steelhead fishing on the coast

sunday we headed to the coast range for a bit of steelhead fishing, i ended up hooking two dead drifting egg patterns under and indicator but they both came off sadly, i taught my dad how to bobber fish because he is new to steelhead fishing and he got good at it pretty quick, at the end of the day i swung a few flies through a tailout hoping to get the fish resting in it to take my pink moal leech,the fly didn't go very deep because it didn't need to, the tailout was quite shallow and the fly was right in the fishes face but they would not commit (im new to swinging so my casts were short,sloppy and i may have mended my line a few to many times, but a few of the swings i made looked pretty darn good!  i just think the fish were spooked because we were walking around, i would have creeped down to the water if i knew they were there ahead of time, im about done with winter steelhead for the year and gearing up for trout season, redsides and cutthroat are staring to gobble flies in the mid/south valley streams, i hope to visit a smaller one that has very little pressure soon. ill have pictures/video up when i return





Brandon

keep on fishin!

Well i am still yet to land a winter steelhead on the fly, it has proven tough i am 0 for 3 so far this season, all strikes/hookups have came on  dead drifted egg patterns under a strike indicator and i have also missed several strikes where i set the hook then there is a flash then no bites at all after that. i am starting to get a little discouraged but im sure my day will come. I'm about done with winter steel for the season(really low on gear and trout fishing begins soon) but i will be making atleast 2 more trips before the end of march to try and get my first steelhead.
ive decided to pick up a few moal leeches to try out on the next outing i have not done any swinging yet im sure it wont hurt to try

only a few months away!

Trout season begins early in  a few local streams starting in arpil and that really gets me excited. although it's primarily nymphing the first two months of the season it can still be exciting, larger fish are commonly caught earlier in the season. one or two fish can be caught on dries if you work for them but usually dry fly fishing doesnt pick up until late may-june. most often stream are re shaped by winter floods leaving debris behind and forming new obstacles and good fishing areas too. armed with a waterproof camera starting next month  i will be set up for the upcoming season chasing some of these

Early season cutthroat caught fishing nymphs

winter steelhead report

So far i have been out a total of 4 times this season and i have gained much experience in that short amount of time. on my favorite coastal stream i hooked two nice steelhead in one day (they both got off) and i have caught dozens of cutthroat and one old fire truck red coho. i have found fly fishing for steel to be quite the challenge,these fish really know how to get off a line. on the other hand my buddy brad picked up on gear fishing for steelhead with a spinning rod and bobber and jig.  Below are some pictures of the trip where brad caught his first steelhead, there is also a video i will post. saturday we will be hitting the water again in hopes of another chance at some winter steel. my fly box is stocked with egg patterns and i am ready. water should drop into shape on my favorite smaller coastal stream just in time

The river

me dead drifting egg patterns

working a seam

A rough start

Friday marks the beginning of my hunt for a  winter steelhead on the fly. I went once before last year but i did not know jack about fly fishing, it was the beginning of my fly angling career..reading the water was something i was just learning that day, my casts were terrible and i got snagged in multiple trees.But now i am back for revenge on that little coast range river. unfortunately it will be a rough day chasing winter steel, The water is cold,low and clear..the average rainfall for the area is 5 inches in december. we have had less then an inch or around that. Thats is the river and the fish basically giving me the middle finger saying you can't catch me..but im always up for a challenge.. thats why they call it fishing and not catching.  it's game time. back with a report and pictures  anywhere from friday-monday




B.Hill

stuck in the house...old report

I'm stuck in the house, broke looking for a job right now so i guess i will post a bunch of pics from late spring and summer on the upper end of my favorite stream


So first, July 2011 

My friend andrew came down from the portland area to come fly fish for trout in the coast range , we did a 2 mile hike to reach our fishing spot.we packed in waders,food,boots etc..heavy load to say the least. We stopped at the top of a small steep trail through some poison oak and suited up and rigged our rods, we both went straight to nymph rigs, i tied on my favorite fly, the possie bugger with a bead head prince on the dropper. We headed down to the water and within 30 seconds i landed a nice 10 inch cutthroat..the rest of the day was Pretty much the same story, Every good riffle had some nice cutthroat. The last fish of the day was caught by  me, a very bulky and hard fighting cutthroat..around 16 inches. We ended the day with 27 caught and plenty missed and a few that came unbuttoned, andrew even missed the same nice cuttie (13-14 inches) 4 times before keeping the hook in him! what a day it was. here are some pictures..enjoy!!

sorry for the blurry pictures

           




-Brandon

OUCH!!

well..we fished the mckenzie river  yesterday and it was a painful skunk..The temp  stayed aroudn 28-30 degrees the entire trip and the fog never lifited off the river... had one strike,felt the pressure then gone.. now i have that bitter taste in my mouth after months of  no skunks on rivers... taking a break for a week or so from  hoping for  a job  so i can support my addiction (fly fishing)  ill upload  a video i took of myself nymphing a run at armitage park  thats about all i have..besides frozen toes and leaky waders!








BH