Does species matter? eggs that is

[Pilar]

Ok all you bait slingers out there. Does it matter which species of eggs you throw at steelhead or chinook? They probably smell different, but do the fish care?

[dawhunt]

I've met guides that fish the cowlitz that think chum eggs are the cats a-- for steelhead,I've used them but I like silver eggs the most for steelhead and salmon,I like chinook eggs last for no real reason,I just like to use silver eggs better.But the very best for steelhead is steelhead eggs(FRESH !!)I've been told shrimp is best but I've always had better luck with fresh caught eggs,I just dry them overnight wrapped in paper towels then very lightly borax them the next day and then go catch fish.(sometimes)I think its just what your comfortable with fish propably don't care there just mad or hungry.
Bob :whazzup:

[Mr. Fisherman]

Oh, you said SPECIES not Fecies..

Never mind

I was gonna tell ya to turn the fish over :whazzup:

[birdhunter]

My vote's for coho.

[Captn]

Pilar, I cure them all, Coho, Chum, Chinook and whatever the same way. It dosen't seem to make much, if any difference. I think perhaps the size and maturity of the eggs might be more important. I am refering to the ability of the eggs to bind with the skeen. The important thing is that you have eggs to sling. Some years you can fish without eggs but not shrimp, and other times just the opposite. I can tell you this, next trip to Alaska no hen Pink, Chum, or Silver eggs will be safe from my gallon zip-lock bag.

[fishbait]

Best eggs for fall Chinook are Silver Eggs, then Chinook,
Best eggs for Spring Chinook are Sockeye
Best steelhead eggs are steelhead, sockeye, chum and chinook in that order.
Silvers when they bite will bite most all eggs, but sockeye are prefered.

[ 11-15-2001: Message edited by: fishbait ]</p>

Are you SURE Fishbait? LOL. :grin:

[RipDatLip]

What about other eggs like... say a bass?

Matt

[Chris Nordling]

Salmon for salmon, steelies for steelies and light pink yarn(white too) and scent when no eggs around. Fresh eggs are best, sometimes right out of the hen in the box will get that last summer to bite....

Chris

~ Team U.S.A. ~

[Beek]

I always try to match the eggs I'm using with the type of spawners in the river.

For example, I fish chum/spring roe for Coho and Steelhead cause that's the kind of eggs in the water. For Sturgeon we fish chum roe in the fall, and sockeye/pink roe in the summer. Match the hatch kinda deal.

Overall, I like chummer eggs the best, followed by Spring and then Steelie eggs. Don't fish coho guts that often.

[SteelieSteve]

My first pick would be steelhead eggs for steelhead, chinook for salmon. I'd use coho eggs if I had nothing else available. Aren't chum eggs real yellow?

[Uncle Bob]

The problem with chum eggs, seems a lot of the bright hens have had loose eggs ????????? :whazzup: :whazzup:
I use a lot of coho eggs, because of their availablity.

UB

[Osprey]

I'll add my .02 here as well.

My favorite eggs to fish are Chums...hands down,because of their oil content, they milk great and also have the tougest membranes,
winters and summeruns lovem.
after chums it would be
Steelhead (hatchery fish please)
Chinook
Silvers

Hey I managed to get a bunch of fresh sockeyes eggs this year , that I cured up,I just haven't had a chance to fish them yet,has anyone else had success,I have noticed that the membrane seams a bit tender..........Os

[Tanner]

Some of the most productive eggs I have ever used for steelhead were brown trout eggs from an early fall weekend of brown fishing on the upper Deschutes. I started fishing them in December and absolutely slayed the winter steelies on them.

As for other eggs, I prefer fishing whatever eggs I happen to have at the time. I think some people get a little too technical when it comes to stuff like this. I have caught as many steelhead on Chinook eggs as I have on silver or steelhead eggs.

In my opinion it is a matter of having properly cured and cared for eggs and covering enough water to get them in front of some biters. I have noticed though that eggs cured with cures such as Sure Cure or Quick cure don't catch as many steelhead as boraxed eggs. I think it has to do with the presence of sodium sulfite in those cures. Those cures do however, work great for chinook.

[fishbait]

Osprey,

Sockeye eggs don't work. Oh, by the way, I will trade you chinook, silver or steelhead eggs for your sockeye eggs as long as they have a good cure. In my humble opinion, nothing outfishes sockeye eggs for salmon. BEST springer bait there is, period.

Tanner,

Basically I agree with you. Sulfite cures are not the best for steelhead. As far as what eggs fish best, what were are talking about here is one of the little things. To some people, the type of eggs wont make a diff in the number of fish they catch, with others it will be the diff between a 3 fish day and a 4 or 5 fish day. There are many things much more important that the type of egg, but it does matter.

[ 11-16-2001: Message edited by: fishbait ]</p>

You can have these "Trask Gold" eggs Fishbait. (As if you need em, LOL) NOT. :grin:

Got Sushi?

[fishbait]

Rick,
Nice berries...........I have some dye that will up your catch of hens in tidewater. Guranteed....14 yrs tested... I don't absolutely know why this dye catches such a high percentage of hens, but I do know that it does consistantly catch more hens than bucks, proven over many years. I will give you enough for a few quarts if you want, all I ask is that you keep on the snaggers like you do/have been....I absolutely hate these low life botton dwelling/fishing scrote lickers.........(lets test the anti bad word filter here)..us bobber fisherman have to stick together....

[ 11-16-2001: Message edited by: fishbait ]</p>

[JPSFISHY]

What a loaded topic. Fresh is best. Species may have some merrit. What does a salmon or steelhead use to get home? The Nose. I figure if that beatifull chrome bright mother can make it home by simple parts per billion smell, he can smell garbage. No color or store bought cure will take the place of crummy eggs. If and when you kill a hen, and we all do, take proper care. Git on it. Drying is very important. Don't rush.

A "guide man" speaks. You callin' my eggs crummy? LOL. :grin: All that matters to me is my bobber keeps goin' down. :grin: :grin: :grin:

I think that IS what matters anyway.

Thanks for the offer Fishbait. Hang all them scurvy dogs from the yardarm....ARRRRGG.

Rick

[Sliderite]

******.. Nice jars of eggs but hopefully you have more..right? Just kidding. I beleive Tanner about the boraxed only eggs for steelhead although I have caught many of steelhead with a sulfite cure. I regret not doing more eggs with a borax now that winter steelhead are knocking at our door. There is nuthing like steelhead eggs boraxed to catch steelhead. As far as chinook eggs for Fall(Spring)chinook etc...Amerman cure is Great!

[GoFish]

Hey RipDatLip, what's a bass?

[RipDatLip]

I hope your joking. A bass is just a warmwater fish. I remember reading somewhere that someone's favorite eggs weren't salmon or steelhead. That kinda raised my curiosity. It's just an idea, who knows.

Matt

[Roeboat]

Aaah...tough question...too many eggs too little time...

Chinooks are easy: Big chinook (25 lbs+) chinook eggs best dbl redd procure with a secret touch..and big bait=big fish. No subtle bites here!

Silvers: silver eggs, much smaller bait even for large fish and a soft quick tap tap bite...

Steelhead: Steelhead or (small!) silver eggs light procure cure with borax or either egg done as a sugar cure. Steelhead are much less responsive to the milking scent cloud that salmon love IHOP. Steelies do seem to love those beautiful tight transparent clusters however...Also carry sand shrimp for the steelies as they often prefer them.

That said I always carry several cures with me as the rules are made to be broken. Caught a beauty of a steelie last week on red silver eggs while fishing for silvers. Caught a lot of chrome silvers on silver eggs and a big king at the same time.. I have been carrying some beautious chum eggs with me (very tight) that have produced a lot of salmon. I carry sugar cure silver eggs with me also because you just never know when they will be badly needed.

Take very good care of your eggs, cure them immediately. Great eggs take time and effort to get everything perfect. When cured any of these eggs can be frozen for about 2 years with no degradation. DO NOT OVERCURE! Give the cures time to really work...after curing allow the eggs to reside in your refrigerator overnite before freezing! Many of the cure manufacturers specify huge amounts of cure. They are just trying to sell their product in my opinion. Do not let your eggs get warm, keep them out of direct sunlight as much as possible, do not let them get wet until you are ready to fish if possible. If all this care seems needless to you , then just do it your way...whatever works for you is what I always say. To those of you that say boraxed steelie eggs only for steelhead, I'd offer a small hint...try carrying both boraxed eggs and a light procure type cure perhaps rolled in a small amount of borax to maintain your confidence and use both on slow days. Some days the fish show a marked preference for one or the other cure and you are prepared for the finicky fish. At the end of the day if you are not planning to fish again in the next 2 or 3 days I recommend refreezing the eggs. Cured properly, the eggs can be refrozen at least 2-3 times before risking damage to cracking the skein membranes and getting ugly mush...Do not keep loose hens. Only tight fresh hens make good eggs and I for one am very, very selective. Catch a lot and choose the best. This season I can tell you that the fish are biting incredibly soft so you have to pay much more attention than normal to your drifts and many of the takes are at the very, very end of the drift. It is kind of a weird year in that sense.

Happy fishing!!

You will probably need to purchase a large freezer for the garage to keep your wife from stranfling you as your passion goes a little nuts. A nice big freezer is a wonderful thing...It accomodates your new hobby and preserves a marraige.