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| Chuck's
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| This page is devoted to those things which I find to be especially good and noteworthy. From time to time I'll post different products, ideas, techniques, or destinations that I think are outstanding and worthy of your notice. Please understand that any topics that I bring up are my choosing and are here solely at my discretion. These are my opinions and don't reflect in any way on other manufacturers, guides, lodges or anything else. This is just my opinion.
Sincerely,
Hawk |
Swinging flies for steelhead, more productive than you think!
It has often been said that when you begin to fly fish, an angler just wants to catch something. When they jump that hurdle it generally morphs into " I want to catch as many as possible". Some anglers eventually get to the point that they become trophy hunters or anglers that tackle the most elusive fish. Permit come to mind, if I had a dollar for every permit that has refused me...well, I'd get to go permit fishing more often!
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Many Midwest fly anglers feel that swinging flies for steelhead is similar to permit fishing, lots of work for little reward. I'm here to tell you this isn't the case. We hooked lots and landed many steelhead all season this year. Jon Ray and I feel that if anglers were doing this all day every day, the numbers would astound you. While you aren't going to hook as many as indy fishing or chucking and ducking you will get more than one a day on average.
What's changed, I'm sure you are wondering. The equipment is light years ahead of where it used to be. You don't need a monster, 14 foot spey rod. The Helios 11 foot 7 or 8 weight rod is a great swing rod. So is the 13 foot 7 weight. Both rods are extremely light, easy to handle and will tackle the new generation of lines that we are using. The lines are potentially the biggest change. I've heard a thousand times, I don't want to learn spey casting. You don't have to swing for steel. There is a new series of lines from SA and RIO that let you overhead cast. This is a line that you attach a variety of lengths of SA's Custom Express sink tip to a welded loop on a length of intermediate line that then changes to a running line. This line on the Helios 8 Weight will make you think your casting has improved 50%. With different lengths of Express Tip or T-14 you can get your fly down deep enough during the swing to peak the interest of a steelhead. This line on a Mirage Reel attached to a Helios is a great way to spend a day swinging. |
We have learned a few things by spending lots of days in the boat throwing flies at fish. Here are some of the keys for getting a curious steelhead to bite your fly. First and foremost...you need a player fish, so move. One or two casts and move on, take a few steps, then cast. Don't repeatedly swing through the same water unless you believe that fish are moving through and that you can make them stop....and bite. The player fish is more important than the fly I believe. Second, Great Lakes steelhead don't want to track a fly for 100 feet then eat it. Shorter cast to targeted areas are better than 100 foot casts sweeping a hole. Third, flies need to move. Use flash and marabou and bunny, that bug needs to attract attention. Finally, let the fly hang down after the swing for 3-5 seconds to give that curious fish a chance to smack it.
Bottom line, throw good bugs in areas that you know that hold fish, change your tips to get the fly deep and be patient on the hang down. A big chrome steelhead might be looking at your fly 60 feet away from you.
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Ed McCoy and I went swinging a couple of days ago for a half day. We started out right at the ramp, nobody else was on the river at that location. We swung flies, dropping down river and had no response, even though we were in very productive water. After an hour we fired up the motor and went downstream a mile or so. I got on the oars and at the first stop Ed, got a pull, meaning as the fly was swinging he felt a fish come to the fly a nip at it. A little response was good. We followed the current as it crossed over to the other side and fished behind a sweeper, Ed cast his fly. It hadn't swung ten feet before a nice hen steelhead drilled it and took off downstream. After a good fight we put her in the net. Not bad for a winter day with water and air temps both in the thirties. |
The wind was coming up and the pile of work on my desk was calling so we agreed one more productive run and then we'd call it a day. Ed was on the oars and I was casting. At a location where there is a mid river seam, coming off the tip of a small island I threw a Johnny Darter Fly, quartering downstream. After two or three boat drops, just as my fly settled into the hang down, I got a very sharp pull. As I turned back to tell Ed that fish tugged me two more times. What a blast. I threw the fly again after another boat drop and he/she pulled it again. This fish was definitely a player! It almost made me come home and put a stinger hook on every swing fly I own. |
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I never did hook up with that fish but it was great playing cat and mouse with it. By now the wind was howling so we packed up and hit the ramp. All in all, three fish came to the fly, one to hand, all in 3-4 hours. It was a great time on the water.
Give Rich, the Fishing Manager at Royal Oak Orvis a call at (248) 542.5700 and he will set you up with a Helios Switch or light Spey rod. Also between now and Christmas he'll throw in a Battenkill Large Arbor reel or let you upgrade to a Mirage Reel for $200. He will also ship it to you free of charge!
If you want to learn more about what we do to get these fish to bite us, give me a call (231) 228.7135 and we'll get you out there with the right equipment, and get you bit!
Hawk |
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