Steelhead rant

[spivak]

This is something I see every year and wonder about. I was down at the Lester River watching people fish for steelhead. At the end of most people's drift I see them do a sharp little hook set--a vigorous jerk of the rod. These are folks with all the new gear, the vests with patches, the steelhead "look" and yet it seems they are trying to snag fish. Our north shore streams are small enough, short enough, the fish concentrated enough, and it seems poor sport indeed to try to snag them.

Yet, watching the anglers I have no doubt that they think they are sportsmen and women. The whole thing seems unnatural. And very wide spread.

[GottaGo]

I haven't been down to the Lester in a few years but I would "set the hook" at the end of a drift not to snag a fish (I never did snag anything) but more to free my rig from the rocky, snaggy bottom of the river. Just gently bringing in your line seems to cause a snag and lost hook a majority of the time.

[ripstick]

You will be able to tell those who are really trying to snag.

[leech~~]

I haven't been down to the Lester in a few years but I would "set the hook" at the end of a drift not to snag a fish (I never did snag anything) but more to free my rig from the rocky, snaggy bottom of the river. Just gently bringing in your line seems to cause a snag and lost hook a majority of the time.

Plus + 1 I would give the rod tip a quick little upward snap to make sure it was freed.

[mwal]

Those of us that are used to fishing the Brule call that the Northshore twitch. That is how the Steelheaders on the shore wher taught how to end a drift. I grew up fishing the Brule and noticed the guys that do it all had experience fishing the north Shore streams. Back in the Day you could hear the lines make that ripping sound at popular spots for the North guys like mays ledges. They are now off limits to fishing but I remember that ripping sound.

Mwal

[nlayne882]

Was on the lester a few days ago and saw an old man teaching his grand kids how to snag at the end of their drift right at the mouth of the river. Such a shame... Caught a couple nice loopers while they got skunked though!

[Odonata]

Before you make generalized assumptions, you may want to ask and not assume steelhead fisherman are trying to snag fish with the rod pull/jerk at the end of a drift.

Often a fish will pick up at that moment and due to a number of variables, you may not feel the fish pick up. Therefore, a quick snap of the rod sets the hook. I have done this with limited success, but I have been surprised a number of times.

Never once have I wanted, intended, or purposefully meant to snag fish. I fished with three guys last night, on said North Shore, and a few fish were foul hooked while drifting. They promptly tried to free/release the fish.

I don't know why this thread struck a cord with me, but I fish with a few very good steelhead fisherman. Despite the end of the drift line "snap", none of them intend to snag steelhead. It's to set the hook. In the mouth. Of a fish that picked up without you noticing.

Some may feel otherwise. So be it.

[mwal]

Odonata,

No intention to make generalized assumption either. It's just what we who fished the brule noticed the shore guys did at the end of the drift more frequently then we did unless we were fishing alot of weight and really fast water. The yarn is ahead of the weight and at the end of the drift a good snap of the wrist hooks any fish that may already have the yarn or spawn sac. It is a technique that will get you some extra fish that you didn't feel bite over the course of the season. Foolish not to do it. Occasionally foul hooking occurs as it does with many steelheading techniques. Most like you say point rod at them and break them off no harm no foul. It's just when I started in the 70's the twitch was used to snag many a fish. Look at the difference in hooks now. Size 4 is a huge hook I learned on 1 0/0 silver mustad viking hooks and used colored sponge soaked in melted vaseline and anise oil. They had to close The Skid Mays ledges of the brule just because of snagging using the reef at the end of the drift. you heard the line make a ripping noise. Steelheading is far different and there are very few intentional snaggers thankfully. Hope you have a good season on the Shore pray for rain.

Mwal

[live4chrome]

The only fish that deserve to be flossed IMO are sockeyes. It's terrible watching the flosser on the north shore pulling fish off their redds.

[Poacher's pariah]

The "twitch" being observed may be a "chicken or the egg" type of thing. I know that when I'm drifting, I'm acutely tuned in to what's happening to my offering. Any pause, tap, or hesitation in my line will elicit a twitch, which, to someone unfamiliar with the technique, may look like an attempt to snag a fish. It isn't. It's just a light hook set on a potential take, usually resulting in the end of a drift and a new cast.

For years now I've heard people be accused of "flossing". This argument doesn't hold water when you consider the number of juvenile fish I allegedly "floss". Flossing is supposed to be when an angler positions his line, not his hook, ahead of the gaping mouth of a steelhead, and then quickly snapping the line so the hook is pulled into the mouth of the fish. this might sound like a reasonable explanation until to you take into account that the angler usually cannot see the fish, and that a "flossed" fish would be hooked from outside in instead of from the inside out. How many fish have I hooked outside in? Maybe 5 in 40 years. And how does one explain why, when I'm fishing the Brule, I can regularly hook dozens of 4"-6" juveniles (with their tiny mouths) on any given day?

The more I listen to the "anti-flossers", the more I'm convinced that they are just making excuses for their own inability to keep pace with us old salts. It's a sign of the times. If more time was spent learning technique, and less emphasis was spent on tackle/equipment, they too would be hooking more fish. If a guy wants to toss the fat line and swing a spey, more power to him. But don't accuse other more productive fisherman of ethical lapses when their chosen method proves less productive. That's just sour grapes.

I welcome today's next generation of steelheaders. But they must realize that this isn't walleye or crappie fishing. There's no substitute for experience. I Believe that it's unrealistic to go from Cabela's to the Brule in one step and expect to regularly catch numbers of fish. Learning the ropes comes next, and that steep learning curve can be lessened with mentoring. But how do find a mentor if you alienate him before even meeting him?

That said, should we look the other way when we witness intentional attempts to snag fish? No. The would be snagger needs to find himself persona non grata. If he's a youngster, perhaps this is an opportunity for mentoring.

[mwal]

Poacher's Pariah

I agree with your assessment of the situation. On a typical day on the brule I may utilize more than 1 technique float rod with bait or fly/bead and mono drift rod or fat line and indicator. You are correct about many accusing successful fisherman using mono of flossing. They do not realize the biology of steelhead and are trying to think they are little browns or brookies and should act like them and be easier to catch etc. Just look where people fish in the fall. They fish fast water spawning type water like its spring and are worried about temping the water and waiting for it to warm up midday in the sun. When they should be fishing the pools and deep runs in low light conditions when the fish feed.

Mwal

[certified jumbo]

I can honestly say after years of fishing the north shore I don't believe I've ever seen a person intentionally trying to foul hook a fish. I also would not consider a mono fisherman who snaps his rod at the end of a drift a snagger either.

This years horribly low water has condensed fish into a couple of deep pools on most rivers. When this happens foul hook ups happen a lot more. Fishing low water north shore streams does very little for me and is hard on the fish as they get pounded and have nowhere to go. But most of the people fishing them aren't snagging in my opinion.

[Big Kype]

I have witnessed plenty of people trying to snag fish, and fishing tackle rigged with snagging in mind. And yes they have always been reported to TIP. I was just fishing the lester today and snagged a lot of old lines which abound the bottom of many popular holes. One of these lines was rigged with about an ounce of weight, a hook, and on that hook was an additional stinger treble. Tell me people aren't out there trying to snag fish.

I also watched as some knuckleheads dragged foul hooked steelhead up on the rocks, let them sit in a net out of water for some time while digging for a camera, and then grabbing them by the gills and holding them up by the gills for pictures. And I see this a lot. Too many stupid idiots out there and if you try to educate them you get nothing but sass in return. There's no fix for stupid.

[live4chrome]

I have witnessed plenty of people trying to snag fish, and fishing tackle rigged with snagging in mind. And yes they have always been reported to TIP. I was just fishing the lester today and snagged a lot of old lines which abound the bottom of many popular holes. One of these lines was rigged with about an ounce of weight, a hook, and on that hook was an additional stinger treble. Tell me people aren't out there trying to snag fish.

I also watched as some knuckleheads dragged foul hooked steelhead up on the rocks, let them sit in a net out of water for some time while digging for a camera, and then grabbing them by the gills and holding them up by the gills for pictures. And I see this a lot. Too many stupid idiots out there and if you try to educate them you get nothing but sass in return. There's no fix for stupid.

yep, I see that often too. Foul hooked fish should not even be taken out of the water, much less dragged across the rocks and held by the gills. I saw the exact same thing happen on the lester today as well as on another river sunday. As always there is a lot of litter out there. I picked up a ton of line and bottles on the lester today. Also some younger guy who likes to fish the lester seems to "forget" his empty Mountain Dew can on the shore almost everyday I see him there Forgeting it once is an accident, multiple times in two weeks is not. Please pick up after your self and if you see trash, toss it in your net and carry it out with you.

Rant Over.

[Jack Stasney]

Of all things, caught a nice steelie by the Wisconsin entry trolling this morning. First time I've ever seen that.