Picture Perfect

My husband has a room in our house dedicated to fishing. His man cave is where he chats with buddies in fishing forums, ties flies, preps hooks and lines and generally hides from household chores. The walls in this room are covered with ocean charts and lots of framed pictures of our fishing adventures.

When EasyCanvasPrints.com offered to turn our photos to canvas I was excited to add another memory to our wall. Ordering the picture was really easy, the hardest part was picking a photo. I finally chose the picture of me with the first fish I ever caught by myself. I was so proud of these two Sockeyes! The ordering process took less than five minutes and the canvas not took a few days to arrive.

I am thrilled with the quality of the picture and the canvas looks great next to our other pictures. I am in the process of choosing some favourite shots from this summer to have made into more canvases.



- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Chinookie Time!

Chris and our neighbour Gerry took a fly lesson from Courtney (Nile Creek Fly Shop) last week and today they were itching to get out and try out their new skills. They headed to a secret fishing hole we found last year. They had to hike up river for about 20 minutes before finding a school of Chinooks.





They played half dozen fish each and Chris landed the biggest Spring of his illustrious fishing career. They estimate that it was between 30-35 lbs.









They came home glowing with pride and excited to get back out with their fly rods as soon as possible.

Chinook on the Fly

We went on a fishing exploration adventure last weekend in search of a river Chris had heard rumblings about. The Conuma is a little known river and seems to be a closely guarded secret by the people who fish it regularly. In respect for them I will not give exact directions on how to access the river but with a little searching and some hiking it can be found.




Once we reached the river were were greeted with a wide rocky shore and deep pools of crystal clear water. Every few hundred feet there were schools of big Chinook Salmon resting under the rocky river edge or chilling in the shade of an over hanging tree.




I quickly discovered that even the tiniest piece of weight on the line would scatter the fish as the river was absolutely still and calm. Chris switched to a fly reel and we began to hook into the salmon.



We fished a similar situation last October at the Little Qualicum River but here the water was easier to manage and I was finally able to land a Chinook on the fly by myself!!



I was also able to test out my underwater camera and got some great shots and videos.




We are headed back there this afternoon to see if some Coho have made their way into the river yet.

Fish Fight

Hubby and I had a great evening fishing for Pinks tonight. We only had about an hour to fsh but we both got into a few. Kris and Chris have been using Islander center pins and have begun to master this new set-up.



After spending 12 hours in a car with my boss over the past two days, and regaling him with tales of my fishing exploits I wanted to send him a picture with one of tonights catches.

The first fish I landed was nice and shiny, cleanly hooked in the mouth. I gently brought him onto the beach and asked Chris to snap a photo while I held my catch. I told the fish that I just wanted a quick photo op and then he could be on his way back to hang with his fishy friends. Either this fish didn't speak English, or he thought I was a liar. When I picked him up he thrashed right out of my hands and the hook slipped and caused a spurt of blood and sand to shoot into my face. Now, I can't blame the fish for it's instinct for self-preservation, but I can blame my husband for continuing to snap pictures and giggle instead of lending me a hand.




I quickly wiped my face and then, while whispering calming words to my fishy foe, we posed for a picture. The salmon was released and swam away happy. When I went to look at the picture it became clear why Chris was giggling like a little kid.




I guess I can now say that a fish gave me a bloody nose!

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The Pinks have Arrived

They are about two weeks late but the Pink Salmon have finally made there way to the Campbell River.

These are my least favourite fish to eat but my favourite fish to catch! We mostly can and smoke the pinks we catch, our dog gets a can of Pink at least once a week an she has the shiniest coat around.

I caught a silver beauty tonight and can't wait to get back out there as many times as possible over the next month.



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Princess Salmon Burgers

These are the juiciest, tastiest salmon burgers you will ever have. The process is a bit messy but well worth the extra cleanup.

When I am filleting and packaging our catch, I will skin a few filets, cut them into chunks and weigh out 1pound portions to seal and freeze specifically for making these burgers.


Place 1/3 pound raw salmon into a food processor with 1 tablespoon dijon mustard and 1tbsp lemon juice. Process until smooth. Put this purée into a large bowl.

Pulse the remaining 2/3 pound of salmon in food processor and pulse a few times until it is coarsely chopped. Fold chopped salmon into the pureed salmon along with 1/4 cup finely chopped shallots, 1tablespoon chopped fresh dill and salt, and pepper to taste.

Divide mixture into 4 equal portions and gently form into patties. Be careful not to overwork the mixture. Refrigerate for at least an hour before grilling.

These burgers are great cooked on the BBQ and only take about 2-4 minutes on each side. Be careful to not overcook the patties

Salmon Loaf

This salmon loaf is a delicious way to make use of some of the canned salmon we have from our big fishing trip. The recipe takes a bit of time but is well worth the effort. Recipe serves four.

Begin by dicing 3/4 cup each of celery, carrots and onion.


Sauté the veggies in a tbsp of vegetable oil until soft.

In a bowl combine:
500ml canned salmon
2 eggs lightly beaten
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1-2 tsp seasoning blend
1/4 tsp pepper
2 peices of bread made into soft crumbs






I like to use Epicure Seafood and fish spice


Stir veggies into salmon mixture and press into a grease loaf pan.


Cook for 40 min at 350 degrees or until edges start to brown.


I made a quick dill sauce to go on top. Simply combine the following ingredients.

1/4 cup mayo
1/4 cup sour cream
1tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp chopped fresh dill
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper to taste.

Dolphins

This weekend Chris and Kris took the boat to Campbell River to fish for Chinooks. At one point they found themselves surrounded by a school of dolpins. We have seen dolphins from the boat many times but they have never come this close. At 2:42 you can even see one swim right underneath the boat. Chris shot a little video of the gorgeous creatures. It was another perfect West Coast day and I am so jealous that I did not go with them on this morning!

Fish Fry!

I apologize for the lack of good pictures for this post but the food was disappearing so quickly I barely got these few shots. Last weekend we decided to use some of this 37lb Halibut that Chris and his buddy Norm caught near Port Alice.




We also used some Ling Cod and had a good old fashioned fish fry with the Jester and family as well as our neighbor (and fishing buddy) Gerry and his wife Gayle.


The process is quite simple when you have fantastic fish to work with. Just cut into whatever size pieces you like.



We used a wheat/gluten free dry pancake mix since the Jester has a wheat allergy.

Mix together:

Two cups dry pancake mix
Two eggs
One bottle of beer (we used Carona as it is wheat free)







I used our deep fryer but this could be done in a deep frying pan on the stove. Just dip the fish into the batter and then fry for 4-8 minutes (depending on thickness of the fish)






I served it with homemade fries and a new tartar sauce recipe I have been working on.

1cup mayo
1tbsp Dijon mustard
1/2 cup finely chopped dill pickle
1-2 tbsp pickle juice
1tbsp chopped capers
1tsp fresh lemon juice
1tbsp chopped chives
2tsp dress dill
salt and pepper to taste



I snapped this picture of Chris' plate mid-bite. It was a great night with good friends and delicious food!

Campfire Salmon

My sister and her family are spending the month of July camping 45 minutes from where I live. The other night I went to visit them and have a delicious dinner cooked over the campfire. Prawns and Salmon were my contribution but she and her husband did all the work!

I missed snapping a picture of the prep but she layer lemon slices, dill, and salt and pepper inside two filets. Wrapped the fish in tinfoil and cooked it over an open flame.


The fish took about ten minutes on each side.


Here is chef Karen putting the finishing touches on the meal.





Add some prawns sautéed in garlic butter, a baked potato and corn on the cob; and you have the perfect camping dinner!


Thanks for the great meal sis!

June Adventures

As July begins I wanted to share a few more pictures from our June adventures. We have a couple more weeks of Sockeye fishing and then we turn our attentions to fishing for Pinks in the Campbell River. June was so much fun and we managed to stuff our freezers while having a great time!

Love It!

Last Cast???

Vancouver Island - the Best Place on Earth!

Happy Fisherwoman


Sockeye!

Success!

Gorgeous day at the river

Gerry won the derby this day

Sent this little fellow back to swim another day

Rock n Roll on the Boat

Chilly day on the water in Port Hardy

Bring on July!