Atlantics

no stories from me on catching them but i've targeted them twice in the famous marimichi, chetacamp and margaree rivers. but there was no water both times, so not too many fish. but i did have a mature salmon hit water about 10 ft. from a bomber that i was floating in a nice run. we continued for 3 hrs after that trying to get this magnificent fish to strike or atleast show itself to us again. we were unsuccessful though. it was definitely a rush though to say the least. i think i can say that it was worth the week long trip just to see that. my father ended up hooking 2 and landing 1 while 5 others of us had no luck... i don't know when, but my next salmon destination will be the restigouche in quebec where 30 pound wild salmon aren't uncommon...my father took a 19 pound female there 2 years ago.

well i heard a lot of outfitters have been slashing there prices with the economy. i don't know what his rates are, but jim rusher guides the madapedia in quebec along with other rivers. my father saw him up there 2 years ago and told him he was staying at a camp and jim said he was crazy for doing that being that there is a lot of public water there, and unlike some rivers/or provinces, a guide is not required. so you can kinda customize a trip yourself maybe by going a few days with a guide and then exploring some water yourself.

mickey fin is definitely a classic. the water is up right now and has been 750 plus for a bunch of days now. i'd love to be swinging some mickey fins right now.

Well the boarf finaly decided to let me on.
While never fishing for the I have taken 3 in 30 years.
While I don't remember the timeframe exactly I sure do remember the fish.
First one wasprobaly early 80s in the old(before the flood changed what is now douglaaston)wall hole (now the glide). Three stepup pools each a bit smaller than the last. Fishing a classic steelie pattern, green butt skunk, a fish took harg jumped immediately and smashed it self on the wall, it calmed down alot after that and a short tug of war later it was on the bank.
Secong one was in the lower clay. A friend was taping me catching steel when one jumped on my skykomish sunrise. This was late oct or early nov am
nd he was pretty dark and never had the getupandgo of the first. It is pretty gool to fire up the oldvcr and see it though.
Last one came while fishing the lower zone (veterans pool when the little bench was still there to sit on and swap stories). While trying to intice some coho to the top to take a small blue and white deerhair streamer one took on the run and made for the lake. This was a hot little fish that jumped a few times and made some short but sizzling runs.
Biggest of them might have been 8 pounds.

The only one I ever targeted was in my home trib. Walking across a bidge we spotted one in the low teens finning in a pocket in some rapids. Two friends and I took turns spotting while the other two worked everything in our boxes at it from both sides. Finaly it moved to my friends large dry. It didn't take and then was gone.

yeaaaa, my favorite subject ......

Other than fishing for Atlantics on the Gaspe Peninsula, where you expect to catch them, I've had fair success on the Salmon River with these beautiful fish. Most of the Atlantics I've hooked and/or landed have been during the summer months, July thru Sept. , some with tags, but most without.

Over the last twenty years I've hooked up with a dozen or more large Atlantics(over 7 lbs), with my largest coming one early Sept. about ten years ago. I was fishing a hackled stonefly pattern with an upturn hook, casting to undercut banks. It was a cool bluebird late summer day with hardly anyone around and I had hooked a few Kings earlier on nymph patterns but was now searching for a Skam or feeling lucky, an Atlantic.

After about a 1/2 hour with this pattern I wasn't having any action so I fiqured I give it one more cast. Seeing a nice cut along the bank where the river was undermining roots from a tree, I layed out a soft 30 ft cast with slack in the line. The hackle stood up nice with a good landing and then everything exploded, I was caught dreaming. Suddenly, I realized I had a big fish on, a big Skamania and I had too much slack in my line. I pulled line in and got the fish on my reel as fast as I could and by this time it had already leaped 3 times, I could then see that this very bright fish was no Skam, but indeed a large Atlantic. Adjusting my drag and softly getting a good hook set, I battled this baby for another 15 minutes while she leaped another dozen times, taking me down river and then back up river. Wanting to get her in quickly I applied pressure and landed her along some sedges to keep her in the water. No camera, but had a tape and measured her, 35 inches, bright female, no marks, no tags. What a beauty!!  Just then a couple a fisherman came along to see my catch, they all thought it was a skam but I showed them her Atlantic markings. A slow release and she was back in the river. Lit up a cigar and sat on the bank for an hour just enjoying the river, surroundings and went back to my dreaming.

Tight Lines,

OldSalt

 
 
This Atlantic was caught in 2009

nice atlantic salt. i'd love to make the gaspe peninsula one day. my father took a 19 lb. in the restigouche 2 years ago. he was thrilled.