Holiday Steelheading Pays Off

Went steelheading one more time today. It started out with a bang ... I had 2 in the net by 8:00 a.m. Then lost a nice brown at about 10:30. I fished until 2:30 and did not have another bite. There was a lot of ice in the river today after the cold weather from yesterday. It appears long rodding is coming to an end. Here are a few pics from the week:

So long, old friends!

Laid this pair of old wading boots to rest today. So long, boys! We spent some awesome time together in the lakes and streams!

BIG FISH 365 to air on January 8th.

Big Fish 365 will air for the first time on Sunday, January 8th, at 7:30 a.m. (Central). Check out their website too at Big Fish 365. Some really cool stuff on there!

Steelies of Winter

Not quite as dramatic, but a really nice fish none the less! The video starts near the end of the fight.

Powerful Winter Steelhead

This one was a SCREAMER! Turn your volume up! I was by myself so the video quality is lacking. If only I had 3 hands. :)

Not what I wanted, but ...

After reading numerous reports about the great Brown bite going on in Milwaukee and being in need of Brown eggs ... I drove over this morning to fish a few hours. Most of the gates were locked at McKinley but I was able to sneak onto one set. Got a buck Steelie at 6:30 a.m. and then did not have another bite until about 10:30 ... when I got a twin to the first fish. And that was it. No Browns, no eggs. Hopefully that will all change next week.

You've got to love winter steelheading!

Man ... I hope it NEVER freezes over this winter!

All on eggs cured in Fire Brine:

Know it or not ... you NEED this stuff!

You can get Fire Brine at Lake Michigan Angler. They have it in the store now and it will be available online in about a week

They like Fire Brine!

Fished for about 6 hours yesterday ... went 7 for 9. It didn't matter what color of sacks I used ... they ate them! The only "unfortunate" part was ... they bit so well I just kept fishing the same run all day and didn't do any exploring. Now I'll have to do it once the ice forms.

Little fishy ... I have candy for you little fishy!!!!!!

1/32 oz rabbit fur jig with a 3" Power Bait trout worm trailer. Yum, yum!

"Cold Water Release"

Photo from December 10th outing. Taken with an iPhone4.

"Open Ice" Steelheading

Determined to find some open water I scouted around enough yesterday to find a few holes in the marina and one in the river. Went 5 for 7 in the two spots. Pretty unique fishing ... tossing floats into open holes in the ice.

These guys are having some serious fun!

Last trip with the long rods?

Fished in the rain all morning Saturday in a new spot. I had never been their before and needed to do some exploring, but it was WELL worth the time and effort. Found 3 holes and a pile of fish! Went 3 for 7 with about 15 to 18 take downs. The steelies were all chrome ... looked like they came straight from the lake that morning. They had to be hauling ... I was a long way from the lake!

Curing single eggs

Here's a great article on curing single eggs using Pautzke's new Fire Brine. Single eggs are not a bad idea on those days when the fish are extremely finicky. Here's a link: Pautzke's Fire Brine