Salmon Fishing
...with Buzz Bombs
 Alex Discovers Vancouver IslandAlex introduces us to the peculiar art of salmon fishing with buzz bombs: a Vancouver Island specialty. The first time I caught a salmon on Vancouver Island was with a Buzz-bomb from the rocky pier at Comox ferry dock. I don’t think that one is allowed to fish there anymore but you can cast a Buzz-bomb at many places on the island. There was once a time when the shoreline at Bowser was thick with fishing camps. Bowser Bill’s was the main center for sport fishing North of Qualicum Beach. Boats launched in rapid succession at the crack of dawn. That was about 4 am in midsummer. Those were the days when an abundance of herring formed numerous balls in the waters off Hornby Island. It was easy to rake a days supply of bait then mooch off Norrish rocks or anywhere along the south shore of Hornby all the way to Flora Island off the north east tip of Hornby Island.
But when the day was done and we were back on the beach or if the waters cut up rough I would cast a Buzz-bomb from the beach. I always remembered that I had caught my first salmon with a Buzz-bomb from that rocky pier at Comox . The "bomb" was designed for that purpose by an angler from the Courtenay Comox area. He meant it to be used anywhere where the water was deep enough. My brother-in-law laughed at my Buzz-bombing from the beach at Bowser. Then came the day he phoned me. “Alex,” he said, “they’re here. There’s a line of anglers all along the beach and they’re catching salmon.” It’s all in the timing. The fish off the ferry dock at Comox amass there in the early fall, waiting to move into the Puntledge river and those that can be caught from the beach between Bowser and the mouth of the Qualicum river arrive at much the same time. So don’t pass it up --- if you see a dozen or so anglers in waders on the beach give it a try. Casting a Buzz-bomb is easy and you’ll be surprised at what you catch. The Buzz-bomb is fashioned from 2 to 4 oz of lead about 3 to 5 inches long with a hole through the center longwise. The line, usually a heavy leader 20 to 40 lb, passes down the center of the bomb, through a bumper bead then onto the hook. The bomb is then cast, with a spinning reel, or level wind set up, maybe thirty to forty yards and is retrieved with an irregular action so that the bomb appears to be a wounded fish swimming with a stop go motion. There are numerous places on Vancouver Island where one can cast a Buzz-bomb -- the fishing pier at Campbell river is an ideal location. Have some fun salmon fishing with Buzz-bombs on Vancouver Island.
Salmon Fishing to Fishing on Vancouver Island
Salmon Fishing to Discover Vancouver Island
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