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Steelhead Video

All of nature’s elements were conspiring to tease the Steelhead back into their natal waterway. Sheets of ice cold rain, dark grey skies, punishing in-shore winds and most importantly increased water levels. The Salmon carnival has slowly trickled out of town and I’ve began to see some familiar faces at the shops and on the water. These guys are the real deal, they don’t plan trips out far in advance if in advance at all. Successful Steelhead anglers usually let the conditions dictate when they make a move, very analogous to the quarry they pursue. It was sweet to be back on the water with old friends and new ones as well. We started out well before daybreak and arrived at our destination on the river’s edge, as the sun came up. There is a feeling you get in your soul when you approach the water and the chrome is present. I can’t describe it in words but after you chase them around for awhile you develop a sixth sense of sorts and we were all on sensory overload. Jeremy directed Ed to his first drift of the morning and on his first cast his offer was slammed by a very respectable Brown and we knew instantly that today would be phenomenal. Within fifteen minutes we had all hooked giant silver steel, hooked being the common denominator of the day. Not only were these fish enormous, they were also RED HOT. We all got smoked several times by the ridiculous, blistering runs and cartwheel acrobatics as they tumbled down river. We put in a solid twelve hours and I wouldn’t even venture to guess how many we hooked. You really grow to

appreciate days like this because in the Steel world they don’t come around very often. There are days in middle of January when all but the best anglers struggle to touch one. Up until a few days ago the conditions and numbers of trout have been somewhat grim, such a relief to see Mother Nature has pulled through and salvaged the season. Looking forward to doing it again soon guys, I’ll be waiting for that last minute call!