California Freshwater

Cool post man, love to catch a salmon one of these days.

I have been fishing the trinity river for about 10 years now and average less than one fish per day, it is a hard fish to target without a guide

Those are awesome fish... I'd be interested in catching one of those monster kings from shore.

They are a blast from shore, I use 15 lb braid and a medium spinning reel, battle for me last anywhere from five to thirty minutes, and I haven't even hook a big one yet

I just typed a huge post about STEELHEAD Fishing in the SALMON RIVER NY,because it looks like your last pic here,that fish looks like a STEELIE,
Are you fishing THE trinity?
Those are beautiful fish BAT,They are real wild,Native Trout/Salmon? That's really neat .
You know those fish, like every other fish on earth, follow a pattern,
If you figure it out, you'll nail 'em all the time. They'll use the flow to hunt food;minnows,insects , crawfish,smaller Trout.
I found out years ago ; if a stream has crawfish; use a REBEL CRAWDAD CRANKBAIT, the Rainbows will murder it! Just cast it upstream, reel it just fast enough to get it to dive down & keep it following the main flow like you were livebait fishing for trout; they'll find it!
I've caught some really nice Rainbows like that.

I fished the SALLMON RIVER in N.Y. for STEELHEAD,

When you see this & get on it , I'll put more here
http://www.salmoncountryguide.com/gallery.html

These are pics a guide up in the Salmon River has ,but I used it to show what kind of fish are there ,
My biggest was a 32" , 12-1/2# hookjawed Male STEELIE ,

Thoose Are Some MONSTER TROUT, & You Said Their Bigger Than THAT

The day I caught that 12+# 32" Steelie, I lost a bigger one , really big ,he was across the river when he jumped & I got a pretty good look at him; he had a really big hook on his jaw,& he looked like he was about 17+#

The Salmon River has different laws than other NY water; no snagging ,it's a $150fine,maybe more now for snagging fish.
The DEC guys & wardens dress like guys just fishing like everyone else , & stand on the banks with fishing rods ; &write a ticket if they see you snagging fish; nothing better to do ,typical NYyou-know-what.
ANYWAY the River sometimes was full of STEELHEADS , then there'd be big BIG BROWN TROUT up there eating SALMON& STEELHEAD eggs& fry,
So we 'd use floating jig heads ;#4 + - size hooks with round/oblong blobs of foam around the eye coated with FLOURESCENT paint ;ORANGE in this case , & a 2" FLOURESCENT HOT PINK MISTER TWISTER tail threaded on TEXAS WORM RIG STYLE, so it looks like a swimming small fry,
& different colors/ combinations.&sizes
PLUS law states no weight closer than 24" to the hook so you can't snag the fish
SO, here's ONE ex. of a rig:
Tie a #12 barrel swivle to the main line { 10#mono }
Leave a 6" tag from the knot on the eye of the barrel swivel,
Tie a 24" MINIMUM leader of either the same line as on the reel ,
OR your choice of leader material just make sure it's long enough so it's 24" from the hook to the sinker,
then tie on your FLOATING FLOURESCENT ORANGE JIGHEAD/hook onto that leader ,
NOW take that 6" TAG you left hanging off the swivel knot, &
Crimp enough SplitShot lead sinkers , onto the tag to get it to sink to the bottom ;
SO that it rides along the bottom ,or just touching[preferable] , so it TICKS< TICKS< TICKS< TICKING along in the current with that floating jig/twistertail looks just like a swimming fry,floating up off the bottom 24"+ [or your chosen length} up off the bottom,
That River is fast deep in spots, & FULL of snags,
Whe that rig hangs up it's 99%time just the lead splitshots, that, when you yank it free slide right off the end of the tag they are crimped to, & all you lose, is the splitshot{S},not your floating FLOURESCENT ORANGE JIGHEAD with Mister Twister FLOURESCENT HOT PINK Tail !

So you cast it upstream, & fish it with the current back towards you,letting it drift in the current past rocks, eddies , tslackspots, all places Trout lay in wait to ambush food!
Steelies don't always eat after they leave the big lake{ LAKE ONTARIO} ,& move upstream to spawn,
So you've cast your rig ,it's sunk down to depth, flip your bail ,& keep your rod tip pointed at the spot where your line ENTERS THE WATER & FOLLOW IT ,all the way to the spot that you retrieve it to cast again; if it so much as twitches ,YANK !!!HARD!!, FISH ON !! ,hang on because if it's a big STEELHEAD ,it'll peel off about 80 yards + maybe more , & you'll end up reeling it back mybe 6 or 7 times like that before he tires enough to land him ,or unhook & release

One weekend , even tho it was TEN BELOW ZERO @ 5AM, we ate,went to the shop theguide who posted those pics runs, got jig heads,salmon eggsacks ,& info,got to the River {TRESTLE HOLE} ,
And we hooked fish , from about 7:30-8AM TO #3:00PM on EVERY OTHER CAST!!!!!!! both days ;SAT/SUN !!!

The day I caught that 12+# 32" Steelie, I lost a bigger one , really big ,he was across the river when he jumped & I got a pretty good look at him; he had a really big hook on his jaw,& he looked like he was about 17+#

The Salmon River has different laws than other NY water; no snagging ,it's a $150fine,maybe more now for snagging fish.
The DEC guys & wardens dress like guys just fishing like everyone else , & stand on the banks with fishing rods ; &write a ticket if they see you snagging fish; nothing better to do ,typical NYyou-know-what.
ANYWAY the River sometimes was full of STEELHEADS , then there'd be big BIG BROWN TROUT up there eating SALMON& STEELHEAD eggs& fry,
So we 'd use floating jig heads ;#4 + - size hooks with round/oblong blobs of foam around the eye coated with FLOURESCENT paint ;ORANGE in this case , & a 2" FLOURESCENT HOT PINK MISTER TWISTER tail threaded on TEXAS WORM RIG STYLE, so it looks like a swimming small fry,
& different colors/ combinations.&sizes
PLUS law states no weight closer than 24" to the hook so you can't snag the fish
SO, here's ONE ex. of a rig:
Tie a #12 barrel swivle to the main line { 10#mono }
Leave a 6" tag from the knot on the eye of the barrel swivel,
Tie a 24" MINIMUM leader of either the same line as on the reel ,
OR your choice of leader material just make sure it's long enough so it's 24" from the hook to the sinker,
then tie on your FLOATING FLOURESCENT ORANGE JIGHEAD/hook onto that leader ,
NOW take that 6" TAG you left hanging off the swivel knot, &
Crimp enough SplitShot lead sinkers , onto the tag to get it to sink to the bottom ;
SO that it rides along the bottom ,or just touching[preferable] , so it TICKS< TICKS< TICKS< TICKING along in the current with that floating jig/twistertail looks just like a swimming fry,floating up off the bottom 24"+ [or your chosen length} up off the bottom,
That River is fast deep in spots, & FULL of snags,
Whe that rig hangs up it's 99%time just the lead splitshots, that, when you yank it free slide right off the end of the tag they are crimped to, & all you lose, is the splitshot{S},not your floating FLOURESCENT ORANGE JIGHEAD with Mister Twister FLOURESCENT HOT PINK Tail !

So you cast it upstream, & fish it with the current back towards you,letting it drift in the current past rocks, eddies , tslackspots, all places Trout lay in wait to ambush food!
Steelies don't always eat after they leave the big lake{ LAKE ONTARIO} ,& move upstream to spawn,
So you've cast your rig ,it's sunk down to depth, flip your bail ,& keep your rod tip pointed at the spot where your line ENTERS THE WATER & FOLLOW IT ,all the way to the spot that you retrieve it to cast again; if it so much as twitches ,YANK !!!HARD!!, FISH ON !! ,hang on because if it's a big STEELHEAD ,it'll peel off about 80 yards + maybe more , & you'll end up reeling it back mybe 6 or 7 times like that before he tires enough to land him ,or unhook & release

One weekend , even tho it was TEN BELOW ZERO @ 5AM, we ate,went to the shop theguide who posted those pics runs, got jig heads,salmon eggsacks ,& info,got to the River {TRESTLE HOLE} ,
And we hooked fish , from about 7:30-8AM TO #3:00PM on EVERY OTHER CAST!!!!!!! both days ;SAT/SUN !!!

That Salmon River is not that hard to fish , You know the funny thing about the way I went about it, SteelHead are Lake-run or Ocean run RAINBOW Trout ,
I just fished for them like I'd go after any other trout;
That weekend the only guys that were catching fish CONSISTENTLY were me& the guy with me,
We even had fish on at the same time mine ran downstream;his ran up; we had to duck under/ go over each other's rods while the fish ran, one guy watching us asked where are you guys 'playing' next weekend?
There was a guy standing on the bank where we had our stuff ,so I said "What's up?"
He was looking kinda funny & said:"I got sent up here to see what you guys are using , so I showed him,he was with 5or6 others ,& they hadn't caught anything

I just hit it right fished the runs/riffles ,caught fish simple as that

There's also Salmon & SteelHead egg sacks to use
You cure them with BORAX, after taking them from a caught fish then tie egg sacks with flourescent netting material ;the SteelHead hit them hard.

Looking at those different sites the shopsor other guides put out I'm floored at the prices those guys are charging,you do't need to lay those kind of bucks out to catch those fish ,my GOD , all you have to do is go a few times & pay attention , do some homework, You'll get 'em.
It looked bad for the guides who had guys that paid big bucks & they weren't getting a thing,
So they couldn't tell the client,'Well no fish in the river now" Not when we were pulling fish out every other cast for 8 hrs!!
I caught a beautiful Wild Rainbow silver with purple/pinkviolet Blue , just gorgeous fish about 9pound Hen ,turned her loose immediately.The Brown trout are really colorful too big nickel size spots fire red /orange , they fight hard too real hard

Those are the fish I want, I have seen them in the river, just never hooked one. Also I am a brown trout virgin, I have seen people catch them right next to me just never caught one myself.

Like I said first 30" trout (unless it is a big hen) I am mounting.

Bat ,you are well on your way to nailing the Trout you want
If you can catch those beauties in your pics ,you know what you're doing;
You know how you fish live bait for Trout,right [in a stream]
cast upstream let it float back to you , that stuff ,right?
Well you do the same with artificials, only keeep it moving so it looks like it's swimming with the "flow"

Try RAPALA husky Jerk I know I say that alot but I caught everything that swims practically on them , more later [have to go ......Dinner!!!}

Bat ,you are well on your way to nailing the Trout you want
If you can catch those beauties in your pics ,you know what you're doing;
You know how you fish live bait for Trout,right [in a stream]
cast upstream let it float back to you , that stuff ,right?
Well you do the same with artificials, only keeep it moving so it looks like it's swimming with the "flow"

Try RAPALA husky Jerk I know I say that alot but I caught everything that swims practically on them , more later [have to go ......Dinner!!!}

This system did it again, had a long post & it deleted my login, then I couldn't post all I had typed ; it deleted all that too
Well, Steelhead are notoriously line shy at times;plus they are finicky when they are "Fresh" just out of the Sea or Lake they lived in,
I have fished for them with that 10'NOODLE ROD `&6#mono,
Super light flourocarbon is real good too,
Guys in DRIFT BOATS use HOT SHOT plugs, FLATFISH< TADPOLLY, & WIGGLE WARTS { like HOTSHOTS}
They anchor out in the current ,let the plugs drift dowstream, and flip the bail,& let the current work the lures, until STEELIES hit .
That's way oversimplified explanation but tha's how they do it.
BIG BROWNS aren't as finicky ,but they aren't stupid ; they like minnows ,will hit spoons,spinners, all kinds of flies, all the time, & are cannibals they'll eat little TROUT too.
Night time can work for big browns ,it does in the big lakes/reservoirs,& streams that have alot of daytime use.
those flashy Husky Jerk/Rapala Minnows work like a charm on them too .I'll post this before it gets deleted & keep checking the thread

BAT: You might enjoy this site "STEELHEAD UNIVERSTIY"
www.steelheaduniversity.com/index.html

Thanks for the advice. I normally run 15 lb braid with a 3-4 foot leader of 10-12 lb p-line Florocarbon. Where we fish is right in the middle between two different sections of class five rapids. There are a couple long (100-150 yards) pools that are deep and relatively slow. I have tried everything from walking along the cliff with a roe ball bouncing the bottom, casting lures up stream with a slow retreave, fast retrieve, ultra fast and just let the current take it. I have tried fishing up current and all those haven't gotten me anywhere really. Of the fish I have landed one took a Rapala that was just cast to the middle and reeled in, and the other steelhead took a worm as I was reeling it in about 10 feet below the rock I was standing on.

The salmon have worked with me more, taking lures and roe.

I will have to try that technic next time I go fishing (hopefully I can make it this summer). And my salmon guide buddy swears by Hot Shots and said that's the only lure he really fishes.

I have had luck with Vibrix in the past.

See,yoou can get them;
Isn't that always the way tho? You go for "the technique" ,&try ,then when you are just fooling around, the fish nail your lure
RAPALA; Cast it upstream right into the "falls " or wherever it comes into the pool[ if you can without snagging} then if it's a HUSKY JERK, just reel it just enough to keep it moving with the current & give it an EASy jerk ,reel, jerk, reel, let it sit [they suspend] ,jerk it ,reel it & SO ON, you'll get it once you see how it works ,

When you are at your spots , look into the water for "RUNS" if luck is with you,fish will be there moving upstream&you'll see what I mean,
Once you learn what I'm telling you ,you'llread the water pretty quick & "know" where they are .
Steelhead are funny that way ,they travel the same runs ,like DEER,
Look for places where current goes between rocks, over underwater ledges, anything that "funnels " the fish or the water or speeds up ,the water ,& if the whole place is FAST ,look for where it eases off .
When you can FIND them , most of the time, you'll CATCH them , you see what I'm saying? I hope I'm not confusing you,I wanna see you get a MONSTER,
Try not to let them see you ,or let your shadow hit them , Your western Steelies are supposed to be even more "spooky" than the Eastern transplants!

You see what you told me about your retrieves with the RAPALAS, you didn't try STOP/GO Stop/twitch/go , Get some HUSKY JERKS, fish them like I said they WORK,

Those pools sound like you need to stay low,but you should have luckby casting long &letting it come down with the current, bait, lures ,everything,
Well ,that's how you have to fish Steelhead aanyway but if you got hit on a RAPALA casting to the middle GO WITH IT ,hit all the areas of the pool from different spots, might be that short retrieve was something they hadn't seen before & triggered them,see?

Definitely NEVER let them see your line,they will refuse everything you throw if they do , I'm betting they can see that BRAID , go LONG on your leaders.
It's amazing how well they see line , There's been lots of studies/comparisons, they spot line FAST, guys here use super long leaders with flyrods too
And spinning rod sometimes they go from a heavier main line [mno] to a lighter,thinner mono or flouro leader , no kidding, they are THAT line shy , it might be a factor , ,I'd go with as long a leader as possible ,.
MAN, You got me fired up , wish I was after them, all my Steelheading has been COLD weather fishing ,supercold below zero , in the biggest part of the day,
Get yourself a good pair of POLAROID glasses ,anti-glare coat if possible ,you can't imagine how many MORE you'll see then .
I'll be talking to you Bat, BEST OF LUCK Brother!!!

I remember watching the salmon moving up stream when I was little. There are some rock cliffs about 10-20 feet off the water that you can watch them from.

I will try to send some photos once I get them up on photobucket