Ten More Tips For A Winter Steelheader (Part 2)

Drift fishing.

Drifting lures. Most steelheaders assume the term "drift fishing" means bouncing a sinker and leader along the river bottom in tune with the river flow. Not so.

Bobber and jig fishing is also drift fishing. albeit on top of the stream. The two methods are similar in the way they are rigged and in the way that they are fished. Let's go see...

Classic drift fishing is what the old timers all did. Cast to "10 o'clock and fish 'til 2." Or from 2 until 10 if the river runs right to left, of course.

Tip # 1:
Monitor line not so much frequently. Constantly. Nicks & Cuts in mainline or leader is simply unacceptable. If your mainline gets scuffed, nicked, cut, or any other imperfection-- retie immediately. Same goes for your leader, and this illustrates the virtues of pre-tying leaders.

 1a. Snell Knot. Thread line through eye of hook.

2a. Loop line and hold. Note both grasps.

3a. Now wrap the Snell 5 or 6 times and cinch tight.

#2:
Leader Keeper, a homemade, handy, super-thrifty, fishing application. And you need leaders, that is definite. I store mine on a homemade 1/2 paper towel roller. I stuffed newspaper inside and used packing taped to seal it. Easily punctured by the hook and stored efficiently.

Homemade Leader Storage

#3:

Sharp Hooks. Sharpening your own hooks is an art. And no matter how time-consuming or difficult and frustrating, hook sharpening has to be learned.  A variety of stones and files are available. Use soft angles and practice until your hook sharpening produces "tack" sharp hooks. A sharp hook, in my opinion, is the most important aspect of catching steelhead. Make them sticky. And keep them sharp on the water. Sharp hooks catch fish, it's that simple.

#4:

Less weight. The most common mistake for most steelheaders, even experienced ones, is bouncing a too heavy sinker along the river bottom. Sinker and leader drift fishing summarized is a "walking speed" drift through the "10 to 2 zone. Keep that drift sinker moving at walking speed or current speed. Less chance to hang it on a rock, and because of the more natural drift, more hook-ups will happen.

Sinker & Leader. The hook is a #2 Gamakatsu Octopus. Bead & Lil' Corky. Notice the smallish size lead.

 The Bobber Stop Knot. The weighted jig gets tied below, and one can always add a split-shot.

The bobber outfit is predetermined to run a particular weight, as is the jig. Learn what and how much weight loads the float correctly. But bobber and bait is similar as well, and rigged exactly like the bottom bouncer, except with a bobber on the mainline w/ a stopper.

#5:

Tight Lines. When casting the sinker, as it hits the water...let it sink for a couple seconds before you engage the bail. Then reel up just enough to tighten the line. Keep that tightness through the drift. When bobber fishing, as soon as the rig hits water, engage the retrieve(bail). keeping the rod tip up high, reel the slack off of the water. Keep the line tight as the jig drifts with the river current. As a note, the bobber should be running vertical, with good structure.

#6:

Crisp & Clean. Keep gear clean and organized. Clean gear has a truckload of good qualities, from catching fish to gear lasting lifetimes. Organize gear into sections. Salmon, Steelhead, Day Gear, Survival/First Aid, etc...I usually load a backpack for a single day of fishing, and I keep the gear organized and clean. The backpack will carry all I need for a whole day, and is easily accessed, and because it is organized- I can find stuff quickly. Always have a towel in your tackle.

#7:

Rig Backward. Huh? When drifting a sinker along the bottom, the common sinker and leader(Corkie), will drift naturally and prevent mainline twist.

Drift-Rig Mainline is tied to the inside barrel end, preventing line twist. (Leader goes on other end of barrel.)

#8:

Set The Hook. Fish ready to set the hook. Pole-tip at 11 o'clock(120 deg. angle), and be prepared. About 15 years ago I purchased a 9 foot very light steelhead pole. One day, on the lower Alsea, after a short 1/2 mile hike, I sat on the grassy, sloping bank, and told my friend Cary where to cast. He had never caught one. After 10 minutes, I made my first cast. Fish On! I set the hook, and as the mint bright hen turned away, I thought...maybe this really light rod didn't bury the hook...I set it again. POW! I snapped her off, and watched as she cart-wheeled down river. The key here is: Set that hook hard, the second a fish is felt. Set it just once.

#9:

Drag. I keep my drag very loose. I use my thumb often, for casting and fighting fish. The most important thing to remember is: Do not put the brakes on. Steelhead will snap line, plain and simple. Rely on the parabolic bend of the pole and the drag system to handle the tension. And to keep the internal washers fresh, back the drag way off during storage. This will help keep the elasticity and friction in the washers, meaning better action throughout the life of the reel. Use your thumb at full power when setting the hook.

#10:

Colors. Sure, some are more desirable. Light pearl pink resembles shrimp and such, and prompts a strike. But generally, if you put the lure between the eyes, the fish will hammer it. Learn the pockets, seams, pools, eddies, tailouts, and runs. Learn habits of fish, where they like to stop and rest, and where they like to move upriver. Color, in my opinion, is more about visibility than what color a fish "likes", and sometimes I fool myself. I fish metallics on sunny days. Bright colors in turbulent and colored water. Dark colors on cloudy days with good streamflow visibility. Etc., etc....

 Me, with a dandy Winter Steelhead. Released.

In the pristine, and drenched winters of Oregon's coastal mountain, me and my dogs hike the meandering, cascading, runoff waters- in search of steelhead. We take pride in our preparation, and in our stamina, as we traverse the mossy, overflowing banks of waters. We also take pride in the beauty. We do not litter.

 Moose & Elka

Please do the same and help us keep Oregon green. THANK YOU FOR NOT LITTERING.