FOR NEWBIES TO STEEL

with all the rain today i figured i would clean up the bag today cause with the rivers open once again the next few days should be ok. so cleanin it up i figured i would do a report for those just gettin into steel. this is all basic knowledge for the vetrans. first ill start with the bag. when u see most steelheaders there sporting some kind of fishing vest. i prefer the side sachel for many reasons. i carry lots of stuff in it. not so much in winter but its a mobile tackle shop come spring. i found over the yrs with all that weight in the pockets pulling down on a vest your neck pays a for it come end of day. i sure a few steeler like branton or the crowelys would agree.the side sachel takes care of that problem and holds a lot of gear. on that or your vest you'll need a good pair of nail clippers and forceps. the clippers come in handy for cuttin line (instead of using teeth) and gettin roe bags off your hook. forceps are a givin . small hooks are hard to grab and forceps make it easier on u and the fish. so as we venture into the bag we'll start with the yellow container and weight tubes. the container holds a variety of diff hook sizes , rubbers for floats , swivels and big weights. the tubes are full of the small split shots you use on your line. i etched with a dremel the hook size number on the plastic . just keeps everything organized and together. next we got the fly box. jigs have really grown in popularity for steelheading this past few yrs. they are very effective.this is just a a winter box i carry. i have 8 more i carry come spring. the jigs can represent minnows , leeches and other small critters. there is a stonefly hatch that does happen in febuary hense all the black flies. there are millions in the water and when they start to feed on them thats pretty much what there only lookin for. next is the worms. majority pink. for some reason they love it. the others are more for spring and clear water. i carry a variety of sizes to go with water cons and clarity. and yes if u had a sharp eye u did see some 4" skinny senkos in there. floats. all diff sizes and shapes for different water cons and different presentations. the bigger the float the more current u can grab.hense makin your float move faster . oppoiste for skinny float. the two bottom ones are night floats.i'll do a report on that later in spring. some of the best fishin is done in the dark. last is real bait. salted minnows. roe is by far the number one bait used . but the roe bite does die off. and really when ya think about it there aint no roe out in the lake. so what do those fish eat? minnows. i find these work well on fresh fish near mouths of rivers. so that just a small peek into my winter steel bag. hope it helped out some of you new to steel folks. conditions and tactics are the hardest thing to learn and adapt to when steelhead fishin. takin me a long time to learn how to read water. so dont get discouraged . just keep at it and start a conversation with a fellow angler. its amazing what ya can learn if ya nice and polite.