Umpqua River, Oregon: First steelhead trip

Started by scrinch, March 24, 2020, 06:58:34 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

scrinch

Quote from: Vintage Offshore Tackle on March 24, 2020, 06:39:51 PM
Great report Rich.  It sounds like you guys really got dialed in, going 8 for 8 on your last day.  Would you care to share what you learned?  I have never been steelhead fishing but I hope to someday.  Congratulations on those beautiful fish!
Thanks, Randy. With a total of 4 days steelhead fishing, I'm not the guy to be handing out wisdom (but I will anyway :) ). A strong and timely hook set seemed to be our biggest problem. Most of our losses were hook pulls during the fight with plenty of pressure on the fish. At the time we couldn't be sure why we were losing them. The last day I brought in a couple that had the hook buried only halfway to the barb, even after what I thought was a good strong hook set. One was even outside the mouth in the jawbone. So we probably lost those earlier fish because the hooks just didn't get fully set. And yes, the hooks were narrow gauge and sharp. The first day, as I was learning the difference between the feel of the a fish and the bottom, I felt a jerk, set the hook, and reeled in a small rock with the hook buried in it about 1/16 of an inch!

We also lost fish by being overeager and setting the hook too soon. There's a fine line between waiting long enough for the fish to get the bait fully in its mouth, but not so long for it to spit the bait back out!

Vintage Offshore Tackle

#16
Thank you Rich.  You may have only four days of first-hand experience, but that's four days more than me, and you sure caught on fast!  You wouldn't think of steelhead having a hard mouth.  Most of the salmon guys say that the kings and silvers have soft mouths (but when you see the commercial trollers winching them in from a moving boat you have to wonder about that) and you would think that they would be similar.  Congratulations again on the great trip and thanks for sharing it with everyone.

Randy

Gfish

#17
Lots of fun drift fishing. Drifting in the boat lets you see cool canyon country and drifting a rig along the bottom is some real finesse-focus-fun. The bumping of your weight against rocks vs. the faster lighter vibration of a strike is hard to get used to. I'll bet half of the Steelies I've hooked had the roe/spin n' glo/hook in their mouth several seconds before I new it.
The Umpqua is one of the more beautiful Rivers in Oregon. I liked the upper North Fork over any other river in the state I've fished. There's supposed to be good Smallmouth action in the lower South Fork and main stem---when? Don't know.
I've heard waiting for a Steelhead to bite also described as; "sometimes it's like watching the paint dry". Lot of times, yeah. You did well scrinch! It's really all about timing, sometimes down to the day. Great post!
Fishing tackle is an art form and all fish caught on the right tackle are"Gfish"!

steelfish

this fish is in my bucket list

congrats for that great fishing trip buddy

The Baja Guy

scrinch

Quote from: Gfish on March 24, 2020, 10:52:30 PM
Lots of fun drift fishing. Drifting in the boat lets you see cool canyon country and drifting a rig along the bottom is some real finesse-focus-fun. The bumping of your weight against rocks vs. the faster lighter vibration of a strike is hard to get used to. I'll bet half of the Steelies I've hooked had the roe/spin n' glo/hook in their mouth several seconds before I new it.
The Umpqua is one of the more beautiful Rivers in Oregon. I liked the upper North Fork over any other river in the state I've fished. There's supposed to be good Smallmouth action in the lower South Fork and main stem---when? Don't know.
I've heard waiting for a Steelhead to bite also described as; "sometimes it's like watching the paint dry". Lot of times, yeah. You did well scrinch! It's really all about timing, sometimes down to the day. Great post!

Thanks. I attribute the good luck to a really good and energetic guide. And lucky timing. We did catch one smallmouth at the confluence of the north and south forks. The guide said they usually don't bite much until May or later, I think I recall.

Keta

Quote from: steelfish on March 24, 2020, 11:22:40 PM
this fish is in my bucket list

congrats for that great fishing trip buddy



I know where they hide.
Hi, my name is Lee and I have a fishing gear problem.

I have all of the answers, yup, no, maybe.

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.
Mark Twain

steelfish

Quote from: Keta on March 24, 2020, 11:26:38 PM
Quote from: steelfish on March 24, 2020, 11:22:40 PM
this fish is in my bucket list

congrats for that great fishing trip buddy



I know where they hide.


Yay !! so tempting
The Baja Guy

Hardy Boy

Nice fish roomy !! Float fishing is a great way to fish a river; I have only done it a couple of times but its a blast especially when the weather is that good !!


Cheers:

Todd
Todd

Keta

You live in a good place to bank fish for them Todd, Ketchikan was too.
Hi, my name is Lee and I have a fishing gear problem.

I have all of the answers, yup, no, maybe.

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.
Mark Twain

Hardy Boy

Lee : I don't chase steelhead much anymore. Its not nearly as good as it used to be here. They do little to no enhancement of steelhead, so fishing is very restricted. I have done my share in the past, just not in the last few years. I mostly fished from shore but I really liked drifting the few times I did it.


Cheers:

Todd
Todd

mo65

Quote from: scrinch on March 24, 2020, 08:50:39 PM
We also lost fish by being overeager and setting the hook too soon. There's a fine line between waiting long enough for the fish to get the bait fully in its mouth, but not so long for it to spit the bait back out!

   Sounds like a situation I've been in a few times...but learning is part of the fun. Great fishin'! 8)
~YOU CAN TUNA GEETAR...BUT YOU CAN'T TUNA FEESH~


Keta

Quote from: Hardy Boy on March 25, 2020, 04:16:49 PM
Lee : I don't chase steelhead much anymore. Its not nearly as good as it used to be here. They do little to no enhancement of steelhead, so fishing is very restricted. I have done my share in the past, just not in the last few years. I mostly fished from shore but I really liked drifting the few times I did it.


Cheers:

Todd

I like side drifting too.  Bummer about the numbers.
Hi, my name is Lee and I have a fishing gear problem.

I have all of the answers, yup, no, maybe.

A man who carries a cat by the tail learns something he can learn in no other way.
Mark Twain

MeanMachine


Donnyboat

Thanks for taking us along Rich, looks like a real learning curve, now theres a man that appreciates a good fish, just look @ the smile, yee haa, cheers Don.
Don, or donnyboat

David Hall

I spent a great deal of time in Roseburg last July, just watching the Umpqua and wondering how the fishing was.  Thanks for showing me.  Next time I go I might just have to find a guide and try it myself.