The 2017 season has come to a close for us at Kalum River Lodge. It has been a special year with the opening of our new lodge right on the banks of the Skeena River.  The bespoke lodge with it’s single ensuite bedrooms,  spacious lounge, decks and dining areas was a big hit. Our long time guests and first time visitors gave us glowing reviews about the new lodge.

We are already looking forward to the 2018 season and seeing everyone back again. Our first trips start in late March through to early May for spring Steelhead. It is a great time to be here in pursuit of these prized feisty fish.

By mid-June our first summer Chinook arrive and by July our summer season is in full swing.

As summer roles on the Skeena Steelhead run begins and multiple salmon species are in the river.

By late summer the Steelhead, Coho and trout are in the tributaries and our guests are out fishing multiple rivers. For the more adventurous anglers we have our wilderness camp options too.

There is no lack of good fishing stories from the Skeena region – what’s impressive is that a lot of them are true!

Many anglers join us this time of the season in the pursuit of large Northern Coho. These powerful salmon run up the rivers late autumn.  This week some rainy days brought the rivers up and enabled our guides to venture up some of the smaller rivers. Jet boating up these shallow rivers to the fishing spots is an exhilarating experience.

Kalum River Lodge’s guests Andrew and Pauline fly fished several different rivers and got to see some of the area’s most stunning scenery.

Our guests had some great fishing for Coho this week.  Jim and Makino were out fishing different rivers for Coho. They enjoyed the stunning scenery and great fishing. At one point they had a double-header and both anglers landed their salmon.

Stunning scenery, cuddly bears and silver fish was the order of the week. Our guests were overwhelmed with the beautiful rivers and waterfalls running through the rugged mountain valleys. Sight fishing for large Coho in these remote rivers is an exciting adventure. At this time of the season we fish a variety of different rivers including the Skeena and it tributaries. The autumn colours provide a spectacular background to fish in.

“The Luck of the Irish” was  working well this week at Kalum River Lodge!  For John Joe, Terence and Micky it was their first time salmon fishing.  On their first day they were out on the Kitimat getting familiar with spey casting and each of them caught their first salmon. And they didn’t stop there……each day they were hooking and fighting fish. Thank you gentlemen for coming all that way to join us and for such a fun week filled with laughter.

All the rivers were in good condition this week and were fishing well. Our guests fished three or four different rivers during their trip and got to enjoy the stunning scenery and beautiful autumn colours. With good catches of Steelhead and Coho there were a lot of smiling faces!

On Sunday the 10th we had unprecedented rains which meant the majority of the rivers were high and muddy on Monday morning. Whilst other anglers returned to their lodges, Kalum River Lodge guides took our guests out fishing to places that were still fishable despite the high water. It is at times like this when our years of experience and unique knowledge come into their own and set us apart from other operations. Everyone was into fish and some nice Coho were landed despite the tough conditions.  As the week went on the rivers started to come back into shape and our guests were out catching Coho and Steelhead.  And here are some photos to prove it!!!

Marcus returned for his 12th season at Kalum River Lodge. He was joined again by Troy (10th season), Thomas (9th season) and Kermit (7th season).  After meeting each other at the lodge, the guys have become friends and enjoy fishing together here every summer. Along with our other returning guests and some guests fishing with us for the first time the lodge was buzzing! Our anglers fly fished different parts of the Skeena over the two weeks and landed many Steelhead, Coho, Pink and Sockeye salmon. Thank you all for joining us again, it was a lot of fun. Sadly the two weeks with everyone went by too fast………….but they will be back next year to do it all again!

Father and son team, Phil and Connor came to fish for a few days. New to spey fishing, the guys went out with our expert guides and in no time at all they were fishing and catching.  To top off their trip they were lucky to see a Kermode bear on the river bank. Phil wrote in our Guest Book that it was “the best fishing on the planet and can’t wait to come back!”.

This time every year our long-time guests return to fish the Skeena for two weeks. Many friendships have been forged over the years at the lodge and it is always a special time for us when these guests return to fish together again. Here are just a few catches from the first week, more photos to follow…….

Another great week with LaMoyne Hyde and his group of anglers (now fondly known as “Hyde Week”). It is always an enjoyable week for the anglers and the Kalum River Lodge Team. Lots of Coho were caught this year as well as some nice Steelhead. We would like to thank LaMoyne and J.Ann of Hyde Drift Boats for organizing the trip and joining us again.

More familiar faces in this week’s report as our regular guests return to fish the amazing Skeena. With good catches of Steelhead and Coho everyone had a productive week. For Derk and his family it was their first fishing trip here. The fly fishing family had a great time out with the guides catching a variety of salmon and Steelhead. It is nice to see younger anglers having so much fun out on the river.

Our anglers have been out enjoying the sunny weather and some good fishing. Out on the Skeena River the guys have been hooking a lot of fish. The catches this week included some large Pink salmon, as well as Coho and Steelhead.  The numbers for returning Steelhead are looking very good this season so our anglers have a good chance of hooking some super Steelies over the up and coming weeks.

It has been another great week of action for Kalum River Lodge anglers. Steelhead catches have been getting better by the day as more fresh fish head up the river. As well as Steelhead our guests have been catching plenty of salmon. The summer fishery offers bright silver fish full of energy that will challenge even the most seasoned anglers.
Many thanks to the guys from Henry’s Fork Foundation for such a pleasant week and we are looking forward to seeing them again next year.

It has been another great week with our hosted Sportquest anglers. The group landed all five species of salmon during their trip with many anglers setting personal records for their biggest fish and the most caught.

Our new lodge on the Skeena River provided all the anglers with single ensuite rooms which is very popular with all our guests. After a good day’s fishing everyone relaxed in the spacious lounge or gathered around the bar to swap stories about the catches or the big ones that got away.
Thanks again to everyone for joining us and we are already looking forward to seeing you next season.

We had a great week with our guests from Argentina. There was plenty of salmon action including a lot of really big Chum.

It’s not just about the fishing! You can see a lot of wildlife whilst out on the river. Luckily one of our guests had his camera at the ready!

It’s Chum Time!!  These large, aggressive and hard fighting fish are affectionately known as the Pit Bulls of the salmon species. And this week our guests found out why!  Fly fishing for these strong fish is great fun. The guys hooked into some huge Chum which jumped out of the water before heading down river leaving their reels screaming!  Here are just some of the fish landed. With their striking colours, a photo of a Chum salmon is definitely one for the album.  The guys landed some nice sized Pinks too.  It was a great week with our returning and first time guests – thanks guys! We look forward to “Chumming” with you again next year!!

After a great trip last year Javier returned to fish with us again with his son David. Both anglers enjoyed their time out on the river and had fun spey fishing for the first time. The new spey anglers caught some great fish during their trip.

Great people, great fun and great fishing!  Chum, Coho, Chinook and Pink salmon came to the bank for our anglers this week. There were plenty of fishing tales told around the dinner table each night!

Regis and Pierre loved fishing the Kitimat River. On their first day out they both beat their personal best records for their biggest salmon. And the fishing just got better as the week went on!  Fighting large powerful Chinook and Chum salmon on the Spey rod is a lot of fun and the guys enjoyed a lot of action. They were impressed by the strength of the Chum, and Regis said that they had been living the adventure they were looking for. Hope to see you again next year!

Our anglers have spent the week on the Kitimat River and the fishing has been superb. July is a great time to be fishing the Kitimat which is enjoyed by anglers for huge Chinook and Chum salmon and large runs of feisty Pink salmon.  Our guests hooked a lot of fish and several Chinook and Chum over 20lb were landed. By the end of the week our anglers had caught all five species of Pacific salmon. Here are just some of the photos from the week.

Our summer season got underway with the arrival of our first guests a couple of days ago.  Returning guest Andrew usually fishes with us for summer Steelhead in August but for his fourth trip here he came to fish for the big Chinook salmon. After a day out on the river with our guide Glen Kilcup, Andrew returned to the lodge this evening with a big smile and a great photo of a 20lb plus Chinook! He also landed some nice Chum and Pink salmon. Well done Andrew!!

It was Phil’s first fishing trip with us and his first time fly fishing. On his first day he caught his first ever Steelhead! After that there was no stopping Phil and he went on to land Chinook and Steelhead during his three days out on the rivers.

We had a great five days with father and son, Robert and Rhett. During their stay they landed Steelhead every day and on the last day they caught both Chinook salmon and Steelhead. Being a professional photographer, Robert took some great shots of their catches.

It is always a pleasure to host father and son trips and to have two or three generations of fishers joining us. It is good to know that the passion for fishing is being passed down through the generations.

Winter has been taking a while to leave us this year but the sun is shining and the skies are blue. Our anglers landed a few Steelhead although the fishing was slow with the cooler temperatures. The trout, however were biting well and the guys landed some good sized fish each day.

Spring is just around the corner. Warm days draw us to the river for those winter Steelhead lurking in their winter runs. There is nothing like the solid pull of a powerful Steelhead on a tranquil river to get the adrenaline going. It isn’t just the fish but the ambiance of the setting that truly makes these special moments. Here are a few shots of our guides doing what they love. Our spring guiding season starts in a few weeks – why not join us to experience spring Steelhead or Chinook fishing at it’s best?

The Skeena region has had it’s share of cold temperatures this winter. Every time it warms up our guides are out enjoying the winter days on the river. Steelhead fishing has been good this winter and we are already looking forward to our spring season. It’s not long and we will be getting fresh ocean run Steelhead coming up the numerous coastal rivers. We starting guiding in late March through to early May for these superb fish. After a long winter, spring is one of our favourite times with mint bright Steelhead and sea run trout. Fishing is variable at this time of year as the fish are sensitive to temperatures and water levels but when it is on it is great! Stay tuned for updates!