Niagara River Steelhead

Ever hook onto the back of small car with your flyrod? That's about equal to steelhead from the mighty Niagara. Big minnow/smelt imitations and egg patterns work well off the shore, as well as oddly enough, Caddis nymphs. A 7 weight is rod is a little arrogant, while an 8 to 9 is more adept at casting big weighted flys and heavy split shot. You have to get down to the fish and weighting your flies or your line or both is a must. A 15 foot leader with shot about 16 inches from the fly is a good start, while the new skagit heads and sinking leaders are even better in some cases. I use an 8-10 foot lead core section/ skagit head to get the floating line down and then a couple shot as well. It's heavy, but the 10' 8wt will get it out there. You don't have to cast far since the ledge drops off out about 5-8 feet to 12-15 feet deep. The fish hang right against the rocks down about 8 feet so depth is your biggest concern. Fish the eddies and inlets along the shoreline for controlled drifts. Roll casting is the norm, with little room behind for a back cast and either dead drifting with the current, or adding some strips for action gets the fish's attention. It's BIG water, so utmost care is needed when walking the very slippery rocks. Do NOT wade in the Niagara River. You are just asking for trouble. The Power Authority releases water every day in the early morning that can raise the water 6-8 feet very quickly. I have been caught out on the rocks at Devil's Hole and had to wet wade back to shore, fighting a heavy current. I thought that was it...no kidding. Anyway, you don't usually get a second chance to screw up on safety down there, so be careful. The best access points are Artpark in Lewiston, NY and the Devil's Hole and Whirlool Park access points in Niagara Falls, NY. It's rugged, but worth the walk. Big, Strong, Nasty fish that head for Canada when you hook them.

Getting ready for Spring Trout

The weather is starting to break around the WNY area, and the opener is just around the corner. I don't typically go out that day, because I tend to avoid crowds. Isn't that the real reason behind our sport in the first place...solitude? Don't get me wrong,,,I love hanging out with one or two fishing buddies, but not the whole population of a small town. Anyhow, the water will be cold and most likely, the fish will be feeding under the surface. Small GR Hares ears, Pheasant Tails, Early Black Stones, and small Olive Wooly Buggers will be our primary flies of choice. Can't Wait!!

Plans to hit Artpark

Well, I figured on going to Artpark for Steelhead today, only to wake up to 11 degree temps. Bummer. No fun slipping around down there and risking your life in the Niagara River, or icing up the guides. We will have to look at it as someone saying "you have more flies to tie". Maybe next week.

This coming Saturday 3/19/2011

This Saturday at Orvis in the Eastern Hills Mall, I will be tying and speaking on some good patterns for fishing riffles and runs in the Genny. I will tie a variety of sculpins, muddlers, and really good nymph I call the Genny Screamer. It starts at 11am and runs through 12 or a little later. All are welcome and it's always a good time seeing the regulars as well.

Black and Purple Spey

Spey flies are elegant and effective lures for steelhead and salmon. Originally tied for the waters of the Spey River in Scotland, they have been adopted here in the US. They were first seen out West for Pacific Steelhead in the 1950's. Since then, they found their way to the northeast for tempting the various salmonids in the rivers and tributaries spilling into the Great Lakes. Originally, Heron hackles were used for the long flowing fibres that truly identify this style of fly, however heron is not available in the US legally. Fine replacements are Blue-eared pheasant, which is expensive, or even ringneck pheasant. Schlappen feathers are commonly used for the hackle as well, since they so have long fibres and long stems. Prepackaged spey hackles are also available by spirit river. Make sure you soak them for 20 minutes or so to keep the stems from splitting. Most spey flys have 2-3 ribs as well. 1-2 ribs and a counter rib to lock down the hackles. Lastly, the wing is usually made of 2 slips of bronze mallard flank from opposite feathers. They arent the easiest to handle and mount. A small, neat head and 2-3 coats of varnish finish the fly off nicely. Fished on the swing, they are very effective for enticing steelhead and salmon here in our Great Lakes rivers.

Big Eyed Bunny fly

I'm sure this looks pretty similar to a lot of flies out there. It is put together matuka style with the bunny strip and then collar wrapped with a zonker strip around and through the dumbell eyes for a neat looking leech type presentation. This is a good one when the water starts to warm and the steedhead get more active, especially during the melt and early spring rains. Focus on the inside of creek bends where the water is a little calmer and fish don't have to work so hard in the current. They will be tight to the banks during that time too, so they can have some relation to the creek structure. The Niagara River steelies and lakers like this one too in White and Charteuse. Add a pink head for a little contrast. The steelhead really respond.

Time to get back into it

It has been a looooonnnnnng time since I did anything on here. I will be upating over the next couple weeks and adding a lot of useful content. Thanks