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As the winter months pass us by, we are back with another QCL Signature Series recipe. This time featuring Smoked Salmon, Beets and a Goat Cheese Dressing – A salad perfect for lunch or in addition to dinner.

Materials

3 Beets, medium sized
90ml Olive Oil
115g Goat Cheese
60ml Buttermilk
15ml White Wine Vinegar
5g fresh chopped Dill
200g sliced Smoked Salmon
150g Arugula
½ Avocado, sliced
2 Green Onions, sliced
½ Lemon

Method

Preheat oven to 400 F
Rub beets with 30ml of Olive Oil and Salt + Pepper
Once seasoned, place beets on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and roast in oven for 40 mins
Remove from oven, peel and slice (or dice) to your liking
In a food processor combine Goat Cheese, Buttermilk, White Wine Vinegar, Olive Oil, half of the Dill, and Salt + Pepper to taste. Mix until smooth.
Separate slices of the Smoked Salmon and sliced Avocado
Dress Arugula and Green Onions with dressing. Place on bottom of serving dish
Place Smoked Salmon, Beets, Avocado and remaining Dill on bed of Arugula
Drizzle with more Goat Cheese Dressing, to your liking, and finish with a squeeze of fresh Lemon

Don’t worry if you’ve moved through your supply of QCL caught fish already, our Taste of B-Sea program runs year round. The finest quality fish and shellfish, these products are Ocean Wise and come from some of the most sustainable fisheries in the world using the most eco-friendly fishing methods.

To learn more and to place your order, contact us | 1-800-688-8959

As we crest over the midway point of our summer season here at QCL, we find ourselves knee deep in Coho. There appears to be no sign of slowing to the arrival of the acrobatic white gums. As the flow of fish continues to increase, we have begun to see an increase in size as well. Fish stretching into the double digits are becoming more and more common every week. Yesterday a 14-pounder arrived at the Bell Ringer! What a fish!

At the same time, I felt that Chinook fishing had been slower than usual last week. But there has been no lack of quality when you do find a pocket of black gums! Though the hookups on Springs have been hindered by the relentless hammering of Coho, the fish that are being caught are often up into the twenty-plus class and put up quite a battle for our visiting anglers!

This past week my guests and I were fortunate enough to connect with a trio of gorgeous Chinooks at Cape Naden. On three consecutive passes we managed to find an eighteen pounder, followed by a fat 23-pounder. Not much later, on our third tack through the shallow bay that divides Cape Naden and Hanna Bay, the portside rod popped off and began to strain from the heavy head shakes of what would turn out to be a stunning 37-pound Chinook! After an exciting battle, punctuated by many long runs, the 27”x 38” chrome missile was carefully landed onto the deck of our 22’ Bridgeview. After a quick measurement, this big beauty was successfully released to continue his long Journey home!

Tipper

With all the great things that make an adventure at QCL so memorable, we try hard to make the dining experience another highlight of your stay!

Everybody gets out to do a little jiggin’ while they visit The Lodge… tons of fun and adventure, and the big payoff shows up on the dinner plate! Delicious!

In case you missed it, you should check out the deliciously simple halibut presentation with QCL Hospitality Manager Jin Chong at Global TV on Saturday. Our portion packing program ensures you can enjoy perfect fish dinner every time! Vacuum-sealed for freshness months after your trip to the lodge, there’s no waste and this quick and easy recipe is a perfect play on fish & chips!

Here’s the video link to the show: https://globalnews.ca/news/5239665/recipe-potato-crusted-halibut-with-lemon-butter-sauce/

Last week we were talking about “special combo” fishing and the great variety of fishing experienceLast week we were talking about “special combo” fishing and the great variety of fishing experiences there are to be had up here. Well this week we had a father & son angling team at the lodge that really took it to heart! Ronald and Dan R not only found the variety but, with the help of their QCL guide Jake Harrach, they found the quality as well!

Over the past 4 days they managed to catch the largest fish of the trip in each of 3 species and the 2nd largest in a 4th! On Tuesday Dan caught and released the big halibut of the trip, a big slab that taped out to 163 pounds. On Wednesday Ron boated a nice big lingcod that tipped the scale at 35 pounds which, in most weeks would be the big one! But he came second to a 50-pounder landed by Lino P! That’s only 6 pounds short of the lodge record! Congrats Lino! On the same day Ronald caught the largest Coho of the week, coming in at 16-pounds – a beautiful fish for sure! Then on Thursday, making that famous “just one more pass” at Cape Naden on the way in, Dan hooked up with a big Chinook that really put him to the test. After a twenty-minute tussle, Jake slipped the net beneath the chrome beauty and they knew there would be some more Bell-ringing back at the dock that night! At 39-pounds, this big Tyee would add to Dan’s record of success as the largest Chinook of the trip. Congratulations guys! That’s an amazing catch report! It’s a good thing you’re going home for the weekend to get some rest!

The weekend forecast is for more southerly weather and calm seas (with a regular dose of liquid sunshine.) The inshore Chinook fishing has certainly picked up in the past week with the best action during the first and last hours of the day. Offshore the Coho catch remains strong and we’re seeing more of the larger Coho coming to the scale. Bottom fishing has been getting easier with the tidal range diminishing every day since Monday’s new moon. QCL anglers released 6 halibut over 100 pounds this trip and we’re still seeing nice 30-plus fish at the Bell Ringer every night. These are great days to be fishing at QCL!

This summer, we’re supplying our guests with the gear to try a different, fun and highly effective way of catching fish! Your tackle box will now include a selection of jigs as an option to trolling and bottom fishing with spreader bars.

Simply put, jigging is lowering a weighted lure into the water, and repeatedly lifting and dropping the tip of the rod, enticing fish to strike at the active jig. It’s a surprisingly simple and successful way to catch halibut, lingcod, rock cod, and even salmon!

I have spent many successful days on the water with only my jigging lures to keep me busy, and I find it a nice change of pace to traditional fishing. Staying active on the boat, and even having the chance to turn off the engine for total peace and quiet is hard to beat. And nothing is better than holding the rod in your hands when the fish strikes!

Here are a few tips to effective jigging:

Find the right area! For salmon, find schools of bait and jig to the side or just below a bait ball. For bottom fish, look for “humps” or depressions on the sounder and fish a few feet off the bottom.

Once you find the right spot, motor up current and drift back over the zone.

Lower the jig to just below the depth of the bait, then start slowly raising and quickly dropping the rod tip

If fishing deep, don’t let the jig rest on the bottom, to prevent snags.

Keep the lines completely vertical – this can take some practice when driving and working a rod at the same time!

Keep the strokes short, lift the rod tip only 1.5 to 2 feet – no need for big 6 foot pulls!

If you feel the slightest bump, it’s a fish hitting the lure so strike hard and set the hook!

Why not give it a try this season? Ask me on the dock for some of my favourite spots, and I’ll point them out on your GPS!

Tight lines!

Ryan Ashton