# Steelhead help?



## DTaylor8 (Nov 25, 2013)

So this is my second year trying to catch the steelhead. Caught one last year...very small. I reasearched, etc and haven't had any luck. Fished with a bead, rubber string of eggs, and a zonker today. Caught 0 at Chagrin. Watched everyone catch them around me, so I know I'm sucking up the place. I saw two guys fishing spawn sacs with flyrods?!?! Didn't even know that was a thing. Saw some in the riffles, but need some more help.


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## DTaylor8 (Nov 25, 2013)

By the way....it took me over a 1/2 hour to figure out how to start a thread...hopefully i can catch fish better than I can post


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## cmz13 (Apr 7, 2013)

I usually do good at chagrin with white zonker and pink egg pattern above in tandem rig.....look for deeper pockets but with temp rising they will be in faster moving water


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## DTaylor8 (Nov 25, 2013)

Using any weight? It seems to me that when I used weight, I bounce to much on the bottom, so I went with no weight and deeper and it seemed to work better, but of course I caught no fish. 




cmz13 said:


> I usually do good at chagrin with white zonker and pink egg pattern above in tandem rig.....look for deeper pockets but with temp rising they will be in faster moving water


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## cmz13 (Apr 7, 2013)

I all depends on how deep the hole is...you want it to be right above ground but not dragging.


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## Rippin (Jan 21, 2007)

your best bet is using eggs, salmon, brown trout or steelhead, get it on the bottom, if your not snagging up and retying your not low enough, don't forget the current on the bottom is slower then the current on top, so slow the drift down...low and slow is your friend.


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## hailtothethief (Jan 18, 2017)

if eggs are too complicated throw some mealworms or maggots on a hook. Trout are hungry.


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## c. j. stone (Sep 24, 2006)

What rippin says abt the current speed up and down is true, but just remember, trout, in current, cannot/won't(it takes too much effort for them to tail-up, nose down towards bottom in fast current!) feed down(their eyes are on top of their heads). Any fly guy will tell you the "bait" should be drifting/tumbling at least a few inches off bottom. Add weight carefully til you get that perfect depth/drift level. Not saying you won't occasionally hook one hugging bottom, but you will get sooo many more doing it "just right"!


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## OnTheFly (Jul 30, 2010)

i generally rig two smaller splitshot about 8-10 inches above my top fly for most runs/riffles/pool i fish and then try to set my split shot a bit deeper than the water i am fishing (often around belly button to chest for the water i fish mainly). you want to occasionally hit the bottom as they will indicate you are in the right place. hard to beat sucker spawn for flies, light pink and cotton candy are my favorites.


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## rickerd (Jul 16, 2008)

the bottom is overrated if you are using bait. Even with flies 6-12" off the bottom is usually good enough. Bounce the bottom once every 10' or so is fine. Of course the attitude of the fish has a great deal to do with the distance they will hunt. With flies pay more attention to your drift speed compared to the bubbles on the surface. If the bubbles are passing you line/ flies downstream, you are on the right track. That means your flies are slower than the topwater currents, which is good.
Rickerd


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## DTaylor8 (Nov 25, 2013)

What about these guys using their flyrod with spawn sacs? I guess it would be easier if you wanted switched up to flies? Wouldn't have to go back to the truck to switch poles? Is it easy to flip out spawn sacs with a flyrod?


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## DTaylor8 (Nov 25, 2013)

#10 white zonker? With the red hair mixed in? You run the bead on the top? Two hooks, one for the bead plus the zonker?



cmz13 said:


> I usually do good at chagrin with white zonker and pink egg pattern above in tandem rig.....look for deeper pockets but with temp rising they will be in faster moving water


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## c. j. stone (Sep 24, 2006)

You can fish lots of stuff on an 8 wt. flyrod that spinners are using and vice versa. I once watched an older guy flicking a Prince Nymph(no weights, no bobber) with a spinning rod(albeit a Longer rod w/ lighter line) and working the fly like a flyrodder would, mending line, gathering line with his left hand to impart a darting action etc. Of course he couldn't roll cast or the overhead back and forth for distance but he didn't have to. He caught maybe 12 steelies on that simle rig just in the time(maybe 45 mins)I watched him-mesmerizing! Everyone came from the same little run and no more than 20-25 ft in front of him.


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## devildave (Sep 20, 2014)

Really the water clarity dictates your position no matter what.....So never base on one depth....


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## hailtothethief (Jan 18, 2017)

I run real bait with fake bait. If i run my black wooly bugger i throw on a couple minnows above to swim him around. Underwater looks like a big leach chasing a minnow. Wooly bugger out fishes the minnows right now.


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

Learn to do this and the bottom will be known to you. The way the float points adjust the weight and adjust your rig 6" to 1' of the bottom. Next hole adjust. YouTube will show you the way


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

Here is the video I was trying to find last night. Great underwater view of what needs to happen


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## Racinray (May 5, 2015)

A-5 said:


> Here is the video I was trying to find last night. Great underwater view of what needs to happen


Seen that video about a week ago,pretty cool fish perspective view! Ray


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

Honestly until I Steelhead fished i was just above sub par fisherman. Thought I was good then real fishing happened. When you match the float with the speed of the river, and match the weight to the float. The river is yours. It will tell you where the holes are and keeps the hang ups to a minimum. I pin fish little stockies now. Out fish most people. It's definitely a game changer. Another thing I learned. I use as heavy main line as I want. Doesn't matter. I've spent time testing and use fluoro as a tippet. The only line that matters is that last 2-4 feet. I chose STS trout leader. 8lb is a smig over 6lb and is tuff.


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

Here's my pull test. I'm sure cabelas likes me pulling and breaking line in the store. Lol


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## nooffseason (Nov 15, 2008)

A-5, sure you can use whatever strength line you want, but the heavy stuff is going to be just that.....heavy. Harder to keep line off the water and avoid surface drag


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## steelhead sniper 860 (Nov 6, 2013)

A-5 doesn't need any help he's already outfishing the majority of fisherman according to him


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

I guess I found the site prick already.


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

steelhead sniper 860 said:


> A-5 doesn't need any help he's already outfishing the majority of fisherman according to him




I'm new to steelhead. I'm not good at steelhead. I was referring to easy to catch stockies in PA. Steelhead I'm not very good at. Trust me your way better at steel than I. I am sure of that. What you saw as bragging was in reference to 10" easy to catch fish. Not the beast you are accustomed to catching. I'm sorry it came off that way.


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

nooffseason said:


> A-5, sure you can use whatever strength line you want, but the heavy stuff is going to be just that.....heavy. Harder to keep line off the water and avoid surface drag


I'm talking 8-12 pound test. Nothing heavier. I'm not into hero drifts that much. So with the longer rods I'll try to keep the line off the water when I can. I really need a 13' rod. The okuma aventa rod I was looking at. It's affordable. I'm on a budget.


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## nooffseason (Nov 15, 2008)

A-5 said:


> I'm talking 8-12 pound test. Nothing heavier. I'm not into hero drifts that much. So with the longer rods I'll try to keep the line off the water when I can. I really need a 13' rod. The okuma aventa rod I was looking at. It's affordable. I'm on a budget.


Gotcha. On our steel tribs 8-12 lb mono is pretty standard main line


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

nooffseason said:


> Gotcha. On our steel tribs 8-12 lb mono is pretty standard main line


What leader do you guys use. What type. Bloodrun is popular. But I stick with STS it's cheaper and it comes in 100 yards. I use the 8 pound it's pretty thin for 8 pound


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## SelfTaught (Mar 27, 2014)

I just use seagar red label floro, 8lb. Relatively cheap for floro, readily available and ties good knots. I'm sure there is way better out there but seems to do the job for me. You don't have to be too technical. Steelhead sniper has caught thousands of fish on 8lb green mono.... he's not a prick actually a very nice guy. Thanks for sharing your input I hope many beginners learn a few things from your posts.


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

SelfTaught said:


> I just use seagar red label floro, 8lb. Relatively cheap for floro, readily available and ties good knots. I'm sure there is way better out there but seems to do the job for me. You don't have to be too technical. Steelhead sniper has caught thousands of fish on 8lb green mono.... he's not a prick actually a very nice guy. Thanks for sharing your input I hope many beginners learn a few things from your posts.


I did clarify what I meant by out fishing people with 10 inch PA trout. A 10 inch trout is nothing to brag about. I really wasn't talking about steel. And his comment was way hostile for someone that's a really nice guy. Really nice guys wouldn't have said what he said. Moving on though.


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## The Fishing Addict (Mar 19, 2014)

When I fly fish I use 15lb seagar red label as tippet and I don't have any problems hooking and catching fish!


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## A-5 (Apr 9, 2017)

15lb. Wow. In NY they land 15lbers on 6lb. I'm not that crazy. Lol. I get my stones busted for using Seagar STS 8lb that's a smidge bigger than 6. We land 20-30lb kings on 10-12lb. I agree though 6lb is not needed to catch fish. If your hookups go up but broken line happens it's not worth the downsize.


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## The Fishing Addict (Mar 19, 2014)

I also save a ton on lost flies and split shot because I don't break off on snags as much either! I carry 10lb seagar with me too if I feel the need to downsize; but I would rather use the 15lb because I would not want to run the risk of having a huge fish snap my line!


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