Skagit River Trout Fishing Tips

The picture perfect Skagit River is a trout fishing hot spot between July 1^st and October 31^st. It is accessible by 2 wheel drive and located only 2 hours from Vancouver. The Skagit River offers anglers dry and wet fly fishing for wild rainbow trout and bull trout. In this blog post we will cover some of the flies, lures and rod combos to help you get started.

Please note that the road to access the lower river is currently closed.

 Fly Fishing

Fly Fishing Setup For Bull Trout

• Redington Vice 10’ 7wt, Dragonfly 10’ 7wt, Sage Foundation 10’ 7wt
• Galvan Rush 6 or 8 disc drag fly reel
• 7wt Rio InTouch VersiTip II multi-tip fly line

If you are targeting bull trout then a 9’-11’ 5-7 wt fly rod with Rio versi tip fly line a 9′ 8-10lb fluorocarbon leader will do the trick.

Fly Fishing Setup for Rainbow Trout

• Redington Classic Trout 4wt, Sage Foundation 4wt fly rod, Dragonfly Kamloops 4wt fly rod, Grey’s Streamflex 4wt
• Galvan Rush 3-4 disc drag fly reel
• WF4F Rio Gold floating fly line

A suitable fly fishing combo for Skagit rainbow trout consists of a 3-6wt 8-9’ fly rod with a WF (weight forward) fly line and a 9′ 5x tapered leader.

Spin Casting Setup For Bull Trout

• Fenwick Eagle Fishing Rod, Fenwick HMX Fishing Rod, UglyStik Fishing Rod
• Penn Fierce III Spinning Reel, Penn Battle III Spinning Reel, Daiwa Exceller or Okuma Epixor Reels
• Berkley Trilene 12lb Mono or Power Pro or Tuf-Line Braid

A suitable casting setup for Bull Trout consists of a 7’ – 9’ Medium Light Power Spinning Rod with a smooth casting reel lined with 12lb Test main line.

Spin Casting for Rainbow Trout

• Fenwick Eagle Fishing Rod, Fenwick HMX Fishing Rod, UglyStik Fishing Rod
• Penn Fierce III Spinning Reel, Penn Battle III Spinning Reel, Daiwa Exceller or Okuma Epixor Reels
• Berkley Trilene 4lb Mono

A good casting setup for Rainbows consists of an 6’6” to 7’6” ultra light spinning rod with a smooth casting ultra light spinning reel lined with 4lb. test main line.

Best Dry Flies for Skagit River Rainbow Trout

• Adams #10-#18
• Tom Thumb #8-#16
• Mosquito #10-#16
• Elk Hair Caddis #10-#16
• Parachute Emerger #14-#18

Best Wet Flies for Rainbow Trout

• Bead Head rubber legged flashback hares ear nymph #8-12
• Bead Head rubber legged flashback pheasant tail nymph #8-12
• Birds nest nymph #8-12
• Bead Head rubber legged stone fly nymph #8-12
• Bead Head caddis pupa #8-16 

Lures for Rainbow Trout

• Gibbs Croc Spoon Hammered Brass Metallic Perch 3/16oz
• Panther Martin Spinner Black/Red #2
• Mepps Black Fury Spinner #1
• Rooster Tail Spinner Fire Tiger 1/8
• Lucky Bug #8 Black 

Flies for Bull Trout

• Rainbow Flash Fly #4
• Clouser Minnow White #4
• Double Bunny Bait Fish #4
• Bead Head Rubber Legged Wooly Bugger White #8
• Sculpin Intruder 3”

Lures for Bull Trout

• Gibbs Koho Spoon #35 Blue Illusion Scale
• Gibbs Koho Spoon #35 Green Illusion Scale
• Gibbs Croc Spoon 3/8oz Silver Hex
• Blue Fox Vibrax #3 Rainbow Trout
• Dick Nite Spoon 50/50

 Don’t Forget to Bring!

• Waders and Wading Boots (the water runs cold all summer long)
• Polarized sunglasses
• Base layers for under your waders and Simms SolarFlex hoody
• Good bug spray to keep the mosquitos and black flies off you!
• Backroad Map Books Vancouver Coast & Mountains
• Backroad Mapbooks Fishing Book Southeastern BC
• Freshwater Fishing License

The Skagit River is open to fishing from Manning Park south to the entrance of   Ross Lake July 1^st – October 31^st. You must release all fish (total catch and release in the Skagit River), as well as a bait ban. Don’t forget to check the freshwater fishing regulations. As always, licenses are available at the shop. Give us a call at 604-931-5044 for up to date information.

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