Port Alberni is situated at the head of Alberni Inlet which opens up into Barkley Sound on the rugged and beautiful west coast of Vancouver Island.

The area is surrounded with beautiful old growth forests including some individual trees that were well rooted when Christopher Columbus was making his first steps in the Caribbean! The Stamp, Sproat and Somass Rivers originate in Great Central Lake and Sproat Lake and weave their ways southeast to the Alberni Inlet. The moderately sized Stamp and Sproat rivers join to form the large Somass River, near Port Alberni. The system boasts good summer Steelhead and great winter Steelhead runs. Winter runs are primarily fished in the lower Stamp River whose total fishable length is up around 25 km!! Along with careful management, the contributions of the Robertson Creek Fish Hatchery, located at the top of the Stamp River, are providing consistently great winter Steelhead angling opportunities!

Winter Steelhead are a distinct run of Steelhead that arrive to their home rivers during the months of December, January, February and March. The Stamp River has one of the largest returns of winter Steelhead in British Columbia and is considered by many the premier destination for catching these fish. As a general rule, Stamp river fish start entering the river around the first week of December and continue until late March. The peak of the run can vary from the 20th of December to the middle of February. We call the Peak the day that the biggest school of fish entered the river. In 2003 it was January 26th and in 2002 it was December 18th. Our guides have guided guests to more than 15,000 Steelhead in the past 15 years and have earned the reputation of being the premier Steelhead guides in British Columbia. We have 5 great guides that live and breathe this river and they are unsurpassed for the expertise and knowledge of the art of Steelhead fishing.

The Stamp River is world famous for its consistent returns of winter and summer Steelhead. The Stamp River has both hatchery and wild returning Steelhead. The dominant component are now wild spawning Steelhead with hatchery Steelhead making up about 20% of the run. Run timing on the river is July through early December for summer and fall Steelhead and December through April for winter Steelhead. The fish range from 4 to 20 pounds with the average being 5 to 10 pounds for summer fish and 6 to 12 pounds for winter fish. Guests are more likely to catch hatchery fish in the lower river and wild fish in the middle and upper sections. Great fishing can be had from mid October to April 15th if you are planning a trip to the Stamp River for Steelhead. Great fly fishing for Steelhead is available early October to Mid November. Most of the fly fishing in the winter is done on smaller streams that are better suited for the fly fisherman.

We are very proud of the guide boats that our available to our guests. These boats are built for fishing and designed specifically for their task. We have 4 outboard jet powered boats, 2 drift boats and 3 rafts. All of our equipment is top notch and well maintained and you can be assured that nothing is left to chance that could affect the outcome of your fishing experience. We use Yamaha engines exclusively, which are well known for their dependable, smooth and quiet performance.