Dry Fly Steelhead?

streamerguy

streamerguy

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Has anyone had any experience with dries for steelhead in the Erie tribs? I always thought that for the most part the hatchery steelhead in the great lakes won't rise to a dry, only the wild ones in the west will, but in the recent Fly Fisherman magazine there is an article about fishing for steel with dries in the great lakes, specifically the Erie tribs of OH, PA, and NY. I never tied on a dry for chrome, but after reading that article I think I might give it a try.
 
I believe Jack has a story about that.

I've had them eat thingamabobbers before, so I don't see why not.
 
i'd suggest going dry/dropper... most hits will be on the dropper but i've had them hit my float several times...
 
I think that there is higher percentage tatics as far as eliciting strikes. If ya found a outta the way run of fish in moving water about knee deep you might have a shot.... But it would have to be @ first light before they get beat to death. Because every steel in erie is trying to run for the hills 2 hrs after sun up.
 
I've seen people skate something similar to a Chernobyl Ant for dry fly fishing. Other than that, I have no knowledge about it.

I think Allen Fly Fishing had a blog entry about it, I would check out his site for some information about it.
 
I've had steelhead hit unweighted streamers near the surface. I believe the term is "waking."

It should be possible to get strikes with dries, using a similar technique. I'd think a big Stimulator might be the thing.

Go when the water is not very high, and when the weather is unseasonably warm. I think around 4 pm would be a good time. Then the water is at its maximum warmth. And often the fisherman are thinned out somewhat. And when the light gets low around 4 pm, the steelhead often get active.

Fish the tailout of a pool. Cast across the lower part of the pool. Let the current belly the line, so that the fly is dragging across the current, skittering the fly.

This is the way I got strikes with unweighted streamers near the surface. They'd charge the fly in the shallow water at the tailout of the pool. It's exciting with a streamer. If you could get them to hit a dry fly, that would be a hoot.
 
A buddy of mine and I once actually caught a few on crowe beetles of all things. On a dead drift too.
But the conditions were just right. It was a warm october day, with low clear water temps in the 50's. And it was during the last hour of daylight - when the fish got real frisky and were porpoising quite a bit.
So, yes it can be done at certain times I guess.

What flies do they recommend in the article?
 
The flies they recommended in the article were stimulators and the like. There was also a mayfly type fly tied with a pink deer hair body but I forget what it was called. I know there are other techniques that are definitely much better for steelhead, but it would be kind of neat to get one on a dry. I know skating flies is popular in the west, and that's what was mentioned in the article also.
 
I have never personally seen it. However, I've heard reliable reports of numbers of fish rising quite naturally to BWO's in the spring. Even saw a youtube style video once, but don't care to look for it.

Other than that, I'd think you'd be after aggression strikes. Which, with fresh run chromers, they can be pretty aggressive and it certainly wouldn't surprise me, though in those situations I'd think it'd be less effective than say, streamers. I have caught a few working streamers real fast, and they definitely chase or "wake" it and take quite a few.
 
I did this last month. #16 BWO. It is a statistical anomoloy IMO. As Tilt, suggested, I had a dry on as an indicator, and a nymph under it. The problem, as I quickly learned, was a steelhead towing a second hook, will soon lodge said hook, into something, that is prone to break leaders.
 
Step the tippet size down a few levels on the dropper, and it should take care of that for ya, Dave.
 
Jay it was pretty obvious, that was my mistake. lol. That and not having any other dries with me. That lone BWO was stuck in my fly patch and quickly was gone. Last trip up I put my BWO box back in my vest, so at least I'm getting smarter.
 
water temps play a large role... also hatchery vs wild fish
MI would be a better place to give it a go

April Vokey and another angler rose 7 fish to skated flies on ELK creek in one day in mid nov... so it can be done consistantly under the right conditions
 
I've told the story so many times it is no longer true.

Synopsis:
I saw two rises in the same area. Assumed a midge was being taken. Found #20 loopwing BWO.

By now it is that on the first cast, the trout rose, took my fly and Gamber roped it and ate it.
 
Try an Erie-sistable dryfly. Basically a scaled down deer hair bass bug aka... an Atlantic Salmon Bomber type fly as your "indicator". They will sometimes hit it... when waked. But as the previous posts said... conditions, conditions, conditions must be aligned like the planets... the moon in an retrograde hypotenuse, and such. Consult with the Cosmic Muffin to figure out the planets and stars... then throw some chicken blood in the LE trib as an offering to the Chrome. Then, maybe then... they will hit a dry.
 
i was there and witnessed a fellow one evening casting as if he had a dry fly on...after walking closer i could not help but ask him what he was doing. he told me that he just missed one on the top and said watch. after a couple of drifts didn't that thing come up and slurp his size 16 bwo, he set the hook and fought it for 10 seconds when his hook broke. so absolutly, but i agree with the consultation with the cosmic muffin as you could probabyl chuck dries for 3 days with out a strike?
 
Yeah. That was me!
 
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