r/fishingBC

Hi all,

I am new to crabbing and had a question about buoys. If I am using a hand casted ring trap from shore, am i required to affix a float? If so, how can I stop this from tangling during the cast?

Thanks!

Planning to go crabbing/fishing in the Burrard Inlet and Indian arms. Sticking close to shore.
Examples such as Barnett marine park, Deep Cove, Belcarra, Rocky Point etc..
Also planning to use in lakes as well around GVRD

Is that set up feasible? will I be putting myself in danger? I plan to complete my PCOC and have required safety equipments on board.

Any other places you guys recommend instead to go?

TIA

The heartbroken mother of a young fisherman has identified him as the captain of the charter boat involved in a deadly sinking in B.C. waters last Sunday and says he complained about the disrepair of the vessel.
Ashley Lin said in an emotional interview that her 23-year-old son Chen Ming was among six people missing and feared drowned.
Lin said her son was a very “responsible child” who took care of the whole family. He immigrated from China two years ago.

She said the boat was operated by a company known as Top Fishing in English and Haishang in Chinese.
Lin and Chen’s girlfriend, Hailey Lee, both said in a joint interview in Mandarin that he had complained that a side door was broken on the 30-foot boat that went down in deep waters with 10 people aboard.
Four people were rescued with hypothermia. Police said no one was wearing a life jacket.
Lee said she had seen the damaged door.
Lin, who lives in Richmond, B.C., urged the owner of the charter firm to explain what happened.
“I wish the owner of the charter boat company would come forward to make a statement. You can’t let my son leave the world with so much regret,” she said.

A person who answered the phone to the company this week said they knew nothing about the incident before hanging up.
Lin said she wakes up in the night wondering “whether my son felt cold alone” in the sea.
“I feel I am a very useless mother, that I can’t find my son,” she said.
The RCMP Underwater Recovery Team and West Coast Marine Services are using sonar to search for the charter boat that sank in what police have called “very deep waters” of between 150 and 180 metres.
The investigation into what happened is being led by the Richmond Serious Crimes Unit.
The Canadian Press separately confirmed that Top Fishing was the firm involved. The company was identified by multiple charter operators who focus on the Chinese recreational fishing market, but they did not want to be identified.

Images of the Top Fishing vessel, an aluminum boat made by Kingfisher, also match those shared on social media by Tim Milne, its former owner, when the boat was known as Big Coast.
Milne said his former boat, which he sold more than four years ago through a dealer, was the one that sank.
He said the new owners never updated the boat’s automatic identification system, or AIS, which broadcasts information about a vessel, including its call sign and name, position and speed.
The vessel still bore the name linked to Milne’s ownership, “Big Coast,” when it sank. Milne says he learned of the tragedy when a concerned friend reached out after spotting AIS data that suggested the Big Coast was in distress.
“I was devastated,” Milne said in an interview Thursday. “Losing lives at sea is a worst-case scenario for people in our world.”
Milne said he used the boat without issue for four years.

“It was an awesome boat and extremely dependable,” he said.
He said Transport Canada contacted him last July to let him know Big Coast had been impounded. He received the notification because the AIS was still connected to his contact details.
The agency sent him a snapshot of the boat’s AIS location, and Milne said he noted it was in an illegal fishing area.
He said the boat could take 10 passengers in good conditions, although it’s not something he ever did himself.
But he said the weather conditions at the time of the accident were “tricky,” and multiple weather events could stack up to create brutal conditions.
“We don’t hear of incidents like this on the coast very often. That’s why this is such an anomaly,” Milne said.
“Everybody’s definitely taken aback.”
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2026.

Has anyone here fisher silverhope creek? Im gonna be around it this weekend but cant seem to find much info online other than its open for fly fishing.

Gonna be in BC mainly the Surrey area from the 5th of July till the 12th just looking for any pointers or tips you guys can give on doing some fishing while I’m there. Don’t really care about species all that much. Catch tons of walleye, pike, burbot, sturgeon, trout and ect. Out here but would like to go fishing down there. Only 18 so havnt done much fishing anywhere out of Sask other than Alberta a few times when I was younger. Thanks in advance!!

Hey everyone I recently just purchased a rod and a tackle box with some trout gear as well as some gear for bluegill and bass, I spend my time Outdoors off-roading so I have access to some pretty cool lakes , I'm curious if anyone has any information on where I should start fishing. My nephew is visiting from out of town and I would like to take him to a place where we are guaranteed to catch a few trout or other species.

Got a nice sized red rock crab from ambleside (about 6 inches), immediately put it in a cooler with slight air opening.

Went home - it took about an hour and put it in boiling water for 15 mins, cracked the claws open and the taste was a bit bitter and had a chemical like after taste, wondering if I did something wrong preparing/storing the crab? Did you guys ever had similar taste before and what fixed it? Or know what causes it?

I am doing fine after 24 hours so I think it might not be that bad for food poisoning.

This was my first time catching and cooking a crab; open to any suggestions on how to handle/cook crabs the next time.

Hey everyone, Alberta fisherman here. Im planning a trip to Lake Windermere with my son to try and catch bass since Chatgpt says it’s the closest body of water to Calgary that has bass. Just wondering, what are the chances of success? Anyone have tips on where to target and lures? Or is it not worth the drive out? Thanks!

Newb here from Burnaby. Started fishing late last summer and still learning, haven't caught anything yet. Im trying to get a coho but im having trouble locating spots to cast from shore. Currently at ambleside beach but the spots around the river mouth are full (got here at 6am, shoulda came earlier I guess!) Ive got a buzzbomb but all the spots i can get are way too shallow and im just snagging. I was wondering if anyone could point me in the right direction or give me some places to try (not exact spots, i get it), I dont have access to a boat but I do have a car. Most of my experience is on lakes so im rather new to fishing on the ocean. Any help is appreciated thank you:)

Ps I also brought a friend fishing today for his first time cuz I hyped him on coho but now I look like a goof 🤣🤣

I want to take my little sister out for some bass fun! just looking to catch abunch on worms kind of thing dose anyone have suggestions on where I should go don’t need to be big but I just want a fun day to catch some of the green buggers !

I discovered this place yesterday in Surrey. It has a very good selection of rods, reels, lures, etc. Very good prices.

Good morning, i was wondering where I can buy dew worms for fishing besides Hatch matchr, which I use to buy from when I plan the night before since they are not open until 10am. But if I need to buy some worms earlier in the morning, do you guys know of a corner store or somewhere open in the early hours of the morning. Ive tried to google places and I went on a rat race with no avail. I even went to pet smart and mr.pet on a long shot which they do not have.

Edit : I used to remember seing sandwich signs outside gas stations that would say "bait sold here" I dont remember the last time I seen one of those signs, in town of maple ridge anyway.