Salmon fishing on Osoyoos Lake opens to public July 31

Sophie Carrigan Gray

Local Journalism Initiative

Salmon fishing on Osoyoos Lake will open to recreational fishers on July 31, according to a Fisheries and Oceans Canada notice.

Fishing for sockeye will be permitted during daytime hours only in the “portion of Osoyoos Lake north of the bridge at Highway No. 3 (North Basin),” said the notice.

Personal limits are set at two sockeye per person per day. 

The notice states that the Department of Fisheries and Oceans staff met with Okanagan Nation Alliance and Mid Fraser Thompson Okanagan Sport FIsh Advisory Committee members on July 20 to discuss opening the lake for sockeye fishing, during which “a collaborative fishing plan was agreed upon.”

Officials will access stock levels and environmental conditions on August 12, to determine the length of public sockeye fishing access. 

Other regulations remain in place, including the use of single barbless hooks in non-tidal waters. A license is still required from the provincial government.