Newbie to steelhead fishing

[espencer757]

When I say newbie, I mean NEWBIE. I have drifted with a friend 1 time about 8 years ago, and all I got was tan. I have issues with my feet, and am technically disabled. Bank fishing is hard for me if walking is involved. What I would really like to do is use my inflatable pontoon boat and access spots on the Satiam other rivers. If there is anyone out there who fishes from a pontoon that would be willing to show me the ropes, I would be very, very grateful.

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[espencer757]

This would go the same for salmon.

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[Sage_Flyguy]

I consider the south Santiam my home water ( near Sweet Home) that is. I've floated and fished the river a handful of times from a drift boat and I have just floated it a few times with my pontoon boat.

The main problem you're going to find in a pontoon boat floating from let's say Wiley Creek to Pleasant Valley, there is not a ton of great bank access. I guess not knowing the extent of your disability it almost seems like more of a headache to float a pontoon boat to just pull over at Wiley, church camp, maybe rock gardens and then Northside Park. All fairly accessible just walking down to with the exception of rock gardens.

All that being said, I'd be more than willing to float the river with you and show you where and how I would fish a particular section.

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[espencer757]

I am somewhat disabled. The more I walk, the more I hurt. But I don't want to do a lot of hiking. That said, I am more than willing to give it a try. Just say when.

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[Sage_Flyguy]

My work schedule is a bit odd these days working Wed - Sat. That being said I feel very confident in you being able to walk down to Deadline it's maybe a 200' walk from where we Park, Wiley Cr depending on where we go is a couple hundred yards both easy walking. Right now it's a bit early for Steelhead, I've seen a few pulled out already.

The nice thing about this time of year on a day like Tuesday very little pressure, a great time to get your sea legs under you.

I just dropped my truck off at the body shop to get a little thumped dear damage take care of, I'll message you when I have the truck back and we'll make a trip down to the river

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[espencer757]

Just so you know, I used the term "somewhat" disabled. Like I said, I can walk. I can stand. And if it is something I enjoy, like hunting or fishing, I will endure the pain. Oh, and the pain that comes the next day. So, I pick and choose my down time. Fishing? Sure, hit me! My wife wants me to go to a flower show, not so much. Also, like I said, there are things I want to learn when it comes to technique.

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[espencer757]

Oh, and I think I forgot to say, thank you very much in advance. Now the hard part will be making our schedules match up. I am not able to get weekdays off work very often. Some Saturdays are available, and Sunday afternoons. Sorry, like it or not, Church is a priority. No, I'm not making it tough, am I? I'm sure we can work something out. Thanks again.

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[Dongle79]

Good morning ! so I was thinking about hitting the clackamas to try my hand at some steelhead fishing tomorrow I will be bank fishing , I am 100% new to steelhead fishing , if you guys have pointers I would be grateful ! Thank you !

 

[305to503fishermen]

Blue Fox Spinners is one of the easiest techniques to fish. If you have fished at all you will know how to fish a spinner.

Cast it upstream and slowly put tension on your line as it swings downstream. just makes sure you feel the blades working and you are fishing.

 

[Dongle79]

cool !, ive got some blue fox , any colors and size you would recommend ?

 

[troutdude]

In the immortal words of Oregon Spinner fishing legend Jed Davis..."if you don't lose a few spinners on each trip...then you're not in the strike zone" (paraphrased). In other words work them slowly and deeply. Even allowing them to "tick" the bottom a few times per cast.

Spoons like Little Cleo's are also easy to use, and can cover lots of water. Pretty much the same technique per the comments above.

Good luck and let us know how you do.

P.S. Don't give up if you don't catch any. Summer run steel are not easy to get dialed in. Typically it takes lots of time spent figuring it out; prior to success.

 

[Dongle79]

appreciate the advise guys , is there anywhere on the clackamas you would recommend ?

 

[Fred]

I'm also noob to steelhead fishing I caught my first winter steelhead ever, and several others, but I got skunked a dozen times before getting my first one so don't be discouraged if you skunk out a few times. Also, look up water levels, fish counts, and any information that can help you determine the location and the amount of fish in the section of river you plan to fish. Try and learn the different kinds of steelhead water if you don't already know that. Get up early I'm a true believer of the early bird gets the steelhead. Another thing is to try new techniques, baits, and setups. I got my first steelhead float fishing with a nightmare pattern steelhead jig, but a ton of different color patterns work as well. You can also try steelhead worms, corkies, yarn, soft beads, and hard beads. The two biggest ones I hooked were on lures. I used the eggs from my first steelhead to catch a pair of steelhead. Ghost Shrimps and coon shrimps also work well as something to add to your jig or just fish by itself. I had blast trying out another technique called drift fishing. All I used was a shrimp and although I didn't hook a steelhead I had a fun time catching cutthroats with it. When using bait, remember it's more likely to gut hook fish, and on some rivers, it's illegal to use the whole year, or during certain periods, and the cure used on some eggs can kill baby fish . When it comes to rods and reels, in my opinion for noobs, it's best to just start with what you have or buy a less expensive setup. For line, I used a 30-pound high visibility braid and a 12-8 pound leader for winters. Some people also tie a buffer line on, but I was too lazy to do that lol, but it might help. Now assuming you're probably going after summer steelhead, I don't know if that would work, but I think most people go for a lighter less visible set up in the low water conditions during summer steelhead season. Use youtube, online articles, magazines, books to learn additional information. Also, find a river that fits all your needs and stick to it, and learn that river. Each creek and river's run is slightly different, so learning the behavior of each river run can be advantageous. Keep in mind to know the rules and regulations. Also, make sure you're fishing and accessing fishing spots by public lands. be safe, I've fallen on my behind and slipped down multiple times thankfully I never hurt myself. Talk to other fishermen if they seem friendly. I'd recommend buying the steelhead fishing essentials book it helped me learn a lot.

 

[Dongle79]

wow thank you for all the info ! I will get that book as well !