Steelhead guys

GenCon

GenCon

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Jan 15, 2013
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I am looking for some advice from the Steelhead guys. I will be going to NY in the middle of March. What wt. rod would you experienced guys recomend. The fellow I am going with is telling me to use a 5wt. Seems a bit light to me. I have done many types of Ff in salt and fresh water. My gut tells me to use a 7 or 8 wt. Any advice or recomendations?

Regards,

gencon
 
Your gut is right. 7wt 9-10ft is the weapon of choice.. If salmon are involved (which they won't be at that time of year) you might go with a 8 or 9.
 
+1 David. I will add that I don't like to be under gunned so I usually use an 8 wt.
 
7wt is what you need. Period.
Some will write 6wt or 5wt is enough. No it's not.
Steelhead in winter is lathergic and does not fight like the ones in November, but you may hook into fresh one, bigger size steel and bye bye 5wt.
I'm guessing you will be fishing Salmon River. March is funny up there. You cannot predict how is gonna be , especially water level.
7wt will handle every condition.
I fished there in March where water was really low (235cfs) and next week was above 1000cfs.
Last year water was really high during entire March.
If you are going to take/use only one fly rod - 7wt no question about it. If you are going to take 2 rods - take 6wt and 7wt and depending on water conditions you decide which one to use.
I fish there pretty often and I'm using G Loomis Nativerun GLX 10' 7wt almost all the time during winter.
Hope i was able to help a little bit


 
If someone would tell me to pick only one rod for Salmon River to fish entire year it would be definitely 10' 8wt.
GenCon is going to fish during March and 7wt is perfect for that.
 
An 8 weight at least 9 ft in length. I take my 9 1/2 ft 8 weight up to NY and it has handled large browns, steelhead and salmon. Take anything smaller than an 8 weight and your just asking for trouble.
 
Valdi is right on the money with his advice.....Fall=10' 8wt, Spring=10' 7wt...............6wt too light if water is not right and if you hit a fresh big boy...........good luck
 
about 10 years ago i started using a sage 6wt fishing from ohio to the salmon river and caught a lot of big fish on it...never broke.

if you are looking for a challenging fight go lighter and make it exciting...otherwise get the 8wt and you will be able to put the horse power down on em.

i am not normal though, always using light tackle for everything i fish for...i guess i enjoy the challenge and am not as concerned with big landed numbers.

other note...if you use this technique, please respect the fish, meaning if the time of year requires you to catch and release the fish quickly then use heavier equipment. this will not apply to steelhead though.
 
valdi,

how does that cork taste??

I would fish the 7... maybe the 8 pending how you fish. You might be swinging... not going to get into your mantra.

I will say, however, I have landed King-sized carp on a glass 5 wt., but I got my a crack sweaty from running up and down the creek. Good thing I was wet wading... a quick dip after the fight and all was cooled. Natures way of anti-chaffing.
 
10' 7wt is ideal for a single handed rod. I use a 6wt in the Winter some, but a 5wt would be a little under powered, especially if the water temps are coming up. It should not he a huge issue in mid March, but you would likely really overplay a steelhead with a 5wt in warmer water, which often ends the fishes life if it's warm.

My actual rod of choice these days is a 7wt switch rod. Very versatile. Great for dead drifting nymphs and eggs and great for swinging streamers.
 
Hey guys, thanks for all your help. I do have a multitude of rods. Sounds like to me I should bring a 7 and a 8. Then fish according to the condidions. I don't want to over play the fish.

Thanks,

gencon
 
One thing people forget or don't know about the Salmon when choosing a rod is the CFS of the water. It's not about over playing a fish. If it's running high & you need more weight to get your fly down it will be no fun casting it with a 5 or 6wt rod. Then what do you do when you hook a fish & you have to keep it out of the rapids? Again you need the power of your rod to turn the fish.
 
I have been using an a 9' 8wt for a few years now and i think it is perfect. I have used a 6wt and I don't recommend it.
 
10' 7 wt is ideal for a single hand rod steelhead rod.
 
March also means runoff and high water. If you're nymphing it means a lot of weight. Not that much fun on a 6 weight. I stick with 8 for my single handed and switch.
 
I have gone as light as a 1 wt(don't recommend that, it is like latching on a freight train!! Heck of a blast!!) I would say a 7 wt is ideal on bigger waters. I don't like the 10' single hand, a 9 1/2', I feel less is better and easer on the arm. Over 10 give me a switch or a spay much easer casting over the course of a day. 10" and over are also a bit more difficult getting the fish into your net or hand if your fishing alone.
I have had very good days in march watch the reds.
 
We all know the recommendations on these fly rods. Listen to the manufacturers..You will surely snap a 5wt if you hook into a lot of fish. Experience or not. I learned my lesson this year. Had a ridiculous day in Erie with a lot of hook ups, most fair hooked some foul hooked.. Lets just say my 5wt eventually had enough.
 
High water does not mean a lot of wt it means a lot of mending never steelhead fishing do you need more then a few bbs..... Chunking and dunking is not flyfishing its lining and snagging
 
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