Coastal Rain River · Granite · British Columbia, CA

Stamp / Somass River

Stamp / Somass River — Stamp River Provincial Park

The Stamp/Somass at Port Alberni is one of the Island's most productive rivers — lake-fed flows carry summer and winter steelhead and enormous autumn salmon runs through canyon water and big pools.

Prime · Steelhead
Purple Spey · 12–16
Primelive now
About as good as it gets
Low and clear — careful approach country. Take your time — read the water before you cast.
90% confidence
What moved it
  • LevelProxyvia Cowichan River
  • Water temp12.7°C
  • ClarityClear
Today's fly
PS
Purple Spey12–16
A dependable searching pattern for these waters.
Conditions on the water
Proxy gauge
Level
Steady
Proxy
via Cowichan River
Water temp12.7°C
ClarityClear
Weather12°C
WindNE 8 km/h
Pressure1018 hPa
Rain · recent0.0 mm
Rain · ahead0.0 mm

No gauge on this water — conditions are inferred from Cowichan River. The trend transfers, the absolute level does not.

Water temperature for Steelhead
Ideal
13°C est.ideal 4–13°C
0°14°28°
How to fish it · for Steelhead
When
Summer steelhead ~May–September; winter steelhead Dec–April; salmon in autumn.
Where
The Stamp/Somass at Port Alberni is one of the Island's most productive rivers — lake-fed flows carry summer and winter steelhead and enormous autumn salmon…
Why this works
Excellent — water temperature is right today, though insect activity could be better.
Likely species
Mayflies
Caddisflies
Chironomids
Damselflies & dragonflies
Hatch timeline · todayPeak at 6pm

Hatch predictions

Today's headline hatch shown — see all 12 active hatches hour by hour as a supporter.

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Sub-surface · on the nymphunder the surface

Hatch predictions

Supporters see the full sub-surface read.

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Beyond the hatch · worth watchingambient prey(1)

Hatch predictions

Top prey shown — see all 3 as a supporter.

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Evidence
Records-basedModerate confidence

Based on species-occurrence records, not local invertebrate surveys.

Through the year
0–3 scale · September highlighted
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Trout seasonSeason
1
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
Brown DunHatch
2
3
3
3
3
3
3
2
Western Green DrakeHatch
2
2
Flav (Small Western Green Drake)Hatch
2
3
2
Mahogany DunHatch
2
2

Numbers are intensity 0 (none) to 3 (peak) — a guide, not a guarantee.

Ranked for today
Steelhead fly box
PS
Purple Spey
12–16 · Fly
A dependable searching pattern for these waters.
MT
Marabou tube
8–10 · Salmon fly
Swing it through the holding lie at a steady pace.
Permits & access
Permit required — see local rules.
  • Gear restrictions, wild steelhead C&R, salmon heavily regulated
  • Verify current BC regs (Region 1) and DFO notices.
What's coming
Plan ahead
5-day outlook
Other water nearby · 2
Englishman River
42 km
Cutthroat trout · Steelhead · Coho salmon
Nitinat River
45 km
Steelhead · Chinook salmon · Coho salmon
Gallery · 2
  1. Stamp / Somass River — Stamp River Provincial Park
    Stamp River Provincial Park
  2. Terrain map of the venue
    Terrain map
About this water

The Stamp/Somass at Port Alberni is one of the Island's most productive rivers — lake-fed flows carry summer and winter steelhead and enormous autumn salmon runs through canyon water and big pools. Steelhead are fishable across much of the year and the salmon fishing in fall is a spectacle. Popular and powerful; fish the swing and respect the wild-steelhead release rules.

Under the surface

The Stamp (becoming the Somass below the confluence) near Port Alberni is one of Vancouver Island's most productive systems — lake-fed flows from Great Central Lake support summer and winter steelhead and huge runs of Pacific salmon. A powerful, popular river of canyon runs and big pools, it fishes for steelhead across much of the year and is a salmon factory in autumn.

Wading: Strong current, slick bedrock, crowded runs

  • Granite
  • Confined
  • Pool riffle
  • Large river
Conservation note

Summer and winter steelhead (wild C&R; hatchery support present) and big Pacific salmon runs (separately regulated). Clean-Drain-Dry.

Why this score · for Steelhead
  • Temperature10028% weight
  • Flow8022% weight
  • Clarity9518% weight
  • Feeding Time6513% weight
  • Pressure757% weight
  • Insect activity6312% weight
Directions
Apple MapsGoogle Maps
Seasons & zones
  • Trout 1 January → 31 December
Related guides
Euro Nymphingsubsurface methods
Booking & contacts