A tip for Columbia R. steelhead!!!!

[Jellyhead]

Ok, here's a tip for Columbia (and other river's too) steelheaders.

Most everybody I know that is fishing the lower Columbia fishes a flo. orange U-20 flatfish. Now, the only bad thing about these is that they are painted with Flat paint. The flat paint tends to get dirty really quickly. So, to clean your flatfish use a product called "Never-Dull" It is made for cleaning metal finishes (which it works awesome on) and is a wool-like fiber with a cleaner on it. Just lightly rub the dirty areas of your plug, and wa-la, just like new again.

This was taught to me by a friend, who by the way, caught five fish this weekend out on the columbia. He was fishing a current seam just below a wing dam, right on a break line that went from 12 to 25 feet deep. All five fish had to go back. One chinook 12lbs. clipped, four steelies 4-6lbs, all nates. His plug was in 20 feet of water. Mine was in 25, with no fish. You do the math!!!!!

One other thing, be sure to spray down the cleaned plug with WD-40 prior to use.

Have fun,

Aaron

[THE REEL HEY_YALL]

Another way to guesstimate depth is to do the countdown method. Granted, lures and weights are different, but I usually will count the depth in my head. It's tough for some of the slow thinkers, so I advise wearing a pair of flip-flops and count your toes images/icons/grin.gif

Depending on the lure weight, but usually one second = one foot.

Another thing you might try, and I've done this when vertical jigging:

Rig up what you'll start the day off fishing with. Now, depending on how anal you are, take a permanent marker and tape measurer, and mark different increments on your line in your front yard. You can use different colors for different increments if you feel froggy.

Some guys use thread and tie a bobber-stop style knot on their lines to judge the depth as well. I guess it depends on your eyesight.

[dogfishboy]

will_e'.

One way to establish bottom would be to but a bobber and stopper on your rig. You know the length of your rod, so use it to tell depth and adjust the stopper until you see bottom by how your bobber floats during the drift. If your bobber points downstream during the drift your dragging bottom. This is just like bobber fishin' tidewater. Use this to search for the depth you want, then rerig for steelhead.

I don't know if you double rig but it's an effective method. With the weight at the bottom go up about 12" to 24'" and put a 3way swivel and a spin-n- glo on a 12" to 18" leader, then go up about 24" to 36" - longer if your fishin' deeper water to cover more area - and then put another 3way swivel and a flatfish or similar on a 18" to 24" leader.

The wife and I spend a lot of time in Cathlamet and I often take the skiff over to the upstream tip of Tenasillahe Island and I've found this to be VERY productive. You can add a small bit of eggs or shrimp tail to the spin -n-glo. If your in the right spot you can fish very shallow...like 6' to 8'.

If you know or use this ...nevermind. images/icons/rolleyes.gif

Tight lines and good fishin'

David

[will_e_fish]

Jellyhead- Howdy! Have you posted before for plunking in the Columbia? How can a plunker tell how deep the water he is fishing in? Also what tips do you have for plunkers steelheading? Shrimp and dark colors anything else to try? Thanks

will_e_fish

[birdhunter]

You can guestimate the depth some based upon the angle of your line and how much is out. This is pretty rough, but it works if you know what you're doing. Fishing w/ other plunkers may be a good idea if you haven't done a whole lot of it before. They'll be able to tell you how far out to cast, where the fish are and what's working best. Basically the river is huge, your best bet will be to learn one area really really well, rather then jump all around different spots. After a couple of trips you should have it dialed in.

I wouldn't use bait this time of year for the simple reason that you'll get pecked to death by smolts and squawfish. I've already had enough trouble trying to keep the squawfish off the plugs I've been fishing. I don't think bait would last long enough for a steelhead to find it.

You might consider plunking w/ a spinner or perhaps even a large spin-n-glo. If you want some extra scent out there take a little pit of yarn soaked in shrimp or egg scent and tie it to the shank of the hook. It should be small so that it doesn't interfere w/ the action. When you reel in to check your lure for weeds you can re-soak for a bit and cast back out there. Best of luck.