Best sockeye deals found off the beaten path – literally

As new salmon fishery openings were announced this week, fishmongers in Steveston, Granville Island, Lonsdale Quay and West Vancouver continue to be thronged by a public in a frenzy for cheap, locally caught sockeye. But often better deals can be found just off the beaten path, quite literally, at roadside stands and fish trucks parked along rural Fraser Valley roads.

While fishermen in Steveston have been charging an average of $25 to $30 a fish at $5-per-pound, Murray Ned and his family have been pulling in sockeye near the Mission Bridge and selling them directly from their Abbotsford-area roadside stand at half that price.

"At first it was a bit slow trying to get established out there but now things are really picking up," said Ned.

While not at his day-job as the fisheries manager for the Sto:lo Tribal Council, Ned, along with his wife, son and mother have been doing a brisk business slinging sockeye at a modest stand beside the Yellow Barn Country Produce store, just off Highway 1 on No. 3 Road towards Cultus Lake.

Since last week, Ned, with the help of his family, has been steadily moving freshly caught sockeye for $15 a fish or $17 completely cleaned, gutted and ready to throw in the oven or on the grill, he said.

And those prices could drop still as fishermen took advantage of the first of this week’s newly announced openings Monday.

Monday’s 24-hour gillnet opening will be followed by another 12-hour opening Wednesday in an effort to take full advantage of this season’s record sockeye returns.

"Based on some of the prices at the Steveston docks earlier this year at $6-a-pound and Lonsdale Quay at upwards of $20-a-pound for fillets and so on…," said Ned, "I’m targetting a lot of the folks coming out to the Cultus Lake area or heading back from vacation."

According to Ernie Crey, fisheries advisor to the Sto:lo Nation, deals on sockeye can be had at just about any dock on either side of the Fraser River where fishing boats are seen.

For both the public and the fishermen, it’s a win-win, he said.

"People are walking down and buying fish directly from the fishermen themselves because the fishermen get a better price in direct sales than selling, under a contract, large numbers of fish to a commercial processor," Crey said.

He said that fishermen from many other Lower Mainland native bands such as the Musqueam, Squamish, Sumas and Katzie would also likely be selling off a portion of their catches to the public this week.