Rouge River

[lansdowne03]

Hi there today i was out by the rouge river and see some trout swimming was 2 swimming together but lost them and than this huge one but it looks so battered, to get to my question i threw everything mepps, roe, trout bait powerbait, marshmallows, and even worms, not a single bite. I was at the bend of the river and it was clearly deep pool i estimate it at about 5-6ft deep. When i did manage to see the big trout i threw the mepp,worms, etc and not even a single bite . What am i doing wrong any tips? forgot to mention i was out from 1-4pm

 

[blair]

,

 

[staffman]

Blair's last statement is an excellent summary , and is something all steelheaders have faced.

 

[lansdowne03]

Yeah thanks for the reply i get what you mean i even managed to get the lures go past his face and not even a follow. It was huge,figured it was a trout cause it look so battered, its fins were ripped some discoloration etc.

 

[salmotrutta]

The more you can understand the fish's thinking the better, and every time you go out you learn a little more.

A spawned out beat up male steelhead in June is likely just waiting to die. They're not all repeat spawners - I think most of them only spawn once.

Unlike salmon, steelhead continue to feed, unless they are in really bad shape, like perched in a shallow bank, facing the wrong direction, swimming on an angle, etc.

If it's not showing any of the aforementioned signs of serious fatigue, it will still be far less keen to feed than it was in April or May. Your presentation needs to be near perfect. At dawn or dusk is probably best.

In late May, one of my favourite things to do is to drop a worm in a pool just as it's starting to rain. The rain drops create some cover for me, and most of the time this will produce a steelhead with only one drift. You can do the same thing in the middle of a rainfall or after, though you may get soaked.

For late spring steelhead, sometimes I will drift worms into a pool for 2-3 hours before one of them finally takes it, other times they take it almost immediately. They are not actively feeding this late into the season, so the onus is on you to entice a bite.

If you're fishing a popular area - most of those fish have been caught a few times already this season - which makes them even more fatigued.

 

[LICENSETOPIN]

^^ Some valid points you got there however im pretty sure that all steelhead are repeat spawners... given the fact that they make it back to the lake. A good example of this is the fish that are tagged years ago and are still caught in the rivers during the spawning run. Now with that being said there are alot of factors that could lead to steelhead dying after spawning. The greatest threat to them is stress, and stress for steelhead come in MANY MANY ways. Water temp, fishing pressure, water levels, not enough food in the specific river system etc. All could add up and could lead to them dying. Just think how much energy they waste when spawning, they run miles up the rivers jumping obstacles and such never mind the stress that spawning itself brings onto them. There isnt a whole lot of food for them to regenerate energy in rivers as well. Truthfully fishing for them this late in the season in the temps we have arent really helping them either. Fighting a fish in warmer waters will tire it out way faster than if the water was still cold and if not properly released then they will certainly die. I tend to stop fishing for trout in rivers when its hot enough to wear shorts and a t shirt while fishing, try to give them a chance to get back to the lake so you can catch em when their heartier and stronger again.

Just my 2.

 

[float^drifter]

unlike chinnoks that spawn only once steelhead can spawn up to 2 or 3 times.

 

[salmotrutta]

I was reading statistics about ocean steelhead - I could imagine that Great Lakes steelhead have a higher repeat spawning population as the distance they travel up our tiny tribs is probably significantly less than ocean steelhead which run much further up rivers.

Since salmon don't seem to be reproducing very well in Ontario, it's probably better to keep a female salmon for roe in the fall and thus avoid harvesting any steelhead. No sense in eating steelhead as that is the last reason to be fishing for them. Especially from Lake Ontario.

I personally use 10lb test line when steelhead fishing and I rarely have to "fight them out". I also bring a long let. They are always released with plenty of energy. I have never fished with light line and maybe this is possible with light line too - but I would recommend using heavier line for those anglers wishing to safely release their fish. Bringing a net is wise unless of course you can handle the fish gently without one.

I saw a fishing show where the host was tiring out the fish prior to landing it. Yes you can revive a fish but as mentioned spawning is stressful enough on them - being fought to exhaustion can't be doing them any good!

When your steelhead makes a run for that submerged tree or beaver dam - you'll be happy to have 10lb test!

Some other factors to consider when targeting steelhead in June: Mosquitos are an annoyance, you will accidentally hook up with baby steelhead which is annoying as they are the future big ones, and next year remember to start earlier