score of temperance, for it is quite de rigueur to ask for a cigar or to take a mere apology for a drink. If the stranger thus satisfies Western ideas of what is right and proper he will usually find that the individuals who had apparently hitherto regarded him somewhat in the manner that a strange dog seems to be looked at by his fellows in a new street will quite suddenly be most interested in his pursuit and most willing to help him in every possible way with advice as to someone who can tell him all about the river or lake and the best way to get there. Perhaps even the result may be an offer of a horse or hospitality for a night or two from some ranchman who may live near the place he wishes to get to. The people of British Columbia are, as a rule, most generous and open-hearted when they are approached in the right way. All men are equal in the West; there must be no question of standing on one's dignity.
As regards outfit in general (fishing tackle is dealt with later), it is the greatest mistake to take a lot of useless luggage. Any rough fishing suit will do, and a strong pair of boots. Waders are not needed, except in the coast rivers. Everything can be got in the country itself. The Hudson Bay stores or the general store which is found in every little town will provide everything that is wanted. My advice is to procure the outfit in the country itself, because they know best what is needed for the local wants.
CONTENTS.
| [CHAPTER I.] | |
| PAGE | |
The Rainbow Trout—Names—Distribution—Appearance—Sizein British Columbia—Its Food—Fly-fishing for—SportingQualities—Possibility of New Species beingDiscovered | 1 |
| [CHAPTER II.] | |
Season for Trout Fishing—Principal Districts—TackleNecessary—"No Drawing-room Work"—Advantage ofPlenty of Time—Poor Fishing in the Rockies—TheThompson River—The South Thompson—Its Courseand Character—Clear, Swift Water—Difficulty of LandingBig Fish—A Lost Thirty-pounder—The SuccessfulCherokee Fisherman—Fine, Calm Days Best forFishing—Mosquitoes not Troublesome | 9 |
| [CHAPTER III.] | |
The Kamloops District—Kamloops as Headquarters—MayFloods and Fishing in Shuswap Lake—Silver-bodiedFlies—Streams Running into the Lake—The EagleRiver—Advantages of a Steam Launch—A Big Catch—Possibilitiesof the Prawn—A July Spectacle—Fishingat Tranquille—Kamloops Lake—Savona's Ferry—GreatSport in June—Dolly Varden Trout—A Fifteen-Pounder—Falling-offof Sport when Salmon are Running—The"Salmon Fly"—Size of Catches on the Thompson—Augusta Bad Month | 20 |
| [CHAPTER IV.] | |
What is the "Silver Trout"?—Evidence in Favour of aNew Species—Difference in Appearance from theRainbow—A Jumper—Native of Kamloops and ShuswapLakes—A Bag of Twenty-four—The Dolly Varden—Originof the Name—Not a Free Riser—Grayling—Chuband Squaw Fish—Great Lake Trout—The SilverFish at Spence's Bridge—Salmon or Steel-head?—Cut-throatTrout—Possible Fishing Tour in BritishColumbia | 34 |
| [CHAPTER V.] | |
Other Lakes—Long Lake—Its Silvery Trout—Fish Lake—ExtraordinaryFishing—Fifteen Hundred Trout inThree Days—A Miniature Gaff—Uses of a CollapsibleBoat—Catching Fish Through the Ice—Mammit Lake—NicolaLake—Beautifully Marked Trout in NicolaRiver—"The Little Red Fish" | 46 |
| [CHAPTER VI.] | |
The Kootenay District—Sawdust and Dynamite—Fine Sportin Vancouver—Harrison River and Lake—Big Fish inthe Coquehalla—The Steel-head in the Fraser—Need forBetter River Protection | 65 |
| [CHAPTER VII.] | |
The Salmons of the Pacific—Legends Concerning Them—TheFive Species—Systems of Migration—Powers ofEndurance—Absence of Kelts—Do They Take a Fly?—TerribleMortality—"A Vivid Red Ribbon"—Pointsof Difference Between the Quinnat and Salmo salar—Workof the Canneries—Artificial Propagation | 72 |
| [CHAPTER VIII.] | |
The Diplomat and the Salmon—The Struggle for Existence—Salmonand Steel-head Liable to be Confused—Sportin Tidal Waters—The Campbell River—The Pioneers—ARiver of Fifty-Pounders—Smaller Salmon on theFly—Method of Fishing—Tackle—Typical Good Bags—TheSteel-head—Cost of Fishing—Dangers of Over-Fishingfor Canneries—A Good Trolling Time | 91 |
| [CHAPTER IX.] | |
Recapitulation of Salmon and Trout Problems—Importanceof Preserving British Columbian Fisheries—Possibilityof Introducing Atlantic Salmon—Question of AlteringPresent Close Season for Trout—Past and PresentNeglect of Trout Fisheries—Need for GovernmentalAction—Difficulties in the Way of it—Conclusion | 107 |
| [CHAPTER X.] | |
Tuna Fishing at Avalon, Santa Catalina Island | 118 |