Corkies

[QWCS]

If you drift corkies, do you use a single corky or do you string together more than one and/or jazz it up with beads and yarn etc.?

 

[Irishrover]

I usually use just one. They float and since you want your bait near the bottom it would make it harder to achive this if you filled your line up with corkies. I also pay attention to the size of corkie. The larger the more floataion you get. If you are drift fishing you use weight to get you down to the bottom. If you over do the corkies you wil be wasting your time. Just my opinion If you are just starting out or just like to read fishing books like I do I'd reccomend "Illustrated Rigging for Salmon.Steelhead.Trout" Robert H. Campbell Amato Publishing. Any fishing store including Bi Mart will have it.

 

[Jmiddlestadt]

If you drift corkies, do you use a single corky or do you string together more than one and/or jazz it up with beads and yarn etc.?

I've only used a piece of yarn, tied on the the egg loop, or just simply tied on above the eye of the hook. I like to trim the yarn so it's even with the bend of the hook. I'm sure you could try beads and what not too!!! I'm still pretty new to drift fishing so I haven't expieremented much yet. Good Luck!

 

[GraphiteZen]

Do whatever you want. When using corkies, yarn, beads or anything else keep it in mind that ANYTHING works.
When you show up at a section of river where there are numbers of other people present you will find that they either are or aren't catching fish. If it's a good day you could spend your time asking every person that caught a fish what they used but it would only set you further back as you would most likely find that fish are being caught on every pattern you could think of.
Sure there are people that might be doing better than others, sometimes consistently so bit that has more to do with their ability to read the seams, casting ability, ability to detect a strike..
If you're unfamiliar with the concept of reading seams, these are flat or slick looking areas in a rapid or riffle that signals slower moving water. Generally they are created by a submerged rock or log that creates a break in the current. Fish seek these spots out as it takes less energy to remain in one spot while at the same time the water is moving faster on both sides allowing you the opportunity to bounce baits past them within a few feet or less.
A person might also be doing better than others because of bait selection or brine recipe... If so, bet that they won't tell you their secret. :lol::lol:
My point is don't spend too much time worrying about artificial colors or combinations. Whatever you chose, the very first rule is to chose something you are CONFIDENT will catch fish. If you don't, you won't trust anything you do to catch fish and therefore won't be focused enough to execute your casts to the best of your ability, you won't be as attentive to strikes and so on... And don't fall into the habit we ALL suffer from that finds you casting 4 or 5 times, changing a bait, four or five casts then changing to another bait all the while muttering to yourself "Damn man NOTHING works". You can rest assured you'll be right if you don't have your bait in the water long enough to actually cover a stretch adequately.
Look at it this way:
Unless there are fish in every conceivable spot of a certain section of river (and sometimes this is the case but very rarely these days of depleted runs) the majority of your casts will not be within viewing distance of a fish so choice of bait won't make a damn bit of difference. If you do manage to get your bait where a fish can see it, at this point it's really up to the fish to decide if it wants to attack it or not. This is either due to hunger or reflex the majority of the time reflex as both steelhead and salmon feed VERY little once they enter the river for they are there to spawn and nothing else.
Every angler has their favorite colors and combos (I sure do) but if you think about it you might realize that you catch more fish using this pattern because you have more confidence in it and fish it harder with more determination and focus. It is possible that a bait colored green overall or pink or red might trigger a strike more than the other but to think that a change from red yarn to orange is somehow going to trigger every fish to bite when previously they had no interest is not a valuable consideration when there are many other changes at your disposal which might have more strategic value. Such as changing from eggs to prawns. Or adding an artificial scent. Or using no bait at all seeing as every bait that has bounced through in the last 5 days has had the same stinking clob of eggs on it...
Come up with something that you KNOW is going to catch fish, not an assumption but something you are truly confidant in and fish it all day. It only takes one cast to hook a fish and unlike bass or trout fishing that hookup usually isn't up to you. So, find a combo that isn't normal in any way, tie it on and fish it hard and determined knowing that it is unlike anything that have seen to date!

-GZ

 

[Jmiddlestadt]

Do whatever you want. When using corkies, yarn, beads or anything else keep it in mind that ANYTHING works.
When you show up at a section of river where there are numbers of other people present you will find that they either are or aren't catching fish. If it's a good day you could spend your time asking every person that caught a fish what they used but it would only set you further back as you would most likely find that fish are being caught on every pattern you could think of.
Sure there are people that might be doing better than others, sometimes consistently so bit that has more to do with their ability to read the seams, casting ability, ability to detect a strike..
If you're unfamiliar with the concept of reading seams, these are flat or slick looking areas in a rapid or riffle that signals slower moving water. Generally they are created by a submerged rock or log that creates a break in the current. Fish seek these spots out as it takes less energy to remain in one spot while at the same time the water is moving faster on both sides allowing you the opportunity to bounce baits past them within a few feet or less.
A person might also be doing better than others because of bait selection or brine recipe... If so, bet that they won't tell you their secret. :lol::lol:
My point is don't spend too much time worrying about artificial colors or combinations. Whatever you chose, the very first rule is to chose something you are CONFIDENT will catch fish. If you don't, you won't trust anything you do to catch fish and therefore won't be focused enough to execute your casts to the best of your ability, you won't be as attentive to strikes and so on... And don't fall into the habit we ALL suffer from that finds you casting 4 or 5 times, changing a bait, four or five casts then changing to another bait all the while muttering to yourself "Damn man NOTHING works". You can rest assured you'll be right if you don't have your bait in the water long enough to actually cover a stretch adequately.
Look at it this way:
Unless there are fish in every conceivable spot of a certain section of river (and sometimes this is the case but very rarely these days of depleted runs) the majority of your casts will not be within viewing distance of a fish so choice of bait won't make a damn bit of difference. If you do manage to get your bait where a fish can see it, at this point it's really up to the fish to decide if it wants to attack it or not. This is either due to hunger or reflex the majority of the time reflex as both steelhead and salmon feed VERY little once they enter the river for they are there to spawn and nothing else.
Every angler has their favorite colors and combos (I sure do) but if you think about it you might realize that you catch more fish using this pattern because you have more confidence in it and fish it harder with more determination and focus. It is possible that a bait colored green overall or pink or red might trigger a strike more than the other but to think that a change from red yarn to orange is somehow going to trigger every fish to bite when previously they had no interest is not a valuable consideration when there are many other changes at your disposal which might have more strategic value. Such as changing from eggs to prawns. Or adding an artificial scent. Or using no bait at all seeing as every bait that has bounced through in the last 5 days has had the same stinking clob of eggs on it...
Come up with something that you KNOW is going to catch fish, not an assumption but something you are truly confidant in and fish it all day. It only takes one cast to hook a fish and unlike bass or trout fishing that hookup usually isn't up to you. So, find a combo that isn't normal in any way, tie it on and fish it hard and determined knowing that it is unlike anything that have seen to date!

-GZ

:clap::clap::clap: Well said GZ!!!

 

[luv2fish]

sometimes the corky is not good enough to give the bait enough bouyancy to stay in the "hook up" zone. rather than going for bigger size, i've used 2-3 corkies of same size ( #12) for drifting big glob of eggs with shrimp and i've had hook ups. There's no hard and fast rule but one corky is mostly advisable.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[ArcticAmoeba]

Absolutely, positively, do not overthink corkies or yarn, or anything, but bait... They were simply designed to keep your weight down low, and your presentation slightly higher...That does not mean your weights in the rocks, and your gear should only be slightly up from it. Think about a fish anatomy, they are always looking up...So rig light. Tap only twice, and your presentation should be in the strike zone. About a foot or so up from the bottom and you will be game, but hang it up a bit higher, and you will be more than game for Steelhead...

 

[Raincatcher]

Yahooooo....

Yahooooo....

HOT DAMN!!! The ZEN is baaaack! :clap:
Love it...
Barb

 

[QWCS]

Thanks for the input everyone. I've only caught one steelhead before and it was on a spinner out of a hole where there was hardly any current. So I'm just trying to get the hang of the art of locating and hooking steelhead out of moving water.

 

[Irishrover]

QWCS I hope you got the information you were seeking. Sharing information seems to a value expressed by many on this site. I know the folks on this site truly wish you success in your fishing ventures. Hope to see you post some pictures of those fish I know you are going to catch. Irishrover