10 painful lessons I learned on my first B.C. steelhead trip

#8 Every Lodge Needs a Spey-casting Chef

Well, need might be overstating it, but when the chef owns more fly rods than spatulas, it’s a sign the lodge’s fishing culture runs deep. On my third and final day, Randy wanted to take a long float down the Salmon River, more than an hour’s drive away. We needed a second vehicle to leave at the pull-out location, so chef Terry MacDonald (above right) joined us for the day, Sage spey rod in hand.

Seriously talented in the kitchen, Terry has worked, and still could, in the finest of fine-dining establishments. But he visited Gold River—population 1,200—more than a decade ago, and liked the fishing so much he never left. It’s a good thing he was able to join us, because it was on the Salmon that we finally connected with fish.