Steelhead fishing's hot right now
- Thread starter CAelknuts
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tageater
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Amen, to fishing in the cold! Nice fish!!!
HunterHarry
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LAST EDITED ON Feb-18-09 AT 07:50PM (MST)[p]
American river?
It freaking DUMPED rain here yesterday.
I'm thinking another week or so before I get wet.
Fresher fish oughta be moving in.
that one kinda looks like it just came off a redd.
Thanx for the pic.
HH
American river?
It freaking DUMPED rain here yesterday.
I'm thinking another week or so before I get wet.
Fresher fish oughta be moving in.
that one kinda looks like it just came off a redd.
Thanx for the pic.
HH
HunterHarry
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The purists get kinda riled when they see the fish dumping their goo.
Those are spawners.
HH
Those are spawners.
HH
CAelknuts
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Harry, yes some of those fish are spawners, but fortunately when my son catches them, they get to live another day. There are a lot of people fishing where he goes, and most of them don't practice catch and release like he does. That photo is an exception, as I think it's the only fish that was doing that.
FishlakeElkHunter
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HOLY CRAP!!!!
You tell that Damn Danny that he needs to get a job!! hahahaha
Looks like he is doing well!! Maybe it is time I come to Sac again.... hahaha
GREAT PICS!!
You tell that Damn Danny that he needs to get a job!! hahahaha
Looks like he is doing well!! Maybe it is time I come to Sac again.... hahaha
GREAT PICS!!
sageadvice
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Dan, great pics and thanks for the heads up!
That last pic, other than the striper, looks like a big native rainbow, not a steelie. It could be a steelie i guess but reminds me a lot of the bigger Rainbows we catch floating the Sac outa Redding in March. Same coloration, same everything. Anyhows, beautiful fish, all of them. Thanks!!
Here's one of those rainbows i caught similar from a few years ago
Joey
That last pic, other than the striper, looks like a big native rainbow, not a steelie. It could be a steelie i guess but reminds me a lot of the bigger Rainbows we catch floating the Sac outa Redding in March. Same coloration, same everything. Anyhows, beautiful fish, all of them. Thanks!!
Here's one of those rainbows i caught similar from a few years ago
Joey
HunterHarry
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The steelhead are natives but the rainbow is a hatchery fish (no adipose fin).
HH
HH
CAelknuts
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Harry, Danny tells me that about 60% of the fish he's catching are hatchery fish, and 40% wild fish. He's fishing in water that is a little deeper, and they can't see any of the fish they're catching. He made a point of telling me a few minutes ago, that they aren't sight fishing on redds. He said that unfortunately, too many people keep the fish they catch.
The last fish he killed of any species was last summer, but he says he didn't kill the fish himself....the stripers did!
He said he hasn't killed a steelhead for himself since 2006.
The last fish he killed of any species was last summer, but he says he didn't kill the fish himself....the stripers did!
He said he hasn't killed a steelhead for himself since 2006.
HunterHarry
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Ditto on keeping steelhead.
Natives are illegal to keep other than on the Smith where you can LEGALLY keep one, but ethically you should release ALL natives.
Of the hundreds of steelhead I've caught with my son, we have kept one hatchery fish.
With F&G cutting hatchery funding, there might be a severe reduction in fish numbers.
We hope to get a season for spring run salmon this year.
Now there is some good eats!
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/4446/sink2di.jpg[/IMG]
As far as Salmon, we have a rule....
"If it ain't chrome, it don't go home"!
HH
Natives are illegal to keep other than on the Smith where you can LEGALLY keep one, but ethically you should release ALL natives.
Of the hundreds of steelhead I've caught with my son, we have kept one hatchery fish.
With F&G cutting hatchery funding, there might be a severe reduction in fish numbers.
We hope to get a season for spring run salmon this year.
Now there is some good eats!
http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/4446/sink2di.jpg[/IMG]
As far as Salmon, we have a rule....
"If it ain't chrome, it don't go home"!
HH
troutsniffer
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I am trying to post a pic of a huge steelie my brother caught on our first trip steelheading, but I can't get it from my email to MM. I have never had trouble getting them from my digital camera or trailcams onto MM. Any ideas?
HunterHarry
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I'll post it for you.
Go back to the Lobby & check your PM.
HH
Go back to the Lobby & check your PM.
HH
HunterHarry
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Here is a big steelhead that Troutsniffer wanted to post.
That fish is huge.
Gotta hand it to those Idaho steelhead.
They travel farther than any of the migratory salmonids.
He's got color, but that's awesome!
HH
That fish is huge.
Gotta hand it to those Idaho steelhead.
They travel farther than any of the migratory salmonids.
He's got color, but that's awesome!
HH
troutsniffer
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Thanks for posting the pic for me HH. My brother caught that fish in Idaho on our first ever steelhead trip on the second day. It was 44.5 inches and had the fin clipped. He could have kept it, but didn't. He caught it using a 8 wt flyrod, 14# tippet, and an old medalist reel. You should have heard the noise his reel was making when that fish made a run. He landed it a couple hundred yards down the river. That was a day with my brother I will never forget.
sageadvice
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Truly, an awesome steelie!!
Thanks guy's, love seeing a stud fish like that!!
Joey
Thanks guy's, love seeing a stud fish like that!!
Joey
HunterHarry
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Can't complain about the size,but as far as color, I find chrome much more desireable.....
CAelknuts
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LAST EDITED ON Feb-21-09 AT 08:26AM (MST)[p]AW, come on Harry. We all love CHROME fish, but right now there aren't any/many around where my son is fishing, and I doubt they see many chromers 500 miles up the Snake. Those fish are pretty, just like a duck in spring plumage.
Now, if I'm gonna eat a fish, chrome is the ONLY way to go. I won't eat a colored up fish as they almost never taste as good. The only exception I can think of where a colored fish was good is a huge king my son caught on the Kasilof River in Alaska. It was only a mile or so from Cook Inlet, but was starting to color up. I asked our guide if he thought it would eat well, and he assured me that those big bucks taste just fine. I don't know why, but he was right. It was as good as a salmon could be.
That was another damn fish that my son caught that I've never come close to in size. 53 inches long. The only scale we had topped out at 50 pounds, and it quickly bottomed that out. I've never caught one over mid 30s.
Now, if I'm gonna eat a fish, chrome is the ONLY way to go. I won't eat a colored up fish as they almost never taste as good. The only exception I can think of where a colored fish was good is a huge king my son caught on the Kasilof River in Alaska. It was only a mile or so from Cook Inlet, but was starting to color up. I asked our guide if he thought it would eat well, and he assured me that those big bucks taste just fine. I don't know why, but he was right. It was as good as a salmon could be.
That was another damn fish that my son caught that I've never come close to in size. 53 inches long. The only scale we had topped out at 50 pounds, and it quickly bottomed that out. I've never caught one over mid 30s.
sageadvice
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I have paid my dues on steelhead water but have been humbled more times than not. My best steelie, 17 pounds of chrome
Joey
Joey
