dry fly fishing for steelhead

The bottom of the pool was mostly flat shale, but I spotted a pod of steelhead holding in the only deep water available—the bottom end of the tailout. Many anglers target Steelhead with two-handed rods and their popularity has increased recently as the guide business in the Pacific Northwest expands. A dry fly fished alone or with a lightly weighted dropper nymph is the least obtrusive presentation you can make to steelhead in these conditions. Think of it as big-game hunting with a fly rod. I'd finally gotten over the hump. The fly slowed, then stopped, and the steelhead dropped back to the pack, taking a holding position closer to my side of the stream, and less than a foot below the surface. Even though dry flies can work where other presentations fail, there are days when steelhead will show absolutely no interest in surface patterns, even after repeated presentations from different positions. If I get a positive response from a single fish, I target that steelhead right away because it has already showed interest. Streamers. When you see the fish break the surface keep your cool. It was more like a bomb going off along the bottom of the river. Let stand for 15 minutes. Bass Flies. I've watched a lot of steelhead swoop underneath the dry, open that white mouth, and eat the dropper — causing the dry fly only to hesitate briefly. The Sturgeon's Looming Endangered Listing To defeat this quick rejection you must set the hook quickly. Even if you don't see fish suspended and don't have a fish eat your indicator, you can always "test the waters" for an hour or so and see if it works. Emerger Flies. Make no mistake, these are steelhead and … Their tendency to run, head shake, and jump make them an incredibly exciting fish to fight. The Bomber is most effective during the summer and early autumn when water temperatures are relatively warm. SHOP BY TYPE. What is that hooking technique. ©2021 Outdoor Sportsman Group. Dry fly fishing for steelies feels like more of a hunt. When I see suspended fish anywhere between the surface and halfway down, I rarely waste my time with other techniques. (2) How smooth the currents are. These don't seem like the places where a dry would be effective, but dead-drifting here has surprised me enough times to try it before resorting to other techniques. February 28, 2012 We can't argue that it's about as much fun as you can have on a trout stream because everything is visual. Join 100's of fly anglers. FLY FISHING MADE EASY. Wear muted colors, slow down your casting strokes and movement, and wade slowly into position when needed. Any soft-tip 6- or 7-weight with enough shock absorption for 4X or 5X tippet will work; I often go down to a 9-foot, 5-weight (trout tackle) on tiny tributaries. We have not gone a day fishing the dry without at least having one come taste it, and I am becoming more and more convinced that most of the time hatchery summer steelhead would rather eat a dry fly than anything else. To avoid coming up short, you can lengthen the wake, and continue moving the dry by sweeping the rod to the side (toward the near shore) and retrieving fly line with your line hand in even strips to keep the fly moving. Dry Flies. This is the first presentation I use before resorting to other techniques like dead-drifting and dropper attachments. Newbury's Dirty Hipster $ 1.85. Drys that imitate local hatches like October Caddis and spring Hendricksons are proven, but I think that if steelhead are at all interested in coming up top, just about any dry fly has a chance of working. I use 4X fluorocarbon tippet for the dropper most of the time, but occasionally drop down to 5X on super-spooky fish in clear water. |   Some days you may catch fewer fish, but one steelhead on the surface is worth quite a few dredged up from the bottom. It wasn't the gentle sipping rise most often associated with dry-fly fishing for trout. Deeper sets for fish suspended 2 to 4 feet down may require a heavier or larger beaded nymph, or tiny split-shot between the dry and dropper flies. Plan your next fishing and boating adventure here. Steelhead Flies - Dry Flies Steelhead dry flies for skating, waking, riffle-hitching, or however you desire. This fly can hatch during the first week or two of May … We find out how to “get down” to the fish without a sinking line during the most challenging time to catch steelhead… It became a new and exciting learning experience for me. However, if a person is patient and thoughtful you can turn streamer fishing into your A game, Once you learn how to catch trout this way and I don't mean by 'luck', you will be well prepared for steelhead or salmon fishing also. Or Bass of course, essentially any river species will respond to the streamer fly. There can be something very meditative about swinging for steelhead – Cast, swing, step, repeat.. It’s easy to lose yourself in it. The Kokish is a great dry fly steelhead river threatened by a "Run of River Hydroelectric Project". That year, more than one of my fishing buddies reported taking steelies with a dry fly. Karl Weixlmann is a longtime Lake Erie steelhead guide and author of Great Lakes Steelhead, Salmon, & Trout: Essential Techniques for Fly Fishing the Tributaries (Stackpole Books, 2009). If a fish comes up to take a look at your dry fly chances are it’s going to come up again. After all, you always have the option to go to a wet fly afterwards.. Who doesn’t like having more shots at steelhead? You need to be engaged at all times or you could miss that flash, boil, or subtle ‘V’ tracking behind your fly. I've even watched one steelhead bullrush over the backs of other, more dormant fish to get at a dry and eat it. Thread starter Peter Pancho; Start date Aug 19, 2002; Peter Pancho Active Member. Other times, steelhead will just quietly sneak up behind the fly and sip it in with a classic and gentle head-and-tail rise. This is the primary behavior that I look for while dry-fly fishing. The steelhead is a highly surface active Salmonidae and fishing them on the top is regarded as the highest form of fly fishing. If a steelhead eats your indicator, it's an obvious indication (pun intended) that they are willing to come to the top, and will eat a dry fly. After the forward stroke of the cast, move the rod either left or right (the reach) horizontally while the line shoots forward through the guides. I have already mentioned Harry Lemire one of the finest anglers on the planet, to be able to call Harry a friend is a privilege and to fish with him is to attend steelhead master class and be taught by the professor. ; Sink Tips – Various tips from 3.9 inches per second to 11 inches per second. 9. I've had steelhead charge the fly three times before taking it on this final extended sweep. Friends of mine have taken fish on Bivisables and foam flies like Amy's Ants and Chubby Chernobyls. I use a long 12- to 14-foot nylon monofilament leader tapered to 3X on medium to large tributaries, and varying lengths of fluorocarbon (because it sinks) for attaching the dropper nymph to the hook bend. Explore the in’s and out’s of fly fishing while discovering savory, new fly fishing flies each month. Winter Steelhead Fly Fishing Gear List (Click here or scroll below to see more details/videos for each of the items in this list) Fly Rod – Two Handed #8-9 – [our recommendation]; Fly Line – Two Skagit heads – One standard and the other a dual or triple density line. This article was written by “LPJ” Lael Paul Johnson , a steelhead guide based just outside of Seattle, Washington. The fall steelhead rivers of the Northwest are among fly fishing's sacred waters and the best places to get started or refine your dry line methods. Mend the line upstream to slow the fly and diminish the wake. You don’t want to miss your one shot at that fish or perhaps you just have more confidence in a wet fly. The more fishing pressure, the smaller my fly will be. It might not have been the underwater explosion I was hoping for, but I was still grinning from ear to ear. He guides The Olympic National Park, the Queets River, Skagit, Hoh, Humptulips, … Stealth is imperative. More important, it's a good sign that other fish through the day may also be in a similar mood. It also could be a natural curiosity, or instinctive feeding. Besides that, you can bet it’s not going to be a tired or lazy steelhead that moves to your fly on the surface! You probably already have the tackle needed to catch steelhead on drys. They’re nicknamed “the fish of a thousand casts” because it’s not uncommon to go days without catching one on the fly. When you're using this method, the dry fly may not always slam-dunk the way an indicator does in deeper, faster water. Fish are cold-blooded, so their body temperature reflects that of the water in which they swim. I've even had steelhead come up for an indicator in February. The water was low and clear, and I hiked downstream to a pool the size of a football field. I hope you get there much sooner. Repeat the cast, and hopefully the steelhead will eventually lock onto the fly. These techniques have saved the day many times when I've been faced with the toughest water conditions you could possibly want to encounter on any Great Lakes tributary. Chip's Monster Magic. I had the pleasure of sitting down with Adrian Cortes to dig into dry line steelhead with a focus on winter steelhead. These steelhead skaters/wakers are sure to get attention from those wily critters we love so much. Sometimes they push a bow wake from the other side of the pool like Jaws rushing the Orca. However, you don't need to go straight to an indicator and nymph rig. Bead Head Zebra Midge $ 1.50. FLIES. As you explore your home water, keep in mind what they are eating to select the best carp... Hobie's MirageDrive 360 pedal propulsion system offers ultimate kayak control with more... How to deliver meat & potatoes to hungry trout. And I have started fishing dries earlier than usual this year. Not wanting to be left out of that circle of success, I gave dry flies an honest effort the following fall. But if not, you have a better idea of what areas of the water to target when you go back through with a wet fly. The smoother the surface the smaller my fly will be; (3) water clarity. It was exactly what I was looking for. Hooking a steelhead is hard to describe, but watching a steelhead smash or sip a dry fly off the surface is something else entirely. Mix all ingredients with a whisk until all parts are distributed evenly in the bowl. Whether it just boils on the fly once or repeatedly returns to the surface for it, your heart is going to start pounding, and that’s what its all about. His technique was to cast up-and-across at a 45-degree angle and skate or wake the fly cross-current as it swung. I've spent years watching steelhead in tributary environments, and certain steelhead behaviors can give you clues about when a dry fly will be effective—most notably when fish are suspended as previously mentioned. I discovered that fishing dry flies or dry flies with a nymph dropper was more than a long shot—it could actually help me land more steelhead in the adverse conditions of a low and clear stream. PS, having a Steelie take your dry fly … Use weight-forward floating lines in drab colors, like olive or buckskin. A depression formed where the creek bottom was scoured by ice and high water, and broken chunks of shale made a hump at the lip of the tailout. Your email address will not be published. It works in large rivers or for large fish like steelhead. Steelhead in low water are often suspended in the water, sometimes just inches beneath the surface. Drys with nymph or egg droppers are deadly on steelhead in low, clear water. Tailouts and the gut of a pool, where the flow from the head of the pool slows down, often have the best combination of depth and flow, and are the most comfortable for fish. Share Tweet. I had occasionally heard of steelhead being caught with dry flies, and gave it a half-hearted effort every now and then, but believed it was nearly impossible until my steelhead world turned upside down in the spring of 2008. Even when they are thoroughly wet, the sink rate of egg patterns is much slower than a compact beadhead nymph, and you may need an upstream mend to get the egg under the dry so that it doesn't drag. Sometimes there is simply a hesitation in the drift when a fish takes the dropper. This is the traditional technique used on West Coast rivers, and the original Lani Waller technique I discussed at the start of this article. Here’s the bottom line on your searching fly’s size: At least half of the steelhead which rise to your fly should take it. Fishing for salmon and steelhead in the surface is probably the most exhilarating and exciting sports humans can venture into – The sport has become increasingly popular in the last 60 years – but anglers have most likely been fishing steelhead and salmon on the top since the birth of dry-fly fishing. Think of the dry as a "stealth" indicator. They say when you have a player you shouldn’t give up on it.. A Bomber looks like nothing found in nature—and steelhead will eat an indicator, after all. When dead-drifting dry flies from a downstream position, I frequently use a midair reach cast in order to place the fly line to the side of the fish while the leader and fly float directly over them. Won’t rise to the bomber? The fishing the last few days has been hit or miss, but very uncrowded. By staying attuned to any movement behind or in the general vicinity of your fly, you have the opportunity to learn more about where the fish sit in the run. Three basic techniques have worked for me on tributaries as large as the Grand River in Ohio and the Cattaraugus in New York, and as small as tiny tributaries like Walnut Creek in Pennsylvania: a down-and-across waking or moving dry fly, a dead-drift dry fly, and a dead-drifting dry fly with a dropper. The West Coast steelhead mantra is that the fly should move and wake at about half the speed of the current, and slower is better for keeping the fly in front of the fish longer. A steelhead's reaction to a moving, waking dry fly is one of the most exciting angling experiences on the planet. Often they miss, leaving your nerves frazzled as the residual hump of water bobs the fly up and down. Adrian is one of the leaders in dry and wet fly fishing without a sinking line. Yep, we do too. Continue waking the fly until the steelhead takes it and turns away, hooking itself in the corner of the mouth in the process. I actually started off with a 9 1/2 foot 8wt Sage RPL for steelhead in the early 90's before getting into the two handed game in 1995. Whatever the fish's motives, dry-fly fishing works best when the steelhead are suspended rather than hugging the bottom. A film about the high cost of hatcheries, fish farms and human arrogance. To get started, click the link below to visit mymagnow.com and learn how to access your digital magazine. This behavior tells me that within a specific group of fish, only a small number will react positively to a dry. On larger rivers, you may cast up and across to execute a dead-drift presentation before the belly develops and the fly begins to skate. Cook on medium heat for 4-6 minutes on each side. I've even seen fish with their dorsal fins and tails exposed when hovering over water 4 feet deep. Whatever the reason, they do it. I've learned out of necessity, because if I can't produce fish during these periods, the rent doesn't get paid. The beauty of dry fly fishing is that you often get more than one chance! In low winter water, catch steelhead with a dry fly and dropper post-gazette.com - John Hayes Winter is hard on Lake Erie tributaries. In this chapter you will also learn the basics of Spey casting and how to add a riffling hitch in front of your fly. Let stand for 1-2 minutes. The New... Today, Chile's Chinook salmon (also called king salmon) returns are among the world's most... Hucho Taimen can reach six feet in length, and weigh more than 150 pounds. They often spit out the dropper, and the dry fly merrily continues its drift downstream. Read more Do they take dries different from regular dry takes as say from Big Trout? You can use a dry fly, foam, plastic, cork, or yarn. If the fly stops during the swing, steelhead usually turn away from it. Steelhead on Dry Flies??? Wake fly patterns like Waller Walker, … My favorite dry fly for steelhead is the Steelhead Bomber. Cast an indicator or split-shot near them, even in small sizes, and the splash or surface disturbance can send them scurrying. Subscriber Services. In low, clear situations when you can see exactly where the steelhead are holding, the dead-drift is a stealthy presentation from below that won't alarm a group of nervous steelhead like indicators and nymphs. Twenty-two years have passed, and I'm now a fly-fishing guide working "Steelhead Alley" along Lake Erie's south shore. I've caught a lot of steelhead with the dropper fly set only 6 to 12 inches beneath the dry, even though the fish have shown no interest in the surface fly itself. It’s more difficult to miss a fish coming to take a look at your fly on the surface. This is the essence of summer steelheading, an energizing change from long winters and springs devoted to skimming a fly across the bottom as slowly as possible. Dry fly fishing, 5X-6X monofilament, typically late afternoon on a sunny day, with smaller medium sized trout rising, you need to entice them and can still land on a medium thickness tippet.
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