1- Keep that hook sharp, I know it sounds like a no brainer, but I can’t count how many times I’ve seen people reel up their line clear off any debris and cast it back out there without even looking at their hook. Sturgeon have very hard mouths, so you’ll need a razor sharp hook to make it stick. Try and use the best quality hooks that you can afford and check the hook for sharpness by running the point across your thumb nail, it should be sticky sharp, if not, touch up the point with a file. I prefer Gamakatsu 9/0 hooks for all my sturgeon fishing.
2- Just like prime real estate it’s all about LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION, let’s face it, sturgeon are a lazy lethargic fish that like their meals delivered to them. So that means your chances increase by locating deep slow moving waters that sturgeon tend to hold in, and once you have found that honey hole, chances are that there will always be a hungry sturgeon home. Link a bunch of these honey holes together into a circuit and you should consistently be hooking sturgeon. Also, if you drop anchor into your favorite honey hole and don’t hook a sturgeon within ½ an hour, move on, chances are there’s nobody home. (Tip: When arriving at your favorite honey hole, don’t drive your boat directly over the spot you will be casting your line onto, you’ll have spooked the fish out)
3- Use the lightest weight possible, just enough weight is needed to keep your bait on the bottom of the river without it bouncing in the current. The last thing you need is Mr. Sturgeon feeling any resistance when he takes your bait. Quite often I get a situation where the fish will pick up the bait then quickly drop it, when this happens I will lighten the weight a bit and the fish will stay on the bait long enough to get a good hook set.
4- Leader length is critical, sturgeon are strictly bottom feeders so you don’t need your bait floating 3 feet over their heads, you need that bait lying flat on the river bottom for the fish to smell and find. I have seen sturgeon fishers with leaders over 5 feet! I use no longer than 30” of 100lb. Maxima Chameleon or 100lb Dacron leader materials. Leader material are cheap compared to that lost trophy sturgeon of a lifetime, so buy the best leader material you can afford and change it at the first sign of wear.
5- Good bait….. Much like fly fishers “match the hatch” by imitating insects that are present in the river, the sturgeon fisher must use the best baits that are “in season”. In the spring I like to use eels, eulachons (small smelt bait fish also known as Candle fish), and dew worms, as these baits are available in the river and the sturgeon key in on these baits early in the year, later in the season I switch to salmon bellies and roe (salmon eggs) later in the fall after the salmon have spawned and died I will use “stink bait” which is rotten salmon flesh, this stuff smells terrible, but the sturgeon love it. Then in late fall I use fresh Chum salmon roe tied into small golf ball size nylon bags, and this bait is like sturgeon candy as they go crazy over it. (Tip: try to only use fresh roe) , I’ve seen sturgeon fishers using old brown freezer burned roe and wondering why they’re not getting fish, use good bait!
I hope these tips will help increase your sturgeon fishing experience.
Cheers & Tight Lines,
Randy & Trish Beck
www.bcfishingguides.com
