Early Spring Steelhead
The combination of increased sunlight, warmer temperatures and melting snow pushed water into our Lake Ontario Tributaries. If you haven’t yet heard, steelhead fishing improved the past two weeks. We could still use a soaking dose of rain, but fish are being caught in Eighteen Mile, Oak Orchard, Genesee, Sandy, Irondequoit, Mill Creek, Salmon Creek, Maxwell, Oswego, Salmon River and smaller tributaries. Depending upon the size of the water, some may be chalky, high and difficult to fish. Smaller tribs clear quickly and may be just right. By just right, I mean w/ decent visibility and enough discoloration to make the fish feel comfortable. Just a slight push of new water this time of year brings in fresh chrome!
I couldn’t resist the bluebird sky and pleasant temperature that greeted us over the past few days.
Even more difficult, was the daily steelhead report and barrage of digital pics that two of my colleagues shared each morning. The next afternoon I met Brian and Brian on the creek. Conditions were near perfect on this smaller Lake Ontario Tributary. The water was running high, slightly off color and there was still 15″ to 20″ of visibility. I knotted an oversized brown bugger w/ a chartreuse head and added plenty of weight. Chartreuse, oregon cheese, hot pink, fuscia and purple are all top steelhead egg patterns for slightly discolored water. For a rod with small trib fishing, I’m using a 7wt, 10′ switch rod. This light rod is easy to mend, roll cast, great at reaching tight spots and is a pleasure to fish.
My second plunge pool yielded two nice steelhead. One darker colored 24″ female and a fresh, smaller, bright male.
Leapfrogging upstream, we took turns at the best pools. Over the next hour or so, I hooked another three fish. One wrapped me around a brush pile that was too tricky to wade into. Despite losing that darn fish, it graced us w/ several spectacular sommersalts before saying “adios”. Another fish unbuttoned as it departed downstream. Such are the antics of small creek fishing, especially with a solid flow of water. I tend to fish alone and don’t carry a net for trib fishing. For a change, it was nice to use the large net that my companions brought. These two were drifting egg sacks w/ moderate success. It never hurts to learn from spin fisherman or center pinners. It was refreshing to watch Brian hook and land a steelhead from below a tiny, overhanging branch that I wouldn’t have bothered to fish. That said, I think that my oversized chartreuse pattern really stood out in the water. In addition, the longer reach of a fly rod really helps me control and place the fly during a drift.
Losing visibility and needing to head home, we called it an afternoon. Nice to fish w/ friends and get a sample of what’s on tap the next two months!
If you’re in town Saturday, March 20th, join us for Angler’s Workshop. There are over 23 unique fly fishing events, workshops, seminars, casting, great raffle prizes, HD movies and more! I’ll be presenting two workshops (Kayak Fly Fishing and Getting Started in Saltwater Fly Fishing). Check the upper right hand corner of this Flyfishingchronicles for additional details regarding Angler’s Workshop.














The gentle warming trend of upper thirties convinced me to leave the fly tying bench and head out to Oak Orchard River. It was a pleasant, mostly sunny afternoon and no gloves were needed during fishing. It’s always a winter treat to fish without gloves, as well as not worry about iced guides. There were only two other cars in the parking lot and I had several hundred yards of river to myself. I broke out my two-handed 8wt and opted to slowly drift and swing streamers. The water was crystal clear and flowing around 300 cfs. Nobody liked my white zonker, nor a brown bugger. Covering plenty of water, I changed to a # 6 dark olive bugger and within a few casts, hooked a 3-4 lb brown. I carelessly lost the brown as it got closer. Nonetheless, I enjoyed a good look at it and was glad to hook a fish on this January day. After that, with determination I bounced my fly on the bottom, covered plenty of water. My effort didn’t produce another strike. Overall, a nice day winter day to get outside. The highlight of this trip was watching a beautiful pair of trumpeter swans feed and patrol a close stretch of water.
In the bleak midwinter


We awoke this morning to fresh blanket of snow. The forecast predicts more snow on tap. Between the snowfall, rain during the day, and predicted snow, our creeks should receive a nice boost of water. Many tributaries will be high and muddy over the next few days. When they settle, I predict there will be some fresh steelhead and hungry browns out there. If you don’t mind the cold, get outside and make the transition to winter angling. Fewer anglers, solitude, wintry beauty and a break from the pace of the upcoming holidays are all good reasons to fish in December.
The sporadic rains we’ve experienced the past two days pushed a little water into our tributaries Thursday and Friday. I decided to leave work early to check out two tiny tribs. Even though they were only three miles apart, one was higher and more discolored. I liked the tea colored water conditions of the heavier flowing creek and started fishing a well-known, deep, wide hole below a drop off that held fish over the past month. Many times, aggressive fish will hit on the first few casts. After twenty minutes of no luck, I opted to hike downstream and scout.



Thanksgiving is a wonderful time to reflect upon and appreciate the many blessings that enrich our life. We live in a beautiful region, in a free country and enjoy public access to numerous fisheries. Upstate New York boasts a superb fishery; lake run fish, wild trout, warm water fish and every variety of waterway from canal to creek to Finger Lake. Based on the quality and diversity of our fisheries, you might say that NYS anglers enjoy Thanksgiving every day!


