Tuesday, September 29, 2026
The Herring
Salt Spring Island Fish Market
Witnesses describe it as "very fresh"
The boats came into Ganges Harbour low in the water this morning. Wild coho, a few springs and one deeply offended lingcod are on ice at the counter now, cut to order and wrapped in yesterday's paper (ours).
Story continues on page 3Hook, line & island time
Before the first ferry leaves Fulford, our three boats are already working the water between Salt Spring and the Pender Islands. Dot, Big Dot and The Other Boat fish by hook, line and trap only, stay clear of the rockfish conservation areas, and throw back anything too small to be proud of. By mid-morning the catch is on ice at the wharf: spot prawns in May, Dungeness most of the year, wild salmon when the salmon say so, plus oysters from just up the channel. If it swam past the island this week, it is probably on the counter. If it isn't, ask Mavis. She knows where it went. Prices are chalked on the board by the door and change with the weather, the tide and Mavis's mood, roughly in that order.
A tale of fish and ferries
Mavis Thorne came to Salt Spring in 1974 meaning to start a newspaper. The island already had one, so she bought a rowboat and a fish counter instead and kept the name she'd picked. Fifty years on, her daughter runs the counter, her grandson runs the boats, and the paper still comes out every morning. It is mostly fish.
Full report on page 9From a man who has caught one fish
Go at the turn of the tide. Bring a thermos. When the kayakers paddle past and ask what you're catching, say "mostly sun" and look out to sea like you mean it. Our correspondent has fished these rocks every Sunday since 1998 and has...
Continued on page 13Crab of the week
Gerald came up in a Long Harbour trap on Tuesday and has refused, politely but firmly, to be priced. He has been granted a full pardon and now lives in the tank by the till, where he supervises. The rest of this week's Dungeness are cooked and cracked while you wait.