I just spent the last 4 days on the lower Rogue doing some recon. Water conditions are perfect and the local gear fisherman are doing quite well. The challenge of winter steelhead fishing is getting your swung fly in front of fish that is in the mood. As a swing fisherman, connecting with a fresh coastal winter steelhead is the most rewarding moment in a steelheaders evolution. I had a conversation recently with a Forest Service official who was curious how many fish we caught compared to gear fisherman. I told him that we catch about a tenth as many fish as they do. But, when you do catch that perfect chrome fish on a swung fly that you cast and presented to that fish, it is ten times more exciting, ten times more deserved and ten times more memorable. That is why we do it. Catching a steelhead from an anchored boat with a Hot Shot plug is considered fishing and certainly exciting, if that is what you are into, but it is not angling. Our anglers work hard for every take, every fish on, and every fish that comes to hand.

Winter steelheading with a swung fly is the pinnacle of steelheading in my opinion, and we are lucky to have the resources, the clients, and of course, the passion to pursue these fish in this manner.

We are very excited about this winter. So far, our coastal rivers are getting good returns. In three days of fishing this week, my scouting partner had two encounters on day two. Neither fish wanted the hook in its mouth. Such is luck. Unfortunately I had to take a day off to take care of some business. Then yesterday, I went out solo for a morning on the lower Rogue and caught my first steelhead of the season. Oddly enough, the 8lb native buck ate my fly while I was stripping in my shooting line between casts. As he made his first run, I was able to clear all the shooting line as it came tight with the reel. As the battle ensued, I found great pleasure in the fact that I hooked one before the anchored boat across the river from me, who was sporting several lines in the water. As I brought the fish to hand and grabbed the leader, I had a brief moment to admire its beauty before the hook popped out and it swam back our into its native waters. I had to stand there a moment and take it all in. It's encounters like that which fuel our souls as we feel the pull towards the lower reaches of our favorite winter steelhead rivers. We welcome anyone who shares the same passion and is ready for the most challenging, yet rewarding season of steelhead fishing, the winter steelhead.