Are you looking for the best places to go fishing in BC with May and can’t figure out where to start? Slow your horses, you’ve come to the right place. Below we lay out the best May fishing trips in BC close to Vancouver, some saltwater fishing options and some tips on how to make the most out of your trip.
FISHING NEAR VANCOUVER IN MAY
May is actually one of our most favourite months for fishing close to Vancouver because we can have some awesome freshwater and saltwater fishing during the month! For freshwater fishing we have a few options, the best is on the Squamish and Cheakamus rivers north of Vancouver. This is our home waters where we run our full-service fly fishing guide service and if river conditions hold then we can have killer days fly fishing for trout and steelhead. There is also some good lake fishing the Whistler region as ice comes off and a unique beach fly fishing experience that we offer on the beaches of Howe Sound. Another great May fishing option near Vancouver is saltwater salmon fishing. On our full-day 10 hour salmon trips we head over to the southern Gulf Islands and Thrasher Rock, where we can have double digit days fishing for Chinook (king) Salmon in the 10-20 pound class. It is one fo the most underrated fisheries of the year and if conditions are right then it is a superb Vancouver fishing trip in May. There is also some good sturgeon fishing in May, generally early in the month before Fraser River water levels get too high.
SALTWATER SALMON FISHING IN BC DURING MAY
Saltwater salmon season is in full swing on BC’s south coast and Vancouver Island but late May also marks the opening of lodges on BC’s north coast and Haida Gwaii. There are some lodges that open in late May, offering all-inclusive salmon fishing trips with accommodations, fishing, meals and flights from Vancouver. This lodges operate right through September and it is generally advisable to aim for a trip a bit further into the season. May is the month that Yos and Tommy head to Langara Island Lodge, a get ready for their guiding season there, the Langara season starts in late May. If you’re simply looking for a saltwater day charter, then the options around Vancouver are good in May or you can venture over to Vancouver Island. By May most of the charter operations on the Island are fired up and ready to go. There are plenty of options, as Island Pursuit Sport Fishing in Comox and Coastal Wilderness Adventures in Campbell River are in operation. There’s also Vancouver Island Lodge, which offers affordable salmon fishing packages and they are open in late May ready to welcome guests.
BC LAKE FISHING IN MAY
If you’re planning a river fly fishing trip in May there is the concern of high water events, especially later in the month. This is due to warmer temperatures and melting snow. The warm temps raise freezing levels and the accumulated snow from the Winter months begins to melt and enter BC’s many river systems. This is okay to a point, but it can cause rivers to ‘blow out’, meaning they are to high to fish. In that case there are usually lots of freshwater lake fishing opportunities around BC, especially in the interior region around Merritt and Kamloops, trout fishing meccas in BC. Closer to Vancouver there is some good lake fishing in Whistler and Pemberton. If you’re interested in a May fly fishing trip to BC but worried about river condition, drop us a note and let us know what your timing looks like and we’d be happy to give you some local insight into the best possible options for a trip.
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