What I learned in one day of Steelheading

[Warren Perry]

"The man who keeps everything locked up in his heart will know far less than the man who compares notes with his fellows" Theodore Gordon

Last year in February, my friend Al and I hired Steve Buckner to guide us on the Hoh River for winter steelhead. After the trip I made some notes with the intent to write an article on the benefits of hiring a guide to shorten the “steelheading” learning curve. I never got around to writing the article. I did however keep the notes. I am sharing the notes now in the hopes that what I learned may benefit others. Veteran steelheaders, feel free to chime in. I know that there is nothing new here. But this may be a good primer for the uninitiated.

Before hiring a guide I fly fished the Northwest for almost 3 years with some modest success. I had been Flyfishing for 7 years. I was self taught, didn’t really see the value in hiring a guide. As time passed I began to believe that I knew more than I did. When I found out the Army was moving me from Fort Lewis to New Mexico, I figured that my last and best chance to hook a Steelhead was to hire a guide. So in the 11th hour, Al and I took the plunge. It was undoubtedly the best money I ever spent on flyfishing. My only regret is that I didn’t hire the guide earlier in my tour so that I would have more time to apply what I learned.

There are several benefits to hiring a guide who is also a teacher. Among them are:

You don't know what you don't know. A good guide will teach you what you need to know and shorten your learning curve by years.

You learn a little about how & why things work so you can do them better. Casting, mending and swinging are the prime examples.

You learn to fish efficiently & therefore increase your fishing pleasure.

A good guide will teach you to observe things you wouldn't have seen by yourself & that others aren't able or willing to teach you. Things like the little scrape in the streambed or the seam in the current are invisible at first but become obvious after a short lesson on reading water.

He might not tell you exactly where to fish, but he'll tell you what you need to know so you can find good water on your own.

Some many of the descriptors in fly fishing are relative. Having a guide will help you understand just how SHORT or LONG your leader should be; just how FAST, SLOW, SHALLOW or DEEP holding water should. Because I saw it with my own eyes under the tutelage of an expert, I now know what water moving along at a walking place looks like. Now I can find it by myself.

Good guides don't necessarily take you to the best water, they show you the best water on the river you are fishing. You can apply what they teach on any river. As Dave Hughes put it "Every lesson you learn no matter where you learn it transfers to other rivers. no matter where you fish."

"All veteran anglers have their tricks of the trade.... usually you have to fish a long time to pick them up" Wheeler Johnson. Not true for a guide who is a teacher first and a guide second. I learned more in one day fishing with a mentor, than I did in my previous 7 years combined. In no particular order, here are some of the things I remember about what Steve taught us that day in February.

Match equipment to conditions, flies, tips leaders, tips to water clarity, flow etc

If you want to get better at something, do it with someone who is better at it than you.

Fishing with a guide is a lesson in applied science, you learn how to take all of the hard and fast rules of angling and turn them into an art form.

Fish the water correctly, completely and thoroughly so that when you leave a hole, you have either landed the fish or know you did everything possible and you are satisfied with your effort.

Double check your terminal tackle twice. This was a lesson I didn’t learn well enough. After fishing a complete day with Steve, Al and I spent the next day applying what we learned on our own. About half way through a run that looked particularly fishy I saw a flash, felt the weight of a fish and then nothing. After I regained my composure, I inspected my fly only to find that the point had broken off…

Slow your casting stroke and make it symmetrical

The hasty angler loses the fish. when a fish strikes, wait for the weight. At the moment of truth, don’t crap your pants. Wait until you feel the fish on the line. If you set up too early you will likely miss.

Mend correctly and less. Be aggressive in your mends.

Don't be afraid to work the run twice. Al caught a nice hatchery hen on his second time through a run.

Water depth - knees to eyes.

Water Speed - calm water that feels soft against the back of your knees. Good spots are on the inside of river bends.

Work your fly from close to far. After working an area move down river the length of the water visibility. Completely cover close to far again. Move the length of visibility.

"Every steelhead is a trophy" Steve Buckner

I know that there are many great guides out there. I have only fished with a guide once. That Guide happened to be Steve Buckner. If you think this is an endorsement so be it. I had a great time as did Al.

Tight lines!

Warren

[Zen Piscator]

I think Steve is one of if not the best guiding on the OP right now, I am glad you took a great deal of knowledge from him. Well thought out article man, I liked it!

[Will Atlas]

never been with a guide myself, but for me I have more time than money. With the money I would spend on a single guided day, I can fish the Sauk 10 times. And while some people only get out 10 times a year I am fortunate that enough I can probably do that in a month. The point is, it depends what you have more of. For some people who work office jobs 5 days a week, fishing with a guide is the best way to learn steelheading. I personally am proud that I've never fished with a guide and I probably never will. If I do it will be with Ed Ward on the Skagit.

Steve is definately a class act. I had the pleasure of running into him on the Cowlitz this summer and he is a great guy.

Will

[James Mello]

never been with a guide myself, but for me I have more time than money. With the money I would spend on a single guided day, I can fish the Sauk 10 times. And while some people only get out 10 times a year I am fortunate that enough I can probably do that in a month. The point is, it depends what you have more of. For some people who work office jobs 5 days a week, fishing with a guide is the best way to learn steelheading. I personally am proud that I've never fished with a guide and I probably never will. If I do it will be with Ed Ward on the Skagit.

Steve is definately a class act. I had the pleasure of running into him on the Cowlitz this summer and he is a great guy.

Will

Consider yourself a lucky cat! There are days in the office I just *dream* of being on the river!

[Riane]

Consider yourself a lucky cat! There are days in the office I just *dream* of being on the river!

Same here. Today being one of those days. But that is precisely what makes it so rewarding- when you get there you appreciate it more. Kind of like a woman I would dream about but couldn't have in my youth.

[James Mello]

Same here. Today being one of those days. But that is precisely what makes it so rewarding- when you get there you appreciate it more. Kind of like a woman I would dream about but couldn't have in my youth.

Wow... TMI.... almost sounds like.... like... Something about Mary...

[Salmo_g]

Good summary, Warren. I agree that fishing with a mentor steepens the learning curve like nothing else. Oh how I wish I'd known one when I was learning by myself and doing everything wrong quite a few times before I stumbled into success. That is a painful path.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

[Charles Sullivan]

Thank you for sharing. I have not gotten a guide. Probably I should, but I'm stubborn. I think that the most difficult part of beginning steelheading is the lack of positive feedback; be it yours or someone else's. Last year was the first year I saw someone hook or land a winter fish. I fish a good amount too.
A mentor is great, A fishing buddy is helpful in that you may be able to use his experiences as positive feedback. I've found that the dog doesn't help with positive feedback.
A better steelheader than I am once told me that you can start to tell where there are good steelhead holes by noticing where the fisherman's paths are. I guess that too is borrowing from someone else's positive feedback.
I've never struggled hooking a fish like I have with the Skagit/Sauk steelhead. 4+ years and no fish hooked. Hell, I've landed a purebread Muskie on the fly, but these dirty SOB's....... I can see where hiring a guide to provide you with passive positive feedback could be very helpful.
This is the year though, just like 2004 in beantown. Optomism abounds.
F'ing Boras,
cds