Current Works

 

One of, if not the most exciting and electrifying freshwater game fish in North America is the Steelhead and we are lucky to have them coming out of the great lakes and into our rivers. Steelhead fishing is broken down into two categories: Spring and Fall. The warmer days and thaw periods of the the winter offer some good steelheading opportunities and a chance to shake off the winter blues. The average size of the steelhead we catch is eight pounds with some years having returns of larger fish.

 

 

Spring fish start entering the river when the days get longer and water temperatures improve. From Mid-March through the first of May, anglers can expect to catch these hard fighting fish which enter the river for their annual spawning ritual. Unlike the salmon in the fall, these fish spawn and then return to the lake and hopefully return to river again and again. 

For those looking for something different, swinging flies and stripping streamers for drop-back fish can be effective after the spring season reaches                  Spring Run Steelhead

peak.

  

 

While we aren't exactly sure why these fish come into the river, we do know that they do come and often their eagerness to eat the fly is strong.

 

Because the salmon are in the river by the thousands, there are literally millions of eggs drifting through the river providing a great food to imitate with egg patterns. Catching Salmon happens frequently while targeting these steelhead so be prepared for something a little bigger than a steelhead on the end of you line. Like the early salmon, these fish will take a streamer is                        Fall's Finest- Colors and Chrome presented properly.

The most common and effective way to fish these fish is by bottom bouncing nymphs. The fish love well presented eggs and nymphs. Swinging sink-tips with larg flies that are more like streamers than spey flies is becoming more popular in the mid-west. While it isn't the most productive way to catch a fish, no one will argue with the satisfaction of bringing a steely to hand via this method. More sporting? probably, but a steelhead is a steelhead no matter if you get them with a pair of eggs, an egg and nymph combo or a big, nasty swung streamer.                                             Swung Streamer Steelhead