Category: Articles

Winter steelhead are a finicky bunch. Something that produced fish one day won't the next for no reason apparent to us steelheaders. It's no secret that roe catches fish but as fall progresses to winter and spawning salmon have gone, the roe bite starts to die off. Sure it can have its days all winter … Continue reading 3 Winter Steelhead Baits You Shouldn’t be Without

I was lucky when I was young to have such strong angling influences in my life, most notably my father and my uncles. Without these influences I probably would have never picked up a fishing rod. The beauty of tagging along with these guy was that they fished for anything and everything that swam, and … Continue reading Three Things I Wish I’d Known When I Started Steelheading

It surprises me how few people are twitching jigs for river salmon here in the Great Lakes. When I ask around I get a pretty common answer as to why: that’s more of a west coast thing. Of course that answer comes from those who have heard of it, but in all honesty, most people … Continue reading Twitching Jigs for Great Lakes Salmon

Fishermen love to talk fishing. Most are opinionated people so it really didn’t surprise me that when the topic of the ultimate lure came up the other day, everyone had a different answer. From cranks to jerkbaits, tubes to swimbaits everyone had a favorite and I listened intently to the reasoning behind each one. None … Continue reading The Ultimate Fish Catcher

Well the trout opener here in Ontario has come and gone and the rivers have been inundated with anglers itching to do some open water fishing. I’d like to be that stand up guy and say how nice it is to see people getting out on the water, taking in the great past time that … Continue reading #keepemwet

This article was originally published in Great Lakes Angler Magazine The head shakes reverberated through the rod, into my arm and deep into my shoulder. It was a good fish and I was losing control of it. Too much pressure; not enough pressure; the reel slipped through my fingers as I struggled to find a … Continue reading The Centerpin Revolution

The dog days of summer are upon us. While most of us are soaking up the summer sun, enjoying every waking minute of what seems to be the shortest of the seasons, my thoughts have already begun to turn. To what you ask? Chinook of course. But here in the Great Lakes we’re still weeks … Continue reading Kings of Summer

There is so much debate lately over harvesting fish. It’s not clear what side of the argument is more prominent, catch and keep or catch and release. The debate seems to have no grey area either. You either keep fish or you practice catch and release and each side is hating on the other. There … Continue reading Selective Harvest

I know from experience that getting started in steelheading can be an intimidating thing. A quick walk down any popular steelhead river will yield ideas of having to spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars to get in the game. Believe me, that time will come, but it’s not necessary right off the bat. Ease … Continue reading Steelhead 101: Getting Started

Hardened steelheaders can make a tough pursuit look easy. 10% of the fishermen catch 90% of the fish for a reason. Steelheading isn’t as simple as throwing your line in and hoping for the best. If that’s your approach you may as well pack it in because you’re in for some frustrating time on the … Continue reading Steelheading 101: Know the Fish