White Sturgeon
Sturgeon can live to be 100 years old and are the largest fresh water
fish in North America. The sportfishing record fish weighed 900 pounds. In Lillooet, sturgeons aren't allowed to
be kept, it's always, "catch and release" also your not allowed to use fin fish as bait.
A female sturgeon takes at least 11 years to mature, males take less. Sturgeon do not spawn every year. Spawning
takes place during the spring where there's rocky or gravel bottoms. Up to 5,000,000 eggs are released into the
river and the sticky eggs float to the bottom where they hatch within 2 weeks.
Favorite foods of the sturgeon are various species of shrimp, herring roe, smelt, shad, crustaceans, mollusks,
and dead fish.
Fishing Methods: Sturgeon fishing is done with bait. The terminal tackle consists of a slider, to which
the weight is fastened, above a large snap swivel. A single 6/0 hook or two 4/0 hooks are attached to a plastic
coated wire leader. It is highly advisable to use a rod balance because of their delicate bite. The best time to
fish is in the first few hours of the outgoing tide.
The toughest thing about sturgeon fishing is to learn when to set the hook. Usually the rod will take a heavy bump
in the balance. Slowly and gently pick up the rod. Be sure not to move the bait or you will lose the fish. Concentrate
on where the line hits the water, when the line tightens or moves, set the hook hard.