Idaho Steehead Video Hi Speed Only

This fall I was able to get some time on the Salmon River in Idaho. As with all fishing, especially steelheading timing and weather are key. This year we nailed it. Several days in a row Scott, Kory and I hooked each hooked up many times. There was no “Steelhead funk” on this trip. There were plenty of fish and river to cover. We spent each day casually floating from run to run in our pontoon boats. Stopping regularly to fish, eat and relax. What a way to go. In Idaho there is no such thing as trespassing as long as you enter and exit on public land and stay within the high water mark. Boats allow you to fish hundreds of miles of river with very little competition. This was also the first time I was able to experience the “come back fish”. I have been steelheading for a long time, around 15 years as a matter of fact. Most of that has been out east and it was not until I moved out west that I was truly immersed in the western brand of stealheading. The spey rod changed everything. The spey rod and swinging flies gives you the real opportunity for a true “come back fish”. I had heard it described, picked the experienced brains and documented the occurrences but never experienced it myself. This trip was the first. For those who are unfamiliar the “come back fish”. I will try to explain. Because of the dynamics a the swinging fly, barbless regulations and the fact that Steelhead take the swinging fly more out of aggression than hunger, steelhead hook-ups are common but bringing them to hand is far more difficult. Often times you will feel the take and the fish swimming with your fly. Massive amounts

of discipline are required to disregard the temptation to immediately set the hook. Patients are required. You must wait until the fish turns and actually swims away with it before you set the hook. Sounds easy enough, but I have trouble setting aside years of experience and instinct. Especially when hours and even days may pass between takes. Sometimes it seems like my unconscious brain is wired directly to my hand and the set comes without reason or even my knowing only to be pleasantly surprised by a tug back. So it goes and my missing steelhead was common on this trip. However, the fishing was good and that is where the “come back fish” comes into the picture. It is when the fishing is bad that mistakes become painful. Once on the Bulkley in British Columbia I felt the tug and immediately ripped the hook from the fish’s mouth. My buddies were all to happy to point out how silly I looked with a huge bright blue spey fly stuck in my hat and neon orange line wrapped around me like a Christmas tree. The fishing was slow on that trip. But when the fishing is good and you miss a fish they may come back. The routine is as follows: Recast and make a few swings to the exact spot, if you don’t get a hit, then take four steps up river and work through the same piece of water, if you still don’t get a hit change flies and do it again. I was skeptical when this scenario was first presented to me. However, on this trip it played out multiply times and resulted in several fish brought to hand. In fact in one very small pocket I hooked up three times only to have the hook pull out every time I set. It was not until I changed flies that I actually hooked up and was able to play the fish. Upon returning to the spot I had no other hook-ups making me believe it was all the same fish.