Wicks Fishing Adventures · Surrey, BC
Guided fly fishing and Fraser sturgeon trips by custom jet boat — the Upper Pitt, the Lillooet, the Fraser and its tributaries. One guide, one boat, catch-and-release only.
The guide
Wicks Fishing Adventures is a one-guide fishing charter out of Surrey, BC — one custom jet boat, and the water I've spent years learning: the lower Fraser River, the Upper Pitt, the Lillooet and Harrison.
I specialize in two things: fly fishing for sea-run bull trout, cutthroat and steelhead, and sturgeon on the Fraser. The boat is the reason we get where we get. Stretches of the Upper Pitt are reachable only by helicopter or boat, which usually means we have the run to ourselves.
Every trip is catch-and-release. Not because it's a rule, but because these fish and these rivers are the whole reason any of us are out there. On sturgeon trips you can take part in the volunteer tagging program and put something back into the research that keeps track of them.
Catching fish is the fun part. The rest of it — the quiet, the country, the people you go with — is the reason people come back.
— Dayton
Member — Fraser Valley Angling Guides Association
Not a rotating roster. The same guide, every trip, start to finish.
Shallow water, rapids and remote runs that most boats simply can't reach.
Rods, reels and lines are on the boat. Bring layers and your BC freshwater licence.
100% catch-and-release, plus the volunteer sturgeon tagging program.
Plan your trip
Every species here runs on its own calendar. This is roughly how the year goes.
Runs shift year to year with water levels and weather. Message Dayton for what's actually happening this week — that's the only calendar that matters.
The water
Fly fishing and sturgeon charters across the Fraser Valley and the Coast Mountains — half day, full day, or a multi-day guided holiday. Corporate groups, stags and stagettes welcome.
Coast Mountains on both sides, gravel bars, and a string of classic runs with almost nobody on them. Resident cutthroat, char and rainbows, winter steelhead from January to April, and from early summer the sea-run bull trout — the "Pitt Bulls" — pushing in to feed on salmon fry.
A winter wilderness run for sea-run cutthroat, bull trout, Dolly Varden and steelhead, in a river with next to no pressure on it. We go up from Harrison by jet boat. Harrison Lake makes its own weather and some days have to move — the trip is worth waiting for.
Thirteen hundred kilometres from the Rockies to the Pacific, and the reason this whole operation exists. Chinook, coho and sockeye, plus steelhead, cutthroat and sturgeon — and a pink salmon run every odd year. Trips are booked around the runs, not the calendar.
The easiest trip to say yes to, and the one most people book first. Any age, any skill level — friends, families, corporate groups. Adult fish in this system reach twelve feet. Juvenile trips include the volunteer tagging program, so the day counts for something beyond the photo.
On the water
Every photo here is from a real day out. Tap to enlarge.
Film
What people say
We spent the day with Dayton on the Upper Pitt River and had an absolute blast. Beautiful scenery, nice fish, and good company.
Unreal experience, unreal boat operator and even better guide. 10/10
Phenomenal day on the water! The guide is super attentive to everyones needs and provides an insane day on the river filled with a ton of local knowledge.
The setting of this fishing trip was truly inspiring: riding up the river, mountains on both sides, fast flowing water, traveling over rapids in a jet boat.
The preservation of sturgeon are so important to this company. Entire new level of respect. Thank you for the fun and education!
Very knowledgeable and experienced guide. Beautiful scenery. Had a great time! Will definitely come back for another trip in the future.
We had always dreamed about heading up the Upper Pitt River, that legendary spot many BC anglers call a hidden gem. And thanks to Dayton, that dream came true.
Merch
Hats and hoodies that have been on the water. Checkout runs through the Wicks store.
Before you book
Two things, done properly: fly fishing on the lower Fraser and its tributaries — sea-run cutthroat, bull trout, Dolly Varden and steelhead — and white sturgeon on the Fraser.
The Upper Pitt, the Lillooet (accessed by jet boat from Harrison), and the Fraser River and its tributaries. Everything runs out of the Lower Mainland, roughly thirty minutes from Vancouver.
No. Wicks is 100% catch-and-release. On sturgeon trips you can also take part in the volunteer tagging program, which feeds directly into conservation research on the Fraser population.
Yes. Trips are built around whoever's on the boat — first-timers get instruction as part of the day, and experienced anglers get pushed. The sturgeon trips in particular suit any age or skill level.
Depends entirely on what you want to catch. Sturgeon peaks April to November; steelhead has winter, spring and summer runs; sea-run bull trout come on from early summer. Water and weather move all of it, so message Dayton and he'll tell you what's happening now.
Next step
Send the dates and Dayton comes back with availability and a rate. You're talking to the guide, not an office.