{"id":5839,"date":"2023-06-02T16:20:45","date_gmt":"2023-06-02T23:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pembertonfishfinder.com\/reports\/?p=5839"},"modified":"2023-06-02T16:20:48","modified_gmt":"2023-06-02T23:20:48","slug":"how-to-catch-more-steelhead-and-salmon-in-british-columbia-canada","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pembertonfishfinder.com\/reports\/how-to-catch-more-steelhead-and-salmon-in-british-columbia-canada\/","title":{"rendered":"How to catch more Steelhead and Salmon in British Columbia Canada"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Recently, Brad Knowles of the Pemberton Fish Finder put together this for a seminar that he held at the BC Outdoor Sportsman Show. The seminar was well received by many and hopefully you will find some or all of these tips useful. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Steelhead
Steelhead fishing tips<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"steelhead
steelhead fishing trips in BC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Before you start<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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  • Do your homework – check local fishing reports, water levels, access points, stop in to your local fishing shops.  Check the regs, make sure you have the appropriate licenses and tags for the water you’re fishing.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Make sure you have a quality landing net, preferably rubber or coated. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Get a good selection of gear, floats, weights, colors, sizes\u2026..support local.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Have a good selection of flies, colors, sizes, weighted or naked. Tubes are great too.  Most salmon flies work for steelhead. So It\u2019s a two for 1 instance. bonus!<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Make sure your stuff is organized, leaders tied, hooks sharp, have a few different tackle boxes.  This will save you time on the river. <\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Waterproof backpack or dry bag.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Don\u2019t cheap out on waders and boots.  These things keep you safe on the river in the most extreme conditions. I always suggest a rubber sole with studs because you\u2019re gonna be covering ground.  Studs hook up in ice and snow, especially in the Pacific Northwest conditions.  It can literally be snowing 1 sec and raining the next. This makes everything slick.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Learn proper fish handling. Loads of articles online.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Find a fishing buddy.  Fishing buddies are important when you are learning.  Double your odds of catching, share tips and push each other to be better.  They also can help land fish quickly so that fish are not overplayed or drug up onto the banks.  Also help capture your special moment in a timely manner.  At the end of the day these fish are precious.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Where do you start<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

    I always tell people when they are starting Salmon or Steelhead fishing, be prepared to cover ground.\u00a0 Learn a section of river and cover it good before you branch out.\u00a0 Fish every little bit of it, you\u2019ll be surprised where they\u2019ll hold. Google earth or google maps is also very useful to learn access point and or fishing locations.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    When I first started fishing, I remember sitting back and just watching.\u00a0 What is that person doing different than I?\u00a0 You\u2019ll notice on every system there is a handful of fishers that stand out.\u00a0 They are catching while everyone else is practicing their casting.\u00a0 There\u2019s a reason for it, just watch you\u2019ll see differences. Watch how they fish, how they cover water, retrieval speeds, how they position themselves in the water. Suddenly you\u2019ll see the differences and apply them to your game.\u00a0 Here are a few things to look for when picking a good fishing spot:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Structure<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Transitional places, narrowing or rapids that calm into a run or benches<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Hard bends in river<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Log jams<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Long straight sections with good gravel and a defined deep section with flow.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • If you can see the highway, good chance it has already been pounded.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      \n
      \"Great
      Great Steelhead Fishing in BC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
      \"Fly
      Fly Fishing for Steelhead in BC Canada<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

      Cycle Through your gear<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

      Don\u2019t put all your eggs in one basket. You bought all that new shiny stuff, now use it.\u00a0 Explore different techniques of Salmon and Steelhead fishing.\u00a0 Pack a couple of different rods with you, this will help boost your confidence.\u00a0 It\u2019s funny how many fly guys I\u2019ll see packing a drift rod, well hidden at that.\u00a0 Different rods give you different options and in turn gives you the upper hand.\u00a0 After you’ve worked every bead and worm color through a run it\u2019s funny how a spinner will trigger a Steelhead or Salmon.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      If you know there are fish in the run you are fishing keep cycling through your gear or flies.\u00a0 A supple change can trigger.\u00a0 You will catch fish again and again in the same area.\u00a0 You will find that fish tend to hang out in the same zones, each and everyday.\u00a0 It is funny but I will tell clients to cast right there and boom they catch a fish.\u00a0 They\u2019re first reaction is, how did you know it was going to be there? Lucky Guess? No, I fish this river everyday, I know where they\u2019re going to be.\u00a0 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Things to pay attention to while cycling gear through a run:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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      • Pay attention to where other anglers are fishing, especially the ones catching.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Cover every bit of water that is at least knee deep.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Make sure you are steadily checking your float and fly depth. You want your gear or fly within the bottom 10\u201d.  99% of strikes are going to happen within a foot of the bottom.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • In high water conditions, up your lure and fly size<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • In low clear conditions you\u2019ll want to drop size and even leader size.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Spend time learning the water and where its main flows are.  Fish tend to stay in flow or just out of.  The better you can read water, the more likely you’ll be to find fish.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Fish tend to work their way toward shoreline during high water<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Fish tend to stay in deep pockets during low and clear periods.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Start at the top of a run and push them back, when they\u2019ve got nowhere to go, that can trigger aggression.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Fish the boulder runs.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Putting it all Together<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
        \"Steelhead
        Steelhead fishing in Canada<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
        \"BC
        BC steelhead fishing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

        Tribute to a Good Friend “Paul Green”<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

        Below is a Steelhead Fly fishing video. The video was filmed by Paul Green, who recently passed away. Paul was a very good friend of mine and we spent numerous days walking rivers in search of the elusive Pacific Northwest Steelhead. As you can tell in the video he was a bubbly chap that had a passion for life and fishing. I miss him dearly, RIP good friend and fellow fisherman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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