Hi everybody! Im the lame Newbie that will be fly fishing for Steelhead for the first time the second week of March. I just purchased my 8 weight and all of that good stuff that goes with it. My only concern is i keep hearing different things when it comes to leader set-up. I will be fishing the Salmon River in Idaho and im hoping that somebody here with have the perfect combination to out fish my buddy i'm going with. Egg sucking leach patterns anybody?

Chilenut,

I wish I could tell you there was a perfect combination, but there isn't. It really depends on the water conditions, river size, etc.

As a general rule, steelhead typically hug the bottom of small streams and rivers during the winter. Most anglers will use a sink tip type setup with a weighted fly to reach the fish.

I like to fish with a leader no longer than four feet. The leaders I tend to use are 8 - 10 pound. I tend to tie the fly directly to the leader.

When the river drops, runs cold, and starts running gin clear, I tend to use tippet. The tippet allows me to provide some length and add a thinner line, per se, to the leader. I believe you have less tendency to spook the fish this way.

If you are not planning on using tippet in a clear small stream, I would recommend a maximum of a 6 pound leader.

Good luck.

(I also retitled the thread for easier searching on steelhead fly fishing)

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Im the lame Newbie that will be fly fishing for Steelhead for the first time the second week of March. I just purchased my 8 weight and all of that good stuff that goes with it.

Ok, where to start? This doesn't tell us much and the knowledge base that would apply to your questions/situation in full form could fill several books.

So seeing as how your info is a little on the short side I'm going to ask some questions first, then I'll make a few assumptions and toss some info out.

What are the specs on your stick stick? No I'm not curious so much about brand as I am about what kind of action it has, length etc.

Are you new to fly fishing all together or just new to steelheading? What is all the good stuff that goes with your stick?

Do you have just a floating line, an interchangable tip line or both? If you have an interchangeable tip line which brand is it? (No they are not all created equal)

Do you already have a selection of flies? If not, are you going to tie your own or try to purchase some?

I assume for the most part you'll be fishing from the bank. Assuming this, you have two basic presentations. You'll either be swinging flies or you'll be nymph and indicator fishing (jig and bobber).

Swinging flies on a floating line.
My leader length will be affected somewhat by the type of water I'm fishing and the fly I'm using. For the most part I'm going to be fishing a tapered leader around 10~12 feet long with a couple feet of tipppet tacked on.

The termial strength/size of the leader/tippet will depend on how heavy the water is, how much wind I'm dealing with, the size and style of the fly and the size of the fish but usually it will be somewhere between 10 and 14lbs. I'm normally hesitant to recommend product by brand but this is one of the times I will. I like to use Umpqua tippet. It is smaller diameter for the same test than a lot of the others. It is also quite limp so it really helps the fly swim better.

If I go to heavier and really heavy flies I'll usually either start shortening my leader, going to a heavier tippet or both. Once I get past a certain point on weight of fly I'll usually switch from a floating line to a sink tip because it's more or less counter intuitive to use a floating line and then go really heavy on the fly to get deep. (there are exceptions but as you expressed you are a beginner)

Swinging flies on a sink tip.
glock hit the nail on the head about leaders here. My leader lengths are 3~5 feet as a rule. Because I'm using short leaders and not too worried about turn over I usually just tie on a section of 20~30lb leader butt right to my tips and then make only one step down to whatever terminal lb test tippet I'm going to use. I use Maxima UG for the vast majority of my sink tip leaders. It's inexpensive, fairly abrasion resistant and holds knots well. Some people complain that it is stiffer and thicker for lb test than some other leader materials on the market but take my word for it, you can't go wrong in using it.

You'll want to change which sink tip you are using depending on how heavy the water is and how deep you are trying to go. There is a lot of confusion out there on using sink tips, casting, presentation, mending and so on about how to get your fly deeper.

There is too much info on this subject to really cover in a small amount of space. If you decide you want to pursue this topic in more detail we could start a thread and get into it, but it's a vast subject and you are short of time for your upcoming trip. The important thing to remember is long leaders and sink tips don't go together.

Nymphing
I'm no purist, in the strict sense of the word, but I really feel in this instance trying to jig and bobber fish is better served by using a gear rod than a fly rod.

That said, nymph and indicator fishing can be a deadly method for steelheading. The length of your leader is going to be directly related to how deep you are trying to fish. Usually I'll fish a lighter .lb test leader using this method than I would swinging flies.

You'll probably want to employ one of the variations of a right angle leader system. It provides very effective line control and minimizes the line bow that develops when you are trying to to nymph with a straight leader (especially if you are using an indicator).

You'll probably find you are going to use a floating line, a section of floating tapered leader butt, your indicator, and then your drop leader. Many times guys will use leader sections with looped ends to make changing and lengthening/shortening leaders faster.

Size of bobber will depend on how heavy a fly you're trying to drift and how heavy the water is. A key to this method is being able to mend extra line into the drift without disturbing your indicator/nymph. In water with lots of current seams you'll find yourself fishing fairly short lines and high sticking it a lot.

Flies
I'm firmly in the camp that feels presentation/line control is about 90% of the steelheading game and luck counts for another 10%. That doesn't leave a whole lot of room for how important the indiviual pattern is.

Now that I've said it doesn't matter <g> pattern will depend on a lot of factors. Though many flies will work for steelheading every water has its own suite of local favorites. What I would do is contact a local shop and see what they recommend this way you can relax somewhat about what you're tying on. If you really want a list I can certainly tell you what I carry in my box when I'm steelheading.

Well not really a lot of info to help you but I hope you can glean a fact or two from all this that does you some good.

~w

Great post WesH,

I have an additional comment regarding Flies. If the water is green or at all muddy, I tend to use a dark colored pattern. Black leech or such. Darker colors tend to be more visible in darker water.

(Seems odd, but it is true)

If the water is running gin clear, I tend to use brighter colored flies. There is also some debate about using a scent on the fly. I haven't tried this yet but have spoke with a few who swear by it.

Hiya Wes, Sorry I aint been around, I just have alot of crap in RL going on right now. Been talking to Jay and want to get another trip going up here in the latter part of March if you are interested and available

glock, agree somewhat on the colored water dark pattern comment except that I tend to favor purple for low light and/or highly colored waters. This is highly subjective but I don't believe it has the "solidness" that say a really dark or black pattern has and doesn't seem to be as threatening to spooky fish. Or said another way I, and my sports, seem have more hookups on purple than say black during the above mentioned conditions.

Brian, no need to apologize. I'm hoping to make a trip happen sometime this month and try to hook up with you but things are really going crazy for me as well. It looks like we're probably going to sell the place over here and are considering relocating to the East side of the state somewhere.

I'll stay in touch about a Yak trip.

~w
Wes