Steelhead rivers and trout lakes island-wide: the Cowichan, Gold, Stamp, Campbell and San Juan, plus hundreds of stocked lakes from Victoria to Port Hardy.
Victoria-area lakes: trout fair at most local lakes - Powerbait, Gulp Eggs and worms for shore anglers, Woolly Buggers, leeches and chironomids for the fly rods, Wedding Bands behind gang trolls for trollers.
Source: Island Outfitters fishing report, Oct 4 2026.
Cowichan River: water levels very low and no reports coming in - the system is waiting on rain.
Source: Island Outfitters fishing report, Oct 4 2026.
Trout are fair at the Victoria-area lakes, with fall-stocked rainbows still being caught on Powerbait, Woolly Buggers and Wedding Bands. The Cowichan River is very low and quiet, waiting on rain.
Sources: Island Outfitters fishing report - full details in the latest reports below.
| Waters (in-season now) | Species | Window | Limit / gear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Campbell River - from a fishing boundary sign at the end of Maple Street downstream to the fishing boundary sign at the... | All | Aug 1 to Oct 31 | No fishing |
| downstream of the confluence with the Quinsam River | Coho | Sept 1 to Dec 31 | 4 hatchery-marked per day FN0939 |
| Pink | Jul 15 to Oct 15 | 4 per day | |
| downstream of the confluence with the Quinsam River to the fishing boundary sign at the end of Maple Street. | Chinook | To be determined | To be determined |
| Cayeghle River - including Colonial River. | Coho | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | 1 per day |
| Cluxewe River | Coho | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | 2 per day, hatchery marked only |
| Colonial River - see Cayeghle River | Coho | ||
| Comox Lake | All | July 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing for salmon |
| Conuma River | Chinook | Aug 25 to Dec 31 | 2 per day, only 1 over 77 cm |
| Coho | Aug 25 to Dec 31 | 2 per day, hatchery marked only | |
| Courtenay River (the waters below the confluence of the Puntledge and Tsolum Rivers) | Chinook | Sep 1 to Dec 31 | 2 per day |
| Coho | Sept 1 to Dec 31 | 4 hatchery-marked per day FN0938 | |
| Chum | To be determined | To be determined | |
| Cowichan River - from 66 Mile Trestle downstream to the white triangle boundary sign located in Sandy Pool Regional Park | All | Sep 1 to July 14 | Open for salmon catch and release |
| Chum | To be determined | To be determined | |
| from the white triangle boundary sign located in Sandy Pool Regional Park, downstream to the tidal boundary. | All | Sep 1 to Nov 15 | No fishing |
| Chum | To be determined | To be determined | |
| Goldstream River | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing |
| Koksilah River - including tributaries. | Coho | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | 1 per day, maximum size 35 cm |
| All | July 1 to Sept 30 | No fishing | |
| Little Qualicum River - all open portions of the Little Qualicum River | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | Hook restriction, single barbless hook less than 15mm from point to shank |
| all waters unless indicated below | All | Sept 1 to Nov 30 | Fly-fishing only |
| Chinook | Sept 1 to Nov 30 | 2 per day | |
| Coho | Oct 1 to Nov 30 | 1 per day, hatchery marked only | |
| from the hatchery fence to signs located approximately 35 meters downstream | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing |
| Nahwitti River | Coho | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | 1 per day |
| Nanaimo River - including tributaries, except in the area described below. | Coho | Oct 15 until further notice | Non-retention FN0952 |
| from 500 meters below the lower power line crossing at "Bore Hole" upstream to the fishing boundary signs... | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing |
| from the Cedar Road Bridge crossing upstream to the Highway 19 Bridge crossing | All | Sep 1 to Oct 15 | No fishing |
| in Subarea 17-14 (tidal portions of the Nanaimo River) from Cedar Bridge downstream | All | Jul 15 to Oct 25 | No fishing |
| Nitinat River - upstream of Parker Creek | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing for salmon |
| Nitinat River from 50m upstream to 50m downstream of the Nitinat River bridge. | All | Aug 25 to Oct 15 | Finfish closure |
| from the powerline crossing upstream of the Nitinat River Hatchery water intake, downstream to the lowest... | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | Finfish closure |
| between fishing boundary signs located approximately 100m above and below Red Rock Pool. | All | Aug 25 to Dec 31 | Finfish closure |
| Puntledge River - From signs located 50m upstream of the BC Hydro generating station tailrace to signs located 75m... | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing |
| downstream from the base of Stotan Falls (approximately 450 m downstream of the Duncan Bay Mainline... | Coho | Sept 1 to Dec 31 | 4 hatchery-marked per day FN0938 |
| Chinook | Sep 1 to Dec 31 | 2 per day | |
| Chum | To be determined | To be determined | |
| Morrison Creek closure: between fishing boundary signs located 100m upstream and downstream of the... | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | No fishing |
| Qualicum River - All open portions of the Qualicum River | All | Apr 1 to Mar 31 | Hook restriction, single barbless hook less than 15mm from point to shank |
Summary of DFO's current tables for these waters (Salmon windows currently in effect for Region 1 - Vancouver Island), built Oct 11. Limits change in-season - confirm on the linked DFO pages and the notices above before keeping fish. Bivalve limits apply only where no red-tide or sanitary closure is in effect.
Latest DFO fishery notices touching this region, refreshed each morning - full details and regulations on DFO's page
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Live from the provincial stocking database - type a lake name for its recent stocking history.
November 2026
December
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