TR: Steelin'

[thin cover]

Had an amazing trip with the rest of the shop and guides from Green Mountain Troutfitters here in Jeffersonville, VT. Some of the best water and scenery I have chased fish in. Lots of long tail walking reel screaming runs, some heart breaking shakes before we got em in, and tons of beautiful lands.

































































Thanks for checking it out, hope to chase some more steel this winter here in VT.

[L8APX]

Dig!

[skifishbum]

$$$$$$

[ex-powderbroker]

Monsters!

[TCNROMPER]

Damn

[Meadow Skipper]

Monsters!

And lots of them.

[beer30]

FKNA!!

[TCNROMPER]

Thin cover, if you don't mind me asking, what were you using for a setup?

[thin cover]

Thin cover, if you don't mind me asking, what were you using for a setup?

Sure no problem. We swung zonkers, or anything thing with bunny in it, buggers and egg sucking leeches. But most of the fish came on trout beads with stoppers, trailing a stone or egg pattern(usually yarn). Also eggs bounced with a zonker trailing is effective, drift the egg and swing/strip the zonker at the end. About 3-4 feet of 15lb seguar>swivel>3-4 feet 6-8lb seguar(tippet), leave enough tag end on the tippet section to stick split shot on, usually 2-3 big one were enough. Just tie an overhand knot to keep the shot on the tag end.

[Underoos]

Sure no problem. We swung zonkers, or anything thing with bunny in it, buggers and egg sucking leeches. But most of the fish came on trout beads with stoppers, trailing a stone or egg pattern(usually yarn). Also eggs bounced with a zonker trailing is effective, drift the egg and swing/strip the zonker at the end. About 3-4 feet of 15lb seguar>swivel>3-4 feet 6-8lb seguar(tippet), leave enough tag end on the tippet section to stick split shot on, usually 2-3 big one were enough. Just tie an overhand knot to keep the shot on the tag end.

Holy shit that is fucking dirty.

Kudos.

[TCNROMPER]

Whoa! Now we are talking…thanks for the info, much appreciate!

Sure no problem. We swung zonkers, or anything thing with bunny in it, buggers and egg sucking leeches. But most of the fish came on trout beads with stoppers, trailing a stone or egg pattern(usually yarn). Also eggs bounced with a zonker trailing is effective, drift the egg and swing/strip the zonker at the end. About 3-4 feet of 15lb seguar>swivel>3-4 feet 6-8lb seguar(tippet), leave enough tag end on the tippet section to stick split shot on, usually 2-3 big one were enough. Just tie an overhand knot to keep the shot on the tag end.

[thin cover]

Holy shit that is fucking dirty.

Or thats knowing how to catch fish, I am here to help bud


Centerpinning egg sacks? That's dirty

[Sagamoron]

Sure no problem. We swung zonkers, or anything thing with bunny in it, buggers and egg sucking leeches. But most of the fish came on trout beads with stoppers, trailing a stone or egg pattern(usually yarn). Also eggs bounced with a zonker trailing is effective, drift the egg and swing/strip the zonker at the end. About 3-4 feet of 15lb seguar>swivel>3-4 feet 6-8lb seguar(tippet), leave enough tag end on the tippet section to stick split shot on, usually 2-3 big one were enough. Just tie an overhand knot to keep the shot on the tag end.

I rig the same way for Great Lakes Steel. Using the swivel and the tag end for split really makes it easier on your hands when you need to retie.

And Dirty is using sponge on hook, with a shakespear reel and ugly stick noodle rod.

Jealous of your pics, my son was born earlier this month and this is the first year in a long time I won't be able to make it out for steel...

[thin cover]

I rig the same way for Great Lakes Steel. Using the swivel and the tag end for split really makes it easier on your hands when you need to retie.

And Dirty is using sponge on hook, with a shakespear reel and ugly stick noodle rod.

Jealous of your pics, my son was born earlier this month and this is the first year in a long time I won't be able to make it out for steel...

Absolutely, you see those guys around also. Sometimes I will tie a separate tippet on all together for the split. Loosing your whole rig sucks, especially after just tying on a new rig. This set up significantly cuts down on retying time with the swivel. We were on Eerie tribs.

Congratulations on your Son! The fish will be there next year.

[ak_powder_monkey]

I like how clean and unscarred those fish are.

Still confused as to why anyone calls little rainbows like those steelhead. You don't call the browns sea trout do you?

As far as artificial fisheries go, that looks like a fun one. And they are some of the biggest rainbows in the lower 48, but still why not call them rainbows? Catching a 20 inch rainbow is way better dick waving material than catching a 20 inch steelhead.

(don't mean to knock you, just wondering)

nice photos

[topwater]

(don't mean to knock you, just wondering)

bullshit! the total point of doing the west coast "they aren't steelhead" point making is to knock them. it also is rarely done by people who actually catch many "real" steelhead on the west coast.

they have been called steelhead for a long enough time that it isn't an individual who comes up with the idea to call them steelhead. i think of it like i think of gay marriage, it has no impact on my enjoyment of swinging flies for "real" steelhead or great lakes "steelhead". luckily i've enjoyed both.

it's time to stfu on every great lakes steelhead thread.

[neckdeep]

bullshit! the total point of doing the west coast "they aren't steelhead" point making is to knock them. it also is rarely done by people who actually catch many "real" steelhead on the west coast..

Except AKPM, who lives on the west coast in the land of salmon and steelhead, routinely sees more wild, native fish than the rest of us dream about and is a fishery biologist to boot. No offense but....just maybe....he knows more about pacific cold water fisheries than some dude from SW Florida. I'd listen to what you had to say about redfish and snook but really... calling out AKPM on salmonid taxonomy? It's his job.

[skifishbum]

akpm ftl
again
got your digies
don't think your gonna show up here and start slayin wasatch pow on them big ole fat ass slutty cheater worth skis your maikin
it's way to easy and will seriously comprimesez the enjoyment of the act

[frecnhy.]

love me some trout porn! awesome pics man

[topwater]

Except AKPM, who lives on the west coast in the land of salmon and steelhead, routinely sees more wild, native fish than the rest of us dream about and is a fishery biologist to boot. No offense but....just maybe....he knows more about pacific cold water fisheries than some dude from SW Florida. I'd listen to what you had to say about redfish and snook but really... calling out AKPM on salmonid taxonomy? It's his job.

current locations don't tell the whole story and being from AK doesn't mean you know shit.

kudos to the OP on some nice stoke and sorry for moving it in another direction....

[Underoos]

fly fishing charter boat

That is a term I've never heard before.

[plugboots]

Too many pictures of big fish, I got bored.

[jma233]

My puny brain always thought that if they turned chrome then they're steel. But I fully admit to being one dumb SOB.

[neckdeep]

It's not about how they look, it's about where they live. Rainbows and steelhead are the same species. Sea run cutts and coastal cutts are the same species. Sea run browns and browns are the same species. The whole point of the damn distinctions in the first place is to distinguish which populations are anadromous. If it isn't anadromous, by definition, it can not be a steelhead. Maybe fishing would have been less confusing if it had simply been named the sea run rainbow. To call a lake run rainbow a steelhead totally ignores the different realities of a marine environment: salt, diet, currents, massive distances and predation by sharks, orcas, sea lions, etc. It just misses the point of making the distinction in the first place. Might as well call them all rainbows or all steelhead if you can't understand the difference. Steelhead simply means "sea run". It's not a value judgement. It doesn't make catching a big fish more or less worthy so Topwater really needs to settle the fuck down when the local fish biologist points out a lake run bow isn't really a sea run fish. It's just a simple designation over which rainbows are sea runs and when you slap the word "steelhead" onto any big rainbow you want, it renders the term meaningless.

[::: :::]

here in OR, regs say a 20" & bigger trout is deemed a steelhead
(whatever the actual biology or worldly travels)