Welcome to the Village of Tahsis, nestled in the heart of Nootka Sound Tahsis is a premier ecotourism destination and beautiful nature getaway on Vancouver Island With more than 50km of passages, Tahsis is also one of Canada's caving meccas Hiking in Tahsis frequently leads to spectacular mountain overlooks Land and marine animals are abundant in the area, making for outstanding wildlife viewing With numerous docks and marinas, Tahsis is a perfect launching point for diving, kayaking and fishing Old-growth forests surround Tahsis and visitors are often amazed by the size of these giant trees The scenery in Tahsis is ever-changing, making it a great ecotourism vacation in any season

Sport Fishing

Fish Catch

Tahsis and Tahsis Inlet lead to the internationally famous fishing grounds of Nootka Sound and Esperanza Inlet. In the summertime, American, Canadian, and European fishing aficionados converge on the town to catch the local salmon, halibut, lingcod snapper, and rockfish. Prawns, crab, oysters, clams, and scallops are also among the wealth of seafood available to the avid fisherman or woman.

Tahsis has two full-service marinas, and the public boat launch facilities offer potable water, parking, storage, pay phone, picnic tables, public washrooms, and a sani-dump.

Saltwater Fishing

Tahsis is an ideal ecotourism base from which to pursue the saltwater fish of the Pacific. Tahsis is located roughly halfway between two great fishing areas - Nootka Sound and Esperanza Inlet - and only a short hop to Kyuquot Sound. Within an hour, you can fish for salmon in any number of fishing hot spots.

There are important salmon feeding grounds fronting Bajo reef, major salmon-holding areas in Nootka Sound and Tlupana Inlet, and productive salmon areas in outer Esperanza Inlet. At various times of the year, there are Chinook, Coho, Sockeye, Pink, and Chum salmon to catch.

Tahsis Resort Dock

In addition, there are many varieties of tasty bottom fish, such as halibut, ling cod, sole, greenling, sea bass, red snapper, cabezon, and several varieties of rockfish. It's not uncommon to also catch albacore tuna, herring, or shellfish (crabs, prawns, clams, and oysters).

Freshwater Fishing

There are great freshwater fishing opportunities all within an hour's drive of Tahsis. Some of the lakes have stocked rainbow and cutthroat trout, as well as wild fish. Locally, the Tahsis, Perry, and Leiner Rivers have some sea-run cutthroat (November through April), summer-run steelhead, and Chinook, Coho and Chum salmon in the fall months.

Between Gold River and Tahsis, there are excellent angling opportunities for steelhead and trout at Conuma River, Sucwoa River and Canton Cree. Malaspina Lake has rainbow and cutthroat trout up to 2 pounds. It's a steep but short climb down to Ceepeecee Lake (1/4 kilometre from an old logging road a couple miles south of town), but well worth it for cutthroat trout there as well.

Prawns

The best time for lake fishing is during the spring and fall, as the summer months can be hot, and warm waters drive fish to deeper waters. Fly-in lakes such as Crawfish Lake on Nootka Island and Power Lake northwest of Kyuquot offer excellent cutthroat trout up to 4 pounds year-round.

Fly-fishing is preferred for saltwater fishing for cutthroat in all estuaries, but favoured areas are the head of Espinoza Inlet, the Estuary of Park Creek in Queen Cove, and the mouth of Glory Creek in Mary's Basin, south shore. Park Creek and Park Lake have cutthroat and occasional steelhead.

Fishing Regulations

For sport fishing regulations in and around Tahsis, check the latest regulations for Area 125 (Tahsis Inlet, Nootka Sound, and Esperanza Inlet) and Area 25 (offshore from Nootka Sound and Esperanza Inlet) at the Department of Fisheries and Ocean's website.