by JD on February 23, 2010

Young gun Jake Martinson headed for River X on the Olympic Peninsula in mid February for a little suntan and steelie combo action. This big, chrome hen was caught drifting bait and was released after a quick grip and grin. Even for a young buck, Jake knows better than most that big girls like this are much more valuable in the water than on the ‘que.
At the end of the month, you’ll get a chance to vote for Jake in the February Hawg of the Month contest. If you’ve got a photo of a big fish, enter the contest.
Okay, so our first few days on Washington’s Olympic Peninsula didn’t exactly pan out from a steelheading standpoint. Cold rain, sleet, poor fish returns and rising water all conspired against us. But Days 1-3 paled in comparison to what awaited us on our final day…
Mike B. called it the “wost conditions” he’d ever endured on a river. I put it right up there behind the famed “Hunt for Mr. Hogito” day on Oregon’s Elk River many moons ago. Big Worm said…well…he didn’t say a thing but it’s safe to say he’d rather been somewhere else…say in a hot tub with a couple French bikini models, for example.
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Jake “The Giant” Martinson is a cool kid I used to work with in Alaska who’s turned into quite the steelhead angler. Here’s a photo of a 20-pounder he caught and released last weekend near Forks, WA on the Olympic Peninsula.
I’ll step aside here and let the kid tell how it all went down…
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