Persistance finally paid off today. I've been trying to catch steelhead for about a year now, and have been going out at least twice a week before work since the last week of July.
I sucessfully caught my first steelhead this morning. It was an 18" native that I hooked on a red hackled fly w/trailing stinger (one I tied back in December).
No pix, since I was alone, and trying to manage my cameraphone while holding the fish in the water would likely have meant a ruined phone. That's ok, I don't think I'll be forgetting it anytime soon!
The new spey setup worked marvellously, and the megaloop reel made landing the fish nice and easy.
Interesting. "By the regs" this technically wasn't a steelhead, since it was 18". The regs have the unusual definition that it has to be 20" to be a steelhead.
Now, I am still pretty sure that this was not just a rainbow. I was judging based primarily off coloration though, so could be wrong. Unfortunately no pic.
The back was pretty bright silver, not the slightly tan tint that most bows have. Plus it had no sign at all of the pink band that shows up on bows.
By the regs, I caught a trout. I'm curious what you all think though.
Of course, my definition is pretty clear: I was fishing for steelhead, using steelhead gear. The thing I caught had the coloration and shape of a steelhead. Therefore, I caught a steelhead.
(I don't mean to start up old arguments, my goal here is to better understand methods of ID.)
Interesting. "By the regs" this technically wasn't a steelhead, since it was 18". The regs have the unusual definition that it has to be 20" to be a steelhead.
Now, I am still pretty sure that this was not just a rainbow. I was judging based primarily off coloration though, so could be wrong. Unfortunately no pic.
The back was pretty bright silver, not the slightly tan tint that most bows have. Plus it had no sign at all of the pink band that shows up on bows.
By the regs, I caught a trout. I'm curious what you all think though.
Sounds like a coho to me. A jack perhaps? A summer steelhead will almost always have a band, and look a lot like a rainbow, just longer and more torpedo like.
Here's a summer steelhead on the small side of things to compare
The fish I caught looked a lot like the one in your pictures, Ryan. The whole tail was spotted, whereas on a Coho, I'd expect only half the tail to be spotted.
"I look into my fly box, and think about all the elements I should consider in choosing the perfect fly: water temperature, what stage of development the bugs are in, what the fish are eating right now. Then I remember what a guide told me: 'Ninety percent of what a trout eats is brown and fuzzy and about five-eighths of an inch long."Allison Moir
Congratulations ! You have successfully contracted a disease for which there is no cure, whose symptoms are ruinous and it 's only fatal to relationships so it just lingers for eternity. If you're married seek counsel , you're going to need it( and make sure he doesn't steelhead fish, they make lousy lawyers) If you're not married you prolly don't have much chance of ever getting a bride as the steelhead seasons leave little room for courting and weddings. I hope you like cheap gas station food and bad coffee cause you're gonna go thru a lot of it in the coming years and of course cold cut sandwiches for lunch and dinner cuz you won't have the energy or inclination to cook after fishing all day. If you have a good job for christ's sake keep it , what you spend in tackle will cost you a small fortune and without a wife the monthly expenses are gonna add up. If you own a house sell it. The upkeep and expense are too time consuming and costly, however you can't get an apartment because there's no place to store your truck and your boat. I suggest a rented duplex with a neighbor that LOVES yardwork. You're set.
Do you tye flies. God I hope so cuz if you don't you won't be able to afford the duplex. Never mind just go take a fly tying class this winter, it'll keep your mind occupied during those long winter nights.
Yeah, I remember my first steelhead. Well enough of this I have to go sweep the driveway for the neighbor so he doesn't pick up any rocks when he drives his mower over to my side.
Not to diminish your accomplishment, but another possibility is that it many have been a sea-run cutthroat. An 18-inch sea-run cutthroat, while at the large end of the scale, is not extremely unusual. The cutthroat slash, thought to be a "sure" identifying mark, is often extremely pale or even non-existent in fresh run fish. The only certain identifying characteristic is the presence of the small triangular patch of basibranchial (formerly hyoid) teeth at the base of the tongue.
There are plenty of sea-run cutthroat in the rivers right now; here are a couple of pics. The fish next to the rod/reel is a little over 17 inches.
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Hill's Discount Flies
Originally Posted by Mumbles
