Northwest Fishing Reports

I am looking for Steelheaders opinions on drift fishing for STEELHEAD, not salmon. As i read through these articles, i continue to see people being accused for drift fish for steelhead, and calling them FLOSSERS. Although this may be true in specific locations, such as barrier dam on the Cowlitz, my father has fished for steelhead for 50 years, back when the skagit was the best river in the country. He drift fished corkees with eggs and shrimp his entire life, and never, ever foul hooked or flossed a fish. They would swallow the bait half way to their intestines half the time. I have been fishing for steel my whole life too, and i drift fish, because i cant stand watching my bobber, i like to feel the bites. But i notice people now days are calling this flossing? Are you saying this because you KNOW these people are flossing and have seen them before? Because let me tell you, drifting eggs and a corkee on the bottom in our rivers, where steelhead ARE NOT as thick as pinks, it is impossible to floss one. They bite, steelhead sit on the bottom, and love to see eggs by their face. i have never flossed a steelhead drift fishing in my life. THE MAIN QUESTION BEING: do you bobber steelheaders truely believe all drifters are flossing some if not all fish? or is there more involved in these posts where many people are saying "come on drifters, get it right" accusing them of snagging, where i have caught over 50 steel this winter, 40 bottom bounced and NONE flossed or snagged. Please guys, i want honest opinions, not looking to start a stupid fight over snagging or bobbers being the true way, because in my families experience, its not.

Not sure what the intention of this post is but you are kind of all over the board with your definitions of different techniques. I thinj it is pretty clear to EVERYONE that if you drift bait the fish are voluntarily taking the bait.... if you fish cheaters and yarn there is a chance of fish being flossed but personally I think steelhead have too small of mouths and don't swim gape jawed like salmon so flossing steelys is kind of a ridiculous concept. Not only that but steelhead, unlike salmon, actively feed in the rivers so they will strike cheaters and yarn with scent added.

I don't think you can lump "bobber fisherman" all in one catagory either, most people who are serious about river fishing know that different techniques work under different circumstances. Any fisherman who uses only 1 technique in all conditions is just downright foolish and is likely overlooking the true potential for much of the water they fish.

.02

Matt, i agree with you, its almost impossible to floss a steelhead. And im not trying to say all bobber fishermen are Strictly bobber fishermen, i catch them on bobbers too. but many are, im telling you i have had bobber fishermen tell me i was predominantly snagging by drifting eggs for steelhead. And i see this on the site a lot also. I just wanted to see how many people think this, even though bait covering a hook drifting by hungry steelhead being called flossing is ridiculous... Although u already have, read the argument in the first 5 pages of season trophies, people getting their heads cut off for being drift fishermen... i wanted to know if these people had reputations for being steelhead snaggers, or if people actually thought they were snagging while drifting for steelhead. Heres a good example, and i quote... "But you drifters(flossers) no offense, I know what I know and seen what I seen." this part "drifter(flossers)" is what confuses me matt.

Be careful of what you're doing here, don't want to stir the pot anymore.

Don't take it personal, I believe the flossers that JENS were accusing of was his buddies on the site.

Other than that, I"m not sure why there's tension between float fisherman and drift fisherman, I don't see it here too much, more on other sites. Personally use what ever you've got confidence with.

Sounds good, glad to see this isnt a site full of the people i seem to fish around on my rivers. What i mentioned is what they honestly believe and i just wanted to see if this is a common thing or not. And yes, i knew this would "Stir the pot" but its going well so far... lol i serious wanted to know though, the float fishing superiority is getting bad here, i simply wanted some new opinions

Yeah I feel exactly the same way. flossing a steelhead is almost impossile, plus they bite bait really well so there wouldn't be any need too.

Not again! Drift fishin' is great for moving water, but bobbers are good for slower water or snaggy bottoms. It's not just preference, it's what the fish want. If they're suspended in a lot of slow moving deep water, then throw a bobber, if they're hugging the bottom at the top of a rocky run, drift. Take two rods, I always do. Drift fishing isn't flossing unless you know there is a fish, and cast in front of it and sety the hook when it's not a hit. You can tell the difference between lining a fish and a strike. I don't have anything against flossers either, just big treble hooks and pen lead.

natetreat wrote:Not again! Drift fishin' is great for moving water, but bobbers are good for slower water or snaggy bottoms. It's not just preference, it's what the fish want. If they're suspended in a lot of slow moving deep water, then throw a bobber, if they're hugging the bottom at the top of a rocky run, drift. Take two rods, I always do.

+ 1 million

S'all good!!!!! Flame On!!!!

PS my dentist always makes sure I floss enought........

Hey ff,i think you have barrier mixed up with blue creek.barrier is a slow pool with a tail out ending the drift. It is a great place to fish jigs, bait ect because it its a slow drift.now down at blue creek there is a stretch of very fast water before the creek that people use cannon balls, 7-9' leaders and there is no way at all to feel a bite being that your drift is literally seconds long.too some this may be considered steel heading, however to most, it is flossing.take it for what its worth, do what you do best, just giving examples of how these fish can be, and are flossed

Just keep fishing the way you are fishing and screw everyone else ..........my .02

scott080379 wrote:Just keep fishing the way you are fishing and screw everyone else ..........my .02

Brian, think a moment about what happens in a fast water drift. If you need a ton of lead just to get down the chances of flossing a fish are next to none as the strong current will have the leader running straight downstream. A fish picked up in those conditions almost never needs a hookset as the current and sharp hooks will do all the work for you. It is in the slower moving waters that flossing becomes possible and even then you need to be reeling in your gear to get any kind of angle on your leader to make it probable.

this thread is gonna go no where fast. Drift fishing is a great way to learn, and to some it provides constant fish. Most who have evolved their techniques outside of drift fishing have realized there is a harder more rewarding strike on other methods that make them feel like drift fishing is not the way to go. I drift fish for salmon, however there is nothing better to me than a spoon hit from a pissed off metal head. My .02:cheers: I do believe there is a substantial difference whether you are drifting bait or two small red beads, that's a game changer.

Matt wrote:Not sure what the intention of this post is but you are kind of all over the board with your definitions of different techniques. I thinj it is pretty clear to EVERYONE that if you drift bait the fish are voluntarily taking the bait.... if you fish cheaters and yarn there is a chance of fish being flossed but personally I think steelhead have too small of mouths and don't swim gape jawed like salmon so flossing steelys is kind of a ridiculous concept. Not only that but steelhead, unlike salmon, actively feed in the rivers so they will strike cheaters and yarn with scent added.

I don't think you can lump "bobber fisherman" all in one catagory either, most people who are serious about river fishing know that different techniques work under different circumstances. Any fisherman who uses only 1 technique in all conditions is just downright foolish and is likely overlooking the true potential for much of the water they fish.

.02

What? Did we just become best friends? (Quote from the movie Step Brothers)

I don't fish the Cowlitz very much, but from what I have seen and been told and like Brian253 says, Barrier and Blue Creek are two types of water. I have seen the water that guys fish at the mouth of Blue Creek. It is very fast and I know Steelhead do not stack up like Salmon do, but they sure do there. Seeing a 2oz cannonball is quite the norm and a leader running 7-12ft.
I drift fish and have had success. I drift sandshrimp and eggs. I'll drift a pink worm in there too. But my bread and butter is bobber and jigs.
Did I hit a sensitive spot bro?

It really doesn't matter what type of fishing method you prefer as long as you show some sportsmanship and the fish is legally hooked. I drift fish probably 60-70% of the time because I usually target salmon and I rarely fish pools of water that are bobber friendy. I do use a bobber when the conditions call for it and I usually have pretty good luck with them too, but I just don't fish those waters much. That being said I don't need to use outrageously long leaders and 2oz of weight to catch a fish, and I hate nothing more than watching people cast out and then set the hook EVERY cast. However, even if you're using a 10 ft leader and a 3/0 hook, if a fish is hooked from the gill plate forward, the laws state it's legal. I'm not saying I agree with that type of fishing/mentality, but as long as the law allows anything hooked outside of the mouth AT ALL to be kept, then in my opinion the "bobbers rule" guys are just making themselves sound like a bunchof snobby elitists, kindof like the (not entirely fair) stereotype that fly fishermen have. (and I grew up flyfishing the rockies in utah, so I can bash on them too )

The moral of the story is that if you can ETHICALLY AND LEGALLY catch a fish, then do it however you please and screw all the haters. For most of us fishing is supposed to be a fun, relaxing activity and a chance to get out and enjoy the outdoors, so don't let some jerk with a superiority complex ruin your day!

"Bobbers Rule Guys?" What the? Snobby elitist? Is there a dead horse around? 10ft leader and 3/0 hook? Use a size 4 hook and 12 ft leader. You'll get em in the mouth every time. Legal.

The guy I float rivers with loves to drift, and I love to use my bobber. Last fall we floated the Nisqually, and he had a 10" cutthroat take his corkie. TROUT, EAT, ANYTHING that resembles food.

I love all the young and the restless drama around here.

Oh and one other thing. I watched Jens catch a nice 33/34 inch steelie drifting eggs. He definitely didn't floss the fish, but the fish flossed the hell out of his finger!

jtrapier wrote: and I hate nothing more than watching people cast out and then set the hook EVERY cast.

Usually they set the hook A FEW TIMES each cast. We call them "snaggers" [-x .

All this thread needs now is someone posting pictures and joking about how they snag bull head and flounder, then it will end just like every other flossing vs snagging vs drift fishing debate!! Joy