| With the colder nights and that first frost brings | | | | Dead drifting with an indicator - To dead drift |
| forth the beginning of steelhead season in | | | | with a indicator simply put on a indicator or small |
| Pennsylvania. For many anglers the arrival of the | | | | trout bobber about 6 foot up the leader then |
| steelhead in creeks like Walnut, Elk, and 20 Mile | | | | attach some weight 2 BB sinkers or 1 3/0 sinker |
| brings a sense of excitement that is unmatched | | | | about a foot above the fly. You will need to |
| by other forms of fishing in the state. Steelhead | | | | move your indicator up and down your leader to |
| Salmon are an extremely powerful fish that can | | | | find the depth of the water. To get a true dead |
| make the drag on a reel scream and push your | | | | drift your indicator should stand straight up and |
| rod to it's limits. | | | | down and not have the appearance of dragging |
| | | | the bottom. (This is easier said then done; there |
| Now how do you go about fishing for these | | | | are all types of indicators to help with getting a |
| silver bullets? There are several techniques but | | | | true dead drift) |
| the most common forms in Pennsylvania are fly | | | | |
| fishing and drift fishing. In this article we'll go into | | | | Dead Drifting without an indicator - This is my |
| detail on how to fish for steelhead in the | | | | favorite way to fish for steelhead! I use this |
| Pennsylvania streams and what streams to fish in | | | | method on the larger streams of Pennsylvania |
| Pennsylvania. | | | | and New York with great success and you can't |
| | | | beat the strike you get when a steelhead slams |
| Fly Fishing | | | | your fly while it is swinging or at the end of the |
| | | | drift. You can use this technique whether you are |
| First, lets talk about fly fishing and what type of | | | | fishing egg patterns, streamers, or nymphs and is |
| gear you will need to have to tackle these fish. | | | | extremely versatile in any type of water depth |
| The following is a list of commonly used fly fishing | | | | or current. |
| equipment for fishing for steelhead in the PA | | | | First, You need to have a leader and tippet any |
| streams. | | | | where from 10 to 15 feet depending on the size |
| | | | of the creek you are fishing. If fishing Elk Creek |
| Gear | | | | or Walnut creek in Erie, PA you will want to keep |
| Fly Rod = 7 to 8 weight rod from 9 to 10 foot | | | | your leader around 10 to 11 feet. Next, depending |
| Fly Reel = Any fly reel with a good drag. Large | | | | on the depth of the water you want to put a |
| arbor fly reels are preferred, they pick up the fly | | | | sinker any where from 3 feet to 6 feet up your |
| line a lot faster and tend to have a better drag | | | | line. The sinker should be a single 3/0, 7, or 5 |
| system. | | | | depending on the depth and speed of the water. |
| Fly Line = 7 to 9 weight forward floating fly line | | | | Finally, you should cast your fly upstream at |
| Leader = Taper leader from 20 to 15 to 10 | | | | about 1 to 2 o'clock then mend your line |
| pound test leader material then connect 8 to 6 | | | | upstream immediately then get your fly rod high |
| pound fluorocarbon as a tippet. If water is clear | | | | in the air then let it drift and then swing through |
| use 6 then 4 pound fluorocarbon as tippet. | | | | to the end of the drift. Don't pull the fly out of |
| | | | the water to quickly to cast again let it hang for a |
| Flies | | | | few seconds. Some of the most incredible hits |
| Egg Patterns = Sucker Spawn, Blood Dots, | | | | are at the end of the drift. If you prefect this |
| Crystal Meth Flies, Estez EggsSizes - 12, 14, 16 | | | | technique you will have some of the most fun |
| size nymph hooks 2X strong or 8 or 10 live bait | | | | days you have ever had fishing for steelhead. |
| (egg hook) | | | | |
| Streamers = Egg Sucking Leech, Wooly Buggers, | | | | Spin Fishing with a Drift Rod |
| Crystal BuggersSizes - 2, 4, 8, 10 salmon hooks | | | | |
| or streamer hooks | | | | One of the most effective techniques of fishing |
| Nymphs = Stone Flies, Prince Nymphs, Hairs Ears | | | | the tributaries of Lake Erie is fishing with bait and |
| NymphsSizes - 10, 12, 14 size nymph hooks 2X | | | | a dead drift rod. I have seen more fish caught on |
| strong | | | | skein, egg sacs, and minnows than any other |
| | | | technique. Fishing with bait you can consistently |
| Fly Fishing Techniques | | | | catch steelhead and 20 plus fish days are not |
| | | | uncommon when the fish are running. |