Summer Steelhead

[Ironhead]

My wife strikes again. This mornings catch.

[jackelope]

DANG...you 2 are off to a good start while i'm sitting at work. it's really nice out    

[rackattack]

Great fish!!!

[sisu]

Nice fish...my wife usually out fishes me every time.

[Muleyslyr]

Iron.....very nice!!  I was supposed to go out on the opener, but after watching the river levels all day the day before, decided against it.  Looks like the river was rippin' pretty good where you were at also.  Thanks for the pics.

[jackelope]

We drove all the way up hwy 20 yesterday to find the skagit solid chocolate milk mud and flows were only at 11k. we kept going higher and higher hoping the sauk was puking all the mud, but the cascade was really bad too. above the cascade there was 3' of vis and the river looked good, but there was no springers there    

[Jerome]

Jackelope i live right on the skagit.  If you want to know conditions before you make the drive let me know.  Did you pick up any dollys above the Cascade?

[GOcougsHunter]

Coon Dog,
This is a pink year...  would you mind keeping us informed of how the run is going in August?  My dad is in Sedro but, rarely gets to the river unless I take him..

[jackelope]

Jackelope i live right on the skagit.  If you want to know conditions before you make the drive let me know.  Did you pick up any dollys above the Cascade?

this is gonna sound real dumb...but the boat never touched the water. we turned around and drove home. we wanted to fish springers...
thanks for the offer though, i'll surely take you up on it.

[Jerome]

GocougsHunter it looks you have to release pinks on the skagit this year. 

[jackelope]

I was thinking the same thing. definitely no humpies on the skagit this year. come down to the skykomish...there'll surely be a million of them there. thats where i'll be.

[boneaddict]

I'm hoping to be on the Sky for them.  I missed them last go around but caught the heck out of them the time before on a fly.  Man that is serious fun.

[jackelope]

bone...seriously...let me know when you want to come over. we'll hook up and take my driftboat for a float. always an open seat.
i live 15 minutes from the river.

[boneaddict]

Sounds like a blast.  When does the run start?  I remember it being fairly low water and haot as hell.

[jackelope]

Mid-august or something like that...can't remember for sure.

[Muleyslyr]

jack....save me seat on the drift boat and I'll save ya seat on the sled.     Oughta be a blood bath!!

[jackelope]

Hey this could be the makings of a fun day on the river.
maybe a hunt-wa get together.

[Jerome]

Slaying humpies would be a good get together. 

[jackelope]

what have you guys done with them out of the river?? just smoke 'em or have you done anything else  like Q them?? i've smoked a couple of them, but usually just release them.
i keep them out in the salt and they're ok on the table, but never tried anything but smoking them out of the river, and then only if they're chrome bright or thereabouts.

[boneaddict]

Smoke em if you got em I say.  I usually catch and release, but keep alimit when the day is done to help offset the cost of the trip.  I have even smked a couple chum from there as they can shoot up pretty fast out of the salt.  They have to be pretty chrome as you know for them as they get nasty FAST!  I was fishing for chum in November and caught a nice steelhead once.  That was nice.  I'm not sure if thats what all the jet boats were after, or if they were after the chum.   The canadian river I mentioned in chat is fun.  I have gone up targetting chum forfun.  The canadians hate them.  They are all after coho nd "springers".  They tend to be in different water so what the heck.  Lots of fish without uch competition.  More and more yankees are going up though.  Everyonce in awhile I have hooked up with a fresh springer, and hold on.  I don't think I have anded one on that river.  They can rip you up in that big water.  You might want to pick up a nice 9 weight though as a spey is a little overkill for that river.

[jackelope]

My spey rod is a 9wt, it's just 14' long and it allows me to cast 100' of line. i have a 9wt single hander too, but it doesn't see much action. all the sleds on the sky are after chums if chums are in. whatever is pulling on the other end is what they are after whenever. the river gets pretty tough to handle with all the boats on the weekends when the humpies or chums are running, so we usually end up fishing on weekdays, but it's do able anytime. there are springers in there right now, but tough to get one on gear nevermind a flyrod.

[boneaddict]

Do you gear fish as well, or only fly.  I'm 99% fly.  Every once in awhile I toss a jig at some steelies on the Methow for old times sake where I know there is a fish I can't present too.  A fish is a fish sometimes if you knwo what I mean.  I had a boat and tried gear on the columbia but never figured it out.  One of my other goals was to get Fletch to teach me how to catch a walleye.  Those are sort of hard on a fly, though I've done it on the Kettle.

[jackelope]

i gear fish too. in fact lately i haven't really wanted to fly fish except for trout. i really like catching fish, so if i have a better chance at catching fish with gear then i will. i will not fish trout with gear at all, just flies. but salmon, steelhead, even bass  a lot lately with gear. i don't fish bait really at all, just jigs, spoons, spinners, etc. my latest  trout fishing rig is my gramp's old bamboo rod and a kalamazoo tackle company reel. it's very fun to fish but i freak out about breaking it. everybody says graphite is a lot more fragile than bamboo, so maybe i'll relax.