Notes from an Angling Life: Winter Steelheading

It was midmorning in early December in front of Half Moon Bridge when an eight-pound steelhead interrupted my thoughts. Because of my excitement, almost everything about the struggle is a blur. Except for Lou Morelli, all of the San Lorenzo regulars and my proud father shouted instructions and encouragement from start to finish. The beauty of the fish, the size 10 silver-and-black Palmer in the corner of its mouth, and the collective elation at my success are as fresh in my mind today as if it had just happened. In the many years since, the scene has been repeated happily thousands of times. Each time, I relive an element of the excitement of that first morning. Even today, the sight of a steelhead, clearly visible and connected to my line, is a humbling experience. The feeling of elation as the tired silver-clad fish rights itself and swims on to complete his important journey is addictive.

I have been fortunate to have had a career that allowed me to fish nearly three hundred days a year. The chance to spend this much time on the stream and to share thoughts on equipment and techniques with other fly fishermen has been like living a dream. It was not just one idea or one person, but the combined effort of everyone and everything that contributed to my success. Experimenting, testing, and sharing ideas on all aspects of fly fishing has been my life. I hope the following observations will help you better understand winter steelheading.

The “Old-Timers”

My compelling enthusiasm for fly fishing began that day at the mouth of the San Lorenzo River in Santa Cruz, California, in the winter of 1952. I was a nine-year-old armed with my father’s split-cane Horrocks Ibbotson fly rod, Pflueger reel, Sunset level line, and an insatiable desire to catch a steelhead. Waders were not available in my size, so I would wade in the winter waters with only tennis shoes and Levis.

This was a time when fly fishing wasn’t as popular as spin fishing. Only a few dedicated anglers practiced the sport. Steelhead fly fishermen were a fraternity, and most could be counted on to show up at any coastal stream that was rumored to have fish. The “Old-Timers,” as they were referred to, could be found gathering on the high banks overlooking the lagoon at high tide. Each such gathering, while both fish and comfortable wading were inaccessible, became a rich exchange of stories, equipment, fly patterns, ideas, and techniques for winter steelhead. What a beginning for a wet and chilled kid with lots of enthusiasm.

The “Old Timers”—George Zamilich, Sr., Doc Walker, Bob Evans, Lou Morelli, Ed Becker, Scorp Evans, Ty Swafford, Myron Gregory, and Jack Alamillo, all experienced anglers—became my mentors. Each had a hand in teaching me about lines, knots, flies, and improving my tying skills. They gave me tying materials, leaders, and old fly lines. Myron Gregory helped set up a shooting head and showed me the correct way to cast it. He explained the secrets to success: watch the tides, always look for rolling fish, know when to move with the tide, which fly to use on sunny days and which fly to use on overcast or foggy days. With each approaching day of steelheading, I would look forward to these streamside gatherings almost as much as the chance of catching my first fish. These anglers were responsible for my future success and for my developing a keen eye for any angling advantage. I learned to analyze each angling situation I encountered and to keep notes on the things I learned from each experience.

My father wasn’t as interested in fishing for steelhead as I was, although he was a good trout fisherman and camp cook. But this didn’t diminish his interest in sitting on the bank and watching with pride the effort and patience I put forth. He was more interested in the progress of whatever I put my mind to.

Lessons

One of my first lessons was the importance of observing and studying the water and the habits of both fish and fishermen. Time spent streamside observing, experimenting, and testing will pay big dividends. I’ve spent most of my winter steelheading days in tidewater and the first couple of holes upstream of tidewater. It is in these tidal lagoons that I have concentrated my time observing the habits of the steelhead. A consistent pattern emerges as they acclimate to fresh water in preparation for spawning. The steelhead will move out of the bays and ocean and into tidewater that is heavily affected by tidal movement and that contains approximately 75 percent salt water and 25 percent fresh water. During this period of acclimation, at low tide, a large quantity of fresh water will mix with the salt water. On the next set of high tides, fish will move through the brackish water and across the tidal flat to the next substantial holding water. This area will be a balanced mixture of approximately half and half salt and fresh water. After spending several hours or days, depending on the size of the tides, water conditions, and the urgency of the fish, they will move again to the next hole. This water is 75 percent fresh and 25 percent salt water. Their next move is to a 100 percent freshwater environment that is unaffected by tides or salt water. From the time a steelhead first moves into the river until it moves into an area of 75 percent salt water and 25 percent fresh water, it will still be in a feeding mood.

Along with the steelhead, small fish, shrimp, and other assorted brackish-water organisms move up the rivers on the tides. As the tides move out, so do the organisms. As the saltwater infiltrates the flats and starts to flood the freshwater areas of the stream, the fish feel motivated to eat because the tide has essentially returned them to the saltwater environment from which they came. Fishing in an estuary, therefore, is best from the middle of the incoming tide to near the top of the tide and after the water turns to go out until almost the bottom of the tide. Concentrate your efforts during these tidal periods because the aggressiveness of the fish will be to your advantage.

Four Things

Fly fishermen have four things in their favor when pursuing steelhead: hunger, aggression, curiosity, and instinct. These are all imprinted in the fish’s mind and are the reasons the fish will take your fly. Hunger operates by association with organisms the fish sees available in the brackish-water environment and results in its movement toward your fly. Aggression and curiosity bring the fish to the fly: it will swim to and put in its mouth an object that is annoying or intriguing it, and thus become hooked. But instinct, I believe, is the most important part of the steelhead’s behavior pattern. The steelhead from its premigrant stage to its time in the ocean has been a feeding machine with little else on its agenda except survival. Steelhead feed as a reflex. Although the steelhead’s main instinctive purpose is to spawn, because of its feeding reflex, it will grab the fly, providing it is presented properly. Proper presentation of an attractive pattern moving slowly on the fish’s level will produce a take. Your fly will need to be close in shape, size, and color to the natural organisms available.

Reflex feeding is the most difficult of the four takes to detect, because it is so subtle, although it is the most common. I have spent countless hours across the river, overlooking a hole and watching steelhead react to flies presented to them. More than 85 percent of the time, the fisherman has no idea that his fly has been taken. This is due to the slack in the line, lack of attention to the fly’s drift, and lack of understanding of the fish’s eating methods, but most of all, it results from the subtlety of the steelhead’s movement to the fly. In a brief moment, the fly could be tasted and ejected without the angler being aware that anything has taken place. If the angler is lucky, the material with which the fly is tied will get wedged in the fish’s teeth, not allowing the fish to spit it out. Sometimes the current will pull the fly tight into the corner of the fish’s mouth. However, the fly is ejected over 75 percent of the time, and the fish is hooked about 25 percent of the time or less. Feeding or aggression takes are more discernible, with the fish moving to the fly for a distance and swimming back to its original location with the fly.

Smells Like . . .

Often overlooked, yet important to your success is the fish’s sense of smell. A steelhead has traveled thousands of miles in salt water and is able to find its way back to its natal water. I am sure that several senses are called upon to accomplish this feat. The steelhead’s sense of smell in tidewater is extraordinary; however, as he spends time in fresh water, this sense deteriorates. I do not advocate the use of attractants, because I think they can be overdone and are not natural enough to help. I do advocate the use of a mask to neutralize odors that are foreign to a fish. Human odors, gasoline, food, aftershave lotion, and tobacco can contaminate your fly as it is being tied on. Clean your hands thoroughly with soap and water and then rub some sand and water from the stream on your hands. Then use two drops of vanilla extract on your hands before tying on your fly. This will mask any odor that would minimize your success. Whether you use vanilla extract or not, be sure to keep your hands clean, even while tying flies at home.

I’ll never forget the time on the flood-control levee of the San Lorenzo River. Ty Swafford and I were keeping an eye on the river, watching for fish moving on the high tide. We were talking about fly patterns and taking a break from fishing. Ty was smoking a pipe, and I had just finished a cigarette. He asked, “What do you use on your hands to kill the scent of tobacco?” I was shocked, because it had never occurred to me that this could be a problem. Aware of my shock and lack of knowledge, he stated: “You know, the University of California has done extensive research on the effect of odor on migratory fish and ways of neutralizing human and chemical scent.” I quickly responded that I didn’t like the idea of using attractants, or anything, for that matter, on my fly. Ty said, “No, you misunderstood; you don’t want to put anything on your fly to attract fish, you only want to eliminate any odor you might be transferring from your hands to your fly.” He continued: “You know, commercial fishermen whose livelihood depends on their success will not touch their bait or lures, so why should a fly fisherman not be concerned or at least educated as to its effect?” With that, he removed a small bottle of vanilla extract from his vest pocket and said, “Put two small drops on your hands and rub them together. Don’t use too much, or else you will smell like a cookie, and dogs and kids will follow you around.”

After we had a good laugh and an application of vanilla, the tide had started to recede. We headed down the bank and waded out to a likely spot for this period of the tide. I checked my leader and tied on a new pattern. After getting comfortable in the chest-high water, I made my first cast, and immediately I was connected to a 10-pound-plus electric silver bullet. After several minutes of jumps and of uncontrolled noise coming from my reel, we parted company — the quick, long-line release. As I waded back into position, Ty said, “It worked, didn’t it!” I said, “You bet it did, and I’m stopping at the first grocery store I see on the way home and getting my own bottle.” Since that day long ago, I have never been without my own little brown bottle of vanilla extract, and whether or not this is the secret to success, I am not taking any chances. I always make use of every advantage I can.

Consider Their Condition

As steelhead move into tidewater, they are leaving the vastness of the ocean to enter a small, confined environment of tidal flats and pools. They will be restless and nervous in their new environment, but will eventually settle down as their acclimation process continues. The angler will want to approach the fish with consideration of their condition and not put them on edge with improper wading or casting.

Water loading is frequently used by casters with shooting heads and oversized rods. This is the slapping of line on the water with the back cast or the front cast several times before the presentation. It helps load the rod for longer-distance casts. However, this is the number-one cause of spooking steelhead—or any fish, for that matter. It doesn’t matter how far you cast if the fish are gone by the time your fly gets to the water. Visualize yourself as a fish in unfamiliar surroundings in 6 to 10 feet of calm water and then add the sound of a line repeatedly slapping the surface above.

So try not to hit the water with your casts. Water loading also will move the fish to areas they do not wish to inhabit, such as the back of a hole that is shallower than they would like or to the head of the hole where the water is deeper or swifter than what they find comfortable.

In order to choose the right line and technique, it is important to anticipate where they will feel comfortable or where they will move on the tide. The old story that you must fish for steelhead on the bottom to be successful is nonsense. Especially in tidewater, steelhead prefer to be suspended about two to three feet off the bottom. This is where they will be when they are comfortable. It is when they are upstream on their spawning redds that they hold close to the bottom. You also will find them close to the bottom in tidewater when they have had the spots scared off of them by water-loaders or by heavy sinkers or lures being thrown at them. In this situation, I always us a lighter-density sinking line than normal. This allows the line to stay above the fish during the retrieve and drift. A weighted fly and long leader will get the fly to the fish’s level and help keep the opaque fly line from passing in front of the fish and spooking them before the fly gets there.

Saltwater is denser than freshwater, and as a result, sinking lines will change in character and not sink as fast as in freshwater. Watch the different stages of the tide and the depth of fish in a holding area to determine the best choice of line density. Also, gauge the water’s movement. Lots of moving water will require a faster-sinking line. Determine the depth at which you want to fish your fly. A weighted fly and long leader will drift below your fly line. The depth to which your fly sinks will be determined by the length and diameter of your leader’s tippet, the size of your fly, and the amount of weight in the body. The longer and smaller-diameter the tippet, the deeper your fly will be below the fly line. Smaller is better. I do not recommend the use of split shot or weight on the leader, as it will change and deaden the action and movement of the fly. You will get the fly down quickly, but you will lack control: the fly will sink deeper than is necessary.

Slight surface wind will make distance casting difficult, but it keeps the fish from spooking as easily as they normally do in calm water. Very windy days with bright sunlight will force steelhead to lie deeper, as do most fish — they feel uncomfortable with sunlight being reflected from the bottom and refracted through the surface. This condition is like looking at a strobe light in a disco bar. You know how uncomfortable and confusing this can be. If you are faced with these conditions, fish as slowly as you can with a medium or slow sinking line, work a size 8 or 10 natural-colored pattern, predominately olive, brown, or gray, with no flash in the body. In shallow water, the fish in the above conditions will just turn off. I suggest an early dinner or happy hour. Cloudy conditions followed by sunlit conditions will also make fish hard to take, because they become moody and probably anticipate that rain is on the way, bringing high water that will allow them to move upstream. In cold water, steelhead will become lethargic and slow to take the fly. A light rain after a cold spell will warm the water and make the fish very aggressive.

Most fly fishermen think steelhead move on the high tide, but this is not the case. Migratory fish prefer to move at night or in overcast conditions or as the tide starts to move out. They always move against the current and face upstream.

Saltwater, because of its heavy density, recedes to the bottom of the river. On an incoming tide, the lighter freshwater slides over the top and continues to move downstream. The steelhead will rise up into the freshwater, even as the saltwater slides underneath them, so they can continue to face upstream. Do not use a fast-sinking line at this time, because the line will sink past the fresh water down into the salt water and move upstream with the salt water. To improve your chances, you will want to change to a floating or slow-sinking sink-tip line. This will allow your fly to stay in the freshwater longer and swing to the fish on their level.

Finding Fish

Steelhead just in from the ocean are iridescent and appear semitransparent, so many times, locating them in brackish water is difficult. But you are not looking for individual fish — you are looking for a school of fish. Look for dark areas or off-color water and then watch to see if the area moves or changes shape, indicating whether it is a school of fish or just the bottom. Steelhead are easier to see when water has a slight wind chop, because the water color will be reflected to the edge or face of each wave. The fish will appear as a brownish or a wine-colored mass. It is probably not the fish that are creating the shape and color, but the shadow of the school on the bottom. It will take practice and concentration to spot fish successfully. Considering their condition, knowing from experience where they like to lie, and being able to calculate their next movement is important.

Understanding the movements and holding patterns of winter steelhead is as important as choosing the correct fly for a given condition. Even with the correct fly and lines, with no fish, your results will be the same. You might as well have stayed home. It’s an inherent trait that salmon and steelhead pools will always hold fish from year to year, if the river follows the same course as in the past. Those pools are usually given names by those who frequent the area. The name usually describes the area, as in the Minor Hole, the Rock Pile Hole, the Piling Hole, or the Park Hole. If you are going to a river for the first time, these well-known pools are a good place to start looking for fish. You might gain some local knowledge of an area by asking for information at a local tackle shop or gas station.

Steelhead will position themselves in a comfortable, safe area while resting, finding slots of calm water behind large rocks, submerged logs, under cut banks, or beneath vegetation overhanging the stream. They will lie in the comfortable holding water below the stream in which they are eventually going to spawn. They move up when there is enough water for them to travel safely. Steelhead will sometimes hold below a feeder stream when they are not immediately certain if this is the correct stream to enter. This indecision can take hours or sometimes days to be resolved, depending on the amount of water available.

Winter Steelheading

The best time to go for winter steelhead and which streams might produce are all dependent on the weather and the time of year. The amount of rain and the duration of rainstorms are the main factors. Rain can create high, muddy water, and steelhead will be on the move in high, muddy water. After the rain ends, and the water drops and clears, the fish will start seeking holding positions. This makes it easier to find the fish, and the clearer water makes it easier for the fish to see your fly.

Some small coastal streams will clear in two to four days, but will remain high, and fish will not hold, but will continue to move upstream, usually into closed areas out of the angler’s reach. Most of our coastal streams are short rivers, and fishing accessibility is limited to the lower sections of the river. Once a steelhead gets a couple of miles upstream, it enters closed areas that are spawning grounds, with no fishing allowed. This makes it possible for our runs of wild fish to propagate without the fishermen pestering them while they are spawning. This is a good thing, since most of the upper reaches of our rivers and feeder streams are no more than several feet wide, and water flows are limited to available rain. If steelhead are to be in our fishing future, more closures and restrictions will be necessary.

Depending on the amount of rainfall in October, November, and December, you can expect fish in the Russian, Eel, Smith, Mattole, and Mad Rivers by December 1. The Gualala, Navarro, Van Duzen, Alder, and Garcia will have fish by January 1. By March 1, all runs are pretty much over. The rule of thumb for the December 1 streams as to when they will clear after 2 or 3 days of heavy rain will be about 7 to 10 days. Fish will start holding again in 14 to 20 days, maybe sooner, providing no more rain has fallen. If the ground is somewhat dry, the water will be absorbed, rather than running off, and clearing will be much quicker. If the ground is saturated, the schedule could be longer. It is impossible to predict accurately what will be. You cannot schedule a vacation six months in advance for January 15 and expect the conditions to be perfect. Under normal conditions, it is probably a great time. However, the river could also be in flood stage. Steelheading is a day-to-day proposition. When the fish are in, you may have to drop everything and go and stay with them until the weather conditions change. If this is not possible, you just have to take your chances and hope for the best. Nothing ventured nothing gained, and a bad day of fishing is a lot better than a good day mowing the lawn.

Although two-handed rods are rising in popularity among steelheaders in California, I’m focusing here on single-handed rods, which still represent the vast majority of fly rods owned in our state. So, with that qualifier, let me start by saying equipment for winter steelhead should be simple and versatile. Fly lines and leaders should be easy to change, and carrying extra spools is not necessary. A pouch or line wallet for shooting heads should contain a floater, intermediate, Type I, II, III, and IV sinking densities, and a Type III wet tip cut into a head or shooting taper. I prefer loops at the rear of the heads for quick attachment. A small, compact Nail Knot is best for the permanent attachment of a leader butt. Each head has a butt section. When lines are changed, the leader from the previous line is cut at the tip of the butt section and knotted to a new butt section. The fly is still attached and ready to go. They are easier to store with only leader butts still attached, because storage with full leaders will tangle.

Leaders should be 12 to 18 feet long. Butt sections should start at .015 inches in diameter, so as not to affect the density of the line’s tip. For running lines, I use 20-pound Amnesia made by the Sunset Line Company. It has its problems, as all shooting lines do, but it straightens easily and has just the right amount of stiffness. It must be stretched before use and after being on a reel for any length of time.

My preference for straightening shooting line is with 12 pounds of bright steelhead on one end. If you do not have a steelhead available, pull line off the reel and pull tightly 24 to 36 inches at a time with slight overlaps on each pull. Do not put any floatant or lubricant on shooting lines, because it will eventually transfer to your sinking lines and interfere with their ability to sink. If you think your lines are already contaminated or not sinking correctly, rub them down with sand or mud and water at streamside. This will help, but a line that is clean and unaffected will always sink best. Any smooth-running reel capable of holding 150 yards of Dacron will do the job.

Reels with drag systems are not important — all the drag does is add additional weight that you will have to deal with while casting all day long. If a fish has taken out more than 150 yards of line and you are unable to follow it, you not going to see the fish again anyway. The only real suggestion I have for this situation is to repeat “Our Father who art in heaven  ”

Rods have always been a personal preference with fly fishermen. Some like them stiff, I like them soft, and many others are in between. Rods of 8-1/2 to 9 feet seem to be the consensus of opinion on rod length.

Fly patterns will vary geographically, and it’s best to contact a tackle shop or guide in the area you will be visiting. Every river in California is different as to successful patterns. The fly of choice on the Russian River, for example, is size 6 or 8, black and orange with medium-length thick tails and very little flash. Thirty miles to the north, it’s a size 10 or 12 in olive and brown, with no flash, short tails, and with little or no hackle. On the San Lorenzo River to the south, the choice was a size 8 or 10 with long, sparse tails and a bright tinsel or chenille body with three to four turns of medium-length hackle. A lot of this has to do with stream environment and conditions that exist in each individual stream. But this and the evolution and history of given patterns is another story in itself.

The methods of success and observations of individuals like me, who have been addicted to the pursuit of winter steelhead, would fill volumes. Even then, the total picture would not be complete. Maybe this is what makes steelhead so alluring. If you want to try this challenging sport, be ready to put your time in. Trust me: it will be worth every minute, hour, day, and year you invest in it.

Hal Janssen’s Favorite Winter Steelhead Patterns

All dressings contain 1-amp lead wire for weight. Depending on water conditions and leader size, use 6 to 12 wraps around the middle of the hook shank.

Krill Fly

Hook: 7957BX Mustad, size 10, 12
Thread: Olive
Tail: Pale olive marabou
Egg sack: fluorescent orange yarn
Body: Fluorescent orange
Hackle: Wood duck, tied at sides
Thorax: Pale olive-green ostrich
Overback: Flat silver tinsel, size 12
Rib: Olive tying thread

Chihuahua

Hook: 9761 Mustad, size 10, 12, 14
Thread: Olive, prewaxed
Tail: Olive-brown marabou
Body: Pearl Flashabou
Rib: Olive thread
Palmer: Olive brown ostrich
Head: Olive thread

Flame Scud

Hook: 7957BX Mustad, size 10, 12
Thread: Red
Tail: Grizzly hackle
Body: Fluorescent orange yarn
Hackle: One soft grizzly neck hackle, palmered

Orange Comet

Hook: 7957BX Mustad, size 8, 10, 12, 14
Thread: Fluorescent orange
Tail: Orange bucktail or hackle fibers
Body: Flat silver tinsel, size 12
Hackle: Orange neck hackle

Boss Fly

Hook: 7957BX Mustad, size 8, 10, 12
Thread: Black
Tail: Black bucktail
Body: Fine black chenille
Rib: Oval fine silver tinsel
Eye: Small chrome bead chain
Hackle: 1 turn Orange hackle