2006 B.C. Derby Season

It is Derby Time! Most trout derbies up in the West Kootenays of B.C. are small local affairs fished on big waters such as Lake Revelstoke, Kinbasket or the premier waters of the Upper and Lower Arrow Lakes. But, check out the licence plates at the boat ramps and you will find enough folks from Washington and Idaho to raise some eyebrows. You will also find Alberta plates and lots of out of towners from such towns and villages as Revelstoke,Nakusp and Trout Lake. Heyyyyy these derby’s get serious, not so much for the prize money which can get extensive but more for the chance of tying into a 20 pound plus gerrard rainbow or a 15 pound bull.

Fishing the Doc Dargaivi Fall Fishing Derby put on by the Revelstoke Fish and Game Club in the middle of Oct. is an event I’ve looked forward to entering for the last couple of years. It turned out this was the year. After paying my modest $30.00 entry fee at Scottie’s Bull & Tackle in Revelstoke, I drove the 30 miles down to the Shelter Bay where the actual Arrow Lakes Derby would be held in 2 days. At over 100 miles long and up to 3 miles wide, Arrow Lake is a major impoundment of the Columbia River. I had 2 days to prefish. My rule #1 of derby fishing... never fish a derby without at least a full day to prefish.

I had beautiful fall weather for my Oct. 12th pre-fish. I spent all day trying this and that to see if I could get a pattern going. About 2:30 in the afternoon I was long lining a #2 Len Thompson Flame and Brass spoon while daydreaming of how wonderful life is when.... click-k-k-k-k-k-k, my rod went off. I looked over at it and it was hard over. This could only mean one thing... BIG FISH! Looking back in time I can still see that gerrard come clear out of the water. Believe me, it woke this old boy up real quick. I shifted the boat into neutral and grabbed the pole, meanwhile that bow came out of the water at least 3 more times before we started to really slug it out. I am guessing about 10 minutes later that puppy was mine. Got it in the boat with only the seagulls to enjoy that show. A quick couple of pictures and a weight and it was back in the water. At 20.5 pounds my month was MADE, even if I never took another fish. The next day I just took things easy and didn’t press my luck. I ended up with a few small bulls and bows.

SIDE NOTE: Being a field correspondent for a number of fishing related companies,every now and then I have to step up to the plate and prove I can cut the mustard by entering derbys or in someway proving I can catch big fish. Killing fish to prove myself is not really part of the job I enjoy. All but two of the fish I caught were released back into the lake, and the 2 keepers were turned over to a needy family.

Sat. the 14: Day 1 of the 2-day derby. I thought with the 20.5 bow to my credit, I’d probably used up all my luck. The morning started with some smaller bulls and bows to 10 pounds but not the big one I was looking for. Around 4:15 PM I hooked into a 13.13 bull trout. It grabbed a 7” Real Trout AC Plug down 18 feet in over 700 feet of water. This is the size of fish it takes to get on the board and as I would find out a little later...it was the largest fish caught in the tournament thus far! Luck was really running my way so far this trip.

Sun. the 15: With the largest fish of the derby so far, (which was also the largest bull) I took a chance and tried to target big rainbows exclusively. I lucked out again and hooked a quality 6.9 pound bow that was good for 3rd place in the tourney.

A good friend of mine, Steve Ross, beat me out in the rainbow division for 2nd. by 6 oz. I ended up with the largest fish of the derby, largest bull and 3rd place bow as well as a 20 pound plus Gerrard pre-fishing. That is my kind of fishing!

For more info on upcoming Revelstoke Derbys contact Wayne Scott at Scottie’s Bull & Tackle.

With all that luck on my side I felt good about entering the Nakusp Rod and Gun Club Fall Derby the following weekend.

Oct.19: I drove over to Nakusp,B.C. on the Upper Arrow Lakes in dirty rain and snow in the mountain pass. I wondered what I was getting into? Once in Nakusp I stopped at Cut Rite Meats and paid my $40.00 entry fee. The rules were simple: A trout of at least 10 pounds to make weigh in and absolutely NO Yellow Fin Trout allowed. Yellow Fins are endangered species of Rainbow Trout native to the Upper Columbia River watershed . I took the rest of the afternoon and evening to catch up with some old friends.

Oct. 20: This was pre-fish day. By day’s end I had no set pattern on the go, trying this, that and every other thing I could think of. After it all I had put together... ZIP! This was not the best way to go into a derby but at least the weather had taken a turn for the better.

Oct.21: Time for the derby. With 32 boats entered and an average of 3 lines per boat that comes out to 95 other anglers entered. It seemed like stiff odds as my little 16.5 foot Crestliner looked awful small compared to most of the boats entered. Some had come from as far away as Red Deer. I even ran into Chris Wandowski and friends who drove up from Bonners Ferry, Idaho. By day's end I was in the same position as the day before, lots of bows and bulls to 9.5 pounds but not a keeper. I had supper with a old friend of mine, Dave Kimble, who is a noted B.C. outdoor writer. He was in the same position as I...no counting fish. We checked the weigh in board later in the evening and found we weren’t alone as not a fish had been weighed in on day 1. That was good news...kind of.

Oct 22: Ok, day 2, time to make something happen. With absolutely nothing on the go it was straight big water trolling pulling the old B.C. Interior standby’s, 4” Lyman’s, 4.5” Gibbs Hockey Stick’s, #2 Len Thompson Spoons and various AC Plugs. With final weigh in fast approaching, things were looking pretty bleak. Then it happened, I hooked into a nice bull. It weighed in just over 10 pounds. I was on the board! I caught that fish on a #5 Red/Silver Gibbs F.S.T. down at 56 feet, again over lots of water. With only 6 fish weighed in for the entire derby, I was feeling a lot better about my bull. The derby results ended up: 1st place was a 16.3 rainbow, 2nd place a 13.4 bow, both caught on the same bucktail within minutes of each other. The rest of the counters were bulls in the 10 pound range, with my fish taking 6th. I ended up donating my fish to the Nakusp Rod and Gun Club Annual Banquet, which helped me feel a little better about killing that beautiful fish.

One very interesting side note from this derby was the HUGE 8 pound kokanee that was weighed in and verified. The lucky angler told me it was caught on a 4” Lyman Plug. Also it came out that B.C. Fisheries planted 60,000 Gerrard Rainbow Triploids in 2006. These fish were split 20,000 (Shelter Bay) at north end of Arrow Lakes,20,000 (Nakusp) centre of the 100 mile plus long impoundment and 20,000 (Edgewood) the south end of the Arrows. This should make for some real interesting fishing in 3 to 5 years!

As Nakusp has several derbies a year including their annual "Frost Bite Derby" in Jan. where it probably will take a 20-pound bow or bull to get into the money. Anyone seeking more info on this derby should contact Hoss Cann.

There is also the "Big Eddy Derby" held out of Revelstoke. This is a small, local derby that produces some quality fish. Any guy who thinks this derbys just for men should take note. A friend of mine, Donna Sharpe of Armstrong, BC, took 2nd place in the dolly division and won the women’s division this year. Donna just keeps changing lures, depths speeds till she clicks into something that puts her in the winners circle. Trust me guys when I say she’s tough! Next year Big Eddy’s is going to be much larger. For more entry information about dates contact Wendy Harwood.

The Windsor Hotel Derbys is another event in our area. It is held on Trout Lake, another lake that can produce some big trout. This sleeper can produce Gerrards to 30 pounds! This historic hotel just changed ownership and you contact the new owners at windsor@troutlakebc.com for more info on upcoming derbies.

I hope you enjoyed this brief description of my 2006 derby season. I learned a lot and am looking forward to some giant rainbows in 2007!

Jim "Hey" Sutherland