Clackamas and Sandy: What color offering?

Angler of Repose · 12-30-2003, 03:45 PM

I've been told the Sandy River is a chartreuse river and the Clackamas is a pink river when it comes to corkies, spinners, yarn, plugs, etc. What do the rest of you think????????????????

SteelieSteve · 12-30-2003, 04:38 PM

There is no set color for any river I know of. Have you been steelheading long? Myself I never catch fish on chartreuse. Don't use it. Orange or pink in varying shades, white sometimes. In bright sunlight I may use a black corkie and a tiny bait. Try colors you like and change if they don't work. No matter what winter steelhead river you fish pink/pearl is the tried and true producer. But even that won't get a bite 100% of the time. Once when we had beat the water to a froth on the Nehalem using corkies and bait/yarn ect. I changed to a chrome steelie and wham. there it was on the first cast. A good steelie fisherman adapts and tries different methods. Good luck and you might want to try a First Cast jig. They are very good for many ifish steelheaders.

Navigator · 12-31-2003, 09:05 PM

Sandy is a pink pearl river when you are not using metallic blue

,

SandyRiverRon · 12-31-2003, 09:25 PM

Sunrise #1
Pink Pearl #2
Red #3

These 3 have worked for years

TYEE-FISHER · 12-31-2003, 09:44 PM

If the water clarity is good my first choice is a tiny spin-n-glo in chrome pink with white yarn. I will also toss some homeade #5 spinners with black boddies with either brass or chrome blades.

Fishermans is about the only place I have been able to find those ultra small spin-n-glo's.

Good luck!!

FishinMission · 01-01-2004, 05:29 AM

I kinda tend to think..if the presentation is correct, and you get in front of a fish, it probably won't matter.

If you fish with one color all the time (and if you do...usually it's because it's worked in the past)..then that's what will work for you.

I will say "Pink" is my favorite for corkies.

Plug color varies with water color and depth. "Pirates" in clear water, other colors in colored water.

Mark

SteelieSteve · 01-01-2004, 05:02 PM

Mostly I agree Mark but some times a change in color can provoke a bite when pink hasn't worked. I too have used pink/pearl for more fish than any other color but I have found a change can entice the missing bite sometimes. Happy New Year y'all.

River Ranger · 01-01-2004, 06:20 PM

well said steve.If I'm fishing through a hole where everyone befor me has fished pinks,reds or peaches I'll try some other colors to see if I can give them something different.
R.R.

ORoutdoorsman · 01-01-2004, 11:25 PM

I was hammering fish on a sparkly green corky and emerald yarn last spring/summer. But that color becomes almost completely ineffective once it started to cool down. But for the warmer months, I call it the clackamas special

Radke · 01-02-2004, 05:33 AM

When I first started catching fish on the the sandy, (as opposed to started fishing the sandy) I almost always used pink pearl, and did pretty well. Then I switched over to yarn combinations. One of my most effective was a single thread of chartruse yarn, hanging underneath an orange jensen egg. I really think it is what you are confident in more than specific colors. There was some discussion last week about using spinners. I do really well using a blue BF, but many people talked about doing well using green, pink, chartruse, and so on. I really think confidence and basic skill has more to do with it than color.