Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: canucksfan233 on March 15, 2024, 06:22:40 PM
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Over 125+ hours of fishing for this stupid fish over the last 3 years and have yet to still get a bite... (clearly doing something wrong)
Curious if you have ever fished the same spot twice in a day, once in the morning and evening if you have seen a steelhead caught there previously?
What's the average time you spend fishing an area? Couple of casts through an area or work it thoroughly?
Worth fishing 2 different baits through the same area? Or just best to move on after you've fished through it?
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Key is mobility. Don't stay in one spot all day. Make a few cast and move.
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Curious if you have ever fished the same spot twice in a day, once in the morning and evening if you have seen a steelhead caught there previously?
Yes. Fishing a productive run twice a day is a good strategy. Steelhead will bite at anytime during the day. Timing is everything. Being at the right spot at the right time. The more times you visit a productive run the better your chances of a float down.
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Worth fishing 2 different baits through the same area? Or just best to move on after you've fished through it?
Yes, if you know there are fish in the run. How do you know if there is fish in the run? Seeing them roll on the surface or you get a float down. I have on occasion caught fish after changing lures in a run when the first thing I tried didn’t get any float downs.
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I completely agree with moving. Few casts in each spot and I’m on the move. I’m looking for three types of fish. Mr Angry, Mr Hungry and Mr Stupid. Only ever fish with three things. Pink wool with a Jensen egg. Bait or a blade. I will try the same spots later in the day sometimes.
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Thing is 3 weeks ago I was in a spot where a guy pounded the same spot with roe for an hour straight. He got one after fishing the same area. I fished through that spot, the spot above and the tailout over the course of the hour with a pink worm.
That got me thinking haha
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Yes, if you know there are fish in the run. How do you know if there is fish in the run? Seeing them roll on the surface or you get a float down. I have on occasion caught fish after changing lures in a run when the first thing I tried didn’t get any float downs.
I guess you never truly know if fish are in a run unless they are rolling, but I meant more so of seeing people catch them there previously.
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Most important over all is to make a good free floating drift with your bait at the fish’s level, especially on the Vedder.
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Over 125+ hours of fishing for this stupid fish over the last 3 years and have yet to still get a bite
Props to your persistence!
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It will pay off.
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There's some good info in this thread
http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=34595.0 (http://www.fishingwithrod.com/yabbse/index.php?topic=34595.0)
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In vedder, you only had only one chance to be the first one in one spot. By 9:00am, all fishing holes have been checked once.
There is no skill required in steelhead fishing in Vedder. the fish is stupid to bite anything. That is why people are so fussy about being low holed.
The only thing you need is time and luck. I believe if you bar fishing whole day in canal for a few days, you will get one for sure.
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Yes, if you know there are fish in the run. How do you know if there is fish in the run? Seeing them roll on the surface or you get a float down. I have on occasion caught fish after changing lures in a run when the first thing I tried didn’t get any float downs.
Steelhead is probably the only fish will bite again shortly after been hooked. Changing lure or even waiting for a while can be rewarded.
A steelhead will almost 100% bite a piece of bait if it was not hooked that day. During the middle of the day when all holes were scrutinized, angler need a little more patience to fish a run. But no need to spend too much time unless people live nearby.
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In vedder, you only had only one chance to be the first one in one spot. By 9:00am, all fishing holes have been checked once.
There is no skill required in steelhead fishing in Vedder. the fish is stupid to bite anything. That is why people are so fussy about being low holed.
The only thing you need is time and luck. I believe if you bar fishing whole day in canal for a few days, you will get one for sure.
So this year I've switched it up and have been fishing mostly afternoons/evenings and have seen more hookups than I did the previous 2 years at first light.
Majority of the time when I've been fishing this season, its been myself and maybe a couple others (but majority of the time myself) in a run/tailout.
Also from what I've heard from talking to people is that the evening bite is pretty decent if you're in the right spot at the right time.
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Also, when you fish a tailout, is there any preference on the top third (chinook type) with faster water versus the lower 2/3 with the slower (coho like?) water? Most of the ones i've seen hooked up/caught have been in the top 1/3.
Side note: tack on another 8 hours with no bites after today 😂
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an old steelhead fishing adage is "If the water is high, fish low. If the water is low, fish high."
Means if the water is low fish the top of the run and when it is high fish the lower part.
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keep on trying, your effort will be rewarded. a buddy of mine has been fishing for six's years and finally caught his first vedder steelhead last weekend on a pink work. remember you can't catch whats not there.
(https://i.imgur.com/ArsqpPD.jpg)
hooking them is the so called easy part, landing them is another story. went 1 for 3 on saturday. 2 on the bubble gum worm and 1 on ghost shrimp.
(https://i.imgur.com/DvntIjz.jpg)
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keep on trying, your effort will be rewarded. a buddy of mine has been fishing for six's years and finally caught his first vedder steelhead last weekend on a pink work. remember you can't catch whats not there.
(https://i.imgur.com/ArsqpPD.jpg)
hooking them is the so called easy part, landing them is another story. went 1 for 3 on saturday. 2 on the bubble gum worm and 1 on ghost shrimp.
(https://i.imgur.com/DvntIjz.jpg)
Morning, afternoon or evening? (if you don't mind me asking)
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one was first light, other 2 were late morning. all out the same run. i find i catch 90% of my steelhead between 8 and noon.
few tips.
you have to be close to the bottom. like others have suggested. i do my first drift where i confirm the depth and move up a few inches from there. i do not to dredge like i see so many other anglers doing.
fish areas often where you seen fish caught. steelhead tend to hold in the same locations depending on water height. i love (3 to 5 feet) semi deep tail outs at walking speeds. even better if they have large boulders.
have confidence in what your using. ghost shrimp is the best bait i think. second would be worms. steelhead love worms. espeially spring steelhead. my favourites are 4" bubble gum and hot pink with chartreuse tail rigged backwards (tail up). prawns, beads and yarnnies are also effective.
make sure your checking the tip of your hook for sharpness. carry a sharpener with you. can't stress this enough.
as time goes on i find my self fishing less in the early months of the season. mid feb till the end of march is when i start fishing hard. after that i venture to other region 2 and region 1 rivers. april can be a good month as well.
remember you cant catch whats not there. 9 times out of 10 the run will have no steelhead in it.
i know its tough but don't get discouraged. your efforts will be rewarded. once that first quality fish comes to hand you will have a life long passion that never goes away.
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one was first light, other 2 were late morning. all out the same run. i find i catch 90% of my steelhead between 8 and noon.
few tips.
you have to be close to the bottom. like others have suggested. i do my first drift where i confirm the depth and move up a few inches from there. i do not to dredge like i see so many other anglers doing.
fish areas often where you seen fish caught. steelhead tend to hold in the same locations depending on water height. i love (3 to 5 feet) semi deep tail outs at walking speeds. even better if they have large boulders.
have confidence in what your using. ghost shrimp is the best bait i think. second would be worms. steelhead love worms. espeially spring steelhead. my favourites are 4" bubble gum and hot pink with chartreuse tail rigged backwards (tail up). prawns, beads and yarnnies are also effective.
make sure your checking the tip of your hook for sharpness. carry a sharpener with you. can't stress this enough.
as time goes on i find my self fishing less in the early months of the season. mid feb till the end of march is when i start fishing hard. after that i venture to other region 2 and region 1 rivers. april can be a good month as well.
remember you cant catch whats not there. 9 times out of 10 the run will have no steelhead in it.
i know its tough but don't get discouraged. your efforts will be rewarded. once that first quality fish comes to hand you will have a life long passion that never goes away.
My go to bait is 4' pink worm rigged upside down, but can't really be confident in anything when you've never had a bite 😂
At this rate, if I get one, might just hang up the rod for steelhead and call it 😂
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keep on trying, your effort will be rewarded. a buddy of mine has been fishing for six's years and finally caught his first vedder steelhead last weekend on a pink work.
Take heart, @canucksfan223. At 3 years of trying you’re half way there!
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One thing to consider is using a pink worm on the vedder puts you at a disadvantage. The best baits for steelhead in order is roe bags/skein, shrimp, beads and then all miscellaneous artificials such worms, jigs, blades are around the same level but have their times and places. Again make sure to have a perfect “dead drift” and fish deep enough.
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......a couple of black and white statements in this thread that I would disagree with....the only absolute I would make about steelhead or Salmon fishing for that matter is you can't catch one if your line isn't in the water.....everything else is guidelines and opinion.....water clarity temperature flow structure and fishing pressure (maybe past success also) are what should dictate strategy....in my opinion...
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While fishing today, was talking to a guy who said that he isn't too successful at first light and catches most of his steelhead a couple hours after sunrise.
What is your experience with this statement?
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While fishing today, was talking to a guy who said that he isn't too successful at first light and catches most of his steelhead a couple hours after sunrise.
What is your experience with this statement?
I would agree. I don’t do first light anymore. Not worth it imo. I go later in the morning and have seen a modest amount of steelhead action from 10am to 2pm on my line or on others.
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I would agree. I don’t do first light anymore. Not worth it imo. I go later in the morning and have seen a modest amount of steelhead action from 10am to 2pm on my line or on others.
After fishing first light this morning, I want to agree as well. Saw 7 guys hammering some tiny hole ~ 20 feet long, 10 feet wide which I'm guessing had a fish 😂
Also makes sense since the warmer temps might bring their metabolism up a bit
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The 'first light' has always been an interesting discussion.
With Coho, first light is a no brainer. In almost 40 years, I've caught over 90% of my Vedder/Chehalis Coho before 9AM, and at least 50% before sunrise.
But its not like that with Steelhead. I've never caught a steelhead in the first hour of daylight during the dead of winter. March is a different story, but I've still caught most of my steelhead between 9-2.
I once got a late November Thompson Steelhead at Pegleg at around 7:30AM with a still bait...and the temperature was well below zero....but summer run steelhead are a bit different....
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My advice is observed what the steelheaders are using and catching in which part of waters. I learned this about 44 years ago when I first start out fishing the Vedder river by putting my rod down and watch the local old timers casting and catching steelies.
Silex-user
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My advice is observed what the steelheaders are using and catching in which part of waters. I learned this about 44 years ago when I first start out fishing the Vedder river by putting my rod down and watch the local old timers casting and catching steelies.
Silex-user
what you don't know is that they have caught on and now will only fish the sweet spot when nobody is around ;)
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I would suggest keeping a journal. Make note of where you see fish caught….not just the general spot but exactly where they are caught. I often hike and climb to fish a spot the size of a bathtub. Sooner or later,your float will go down. I have a “milk run” for low, medium, and high water. The water level data is very important. If I am fishing a system that does not have a gauge, I estimate based on a nearby system with similar attributes. The fluctuation really changes depending on whether the system is mediated by having a lake.
Key points
Spots where you have seen fish hooked….make note of water height
My leader is usually under24” unless fishing slow deep pools
I use 3 things 90% of the time..bait sack, pink worm (Beau Mac pearly one), and a Spin and Glo for old times
When I feel motivated I pump bugs but it’s not necessary. Steelhead are not super picky….its more about putting your gear in front of fish wants to bite.
Set float to weight as 75% of depth…. Eg. in 8 feet deep, I go 6 feet float to lead
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I feel this frustration. I was also on my third year of pounding the trails before I caught my first one. What really helped me was taking the steelheading class at pacific angler with Alex. Literally the first time out fishing after the class I got my first one. My presentations didn't really change but how I fished them and where did. Learning to read the water better was the biggest takeaway for me. I was fishing for them the same as I fished for salmon and it's worth remembering that they are trout. There's a reason the "top rods" are pretty consistent on the river every year. They know the most likely spots in a run that they will be, can pick through them quickly, and move on efficiently. I ended up really loving how much river you tend to cover chasing steelhead vs trying to find a gap on a busy run in salmon season.
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I've saved this article for years. Reading Water Tutorial:
There are 3 things you got to ask yourself before you decide if the section of river you are fishing is "Steelhead water" and will you have a chance of catching these magnificent fish.
1.) Adequate depth to protect the fish from predators, boaters, and anglers. Rarely will you find a fish in water less than 2 1/2 feet, try focusing on water that is in the 3-15 foot range.
2.) Current Velocity, the best speed would is anywhere from a slow walking pace, to a slow jogging speed. Remember Steelhead want to get from point A to point B using the least amount of energy required. They don't want to be battling rapids, but they like a little water disturbance.
3.) River bottom structure, Steelhead DO NOT like sand..Sand irritates a Steelhead's gills. They will rarely hold in sandy bottoms. Instead look for structure that consists of small to medium sized boulders. These could be the size of a baseball, basketball, or bigger.
Pocket water: Pocket water is associated with swift water and structure. In a boulder-strewn rapid, there are areas of slower/slack water that may be found in front of, behind, or beside large rocks. Float fishing is a very effective technique for fishing boulder strewn water, and pocket water. Spoon fishing is also a very effective technique, especially during the winter months when Steelhead are lethargic.
Side Channel: A well defined narrow band of deep water that is surrounded/bounded by shallower water. These are often by the rivers edge and are darker than the rest of the water surrounding it. Think of these as a fish highway, migrating fish will move up this stretch of water when they can find depth/structure to make them feel secure.
Tailouts: The smooth/slower water upstream from a rapid/faster flowing section of water is a tailout. Tailouts are usually anywhere from 1-5 feet deep, and 20 to 100+ feet long. Tailouts have flat unriffled surfaces, and is the shallowest holding water. Fish are more exposed in a tailout and are on the alert more than a fish in a pool or back eddy.
Pools: These are anywhere from 5-20 feet deep, and at times are a good bet to find Steelhead. I start at the top section of the pool, and work my way downstream covering this water thoroughly. Work through the water column covering all aspects of it. However: Just like in Bill Herzogs book he stated that fish in deep pools are suspended, so your offering doesn't necessarily have to be near the bottom. Unfortunatly I can't get the pics to post with this article.
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I feel this frustration. I was also on my third year of pounding the trails before I caught my first one. What really helped me was taking the steelheading class at pacific angler with Alex. Literally the first time out fishing after the class I got my first one. My presentations didn't really change but how I fished them and where did. Learning to read the water better was the biggest takeaway for me. I was fishing for them the same as I fished for salmon and it's worth remembering that they are trout. There's a reason the "top rods" are pretty consistent on the river every year. They know the most likely spots in a run that they will be, can pick through them quickly, and move on efficiently. I ended up really loving how much river you tend to cover chasing steelhead vs trying to find a gap on a busy run in salmon season.
Too bad Alex left Pacific Angler. He is now working somewhere else.
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Went to a spot and chatted up some guy who said he got one 10 minutes before I arrived. I've seen one steelhead hooked here a couple years ago as well.
Curious as to your experience on more than one fish being in the area/tailout/run?
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Man was it busy Friday, I saw 15 people in one hour and this isn't even a very popular spot usually...
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About 10 years ago I saw 6 steelheads caught from the tailout of a run. I got 2 on pink worm from that particular run.
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Man was it busy Friday, I saw 15 people in one hour and this isn't even a very popular spot usually...
Other than campground area (which is always busy), was pretty quiet for my spots. Just a handful of people fishing them on Friday.
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whats the deal with thurston meadows...the last time I was there was 20 years ago...i parked my car in the site for free..walked in ..fished..had fun...i think it was in march..
so now i try to go there...it's closed up as it is packed and no parking sides on the chilliwack road. where does one park if you want to access thurston meadows for fishing?
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Well the river is closed to fishing above Tamihi bridge to the upper boundary tomorrow April 1st. As far as parking I haven’t fished the Vedder since moving last year to Sechelt so I can’t help you there.
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whats the deal with thurston meadows...the last time I was there was 20 years ago...i parked my car in the site for free..walked in ..fished..had fun...i think it was in march..
so now i try to go there...it's closed up as it is packed and no parking sides on the chilliwack road. where does one park if you want to access thurston meadows for fishing?
You can park on the river side of the road just dont cross the white line. But yea like fishforever said starting tmr no fishing there. Maybe the campground is not open yet im not sure best to google it.
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Pay to park at thurston anyways even in the campground. There's a couple spots on the other side of the road from the entrance, but best way is to park below and walk up to consistently get a spot.
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DennisK , twenty years ago at Thurston, the butterfly run ! Man oh man I caught a lot of steelhead in that spot. Can’t believe it’s pay to park now. Brutal.
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another thing i would add to this is to fish other watersheds. the vedder is definitely the most productive region 2 river but far from the only one with steelhead. explore, get out more and the fish will come to hand.
few shots from my last trip. couple region 1 and region 2 steelhead.
(https://i.imgur.com/RbJSRNU.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/cPvtnrv.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/QKVZ8El.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/5INq4VE.jpg)
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my other favourite species to target this time of year
(https://i.imgur.com/ugfOCTa.jpg)
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wish i had a boat...
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no you don't, you need a friend with a boat. trust me.
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friend with a boat is out of the country doing med school until May but only back for a bit and prawns will be hit hard by then 😂
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Well guys this saturday was the last outing on the c/v for me. Same outcome as I started, thanks for all the tips though (unfortunately they did not help 😂)