# Anyone having Luck for Winter Steel?



## steelhead sniper 860 (Nov 6, 2013)

The Forum seems kind of slow lately, Just wondering if anyone has caught any nice steelies this past week? we had a bit of cold rain last weekend, figured someone else out there might have had some luck also.. I went out 3 days and landed 18 fish total out of 2 different streams. I only saw one other guy the entire time. I caught 11 the first day, 6 the second day and 1 the last day as I only had about 30-45 minutes before I had to run and pickup some equipment 2-hours away. The conditions have been less then prime, but I think the lack of angler pressure helped.


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## lowhole4trowt (Feb 1, 2014)

Each outing has produced at least a few fish the last two weeks or so (4 times out). Nothing crazy and no huge fish. Unfortunately not many anglers out there for me to lowhole which is really quite disappointing as it is my passion. Mostly been on unstocked warmer water the last two weekends. No end to the frozen sacs and worms in sight .


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## y-town (Dec 25, 2004)

I didn't think there was any open water to fish and I've been wanting to get out. I primarily fish Conneaut so any info would help.


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## steelhead sniper 860 (Nov 6, 2013)

There is open water still. Some streams are spring fed and dont freeze in areas. Others have warm water discharges that dont freeze i can think of 3-4 streams that have stretches that never freeze.
And if you are passionate about lowholing thats cool, i cant say i havent done it myself, but id rather find my own stretch of water. Whats the joy in it for you, pulling a fish off another persons spot in front of them?
I did it one time to 3 guys at vermilion and almost ended up in a fight with a couple of them. (Wasnt to concerned as I usually have a 9mm on me since i heard of the bear/sasquatch sightings)
The older I get the less ethical it seems to lowhole, plus a lot of my money holes are relatively low pressure spots on unstocked tribs that i never see anyone at anyways. 
Also no monsters for me either. But the second day out was a bunch of good bucks that went 24-27 inches with one small spawned out female in the bunch


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## KTkiff (Jul 30, 2004)

What exactly is lowholing?

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## jiggin'fool (Dec 18, 2005)

What is low-holing?


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## NativeSteelhead (Jul 31, 2012)

From October - May no matter how cold, there is always open water and steelhead to be caught.


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## lowhole4trowt (Feb 1, 2014)

I mean spend all day searching for trout or watch others till they start catching then put a little WD40 on the elbows and sneak on in to the action? No brainer in my books. In all seriousness though even areas that i havent seen freeze in the past 6 years are icing up more this season, plus frozen gear gets frustrating. Ready for at least some 35 degree days


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## ldrjay (Apr 2, 2009)

Haha they don't own the water. If I wasn't catching I'd loophole the heck out of em. I have my own spots that I share anyway. I don't keep any steel spots to myself. Im always sharing if someone wants to tag along. Keeping holes a secret is greedy in my book. Pot stirred.

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## bman95 (Feb 3, 2014)

Ice fished the deck on the chagrin for the whole day a week ago, had one on but lost it... terrible luck with that river this season, for me at least


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## lowhole4trowt (Feb 1, 2014)

hah i hear ya ldr, I'm just messing around I try to respect anyone I encounter on a river but the fact of the matter is there aren't really any "secret spots". Just those that people don't want to hike to or hike to find. Some of the most rewarding fish I've caught are ones where I've stopped and said hmm that run looks fishy, then bam fish on. Given your location I'm sure you may know all about that. Can't wait to try a float trip out your way once this hardwater moves out.


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## ldrjay (Apr 2, 2009)

Im enjoying the ice. Haven't had it this good in three years. I give anyone space if they are at a spot before me. If they move I'm in there. I just di my understand why some of these guys get bent outta shape when guys post a pic of a particular spot or if somebody is fishing within 50-60 yards of them. If you can't relax perhaps a new hobby is in order lol.

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## steelhead sniper 860 (Nov 6, 2013)

If people want to fish by me Im always the first to strike up a polite conversation because the public water is public and everyone has an equal right to it. Ive also shared all the info ive found to work for me in other posts on this forum as to possibly help someone else have some "luck"
But I'm sorry, my technique or gameplan isn't standing around in the woods watching other people fish till they start catching them and then lube myself up with wd40 and fish in between them. Also just because other people aren't catching fish at a spot doesnt mean anything, not everyone has the Know-how or spends the time and effort needed on certain spots. and honestly over the years the bottom of holes change a lot on the bigger rivers and some spots that were great years ago look 100% different then they did 5 years ago. people who can locate good holding water and fish spots thoroughly and cover a lot of ground would be able to go to any stream or river and find fish regardless if other people are catching them or not.


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## lowhole4trowt (Feb 1, 2014)

All valid points. Understandably there are those days when WD40 doesn't produce. Vaseline is a good alternative for the low and clear type days.


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## fishinnick (Feb 19, 2011)

KTkiff said:


> What exactly is lowholing?
> 
> Sent from my HTC One mini using Ohub Campfire mobile app


To low-hole(or high hole) someone simply means jumping in the hole right below them as they're working their way down(or up) stream. Pretty much just cutting them off as they're covering x amount of water. Seeing someone hook up and then fishing right next to them without asking isn't necessarily always low-holing, though it is worse in regards to stream etiquette. 

As someone who does a lot of small stream trout fishing in PA, high-holing can really screw up your fishing on streams where fish spook easily. On really tiny streams you're generally only making a few casts into each pool then moving onto the next. If someone jumps ahead of you then chances are you're going to have a rough day of fishing as the holes have already been fished over and the fish may be spooked. Just the nature of the game. I don't find this to be an issue on the Ohio tribs with steelhead, unless it's obvious you're covering some water(ie. making fan casts while walking downstream) but having someone squeeze in right next to you after you hook a fish is wrong, unless they get your permission first of course. I'm always happy to share a spot with someone if they ask. (as a side note, I'm mainly talking about smaller water or river sections off the beaten path, not bigger pools and easy access spots. I wouldn't expect anyone to ask if they could share the Rockcliff springs hole, etc. with me).


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