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Hoh River Spring Chinook
The Hoh River opens tomorrow for spring chinook. Fishing the Hoh for springers is very similar to winter steelhead fishing. We fish many of the same rods, lines, tips, and flies for both species.
The rod manufacturers are starting to make some really great spey rods specifically for chinook salmon. Rods like the Echo King and Sage One 10130-4 are designed for turning large fish and throwing large flies & tips. If you don't have a rod specifically made for large salmon, your 8 weight winter steelhead spey rods will work most of the time.
We like the Airflo Skagit Compacts and RIO Flights for chinook fishing and the new intermediate heads are great for getting a bit deeper and slowing down the fly.
The springers on the Hoh will often be in the same water you swing for steelhead. Besides the steelhead water look at running your fly through some of the faster and deeper runs as well.
When picking a fly you need to pay attention to not only the water you plan on fishing but the clarity. When the weather heats up the Hoh can get really dirty. When this happens pick bigger and brighter patterns. If the weather is cooler you can get away with smaller patterns which offer better success for the few summer-run steelhead entering the river. For softer lies don't be afraid to fish an unweighted fly to get a bit more action. Below are some of our favorite patterns for Hoh River springers.
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This is not only one of the
best steelhead patterns it
works great for salmon too.
This is our favorite un-
weighted pattern. It also
comes in an unweighted
version.
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Guide Intruder - ChartreuseIf the Hoh is running a little dirty a large, bright fly will be seen. The mix of chartreuse and black make this pattern a must have.
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| Snowflake Signature Intruder
White is a color that is
often overlooked when
it comes to steelhead
and salmon. We like
white flies for springers
on not only the Hoh
but the Sol Duc too.
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Blue String ThingString leeches have great movement in the water. We carry this fly in both 3" and 5" lengths. Choose the larger size for dirty water and the smaller one for clear water.
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If you have any other questions about spring chinook on the Hoh or Sol Duc give us a call or shoot us an e-mail.
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Trip of The Week
Chris recently fished a day and a half for tarpon in South Florida. He ended up landing one nice tarpon.
Chris felt that letting you know how to prepare for a tarpon trip was more important than a blow by blow of his trip. We agreed so here it is.
"A trip chasing large tarpon is a dream. As a pod of large tarpon swims towards the small skiff you are standing on you want to give yourself the best shot at connecting with that giant fish.
The most important preparation is to practice your casting. I thought I had spent enough time casting at Lincoln Park but I wish I had been even more prepared. Any practice is better than none, but using an 11 wt. rod, the line you will be fishing, and a tarpon fly on a 10-12' leader is the best way to prepare your casting. When at the park doing casting drills you want to aim at specific targets not only far away but close (20-30') as well. The second point is to get to those targets quickly. On the water, aiming ahead of a fish moving across the flat, the target changes fast and false casting too much means the original target is no longer where the fly needs to go. Work on distance and accuracy with as few back casts as possible. If you have extra time to sharpen your casting also work on delivering a fly on your backcast or with your non-dominant hand so you're ready for the fish that appear on the 'wrong' side of the boat.
Retrieves are also very important. I quickly learned that the jerky retrieve that works so well for salmon and cutthroat on the Olympic Peninsula is not the ticket for tarpon. Smooth and steady (both fast and slow depending on the fish) is what you want most of the time. Another thing to work on is stripping as fast as you can. When a tarpon grabs the fly and is swimming towards the boat you need to get tight and set the hook. What you think is fast is not as fast as the guide will want so practice stripping faster than you think is even possible.
There are a ton of other things to remember such as bowing when a tarpon jumps but the one thing to remember is this.....
No matter how much you practice you will probably not be ready the first few shots you have. The rush of adrenaline when you see your first large tarpon hopefully will not mess up your casting as much as it did mine. Not spotting fish can be frustrating as your guide tells you where to look and you see nothing. The best solution for this is to book at least four days of fishing. After a few missed shots or a suicidal fish like mine you will relax and be able to take advantage of all that practice.
I hope this helps and good luck on your next tarpon trip."
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Sale
This week we are offering all of our leaders and tippet on sale for 20% off.
We have just added Seaguar Grand MAX to our already large selection of fluorocarbon tippet.
Use the coupon code LEADERTIPPET20 at checkout to stock up on leaders, tippet, RIO VersiLeaders and Airflo Polyleaders.
Click Here to shop for Leaders and Tippet |
