Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: Piranha on February 01, 2007, 04:00:42 PM
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Hi guys, I'm such a beginner to thiis. I try to read as much I can on this forum and else where but some questions remain unanswered.
When fishing for steelhead do you make your way up the river or do you start at the top and work your way down river?
Also as I understand this, head is where the fast water flows into calmer waters and tail is where calm water turns to faster flowing water? Do i got this right?
And what water do steelhead hang out in the most? I know I have to search for them but what water is best to cover?
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top to bottom is best. U got the second one right! Riffles, runs, slots, pocket water, somtimes pools, behind boulders, along current seams, beside/behind logs, tailout, head of the run. Water between 1-8 feet deep. Gravel or rock bottom, sand and gills dont mix. Anywhere where the steely either doesn't need to exert as much energy or where he/she can get the most oxygen, or feels safe. Choppy water, shade, overhanging trees/banks.
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And what water do steelhead hang out in the most? I know I have to search for them but what water is best to cover?
Depends on water clarity.
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If the water is low and clear the fish will seek cover. Fish the deeper water at the head of the runs. Fish hold were its safe. If the water is high and dirty they will be closer to shore. The river level is also very important. In high water don,t over look the side channels everybody is wading through. Steelhead will lay in a foot of water in the right water conditions. With that said the most important thing is presentation. Clear water,long light leader, small bait. Dirty water, short heavy leader, big bait. That's just my opinion. I hope that helps you. Cheers.
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I've got that book, also look for west coast steelheader, with pieces done by Steve kaye, David murphy, Art Lingren, Barry M. Thorton, MAtt Guiguet and compiled my Makr Pendlington! All great steelheaders!
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one thing i've found is that even in clear conditions, most steelhead ARE NOT leader shy. Every fish i have caught this year and most of the ones last year were caught on 18 inches of leader (or less) and i use nothing but 12# leader now (pline cfx flourocarbon), in ALL conditions. Also, a great many of the fish i have caught over the years have been in 2 to 3 feet of water within 10 to 15 feet of shore. When you are just starting out, look for water that is 3 to 5 ft deep and a moderately fast walking speed to the flow. Avoid spending much time fishing deep(6 ft plus) very slow water. Also fish behind structure... fallen logs, boulders mid river or along the edges... anything that breaks or slows the current. fish these types of water hard. Also, start by fishing close in and gradually make your casts farther out from shore, covering all the water. Starting at the head of a run and working your way down to the tailout is always a good idea BUT certain water conditions and certain times of day will find me fishing the tailouts first as long as i'm not going in front of another steelheader working his way down the run.
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Another question.
I only have 12lb fluorocarbon line. I guess that's good for some steelhead? And as for the leader I only have some left over maxiima 12llb, maxima 8lb and fluorocarbon 6lb line. If my main line is 12lbs fluocarbon should i still use a leader? wht weight would you guys recommend?
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get some 15lbs or 20lbs maxima mainline and keep your 12# for leader
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Birdman hit the nail on the head. If you want to learn and learn fast take one of those courses. Many of the people here who are catching fish didnt get that good from one year of steelheading. Many have put in allot of years. Lots of people that start out dont catch a fish in their first couple years.
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Who are STS? Do they still offer a course?
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or you can take an guide for the first time (cough birdman)beek
or you can learn the hard way by going out and making friends on the rivers. they will eventually break down and tell you some tricks of the trade.
but the best thing you can do is put your time in and have fun at doing it ;D
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Who are STS? Do they still offer a course?
http://www.guidebc.com/floatseminar.asp
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Hey CohoSlayer1 I think I was fishing near you on Thursday, were you with a bait caster, and your buddy a ceneter pin?
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steveston marine also offers a full day steelhead course.... run by myself, on the chilliwack river. I also ran this class when i worked for Berry's. Was quite popular and most folks seemed to get quite a bit from it. You may want to pm or contact scruffy as he was trying to put a couple guys together to book a class.
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Read as much as you can at night,,,,,fish as much as you can during the day. Nothing, I mean nothing will teach you more than time on the water. And when on the water, be aware,,,,of water clarity, where others catch their fish,river levels, etc, etc. Again, nothing beats time on the flow.
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HOw much would a class like that cost me?
Also I was gonna go fishing today but it's raining. When would be the best day to go fishing? Fish don't really like fast flowing water and wait for the rain water to recede, right? so i'm guessing monday but the water might be still too high. What do you guys think?
http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/cities/can/pages/CABC0308.htm (http://www.theweathernetwork.com/weather/cities/can/pages/CABC0308.htm)
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rodney is going to post a course outline once i have it ready for him. but here is a brief review.
My course is 100.00 for the day.
this is not a guided excursion, the intent is to teach anglers the basics of reading water, terminal tackle and rigging, what to use and when and general steelhead knowledge. Topics covered also include short floating, bait choices and how to rig bait, and i go in depth into fishing with blades and other artificials. I include many tips and pointers for organizing your vest and such to minimize downtime and maximize the time that your hook is in the water. I have had many folks take my classes and everyone so far has come away feeling that they have learned something and gained confidence.
classes run 8am to 4pm with a 1 hour break for lunch and questions/discussion amongst the group.
right now i run them on my days off which are tuesdays and wednesdays.... which i find better for a class like this due to it being less busy on the river. I do however make arrangements for weekend classes when need be.
feel free to email or pm me with any questions, I can also be reached at Steveston Marine, Vancouver location at west 3rd and Fir st.
tom@stevestonmarine.com
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When would be the best day to go fishing? Would it be monday because it's not supposed to rain. Or go on the 2nd day after it rains? Fish wait for higher water to move up stream so i'm guessing monday but the water might be still to high up. What do you guys think?
The best day to go fishing is any day you can go. Learn the river when it's low, medium, perfect and high. If you wait for the perfect water and weather conditions you won't be fishing much.
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Hey CohoSlayer1 I think I was fishing near you on Thursday, were you with a bait caster, and your buddy a ceneter pin?
that was us, im with the pin
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How am I doing? my first attempt at this
egg loop. is this how wool is attached, about an inch off wool through the loop?
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1957.jpg?t=1170563390]http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1957.jpg?t=1170563390)
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1958.jpg?t=1170563422]http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1958.jpg?t=1170563422)
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1959.jpg?t=1170563463]http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1959.jpg?t=1170563463)
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Yup, cut the tag end off.
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throw a roe bag under that or a glob of roe and you will deffantly get a steely
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Also I noticed that Giibbs floats come in different colours. Black, green, and white. Does the colour matter or is it just personal prefference?
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Here is a 6" pink worm. I used a sewing needle to thread the line through the worm. also used a red bead to prevent the hook from cutting into the worm.
(http://i162.photobucket.com/albums/t273/Jurasik/DSCN1961.jpg?t=1170614282)
looks good?
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looks great, but when fishing a worm, you want the tail to be dangling and moving all over the place, so just thread the hook a little higher next time. Other than that, looks pretty good ;)
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low visibility
In high water like today what would work the best? Also with low visibility I want to have a short leader of about 2 feet?
-Add bigger bait
-High river, fish high in system?
-clear river will cause the fish to seek cover during the daylight hours and so will not move up river as rapidly
-Backtrolling in low visibility so the bait stays longer period of time in the strike zone
-Slowing down your bait allows the steelhead more opportunity to locate and intercept your offering?
-Fish edges meaning areas of current break, depth change, structure influence or light contrast (shading)
HIGH VISIBILITY
-Low river, fish low in system?
-this is the time for presentations at or near current speed
-Fishing at the speed of the current allows you to cover the most water in the shortest period of time
-When the upriver areas begin to get a little stale as the water drops, look to the lower to middle river holes for fish
-Fish edges meaning areas of current break, depth change, structure influence or light contrast (shading)
Steelhead Holding Water
"The Riffle"
- The spot at the end of a rapid where the water is usually moving very fast over exposed or barely submerged rocks
- Steelhead will seek out the protection of the riffle usually in only a few select conditions. A good time to fish this section of water is when the sun is shining directly on the water.
- Steelhead will migrate to the riffle in warm water conditions, 10' degrees-plus, because this water usually holds more oxygen.
"The pool"
- Fish will usually not hold in the deep pools but rather at their edges in the slots made between back-eddies and the main current
- There are two exceptions when the fish may use pools.
First when the water is very cold, ie just above freezing, the pools tend to be a bit warmer and the fish will migrate to these warmer spots.
Conversely when the water is very warm, higher than 18' degrees, the pools may contain cooler water and the fish will seek out this cooler water.
-Finally, during very low water conditions, the pools may contain the only "overhead cover" available for the fish to hide
"The tail out or break"
- is the section of water that starts after the back end of a pool where the river bottom is beginning to rise and ends just before the next riffle or rapid. This is one of the primary locations in which to look for fish. Steelhead tend to hold mostly in the tail-out sections of the water during overcast conditions. They like to stop in this relatively calm water after negotiating a strong riffle or rapids.
Other river sections
- Most of the these places will not hold any fish. Rapids where the water is moving violently over rocks or through narrow chutes seldom hold any fish because of a lack of resting places. Long stretches of water that have a smooth water surface and are shallow, usually less than three feet, almost never hold fish - an exception would be if there is an obstruction, ie large boulder or log in this type of water, it would be well worth trying. Shallow and very slow moving water almost never provides adequate cover for the fish.
-Often steelhead can be found in tailouts early in the morning
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Thats all I have learned, now I gotta take a break. haha
anybody has any other steelhead fishing tips to add to this?
the more the better \:)