Whether for sport or food-gathering, Gabriola Island is a playground for fisher folk. It's one of the top Gulf Island destinations for picking and eating fresh oysters, mussels and clams straight off the beach. Try dropping traps for prawns and Dungeness crab. Surrounding waters swim with salmon, halibut, ling cod, rock cod, snapper, octopus and other delicacies.
Premium Catches
Chinook, Coho and Sockeye salmon are premium catches on Gabriola. The fisherman's grail is the "tyee", in Aboriginal parlance a salmon weighing 13.61kg/30lb or more.
Fishing Lingo
First, a primer in the fishermen's lexicon: The slang for fishing is "mooch." A secluded bay is a "gunk." The lure is a "hoochie." A big fish is a "hawg." A point rife with fish is a "honey hole." Anybody can speak the lingo.
Where to Fish on Gabriola Island
An excellent spot to begin is Silva Bay at the island's south end. The nearby Flat Top Islands are a legendary salmon hot spot. The gathering boats tell all. Mooch away in that honey hole. What a gunk. Anglers with a preference for ling cod and other bottom fish should search out the hidden pools of fish in the reef and underwater caverns at Thrasher and Entrance Islands.
Fishing Charters
Two local charter fishing companies operate on Gabriola. GO-Fish Charters offers salmon and bottom fishing for halibut and ling cod. It also offers eco-cruises for whales, sea lions and bald eagles aboard its 8.53m/28ft Harbercraft Kingfisher. Silver Blue Charters fishes for salmon year-round. Its menu includes half-day and full-day fishing charters and 3-day, 2-night fishing packages, all aboard a 7.77m/25.5ft SeaRay Amberjack.
Vancouver-based Bon Chovy Fishing Charters combines year-round salmon and bottom fishing with seaside accommodations on Gabriola Island.