Salmon River Steelhead-The Never Ending Story

[Steeliemang]

steelheaderny
My post wasn't intended to be insulting to you in any way.
My point was and still is that it doesn't take any skill to pull spawning fish from their redds. The bucks will hit almost anything as a territorial instinct. The hens will hit anything that enters the nest just to eliminate any intrusive threat to their eggs.
I also freeze my gonads off in sub freezing temps all winter. I usually catch quite a few fish for my efforts but even if I didn't I would do more to learn how to be successful. Once they go on the redds in full spawn though I hang up the 8wt and go inland.
As for you paying for the fish, I and thousands of others also paid for them too.( Language wasn't conducive to an intelligent argument).
You yourself said that catching so many fish was a real trip for you but then again, you can catch even more if you fish the races in the hatchery but what sport is there in that?
There is a big difference between "catching" and "fishing".
Again, my intent is not to insult you. I only want to point out to you and others that catching steelhead in the pools and not on redds is much more rewarding than just yanking them off their redd. At that point you are on a level playing field.

[steelheaderny]

No insult taken at all, man. I welcome your opinion and believe me, I thought about it. I still don't feel any different about fishing off the redds. Especially where I was. I can only say it was in the upper fly zone. I promised the guy who told me about it I would keep it to myself. There were tons of fish in the fast water all over the place and not just on the redds. As a matter of fact, I really was only hitting one redd all day. (In between moving around the fast water.) Every fish I took was a buck, and I could see the (absolutely HUGE) hen (if it was a hen) sitting over her eggs all day. She didn't touch anything anyone threw at her. I fished that river at zero degrees last winter, all winter. I spent hours and days with nothing, not a touch. I fell in four times. I've never been a trout fisher, having spent my life fishing bass, walleye, northerns. This was the first time I got to watch the fish I've been hunting all year. It was awesome. I learned more that day about steelhead and the way they move than I could in a lifetime drifting the deep holding pools. I've heard the truth is most of the redds in the salmon river become high and dry before the hatch. This is due to the necessary management of the power station. I know all this doesn't change the fact that pulling fish off the redd is like (ahem) shootin' fish in a barrel, but as long as it's legal, I'll be back for more. Maybe down the road I'll change my mind. Somehow I doubt it. I managed to get in a few days around the middle of may. The fish were almost gone, but an oldtimer told me what to do. I bought a hotshot plug . He said treble hooks are legal after april first. Not having checked, I really don't know. I'm almost sure it's April or May first. The trick is to find a spot a above the hole where you can wade out far enough to let the plug drift downriver through the hole. Keep the line tight so you can feel the plug digging. Let out two feet of line every ten seconds. Sooner or later WHAM! They NAIL it. I've never had one hit anything that hard. With all the steelhead smolt and chubs hitting anything in sight, this was the only thing that worked. A nice spinner works the same way. I got my last two dropbacks like this, and it's so long 'till next time. I honestly went through a slight depression when I realized they really were gone. Damn. There's talk of summer run skamania. That's all I need. I'll never get any work done. Can't wait for next year, though. Oh, steelieman, I'm sorry if the language offended you. I'm a construction worker. I'm afraid I have a fukcing vulgar mouth.

POST SCRIPTUM Aug. 31, '09- Apparently treble hooks are legal only if the lure is floating. The N.Y.S. fishing guide doesn't clarify this at all. It only says a single hook point is legal with 1/2 inch from point to shank maximum. I don't know WHAT the hell is legal or not. Any input would be appreciated.

[steelheaderny]

I couldn't help it- I had to try for the skams I hear are in the Salmon river. I arrived at the UFZ about four o'clock in the afternoon. The river was (relatively) high at 750 cfs. I didn't see a single fish. The sun was blarin', and if the were any fish there, I would have at least seen them. I know they're in there somewhere 'cuz my bosses kid caught some a few weekends ago. The river is very low this weekend- 180cfs. I know where there are a few really deep holes. I'm going to try dropping a hotshot plug down a few deep pools Sunday. I think this is my best shot, as they must head for these (relatively) few holes when the water is this low. I will report yay or nay Sunday night. Can't WAIT FOR WINTER! I never thought I'd ever sincerely say that.

[steelheaderny]

Alas, I didn't make it sunday. I may go some afternoon this week. I hear tell there are kings in the river as far up as the ladder at the power station. IT'S STARTING!......... I have a guide for sept 14 at the DSR. My big bro wants to hire a guide to go his first day. I told him we could do about the same on our own, but he's made up his mind. I can't wait, man.

[steelheaderny]

Went out for kings sunday-yesterday. I didn't do jack, but the guy in front of me at the black hole had one on the rope and hooked another eight earlier in the day upriver. He said he only landed the one. I had to ply him hard for the spot, and he told me. It wouldn't be fair to just blow the guy in. When the fish are in, I'll tell ALL. Gotta get ready for work.

[steelheaderny]

Went to the ball field and hockey rink holes Wednesday after noon/work. Arrived about five PM. No dice. Didn't see anything anywhere. The river is raised to 750 cfps as of nine PM tonight, Friday. It's going back to 330 cfps nine PM sunday. I'm thinking of going Sunday night or Monday morning. I will give a full report when I get the chance.

[steelheaderny]

I hit the river at the lower schoolhouse about 5:00PM. There were about seven other anglers in sight. Most of them were standing waist deep across from me right in the fish. EEED-YOTS! Whatever. One of the "roll casting" dudes (as in massive snatching action going on on the retrieve) caught a nice king. The river is LOADED with fish. It was like sea world out there with kings jumping, giving us "the fin" etc. I hooked up for three seconds by accident on the retrieve about ten feet out. I felt a little wobble, then it was gone. TONS OF KINGS up as far as Altmar. Saw a big, about ten pound dead Brown on shore. Big buck. All bloated up and smelly. I LOVE THAT SMELL, MAN! I can't wait to go Sunday afternoon. Will report all then.

[steelheaderny]

I caught a 28 pound buck king today at the DSR. It hit a fly like a MFR! It came up shaking his head like a goddamn SHARK. It was AWESOME! Don't ever let anyone say they don't hit. I was fishing with a strike indicator, and it hit like a freight train. Ran upstream against my drag. MAN was it a rush. I was tired only halfway through. I'm getting that bad boy smoked. I can't wait to get back and use my new techniques. Till next time....

[steelheaderny]

I can't believe it, it's 5 a.m. and I'm pounding coffee, but it's raining like hell out. Oh well.

[steelheaderny]

Just got back from the S.R.. I finally have it all figured out. It's very simple. King salmon spend their whole lives sixty-plus feet down in the lake. They begin to sexually mature while still a hundred or whatever feet down 'till their BB size brain says they're ready to move into the river to fulfill their only purpose on this earth and spawn to perpetuate their species. They then move into the river, into 3 feet of water where all of a sudden they have this new crazy environment where all these lead shots and hooks are being thrown at them left and right constantly. All they want is some azz. (Or what passes for azz by dropping milk or eggs.) When they first enter the river they blast up through the shallows 'till there's a spot to rest. They're nutso from dodging hazards, and if you catch them at the right time when they stop for a second, WHAM!...they will hit an ugly blue something out of aggression. After this first few hours in the river they become physically unable to feed normally and will NEVER hit anything as a food source. They then migrate towards their redding ground, not hitting ANYTHING FOR ANY REASON. After becoming FULLY SEXUALLY MATURE they will then hang around the redds and laying hens. ONLY THEN will they again hit a foreign object that approaches the hens/redds. They will jump over to get to the fly, fighting the other males and acting like squirrely idiots in the process. The hens will also hit aggressively at this time. I found the redds today and had a BLAST catching bucks left and right. I saw one's mouth come out of the water open as he was hitting the fly. It was a goddamn RIOT! It,s awesome getting them to hit, and boring as hell to line them, even in the mouth. By the way, I saw a steelie when I first got there, and had one hit my fly on the retrieve later on. It was only on for about ten seconds, but it was the only time my heart started POUNDING all day. There is no comparison at all to steelies in my book. Salmon are just a fun warm-up to the real deal.....steel.

[steelheaderny]

I went wednesday afternoon. I caught a few, but spent most of my time rigging and helping land my buddies fish. The myth of kings not hitting a fly is just that- a myth. I moved up into fast water above the redds and they were hitting it there also. I'm bored with these big slabs 'a meat. Bring on the steel. I saw a couple steelies. They would chase the hooked salmon. It was wild. The hemostat knot is the nads, it's the fastest, strongest, funnest knot to show off etc.

[steelheaderny]

I went out for steel today, Sunday. I was hoping for a hen brown for fresh eggs, and I caught one. She was small, about 2-3 pounds, and no one had a tape measure, so I let her go. The guy next to me caught a nice 7-8 pound hen, VERY CHROME with her jaw all out of joint and fukced up from last year. She still hit his pink worm, though, and he landed her. I moved to the lower schoolhouse for the last two hours with no luck. There's a ton of brown, and a good push of chrome already in the river. Kings are still hanging around, but almost gone. To more weeks and the steell will be dominating the river. YEEE-HAWWW! It's chrome time, baby! Looking forwrd to going back this week in the afternoon. Will post when I go.

[steelheaderny]

It occurs to me that the steel that were chasing the salmon I hooked in the upper fly zone were eating the eggs spitting out the hen when she was hooked. It was pretty cool. I hear there are a lot of chrome in the big Sandy. I think I'll give it a try tomorrow, Sunday. I will post when I return.

[steelheaderny]

Made it to the S.R. at dawn. Made the mistake of going to the lower schoolhouse to meet a friend. No dice. The water was too low and clear. By the time I tried other spots they were full of common people. Many fish all up and down the river.

[steelheaderny]

Took the day off work and made it to the upper trestle at dawn. No breakfast bite. About an hour and a half in I hooked a nice first year fish about 5 or 7 pounds. I got it on a pastel pink "San Juan Worm". They look like little pipe cleaners about an inch long. About a #12 or #14 hook. Gander Mountain has them in pastel pink and ruby red. They are the ballz. This fish hit and ran at me fast. I couldn't get a good hookset. The fish tail danced twice and then spit. I moved to the upper Black hole about eleven o'clock. I hooked up twice on blue egg sacks. Both fish came out dancing. The first was brief, about twenty seconds then spit. The second was on for 3-4 minutes with an awesome fight. It ran down from jump like a freight train. It then came up a little so fast I had to reel like hell. It came out dancing twice, then ran up to about ten o'clock. It was pulling hard as I lowered my rod for the long haul. Another minute till this one spit, also. All three fish were darkly colored. I still haven't landed one since May, but I left the river completely satisfied with the last battle. Low, clear water makes for a little digging for water that will produce strikes. The usual holding pools are too low and clear/ slow for good drifts. Look for faster water, staying on the edge of the ripple near slower water. I had a goddamn blast today, and can't wait for Saturday. I may have to dig for a yahoo- free stretch, but I'll find something. Oh yeah, three Jersey Russians were on their way out from the upper DSR with a HUUUGE buck brown at least ten and maybe more. It's hard to guess their weight as they are so fat and humpbacked. This was a lifetime trophy brown. It's lower jaw was huge with the big hooked thing on the end of the lower jaw Very pronounced. I also saw a large fresh brown right from the lake. It was all green and bright silver. You could see part of it changing color, but it couldn't have been in the river vary long. Another of my group caught a small Atlantic at the lower Black. Never saw one before. No tags. Very cool.