Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club – All the Details

Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club Fishing Lodge Frequently Asked Questions

About Us
Summer 2022 will mark the 39th. year that the Kelly Family has owned & operated the Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club.
Our floating lodge is located 300 miles north of Vancouver, BC on the rugged & remote central coast. We are situated at entrance to Rivers Inlet, home to some of the richest fishing grounds in the world. Rivers Inlet is world famous for catching trophy sized fish because of our unique gene pool of large salmon. As a result, we offer anglers the chance catch the world’s largest of all five species of salmon plus halibut, lingcod & a variety of other bottom fish, all less than five minutes from our floating lodge. For that personal touch, we only hold 36 guests at one time & we are family owned & operated. You are not a number at the Sportsman’s Club, we get to know all of our guests by name. You will be pampered by our 15 staff who take care of your every need during your stay. Many of our customers have been enjoying our exceptional service & facilities every summer since we opened 36 years ago.
Our packages are all-inclusive from Vancouver BC fishing two people per boat in our custom-built 17 ft. vessels with new 40 HP 4-stroke Yamaha motors. No experience is necessary as the fishing as the fishing style is easy to learn, boats & equipment & simple to operate & the fishing is nearby the lodge in calm waters. Our basic package is self-guided. Daily there are informative seminars provided by our experienced instructor/guides to help you hone your skills & keep you up to date with the latest techniques for landing the “big one”. However, if you prefer you can hire a guide for all or part of your trip. We customer cater your fishing package to meet your needs. Other activities at the lodge include kayaking, hiking, beachcombing, photography, cannery tours, whale watching & wildlife viewing. Our unique combination of service, location, equipment & facilities will ensure you experience the ultimate wilderness fishing adventure. Come join us amidst the majesty & mystique of the pristine central British Columbia coast for the experience of a lifetime. Simply put, it is a trip that you will judge all others by. We hope to see you in summer 2016.

How Do I Get There?
Get to Vancouver British Columbia & arrive at or before 8:00AM on your Thursday or Sunday departure day.
Returning guests please note that we changed airlines 5 years ago & we now fly directly to the lodge from Vancouver with Seair Seaplanes. http://www.seairseaplanes.com/
This direct flight has greatly added to the quality & convenience of the travel experience to the lodge. The flight time from Vancouver is now approximately 90 minutes with no plane change in Port Hardy & typically no delays.
However, the flight leaves much earlier now so if you are flying into Vancouver we recommend doing this the night before your trip with us to avoid missing your flight.

The chartered planes to our lodge leave Vancouver at 9:45AM precisely. Check-in is at 8:45AM.
The flights departs from the Sea Air Terminal which is on the river next to the Vancouver International South Terminal only a 10 minute taxi or shuttle ride from the main Vancouver International Terminal.

If you plan to fly into Vancouver on your departure day (not recommended) by 8:00AM to leave enough time to change terminals & allow for possible flight delays.
You cannot miss our plane or you will have to pay to fly yourself in to the lodge & maybe not until the next day. (Approximate cost is $500 one way).
On your return date you will be back in Vancouver by approximately 3:00PM.

We recommend that you DO NOT book any flights out of Vancouver before 5:30PM on your return day.

Hotels In Vancouver
If you have difficulty making these connections or you prefer the relaxed pace of an overnight stay in Vancouver (highly recommended), there are three great hotels near the Vancouver Airport that we recommend.

The Pacific Gateway Hotel at Vancouver Airport
(Formerly Delta Hotel) – 1-866-382-3474
It is 5 minutes from the Vancouver International Terminal & the Seair Airline float plane terminal & is right on the river.
Their amenities include a free airport shuttle, freezer to store your catch, a fitness facility & outdoor pool & free parking. They also have a great pub/restaurant with a patio on the water.
They offer our guests a preferred rate on two different types of rooms. (All rooms includes free local calls & free internet).
Standard Premium Room – $153.00 CDN (plus tax).
Club Level Room – $203.00 CDN (plus tax).
You can book online & use promo code: RINLET
Their toll free reservations phone number is 1-866-382-3474.
Email: res@pacificgatewayhotel.com
Ask for Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club rate to receive the discounted room pricing.

Fairmont Vancouver Airport Hotel
1-877-442-FISH (3474)
It is located inside the Vancouver International Airport Terminal (YVR). This hotel is particularly convenient if you have an early morning departure from YVR. Their amenities include a freezer to store your catch, a fitness facility, indoor pool & spa.
They offer our guests a preferred rate for a Standard Room of $245.00 CDN (plus tax). Fairmont Gold Level $365.00 CDN (plus tax). They also have a freezer for your catch & self parking at $20/day & valet parking at $28.50/day.
Their toll free reservations phone number is 1-877-442-FISH (3474). Ask for the “fishing rate” for the Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club to receive the preferred room rate.
You can also email them at PSTfvares@fairmont.com.

River Rock Casino Resort
1-866-748-3718
Located right next to the Pacific Gateway Hotel only minutes from the Airports.
This hotel is a bit more exciting as you can gamble, they have eight restaurants including a buffet, live entertainment & a much more extensive fitness centre, indoor pool & spa facility.
They offer our guests a preferred rate on three different types of rooms:
Standard Room – $153.00 CDN, 1 Bedroom – $179.00 CDN,
2 Bedroom $229.00 CDN (plus tax).
Their toll free reservations # is 1-866-748-3718.
Ask for Rivers Inlet Sportsman’s Club rate to receive the discounted room pricing or book online here. The discount code will automatically be applied.
You can also email: reservations@riverrock.com.
Vancouver seems to be getting busier & busier every summer & already many dates are sold out at these discounted rates so book your rooms early.
For more information on what to do & where to go in & around Vancouver/Victoria &/or Whistler please contact Simon directly at riversinlet@hotmail.com or 1-800-663-2644.

What Is The Lodge Like?
We are a floating resort, tucked into a peaceful cove five minutes around the corner from the fishing grounds. We accommodate a maximum of 36 guests who are pampered by our mostly return staff of 15. The lodge is made up of 12 separate buildings including accommodations buildings, a dining house & lounge. Our four main guest accommodation buildings have double occupancy rooms with two double beds, private en-suite bathrooms & private entrances. We also have some single & triple occupancy rooms to accommodate groups with odd numbers. We have a ramp that attaches us to shore & there is a trail so that you can explore the dense temperate rainforest that surrounds the lodge.

What Is The Fishing Like?
Salmon Fishing – Five minutes around the corner from the lodge is one of the world’s best places to fish for all five species of Pacific salmon. Our main target species are the big Chinook (King) salmon and the Coho (Silver) salmon. Rivers Inlet is world famous for giant Chinook & Coho salmon because of their unique gene pool. Typically every summer the largest chinook salmon caught on the entire coast is plucked from our waters. It is often in the 70-80 +lb. range. World-class trophy salmon fishing at its finest! The coho fishing is action packed, at times you are literally catching fish until your arms are tired. Cohos over 15 lbs. are common & each summer we see a few that tip the scales in the 20 lb. range.
For salmon fishing you will use limber tipped 10 1/2 ft. rods equipped with your choice of single action or level wind reel.
We have 2 main styles of salmon fishing.

Down-rigger fishing is main trolling method. A down-riggers is a spool of wire rope with a 10-12 lbs. cannon ball for weight. The tackle is attached to the wire down-rigger line with a quick release clip & lower to the selected depth. The typical tackle is a flasher & a hoochie (like a small squid) or a whole herring in a plastic teaser head that assists the herring to roll & flash. There are many other combinations of terminal tackle as well. This is a very effective method of fishing that allows anglers to get down deeper when the fish are not feeding on the surface. As you are going faster than traditional trolling styles it also allows you to cover more ground to find the fish when the school of salmon are scattered.

Mooching is the traditional fishing style where we fish the top 20 feet of water using 4 -6 oz. weights, 30 lb. test line & a cut-plug herring (head cut off on an angle) for bait. You travel quite slowly assisted by the ocean currents & your engine but are mostly drifting with the current & tide. The herring rolls & flashes to lure the salmon.

Fly Fishing – We mooch with 9 weight fly rods with fly reels equipped with 12 lb. test monofilament line & 1-4 oz. weights & a cut plug herring. For the traditional fly fisherman we also have fly fishing gear & a selection of flies but feel free to bring your own. There is nothing that compares to catching a chrome bright ocean feeding salmon on a fly rod either mooching or casting a fly.

Bottom Fishing – There are also numerous bottom fishing locations in our area where there is non-stop action catching halibut, lingcod & a variety of other bottom dwellers. For bottom fishing we use much heavier 6 ft. rods equipped with multi-action reels, 100 lb. test line, 1 lb. weights & spreader bars to avoid tangling. For the really big halibut we have harpoons to help land the “big one”. Our lodge record is 162 lbs. & we consistently catch plus 50 lbs. halibut. Our lodge record for lingcod is 29 lbs.

Spin Casting – Bass fisherman will enjoy using spin casters in the shallows and kelp beds along the shoreline to catch a variety of kelp dwellers on your favourite top water & sub-surface lures. The action is non-stop so kids & adults with type A personalities or ADD especially love this type of fishing.

Guiding – Our basic package is self-guided. Guiding is optional as the waters are calm, fishing easy & fishing spots only minutes from the lodge. Daily there are informative seminars provided by our experienced instructor/guides. However, if it is your first trip with us & are unfamiliar with our style(s) of fishing & the area fishing with a guide is highly recommended. You will almost always catch more fish with a guide & have a relaxing more educational & fulfilling experience. You can hire a guide for 1 day or every day during your stay. We customer cater your fishing package to meet your needs.
The guiding sells out so please pre-book.

Guiding is $595.00/day (plus tax) for 2 people/boat in our regular fleet boats. $695.00/day (plus tax) for an upgrade to a Boston Whaler, or $795.00/day (plus tax) for our 25 ft. Whaler that holds up to 4 people. A “day” of guiding is approximately eight (8) hours with the morning session & then your choice of the afternoon or evening session.

Catch Limits For 2016:
Plentiful fish stocks & strong salmon returns in our area afford us the most liberal salmon possession limits on the entire B.C. coast.
In the Rivers Inlet area you can catch & keep: 8 salmon during your stay of which 4 can be king (chinook) salmon & up to 8 can be silver (coho) salmon.
Bottom Fish: Take home 2 halibut, 6 lingcod, 8 rockfish.
We filet all you catch, vacuum pack it, flash freeze it & send you home with it in an insulated, airline approved waxed fish box.

When Is The Best Time?
We are open for 6 weeks from mid- July to until the end of August to take advantage of the peak of the migrating salmon runs. The fishing is consistently good all summer so it doesn’t really matter when you come. The peak of the salmon run can come at any time during this 6 week period.
Bottom fishing for halibut, lingcod & other bottom dwellers is also steady during this time.

What Do I Need To Bring?
Everything is included in your package except your fishing license & liquor (which we sell at wholesale prices).
We have wet weather gear & boots. All you need to bring are socks & underwear, a change of clothes, shorts, a warm jacket for the mornings, & your personal effects like sunglasses, camera & film, toiletries etc. If you have some specialized fishing gear like a favorite rod, reel, tackle or lure, you are more than welcome to bring it but it isn’t necessary, we take care of everything.
VERY IMPORTANT: Please limit your soft-sided bag to 25 lbs. for travel on the float planes.

How Do I Book?
Contact Simon by calling him on his direct line: 604-938-0505 or the office: 1-800-663-2644.
Or Email: info@riversinlet.com.
A $1000.00/trip non-refundable deposit holds your dates.
The balance is due 90 days prior to your departure.
Visa, Mastercard or Check are accepted. NO American Express.
Full payment is due at the time of booking for trips booked less than 60 days before departure.

For Additional Information Visit Our Website www.riversinlet.com.
Please don’t delay in booking your trip. Planning your trip early will ensure the best choice of available dates.
We look forward to hearing from you soon to plan the wilderness fishing adventure of a lifetime.