Fly Fishing

chernoble_kid · Location: Twin Falls Idaho

Hey Guys,
I'm looking for a good steelhead rod. I'm thinking a 8 weight but I'm not sure if that's what I need. I'll be fishing the rivers in southern Idaho. I would like a 4 piece but it's not a necessity . Thanks for the help in advance!! Very Happy

Semper Fly!

reeladdicted · Location: Port Charlotte, FL

G.Loomis makes rods specifically for steelhead but they're up there in price.

Shakeyfly · Location: MA

What are the steelhead rivers like in Southern Idaho? I'm in Massachusetts and the only river I fish for steelhead (because of lack of knowledge of other places) is the Salmon river. On my 3 trips to the salmon river, most of the sections I fish seem to get deep quick a few feet from shore, with trees and tall grass right up to the bank. Also I fish it in the winter where the flows can range from 350 - 1750+ CFS Meaning a TON of roll casting, and deadsticking. I use an 11 foot Deer Creek Switch rod 8 weight. My friends all use 10'0 single handers. all 4 piece. Just because mending line and dead drifting nymphs with split shot seems to be easier with the longer rods and rollcasting all day etc etc.

I guess I would suggest the same thing if the rivers are similar. A friend of mine uses 8'6" 7 weight when he goes into the Pennsylvania tribs because the rivers narrow up, and the longer rod and line weight for chucking tin shot doesn't seem to matter anymore.

chernoble_kid · Location: Twin Falls Idaho

I'm not sure what rivers lol. I've never been steelheading but really would like to get into it. I live not to far from stanley and the salmon river so that would most likely be the river I'd be fishing, thank you for the info!! it is much appreciated!

boucallan · Location: canada

if you are to fish the salmon r. u will found a lot of spey on the banks , as far as i am concern , this rod will alow you to fish everywhere including fly ,catch and release sector , i use a tfo 14 f line 9 and believe to be the ideal tool ether drift or under a strick indicator ,have fun on the salmon,boucallan

juice5 · Location: apple valley minnesota

I fish Idaho quite a bit for steelhead....Salmon, snake and the Clearwater...My wife and I just upgraded to saltwater Helios 9 wt s from Orvis with the Orvis Large Arbor reels....Pricy but consider performance , weight and Guarentee and they cant be beat. We bought 15 ft 9 wt Orvis streamline Spey rods a couple of years ago only $300 per rod they work well ! Here's a suggestion for you that will help a lot because ive done it and it works....Cabelas and Gandermountain both retail 10, 11 and 12 foot graphite "Crappie Rods for about 40 bucks....Pflueger 1495 AK large arbor reel 40 bucks......200 yds dacron 20lb backing with a scientific anglers wf 9wt line 60 bucks ! This reel and line combination is the most important part of the rig and will serve you well. Ive got a four tube , 2inch pvc rod holder box on top of my suburban and when on the clearwater at Kiamah or at challis on the salmon, if my wife looses line and backing she just puts the rod back in the tube and gets another pre-rigged rod out and she's back in the water...tight lines juice

MidwestChrome · Posted: Tue 11/16/10 2:12 pm Post subject:

If you want a good rod for a good price I would go with a redington CPX. It runs around $300 which isn't to bad. If you want a cheaper rod the redington crosswater is a good starting rod. It runs around $90. I started with the crosswater and its good for its price, but if you are a serious steelheader you will want a nicer rod in the long run. I would recommend a 9' 8 wt. Thats a pretty standard rod for steelheading. Thats the rod, but as for the reel, I would recommend a reel with a nice drag system on it because steelhead will run hard and fast. Lamson makes some nice reels and so does orvis. As for line, my favorite line is the scientific angler sharkskin line, but I also like the orvis wonderline. I have mixed feelings about rio line, but people have spoken highly about it. Overall its all about how much you want to spend and preference.

Patrick
http://flybible.blogspot.com/