Steelhead HELP!!!!!

[Jeremy]

How come people can catch a ton of fish on a river and the ni go there two days later and dont catch anything? Does anybody have any steelehading tips they want to pass on like when to go and what to use, Thanks for the info. Jeremy

[First Bite]

RT covered your question pretty much. It's true, the more time spent on the water the better your chance of hooking into fish.

An easy setup for beginning Steelheaders is to use jigs and a bobber. If you haven't already, fill your reel with around 10# test, grab a couple cork bobbers and a few jigs. Pink/White is a good choice. I run the line straight through the bobber and tie directly to the jig. That way you just slide the bobber according to the depth your fishing. Good luck.
Mark

[Jeremy]

Thanks for the info as soon as it rains again i will go try those tips out. Just a quick question when fishing with the bobber and jig do you want your jig close to the bottom or midwater level? Thanks again

[Deleted User]

Jigs work best when the water is on the clearer side. Most good jig fishers tell me that they fish their jigs only 3' to 4' deep & the steelies will come up off bottom to grab the jig and yank your bobber under, even in up to 7' or 8' deep slots. I like to try them at 4', cover the water real well with a couple different colored jigs, then drop down a little deeper to see if that draws any strikes. - Steve

[Fred Uhlig]

The old adage-10% of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish is pretty close to the truth. The tips above are all true and I also really believe that a lot of fishermen who drift fish have steelhead hits but never realize it, thinking they just hit bottom. Steelhead often just stop a corkie and then immediately spit it out (thats what the yarn is for--catches in the teeth). Bobber and jig fishing is effective, but to be a real successful fishermen one has to learn all the different methods and not be afraid to use something that other fishermen are not using. Good Luck

[This message has been edited by Fred Uhlig (edited 04-19-2000).]

[First Bite]

Jeremy

You don't have to wait until it rains. Use jigs in drifts where the water flow is on the slower side. Tailouts are good. Depending on the water your fishing, sometimes the takes are very subtle. The bobber might just barely sink under water, especially in the summer.

Good luck
Mark

[Deleted User]

Jeremy- That's the nature of salmon & steelhead fishing! The 2 times I fished O.C. for springers were slow days while a lot of other days were good. Can't do much about that, but there are some things for steelheading, & salmon fishing, in medium to smaller rivers that can help. Try to find out where it had been good the day prior to your trip & float or bankfish a section above there. If you can't' find em, move around more, both upriver & down. If you still can't locate fish either most of the "biters" were thinned out the previous couple days or a myriad of conditions could have the fish off the bite; such as water temp/color, barometric pressure changes (dropping not as good as raising, especially for 'nooks), and other various factors beyond our control. Sometimes 'nook fishing shuts off so fast you'd think somebody poured a hundred gallons of seal saliva into the river up above. Another thing I would try if fresh fish might still be coming into the river, like earlier in the season, is to know the tide schedule and fish the lower river just above tidewater before, thru, and after high tide that can move new fish up.- Other than that I have 2 major things that will help anytime: 1- Go as often as you can so as to be there when the bite is on. Sounds flipant but that's a big reason you here about great days from serious fishers & guides because they are there when it's happening. Unfortunately we can't all be out there a lot. Try to go when the river is dropping into shape from being a bit high & off color. 2- Right away, before it's deleted, click on the Old Discussion Board and scroll back to late Dec., Jan., & Feb. to read/print steelhead tech posts by myself & other good fishers. You may pick up a thing or two that can make some difference. Good luck & tight lines. - Steve

[This message has been edited by RT (edited 04-19-2000).]

[Deleted User]

It is true that you need to be versital but I feel that you should concentrate on 1 technic and do it well then alter that in different ways to accomidate river conditions ,then try and experiment with other styles jig and bobber is the easiest to learn , then throwing hardware next although drifting is the most popular ,In my opinion it's the hardest because the bite can be very soft and hard to detect.You must pay you're dues and do the time ,then the fish will come....USE THE FORCE ...LUKE!!!

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men are like fish we get into trouble when we open our mouths too much
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[Deleted User]

Got to stick my sore nose in here again. Jeremy, driftfishing and feeling the bite is not as difficult as some experienced steelheaders would have you believe; just my opinion. Click on the old Discussion Board and scroll way back down to the 12/27 "Driftfishing Intricacies" repost by RT. Print it out & practice those tech.'s. My "Bite, Feel, Hookset" article got lost so I will do a brief summary of it here for you. When you get proficient at the above drifting presentation tech.'s, I suggest what I call the Lift/Poke/Hookset method. Don't set the hook hard unless you're pretty sure a fish has the hook in it's mouth. If you get a hard hit/takedown or you feel definite live movement set it. If your drifting rig just stops or slows down fast, quickly "lift" the rodtip up a bit. You have either lifted your weight around a rock or you have "poked" the hookpoint into a fish. For the latter you will feel an immediate headshake to throw the hook. Finish the "hookset" with an instant wristsnap upward. "There-ee-is"! Keep tight lines. - Steve

[This message has been edited by RT (edited 04-20-2000).]

[FC]

Steve
thought for sure you were going to go into the lou butt drop technique for a moment. Just wanted to say hi and hope your feeling good. Really hope you can make the BC trip this year. See ya FC