Thank you all, the top steelhead rods on this forum, for the generous insights shared to the newer steelheaders. These are insights indeed, and they represent years & years of hard-nosed steelheading, in rain, cold, wind and storm
. I hope the newer steelheaders find them really useful and be thankful that they are such an unselfish bunch of top rods.
From the poll result, the two most important strategies are reading water & adapt, and be a river walker (with presentation high on the list too though it is not a polled item). Most successful seasoned rods depend on these to get into fish consistently. I will sum up with an a final point - steelheading is a hunting game, and as such, it depends on your constant analytical mind to come up with the most probable fishing strategies, and so be an intelligent hunter. Read water & adapt, ever so important.
Case in point, since I am mostly an afternoon steelheader, I have to adapt my style to what is mostly available to my situation. I choose two strategies - find spots where fish can escape the early morning onslaught of steelheaders, and if I have to fish with the crowd in popular pools, fish it with a highly effective weapon that no one else has (at least around me). These strategies did not produce fish every time, but have increased my odds in the chaotic world of steelheading.
To find spots that has a high chance in the afternoon, I try to find barrier spots where steelies have to stop while migrating during daylight. Since the prison camp & the Butterfly is already gone, I will use them to illustrate the point. Butterfly was above Thurston Meadow, but most importantly it was above the old Prison Camp pools where no one can touch the holding steelies except the inmates (did they fish?). Unspooked fish will move up the rapids above the pools, very few good holding spots along the way, so they will eventually get to the Butterfly area, a small run headed by a small rapid. Steelies pile up there below the foamy water, and behind boulders. Why, because above the rapids, it is a long long shallow & exposed stretch. No steelie in the right mind will go through it at day light. So they stay there until dark, unspooked and oxgenated by the rapids. They are there for the taking if you happen to be there while they piled up below the rapids. One or multiple hook ups were common, especially with my secret weapon.
Another spot is in the mid river. Since it is still there I would not name it. That spot is a couple of pocket water behind rocks at one side of the river. Pocket waters are abundant, but what make those few pockets so special again is what is below it, and above it. Below it is total inaccessible steep banks and trees, for almost a mile or more. Again, remember, no one can touch the fish coming up that side in the morning. Above it is a small pool, but the bottom of the pool on that side is sand & mud, and steelies prefers rocky or gravel bottom. I rarely hooked into steelie on that sandy side of the pool. So, the pockets become magnets for steelies to hold, and they consistantly produce for me through out the years in the afternoon.
There you go, just a small illustration of the sweetness of steelheading, a hunting game, a mind game. I am sure many of our top rods have their detailed insights & sweet spots too. So, newer steelheaders, go out and discover, and learn to read water, adapt, walk the river, stay away from the meat holes, be persistent, learn from some of the top rods who so generously care enough to dish out their insights. Enjoy & explore the horizon of steelheading. Tight lines!
Poll
9 (12.7%)
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Topic: rate steelheading strategies - poll result & final words (Read 9615 times)