Socked eyes over sockeye: Men behave like boys in predictable brawls on Fraser River when millions of fish return

CAUGHT on VIDEO: Every year when there are large salmon returns, huge numbers of anglers hit the river where tensions flare

Boys will be boys, unfortunately.

If you live in the Eastern Fraser Valley you might know that every summer when there is nice weather and a big return of sockeye salmon, two unrelated things inevitably happen: At least one person will drown on a lake or river in the area, and there will be a fight between recreational fishermen.

Clearly the primal urge to hunt and gather brings out the toddler in many men, men who maybe shouldn't come out in public with the other humans.

This weekend was the end of a recreational fishery for salmon on the Fraser, which included an allowable retention of two sockeye per day, a rare treat during a rare huge return of fish. 

Two people have died on local waterways so far this summer, and once again fights broke out this weekend on the Fraser River, fights caught on video on Peg Leg Bar on Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025 (below).

More than one person shared videos of this particular fight that, based on bystander commentary was over a pink salmon. Not even a sockeye? One man who is seen bleeding from the face appears enraged, trying to engage with various individuals while others yell to break it up.

"Yo are we not fucking grown men?" asked one large, loud voice near the end of the clip.

It's unclear at this point if any charges will be laid.

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Paul J. Henderson
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