Sixteen years ago the lodges of Rivers Inlet and Hakai Pass on British Columbia’s Central Coast joined forces to create the Rivers Inlet Hakai Pass Sport Fishing Association Hatchery, a unique fishery enhancement project. A special breed of chinook salmon now arrives before the main migration of summer chinook, providing lots of early season action in June, July and early August, for anglers throughout the Central Coast region and beyond.

“The idea of the broodstock program is to increase survival rates to 80 percent versus a wild survival rate of only one or two percent,” notes Randy Wright, project manager at Shotbolt Bay.

Each year native chinook are captured with hook and line in the Killbella and Chuckwalla Rivers, two of the main tributaries that feed Rivers Inlet. Once captured, they are “tubed” and kept alive in the river until they ripen and then they’re striped of their eggs and milt. The eggs are then incubated at the hatchery at Shotbolt Bay where they grow to various stages of development. Approximately 50,000 eyed eggs are moved to Snootli Creek Hatchery in Bella Coola, as an insurance policy to ensure success.

The remaining eggs are divided into different projects using different methods to enhance the fishery. Some eggs are raised to fry size in troughs at Shotbolt bay and then transported to sea pens in the Killbella/Chuckwall River estuary. Six thousand fry are held at the hatchery for an entire year and then transported by tanker vessel to Port Hardy, where they grow to adulthood to provide a healthy supply of eggs and milt. The remaining multi-thousand fry are airlifted by helicopter and dropped back into the same pools their parents came from.

The hatchery program’s success is not just measured in fish returning to the rivers to spawn naturally, it’s also measured by the smiles of countless anglers throughout the B.C. coast. Guests visiting resorts and lodges throughout the Rivers Inlet and Hakai Pass region can enter the Central Coast Salmon Derby from June 15 to September 30th. In addition to winning lots of great prizes anglers can enter with the knowledge that all monies raised from the derby goes toward the continued success of the Rivers Inlet, Hakai Pass Sport Fishing Association Hatchery.

One of the many challenges is how to get around. Jim Rough donated a pickup truck to transport crew and gear from the old logging camp in Killbella Bay to the various pools up river. Two four-wheelers are also used and work better when the road washes out. While fishing for these chinook or maintaining what's been captured, the thrill of HUGE grizzly bears keeps everyone on their toes and alert. Each crew carries a 12 gauge shotgun.

Finding productive pools to fish for these prime chinook isn't hard at all. And each fish is pretty smart too, 'cause they escaped the talents of hundreds of anglers throughout the coast. All kidding aside, these prime native chinook are kept in tubes surrounded by portable electric fences to ensure their safety from the bears. Did you know that one male fish can service several females? And did you know that the male can rejuvenate himself and continue to provide sperm to fertilize the female's eggs?

When the hatchery crew arrives at the productive pools, they bring more fish tubes to add to the tubes in the river. Once the pool fills with tubed chinook, others hone in on the smell of the mature fish, providing easier angling action.

Once a chinook is landed in the net, one of the crew will unhook the fish and then take a sample from the gill plate. This is done with a paper hole punch. Biologists can learn allot from these samples. Sometimes it's a challenge to hold the fish steady.

The next step isn't easy either. one of the anglers must secure a tail rope on the fish to help control it and too move it from the net to the tube. This often results in a wet face, but it's nice to know the fish is strong and not weakened from too long a battle.

In 1999 anglers at Rivers Inlet caught lots of these hatchery fish. When first conceived, these fish were designed to return to Rivers Inlet early in the season, but they have begun to arrive throughout the season. This indicates that Mother Nature has spread the run out to ensure natural survival. It also ensures more opportunity for more fish for Rivers Inlet Resort anglers. The only problem, however, is the average size of these fish, 25 to 40 pounds.

Too small? Not really, the Wannock River at the head of the inlet has the huge strain of fish, but these chinook also have a few fish pushing the 70 pound mark. This really does mean more fish in the nets of hopeful anglers, but if you're searching for a once-in-a-lifetime trophy, enjoy the battle and be ready to release these fish.

You'll also be able to tell if these fish are from the hatchery program because they will have clipped adipose fins, (the small fin forward of the tail on the back). Would you release one of these native-stock hatchery fish, even if it weighed only 40 pounds? At least you'll have a choice and you'll know that hatcheries can work and they can provide excellent additional opportunities for sports anglers.

After the chinook is placed in the tube, a plywood door is slipped through the slot shown at the end of the tube to the right. Then the tube is placed on a clothesline stretched across the river. Fisheries managers will continue to monitor the fish until they are ready to spawn naturally, at which time they take the eggs and sperm into the hatchery at Shotbolt Bay. Many thanks to the Hakai Sport Fishing Association Hatchery Program and the Canadian Government for pioneering such a great hatchery project.

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