NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 1

Getting set up..............................................pg.4 USGS and River Levels..............................pg.7 How to reduce 90% of the River...............pg.8 30% your line weight..................................pg.10 Etiquette.......................................................pg.14

2 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 3

egginer Guide

Beginners Guide

Beginners Guide

Local fishing shops are a great source of information. They can answer all your questions and get you set up with the proper gear.

sensitive rod. You know that the river is long and fairly flat in the section you are fishing. This means the fish can run for quite a distance. You also know that the river has a little bit of color. You also know that you can wade into the river, so overhanging branches are not a concern. Armed with this information you will know what gear to bring. We would want a long sensitive rod matched with a reel that has enough spool on it to load a lot of line in case the steelhead decides to run. Since the water has a little color we can use a thicker diameter line. Lets talk about rods! You know that you need a long rod to be able to cast across the river and that since steelhead are lite biters you will also need a sensitive rod. So lets walk through the process of choosing the right rod. First thing you should do is check the spine. Not all rods are equal. The spine is located opposite the rod guides. The purpose of the spine is to add strength and flexibility. Fatigue can set in if the spine is not properly aligned. There are a few different ways to do this. When I am in a store I simply take the top of the rod in one hand and place the butt section against the base of the display shelf and bend the rod. The rod will jump, showing the stiffest side of the rod. This is the spine. The spine should be opposite the rod guides. Now how do we determine if the rod is right for the job? On the side of the rod you will see some writing that

Getting Set Up
By Dan Gregory

looks like this 66, 6-12, 1/81/38, Fast, Medium. You probably figured out the first set of numbers. 66 is the length of the rod; 6-12 means the rod can handle line weights of 6 lbs. and up to 12 lbs. The next set of numbers tells you the lure size that this rod was built for (1/8-1/38oz). Fast is the power this tells you how stiff the rod is and medium is the action. The action will tell you how quickly the rod loads and casts. So if you had a rod with a light action it would flex more than a rod with a heavy action. A light action rod would be used for casting light line and lures while heavy actions rods are just the opposite. Lets move onto reels. Choosing the right reel is a little easier than choosing a rod. Just like a fishing rod, reels have a specific purpose as well. A spinning reel is meant for distance and maximum spool load, while a bait casting reel is meant for finesse. Although a bait casting reel is great for drift fishing because you can control the line feed as your bobber floats down the river and keep your presentation in the strike zone, it also limits your casting distance. So be aware of the purpose of each reel and match it to the fishing conditions as well as the rod you will be using. On the side of your fishing reel you will see some numbers just like you did on the fishing rod. They will look something like this... 1/45/8, 6/200 8/140 10/120, 5:1. Okay so you may recognize the first set from choosing a

rod. The first sets are the lure weight this reel can handle. This may or may not be on the reel you choose. The second set of numbers 6/200, 8/140, 10/120. This means line weight/yards. The 6 tells us that we can load 6lbs test while the second number (200) lets us know that with 6lbs test we can load 200yrds. The last set of numbers (5:1) is the gear ratio. 5:1 tells us that with every one crank of the handle the spool rotates 5 times. This can be helpful with line retrieve, especially if you need to retrieve line quickly. With this information you can now match up your reel to your rod and get the maximum potential from each.

Photo by J-RG

Choosing the proper gear

can make or break your fishing experience. For many first time fishermen the success of their first fishing trip will determine their love for the sport. This article is meant to ease the confusion while providing information to help in your purchasing decision. There are many different types of rods, reels, and fishing line. There are rods for bass fishing, steelhead, salmon, trout and rods for ocean fishing. All these rods are built specifically for their own purpose. Ocean rods, for example, are built to be stout where as steelhead rods are built to be sensitive. So choosing the proper tool for the job is 4 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

important. When embarking on a fishing trip you should know what youre fishing for, where you are fishing and the conditions you will be fishing under. Are you fishing from a boat or from shore? Are you fishing for trout or King salmon? Is the water clear or dirty? If you are fishing from the bank then ask yourself if the river is wide or small? Knowing the answers to these questions will help you purchase the proper gear. So, youre probably asking yourself, where do I start. Start by reading this article then visit your local fishing shop. They will have the knowledge to help you make a good decision. Plus if you schmooze a little with the

owner or even just keep your ears open, you might receive valuable information regarding local rivers and fishing locations. Local fishing shops are a great source of information. They can answer all your questions and get you set up with the proper gear. Okay so you did your research and you now have a little more information. You now know where you are fishing, what youre fishing for and the conditions in which you will be fishing. Lets make a hypothetical scenario just for an example. All right you are planning a winter steelhead fishing trip on the Calawha River in Forks, WA. You know that the steelhead are light biters so you want a

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 5

USGS & River Levels

Photo by Dan Gregory

USGS & River Levels

Usgs and River levels

How to read charts
By Dan Gregory Suppose you want to head out to the river and do a little fishing. Doing your homework can provide valuable information. Knowing the gage height and the daily discharge of your local river can give you insight as to what the river conditions are. Rivers fluctuate constantly do to high volumes of rain and snow melt. These acts of nature can heavily impact the river. Ground saturation is another thing to consider. For example: If you had a dry spell for a while and it rains, the ground will absorb as much as it can hold. Plants and trees will use what they can as well. When all the water nature can hold is absorbed the rest seeps through the ground and into the river. So if you have a few rainy days the water is more likely to seep into the river faster because all the plants and trees have used what they can already and cant hold anymore water. This leads to what fishermen 6 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead call a blown out river. If you have ever seen a river that is running high and muddy in color, then you have seen a river that is blown out. This is why doing your homework is so important. No one wants to drive out to the local fishing hole and find the river to be unfishable. There are techniques to fish blown out rivers such as fishing closer to shore and using bigger, brighter gear and scent. Ill get into that in another article. For this article we will be learning (if you dont know already) how to read the graph charts on www.USGS. GOV. These charts will tell you the median, mean and instantaneous values. So what is Gage Height Feet? Well this is how high the river is flowing. The Daily Discharge shows you how fast the river is flowing and the instantaneous value show you what the river is doing right now! Now we go back to middle school math. I know, we all dread math. Dont worry we arent going to do

Rivers flucuate constantly do to high volumes of rain and snow melt

any complicated calculations. We are just going to talk about language. What does mean and median mean? Well the mean is average and the median is the middle value. Your probably saying, Wouldnt that make the mean and median the same thing? No the median is the value between the lowest point and the highest point. While the mean is the level the river is normally flowing. With this information you can gather up the proper gear and turn a potential bad day into a productive fishing experience. For instances; if the river is flowing a little faster than usual and has a little more color, you will want to use stronger fishing line and maybe scent as swell. If the river is low and clear; then you will want to use smaller line and gear so you dont scare off the fish. I hope this article helps ~Tight Lines~

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 7

FIISH WHERE THE FISH ARE

FISH WHERE THE FISH ARE

FISH WHERE THE FISH ARE

Aos river Photograph by Pestilence

How to Reduce 90% of the river

Fish where the fish are!
By Dan Gregory
In this article I will explain how to proficiently fish the river. I will save you countless hours of wandering aimlessly on the river bank in search of salmon. The most disheartening aspect of fishing is not knowing if the salmon are in the particular area that you are fishing. That is what this article will entail. Most of fishing is just being observant and paying attention to the habits of salmon. You can learn a lot from just watching. One of these days try and leave the salmon rod at home and just observe! This is how I was able to become a better and more successful fisherman. So I will teach you what I have learned and hope that this will help you as well. The first part of river fishing is knowing the dynamics of a river. What elements make a river? Well the main two are frog water or flat sections and riffles. So to give you a visual of what I am explaining think of the riffles as a hill and think of the flat section as a level area. Now imagine that you are out jogging and have to run up this hill. What would you do when you reached the flat section just before the next steep hill? If it was me I would rest and regain my energy. This is exactly what salmon do. They are spawning and need to conserve as much energy as they can so they can spawn. Now in between the riffles is where you will find the fish. You can narrow you search if you know where to look. You want to look for anything that breaks up the river flow such as a boulder in the river. The water flowing around this boulder is called a seam. The middle is called the slot. The slot has a top middle and bottom section. The top is called the head, the middle is calledwell the middle and the bottom is called the tail out. The river flow and current is broken and slowed by the boulder providing an effortless area for the salmon to rest. Other areas to look are deep holes that can provide cover and protection. Another thing to consider is that salmon are looking to conserve energy. They will run up the river in areas that provide the least resistance. So the next time you are out on the river look, at the way the river flows and visualize the path of least resistance. This is the path the salmon will take. In order to be a great fisherman you need to understand salmon. This requires studying them and being observant. In order to catch salmon consistently you must think like one.

8 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 9

FIISH WHERE THE FISH ARE 30% OF YOUR LINE WEIGHT

ERA HSIF EHT EREHW HSIIF 30% OF YOUR LINE WEIGHT

Must have Technique

30 percent your line weight
By Dan Gregory
Have you ever been fishing and hook into that monster only to have him snap your line immediately? You thought that you had your drag set properly, but your line was snapped like a thin piece of thread. I have used a technique that is simple and effective. You will no longer have your line snapped in two. Whats the secret? Set your drag to 30% of line weight. You can always adjust your drag once the salmon is hooked, but this method is great for setting your drag before you head out to the river. You will need a 5 gallon bucket or any heavy object will do a digital or spring scale. If youre using a 5 gallon bucket, then fill it with water or anything to weigh it down and then attach the scale to the bucket. Tie you fishing line to the top end of the scale. You want to pull up on the rod while incrementally adjusting your drag until it reads 30% of your line weight. For example; if you are using ten pound test then 30% of ten pound test is 3 pounds. Once the scale reads 30% of your line weight you are ready to head out to the river. Once you hook into that salmon you will still need to adjust accordingly to the salmon and river condition. What this method does is take the shock out of your line when that salmon hits your offering like a freight train and keeps your line in one piece.

10 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 11

 Gator Gator rods rods are built are built tough tough andand built built to endure. to endure. Land Land thatthat lunker lunker with with confidence! confidence! Pick Pick yours yours up at up your at your local local tackle tackle shop shop today. today. YouYou just mayjust need may a bigger need a net! bigger net!

12 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

PL AC EA

Even Even the the toughest toughest ofof the the sea sea meet meet their their match match

HE

Gator Gator Rods Rods

RE

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 13

FIISH WHERE THE FISH ARE

Etiquette

ERA HSIF EHT EREHW HSIIF

Etiquette

Etiquette
By Dan Gregory

Lets talk about etiquette! This is an important topic to cover. One thing that can ruin a good day of fishing is a fisherman with bad etiquette. You know the guy! The one that just hooked into his first fish of the day and is whooping and hollering oblivious to the fact that he is playing his fish into everybodys line. This can be very annoying. Not to mention the fact that you cant fish until he lands the sucker. So Rule #1 : If someone hooks into a fish you should bring your line in. Rule #2 : When you hook into a fish the polite thing to do is move down to the end of the line so everyone else can keep fishing and you wont tangle up anyones line. Have you ever gone down to the river and were limited on good fishing

holes? Well take a chapter from the drift fishermans etiquette. The rule says that it is impolite to hog a good hole. As long as no one is wanting to fish it then it is fair game, but if there are others behind you then work the water and keep moving. You can even rotate every now and then so each angler has a chance to fish the whole hole. Rule # 3 Dont be a hog. Work the area and either rotate in line or move to the next hole. How about this one! Fishing with inexperienced anglers. This can be rough. They dont know when to cast or what or even how! Your lines get tangled and you exchange apologies. After four or five times you are bound to get annoyed . When you are fishing with experienced anglers they know when to cast and where. For example

when you fishing with a float fisherman and a drift fisherman they know to take turns casting so the lines dont get tangled. And as a experienced angler it is up to us to teach those who are not so experienced. We all started somewhere. Why not set them off in the right direction. Then maybe they will eventually spread their knowledge someday. Rule # 4 Know your skill level. Crowding out is an issue at times. Everybody wants to fish a good hole. If you know the river then you know the good holes. Chances are you may be the first person to it. So youre enjoying the brisk morning when someone walks up and says good morning or Have any luck? Then they cast in about four feet from ya. Huh! I mean I dont own the river, but a mind if I throw in next to you would have

been nice. Now his buddy comes walking up and they exchange hellos and he starts fishing too. Pretty soon you get crowded out of the hole you were first in. It is just plain inconsiderate. Rule # 5 Be considerate of others. (you dont need permission, but it is appreciated) I will say that there are more rules, but these are the most common issues on rivers these days. Not everyone thinks of etiquette when they go fishing. A little etiquette goes a long way. I havent run into too many people that were rude. Most are in fact fairly polite and easy going. I usually chat up just about anyone. Never know what they will tell you. Maybe they will spill the beans about a secret spot! We can hope right. The main thing is to have fun and treat others with respect.

14 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead

NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead 15

16 NorthWest Salmon and Steelhead