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Fish the Inside of Bends When they hit the lower end of a river system, spring chinook are on a mission to get up to their summering grounds well upstream. As quickly as possible. So that means when...
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Basic Springer Tips
Basic Springer Tips Springers! This time of year it’s hard for me to think about anything besides these chrome bullets that are making their way up rivers all up and down the West Coast right now. My...
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“You’ve got this…you topwater ‘pro’,” Nick added with more than a hint of good-natured sarcasm. I snapped back to reality, freed myself of fly line and plucked the fly out of my hat, where it had come...
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First Dry-Fly Stelie
First Dry-Fly Stelie To many, the idea of catching a steelhead on a dry fly is the pinnacle of all coldwater fishing. One of North America’s top gamefish…taken on a wad of feathers and glue…on the...
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The Future While the situation is looking pretty bleak at the moment, there are a couple things out over the horizon that may just help. First off, there is the potential for an absolutely massive...
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The California Drought: Just How Bad is It?
The California Drought: Just How Bad is It? As I write this in early summer, California is suffering through a horrific drought, the effects of which are already having massive impacts on our...
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Catfish Catfish made their first trip to California’s waters in 1874, when three bullhead species from the Mississippi River drainage were set free by the California Fish Commission in the San Joaquin...
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California: Land of Exotics
California: Land of Exotics Salmon and steelhead continuously amaze me with their collective resiliency. In a state like California, where water is used for everything but fish, urban sprawl...
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As the lures approach the depth at which I think the salmon may be holding, I’ll have the clients lock their reels into gear and hold steady at that depth for a while. Remember, kings holding in deep,...
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Big Plugs are the Secret for Slow Water
Big Plugs are the Secret for Slow Water We all know the spot—that big, deep slow pool that holds tons of kings but is hard to fish. The current is too lethargic to back-bounce and way too deep for...
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And speaking of hydrogen peroxide, the nurse who worked on me told me to stop using it as a wound flush. Apparently, that burn you feel when you pour it on a cut—which I always thought was the...
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How to Avoid Fishing Infections
How to Avoid Fishing Infections Take a very close look at that ugly infected finger…my finger…in the above photo. Nasty, right? Well, that thing ended up getting worse before it got better, and at one...
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But isn’t that one of the really amazingly cool aspects of our sport? You can never know it all and there’s always room to learn and grow as an angler. You start with getting the basics down, then you...
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Fishing: More Questions Than Answers
Fishing: More Questions Than Answers Before I started guiding in 1998, I thought I was pretty hot stuff. After all, my buddies and I typically did very well on the chinook and steelhead in our...
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“I’m not totally sure, but the Nightmare sure seems to get their attention,” he said. “I guess it’s the contrast for one. And maybe the more natural colors.” I then dialed up Ryan Bullock a Washington...
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When it comes to breaking down why critters with pea-sized brains do the things they do, it’s sometimes better to just accept the facts and move on without over-analyzing the situation. But in this...
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Steelie’s Worst Nightmare
Steelie’s Worst Nightmare So, what is it about the Nightmare color in steelhead worms, jigs and tubes? It’s funky looking…no question about it. Quite frankly, it’s a color pattern I would never in a...
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“Trust me, I’m pretty good at this part,” I said. “And you are completely absolved of all responsibility. If I miss a bite, it’s totally my fault and I will put the rod in the holder the rest of the...
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Kenai: Still the River of Dreams
Kenai: Still the River of Dreams The tackle blew me away. The reels these guys were using looked like they were designed for bluefin, not salmon. The hooks were big enough to hang a deer off of and...
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Steelie Therapy I recently got a chance to (finally) get away and do some fishing on the Washington Coast, where the fishing and scenery were fantastic! It was awesome to spend three straight days...
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Down With Wild Fish? It’s been driving me crazy lately…all these organizations have been suing fish and game departments over hatchery production need to take a step back for a moment and look at the...
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A Chip Off the Ol’ Zog, WA Steelhead, More Hatchery Fish and Some Cool Gear!
A Chip Off the Ol’ Zog, WA Steelhead, More Hatchery Fish and Some Cool Gear! Okay, I’m going with some very random thoughts this time around… Private Zog First off, I’d like to say I was very...
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Another very interesting entry in this arena is Hog Island Boatworks’ 16-footer that is a roto-molded mini sled made from two layers of high-density polyethylene that sandwich a core of rigid...
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Jon Boats: The Ultimate Off-Road Vehicles
Jon Boats: The Ultimate Off-Road Vehicles Okay, I’ve got to admit that I think a 16-foot bare-bones jonboat with a pump on it is one of the coolest boats on the planet. Don’t get me wrong, I love my...
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I’ve actually seen that one bunches of times on the Sacramento and Feather rivers in the spring and fall. It’s just so strange when you think about a salmon swimming along and then smelling something...
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King Salmon Are Weird
King Salmon Are Weird Kings are truly strange critters when they hit freshwater. Out at sea, they are normal predators…basically one-track-minded killing machines that chase bait schools around. But...
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Help on the Way? This is year 4 of the drought and year number 5 could be an absolute knockout punch. If California doesn’t get rain this coming winter, the consequences will be very difficult to...
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Update from the California Drought
Update from the California Drought Well, things are getting pretty ugly here in California where the drought is dragging into its 4th year. As of this writing in early summer, we are reaching a very...
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That in itself I don’t have an issue with. Most folks, myself included, like to throw some pictures up online of catches we are proud of. It’s when people start posting specific locations or GPS...
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The Internet: Love It? Loathe It?
The Internet: Love It? Loathe It? The Internet…When it comes to fishing, I absolutely loathe it. And at the same time I love it. The massive amount of information online provides anglers with an...
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