Articles

7 Tips for Getting Lucky with Winter Steelhead

by Tom Larimer - Tuesday, Jan 6th, 2015

Being successful swinging flies for winter steelhead is all about adapting to changing conditions and paying attention to details. Over the next few months our steelhead rivers will get pummeled with fierce storms and high water events. Other times we may see extremely cold, low water conditions.

Whether you swing for chrome on the West Coast or in the Great Lakes, it’s a rare day to have an “optimal” situation during the winter. As the conditions change you need to adjust your tackle, the water you choose to fish and the way you swing your fly. Here are seven tips that might help you find chrome this winter.

Look for the “couch” water

Regardless of the time of year, water temperature should be the biggest factor in where you decide to focus your efforts. Steelhead are a lot like us, if it’s cold and nasty outside they conserve energy and hang out on the couch. Couch water is the slow, soft water usually located in the guts and tail-outs of pools. In the cold months of winter, don't waste precious fishing time focusing on fast riffles. The fish rarely live there when the water temps plummet. That said, don’t miss the transition zone at the heads of pools. Look for the place where the water slows down just below a riffle as these are often key winter holding locations (credit to Great Lakes guide Jeff Liskay for this awesome term).

Montana Fishing Guide, Conservation Groups To Sue U.S. Government Over Grayling Protection

by Ben Kryzinski - Monday, Jan 5th, 2015

The amazing dorsal fin of the arctic grayling (photo: Chad Shmukler).

In 2013, U.S. Department of Fish and Wildlife reported that cooperation from Montana ranchers was helping the last of the state's native grayling survive. According to Montana conservation groups and residents, such reports by the department are false or unsupported by evidence. These groups have filed a formal notice of intent to sue which claims that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife have failed to protect the last of the lower 48's native grayling, which survive only in Montana's Big Hole River, a few small lakes and a small population reintroduced in the Ruby River.

The lawsuit is planned by The Center for Biological Diversity, Western Watersheds Project, Butte resident Pat Munday and former Montana fishing guide George Wuerthner.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has applauded the participation of Montana ranchers in its voluntary program to reduce water withdrawals from the Big Hole, which it has described as a significant success and one that has led to the beginnings of recovery in the grayling population. And while the program's critics have also applauded the ranchers action, they say it simply isn't enough to protect a truly endangered species such as the grayling.

Listen to Your Guide

by Chad Shmukler - Tuesday, Dec 30th, 2014

Guide Paul Samycia shows off a pretty, pepper-spotted cutthroat trout from the Elk River near Fernie, BC.

On more than one occasion, on guided fishing trips, I've found myself in the boat with another angler that seems to have arrived at the water determined not to listen to our guide. It's never clear why. Maybe the angler thinks he knows better than the guide. Perhaps he simply has a problem with authority. Whatever the case, by the end of the day, it is always abundantly clear that the angler has done little more than sabotage his or her own day. Almost without exception, your guide knows best. For a myriad of reasons, when heading out on a guided trip, being an attentive and compliant angler will not only improve your day but will likely improve your angling as a whole.

Knowledge

Unless you're a local expert on the stream, river or flats you're about to embark upon, your guide spends a ridiculously greater amount of time on said water than you do. The guide knows the riffles and runs, the way minor changes in conditions from day to day affect the fishing, the best tactics for certain spots and times and so on.

Earlier this year, while fishing the Elk River in British Columbia, our guide -- and owner of Fernie's Elk River Guiding Company -- Paul Samycia parked our driftboat in a small, slow back eddy that had formed alongside a torrid run. A long, heavy but relatively shallow riffle above was channeled by the narrowing streambanks where it dropped off a small spillover into a deep pool. The result was a 20 yard stretch of heavy rapids that I'd scarcely have thought to throw a nymph or streamer into, thanks to the ripping flows. As I peered out at the deep, emerald water, Paul handed my rod back to me with a small ant -- probably size 18 -- tied to the end of the line.

Steelhead and Salmon May Soon Be Gone from California and Oregon, Study Suggests

by Ben Kryzinski - Monday, Dec 29th, 2014

A Klamath River salmon.

Efforts to restore salmon habitat and rebuild healthy, wild salmon populations in much of the Pacific Northwest have perhaps never been stronger. Dams are coming down, government agencies are reducing stocking efforts and their damaging effects on wild fish populations and researchers are learning more each day about what steps are required to bring back the once vibrant salmon populations of Pacific northwest states like California, Oregon and Washington. Unfortunately, the results of a recent study published in the journal Progress in Oceanography suggest that these efforts may be fighting a losing battle, thanks to the effects of climate change. The results of the study identify waters off the coasts of states like California and Oregon as likely hot spots for local extinctions, as populations of sensitive coldwater fish species -- including steelhead and all five Pacific salmon species -- flee northward to avoid warming ocean waters.

According to the study, anthropogenic climate change is causing changes in ocean conditions that are much more rapid than previously known natural changes. These include physical changes such as those to water temperatures and ocean currents, as well as chemical changes in acidity and oxygen content. These have led to changes in spatial distribution of many marine species and to a lesser degree biological changes such as effects on physiologies and phenologies.

Underwater Fishing Photography: Introduction

by Chad Shmukler - Friday, Dec 26th, 2014

Underwater photography may be in its heyday. Thanks largely to technological advancements, capturing underwater images is now easier and more accessible than ever before. We're seeing more and more images from under the surface, whether those images are ones of kids taken by parents at the pool, pictures of coral reefs taken by snorkeling vacationers or professional photographers capturing images in and far below the surf. The results have us captivated, allowing us all to explore our world from vantage points we've never -- or at least rarely -- seen before.

Why Go Under

For the photographer attempting to document the fishing world, being able to take a camera underwater is an immensely powerful asset. Images that reveal the scenes beneath the surface of the waters we fishermen ply marry our world and that of the prey we spend so much time chasing. It expands the photographer's storytelling from a one-sided yarn to one that allows the viewer to immerse him or herself in both sides of the story. This connection between two worlds formed by underwater photography makes the fishing photographer's tale more whole. In fact, I have talked with a number of photographers that, like me, have come to feel that returning from the field without underwater photography makes a collection feel incomplete.