FishwithJD

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Still time for huge B.C. steelhead!

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big B.C. steelhead.jpg

I just got off the phone with my pal Gill McKean of West Coast Fishing Adventures in Terrace, B.C. and he told me I should hop on a plane immediately and head for Canada, where he has been absolutely whacking big steelies to 20 pounds like the 20 pounder above (on flies!) and lots of rainbows.

“It’s been nuts, eh!” said Mckean. “The other day I had 4 guys out and they had a fish hooked up literally on every cast! Of course, it’s not always like that, but we have been having some awesome late-season fishing.”
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Fall Chum Fishing

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Though they/ve long been treated like the red-headed stepchildren of the salmon world, chum salmon are starting to gain a pretty dedicated following these days. When you take a closer look, it’s easy to see why – chums are plentiful and can sometimes top 20 pounds; they bite great and are absolutely tenacious when hooked.

The only real downside to them is they are not as tasty as kings, reds and silvers. But that’s really not a problem — just keep a couple reds for the freezer and then have a ball catching and releasing chums all day long!

chum salmon
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Hook Rigging for Small Plugs?

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JD

On your idea of using a #50 hot shot for spring Chinook: When you change out the hook and use the barrel swivel– do you remove the split ring and attach the barrel swivel directly to the screw eye? Or do you attach the barrel swivel to the split ring?

Thanks, Chris

Hey Chris, I take a small set of needle nose pliers and open the screw eye on the plug and attach the swivel there. With a split ring and barrel swivel, run you run the risk of adversely affecting the plugs action.

Flouro Leaders for Kings?

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Hey JD, I read the article on your website that you wrote on flatlining plugs. . . I was wondering if you always use a 10ft 20-25lb flouro leader? I have never put much thought into having low visibility line when pulling plugs for salmon(trolling I do). . . I’ve always done ok tying a bright colored braid to a swivel then have a 4 or 5-foot flouro or mono leader.

Do you think, in clear waters like the upper Trinity or the Sac(when it gets low), that having a long(10ft) flouro leader as opposed to a 4 or 5 footer will bring in more fish?

Great article by the way!

Thanks, Danny

Danny,

Yea, in clear water I think it really helps to have a longer leader. However, kings can also be pretty oblivious to leaders when they’re aggressive and on the chew. I’m not quite confident enough in that to run braid straight to my plugs, however, so the abrasion resistant qualities of flouro help keep big teeth from sawing through your leader…