Steelhead Help!

[Murdoc]

Well I've got the OK to go up north next year and fish. I want to do this on a shoestring budget and I need any and all advice or contacts or in general Help!!! This will be my first trip up north and I want to catch some big steelhead and I don't want to screw it up! Thank you all!!!

[catman]

How far north are you going Mark? US,Canada or AK

A friend..MLC

[Murdoc]

The biggest thing is the cost. If I could go to Alaska cheaper than Canada with good results that's what I want to do. It would be me and my best friend Marshall law going right now. I've been looking around Houston British Columbia but they are too high. I'm just looking for some Steelhead for a decent price.

[SalmonSlayer]

Why dont you save alot of money anf fly to Northern California and fish the Mad River ,The Smith, And the Trinity.You can catch beautiful fish on the Smith,with a guide which is a lot cheaper than Cananda or AK,And accomadations are very cheap.I lived in Nor Cal up till 3 years ago and it is great steelhead and salmon country.You can fish the Trinity without a guide and stay in a decent hotel for less than half of your other choices.Do some google searching and you will see.

[Phil Lilley]

Michigan steelies are great... there's alot of rivers that get a late fall, winter and spring runs. There's alot of internet sites that talk about steelhead fishing... http://steelheadsite.com/forums/ here's one.

I heard the Muskegon was really hot last month, also the Grand just outside Grand Rapids.

Here's another one- http://www.fishbaldwin.com/ This is a fly shop on the Pere Marquette.

[Quillback]

I used to live in Washington state and did a lot of steelhead fishing. The Olympic Peninsula rivers are good right now for hatchery fish, but expect crowds at the popular spots. There are places to camp if you can deal with wet, cold weather. The rivers blow out easily so you should check weather before you go. In March and April are when the big native fish come in to the OP rivers. Also the Grand Ronde on the eastern side of the state is a good winter river with good access. All that being said, I think the midwest runs offer better fishing if you're looking at numbers of fish. But if you want to go west, Washington has some good water. Oregon also has some good fishing, but I've never tried it.

[Murdoc]

Thank you all!! I'm checking out all of them. It's nice to have this forum! Thanks Phil!!

[trout fanatic]

I fish the Ohio lake erie tribs and highly recommend them. Phil's advice is rock solid and I would pick Michigan for size and Ohio for numbers. Pa stocks ricidulous numbers of fish but the fishermen seem to outnumber the fish-crazy. Food for thought-all of the great lakes tribs that I have experience on will blow out at the drop of a hat which leaves their smaller tributaries still fishable. Despite your wanting a "shoestring" trip, you might want to consider a half day guided trip. It will lower your learning curve by a huge amount and get you on some water to fish the rest of the trip. I have met some great people who can really fish and are eager to share info during my trips. Don't be surprised if you experience the same

[flyfishmaster]

Murdoc,

For the past 10 years (accept this year) I have gone up to Western New York. I have never been disappointed. You are able to catch salmon 30+ pounds, steelhead and huge brown trout all out of the same pool. You can drive or fly in to Buffalo. I would have to recommend the last week of October or first week of November. This is when the salmon make their run. If you make the Buffalo area your base, there are 3 rivers north with in one hour and 4 rivers south with in one hour. Great location and the hotel cost are not that bad either.

The Western New York rivers are called Steelhead Alley, with good reason.

And if you want to do a half day of site seeing Niagara Falls is just 30 minutes a way.

If you want to see just a few photos of the fish we catch or have any questions about the Western New York area send me a PM.

Later,

FFM

[Guest]

I have only been a couple times but did well on the st. Joseph river in northern Indiana. Northern ohio has a lot of runs from lake erie as well.