BLACKWELL’S DEAN RIVER LODGE

The Dean River, in British Columbia, is world famous for its summer run steelhead and salmon that come into the system from June to October. The Dean steelhead are some of the strongest of all steelhead stock. This fact coupled with our location being very close to saltwater, guarantees you will experience "tackle-busters". These fish are chrome bright, with all their strength and stamina.

Blackwell's Dean River Lodge is nestled in a beautiful wilderness setting overlooking the bay of the Dean Channel, with the Grantham Waterfall rushing to drop 1,000 feet in the backyard. Steep mountains of the British Columbia Coast Range capped with glaciers, rise up to heights of 8,000 feet in full view.

We are Orvis Endorsed and offer full service, with kitchen, dining room, sitting room, and three cabins to house six guests, two guests each, and a staff of four. Each cabin has its own bathroom, shower, and propane heat.

Our lodge is only a 10 minute drive away from the river where we board our jet boat and begin fishing. All fishing is wading and casting, the boat is used to position the anglers on the runs and to move up and down the river. - We normally begin fishing at 8 am, every one gets together at a scenic spot on the river for a hot lunch mid day and back to the lodge in time to prepare for dinner served at 7 to 8 pm. Two guides are provided for 6 anglers. The guides are experienced, very friendly and helpful. Rods should be 8 or 9 weight, these are big fish and VERY HOT due to the close proximity to salt water. Many fish will have sea lice. Most of the anglers who fish the Dean River have also fished several other rivers in various parts of the world for anadromas species and report to us that the Dean River fish are the strongest of all. We believe this is because of the many miles of whitewater they travel to get to the headwaters to spawn. The Dean River is unique in that it may be the only river where Steelhead is the dominant specie.
The fishing season opens in the Dean June 1, we begin fishing June 15. The first week we are primarily catching Chinook, by the second week we will catch some Steelhead with the Chinook. The Chinook will weigh as much as 50 lbs. As we move into July we begin to catch more Steelhead than Chinook. Steelhead weigh up to 30 lbs. Steelhead season continues full swing until August 20 when we take a break until September 1 and begin fishing for Coho Salmon through the month of September. Coho weigh up to 25 lbs. For the Coho fishing we often station our float planes at the Dean and we will fly out to other great rivers in the nearby parks to fish seldom visited spots. We also use a helicopter to assist the float planes and fly our rafts up stream and float back down to the waiting float planes. These fly out trips will put you on seldom fished water, in real wilderness, with great fishing and superb scenery. We can float a river with a very high density of Grizzly Bears if you want to combine bear viewing with fishing.
There are several great hiking trails near the lodge. One will take you to ancient Indian petroglyphs, one will take you to the base of Grantham Falls with an elevated view of the river and the Dean Channel.

Our guides use a jet boat to place you on the runs. Two guides are supplied for six anglers. Fly out trips for salmon, rainbow trout, and cutthroat may be arranged during your stay.

YouTube Videos - courtesy of April Vokey

April Vokey at Blackwell’s Dean River Lodge
Blackwell’s Dean River Lodge- Landing Chrome
Buck Release on the Dean River