Fishing · British Columbia
A top-rated Campbell River charter with over 350 near-perfect reviews, offering saltwater salmon trips to remote grounds like Toba Inlet and guided river fly fishing, with spotless boats and lots of wildlife.
Coastal Wilderness Adventures Sportfishing is a Campbell River operation with an almost spotless record: all but one of its 357 reviews are five stars. It runs at least two boats and several guides, and guests praise each by name for being professional, skilled and fun, with good music and easy conversation on board.
Anglers describe fast starts, with a first chinook within 20 minutes, limits of king salmon, coho and lingcod, and days with more fish than they could keep. Some trips run over an hour to fishing grounds such as Toba Inlet, where guests found the water to themselves. Guides rig the lines and handle the downriggers and net, and reviewers note careful handling of fish being released. Boats are described as clean and comfortable, and all gear is provided.
It's not only saltwater. A couple on their first fly fishing trip caught cutthroat trout on a guided river day and came across elk along the way. Families of all ages come back repeatedly, including one with a father in his nineties, and kids enjoy the action, down to the dogfish. Wildlife is a big part of the draw, with whales, bears, eagles, seals, sea lions and deer swimming the channel.
There are virtually no complaints. Expect early starts, around 6 a.m. for some trips, and long days of up to eight hours. Daily retention limits on king salmon mean much of the fishing is catch-and-release, which guests say the guides explain well.
Summarised from visitor reviews on Google Maps. Based on 357 Google reviews. Details change — confirm hours, prices and bookings with Coastal Wilderness Adventures Sportfishing directly.
