Steelhead Float Fishing Technique

"-Steelhead Float Fishing-"

-Video on how to Bait up Roe-

-Video on how to Rig up a Float Rod-

-Video Review of the Drennan Floats-

Steelhead fishing with a float can be one of the most enjoyable ways to catch steelhead. Imagine seeing the bright bobber going through the run and then all of the sudden, its gone! I would look at a stretch of water and think "man this looks like perfect bobber water" but I would never fish it that way. I only wish that I had tried using a float sooner and stuck with it the few times I did try. I went out for a whole day and fished with a float rig until I finally caught a steelhead with it. Man was I missing out, the way the bobber goes down and you know your in for a fight is a great feeling.

There are many advantages to fishing with a float setup compared to other techniques and the first is you lose a lot less gear on the bottom of the river. Since steelhead float fishing I have lost one rig and that is because I made a cast to the far bank and got caught in a bush. Very rarely will you lose your gear from getting hung up on the bottom and if you do all that you have to retie is the leader and your hook or jig. Another plus is that it is easier for a beginning steelheader to catch a fish this way. You just keep an eye on the float and when it goes under, "Set The Hook!" The more experienced float fisherman can also detect strikes by watching how the float reacts or moves in the water. Steelhead are very tricky fish and many times they just mouth your bait or lure. This can make the float stop where it is, or it may start moving up river, if anything unnatural happens "Set The Hook!"

We use a 9'0" to 9'5" ft rod with a 2500 or 3000 series spinning reel. Many people use casting reels and they are just as effective as spinning but take more time to get used to. I prefer my float rod to be a spinning rod and this allows me to fish with light jigs and floats and not worry about backlash. You want a rod that has a medium-fast to fast action so that when the float goes under you can strike and strike fast. I will also use braid on my float rod because it floats on the water and this helps you manage your line and mend it if necessary to make your drift as natural as possible. Another positive with using braid is that it has very little stretch so on those really long drifts you can still get a good hook set when the float goes under. I have been using the new P-Line Hydrofloat line that is designed specifically for steelhead and salmon float fishing. So far this winter it has worked very well for me and float fishing has made up 100% of my winter steelhead fishing thus far. I will be doing a review of the P-line Hydrofloat line in a month or so after I have put it through an entire winter of steelhead float fishing.

A nice part of steelhead float fishing is being able to cast upstream and work twice as much water compared to fishing off the bottom. Once you cast upstream just reel in the slack line and keep as much of the line off the water as possible and once the float passes you back reel or let out line to keep your drift looking natural. Start working the water closest to you and slowly move your presentation further across the river until you cover all of the good holding water. Then you can go up forty feet or so and do it again. You want to keep as much line off the water as possible and this is a good reason for having a longer rod along with the ability to set the hook from further away. If your line does end up on the water just pick it up with your rod tip and mend it back upstream so that you keep your bait and float going down the river at the same speed as the current.

In the picture on the right you can see how to rig up a float. I used yellow line so you can see how it looks but when you rig up you will use a mono or fluorocarbon leader. The first thing you do is put on a bobber stop on your main line and then a small bead that comes with the bobber stops. After the bead you will slide on the float and then tie on the inline weight or swivel. Once this is setup then you tie on your leader and hook, jig or whatever you decide to fish with. I like to have enough weight under my float to just keep it just above water and vertical. This makes detecting bites easier and you can also monitor if your dragging the bottom by how your float sits in the water. If your float is pointing down river than you are probably dragging your bait on the bottom of the river. If the float is pointing up river than you don't have enough weight and the current is pulling your bait down river to fast. You want to be presenting your bait or lure close to the bottom because this is where most steelhead travel and hold. You need to be constantly monitoring your depth and if you aren't having any luck sometimes a few inches up or down can make all the difference in the world. You can click on the picture to the right to see a bigger image with more detail on how to rig up your float rod. I will also be shooting a small video clip on how to rig up for float fishing in a few weeks and I will link it to this page.

Roe works well for winter and summer steelhead and it is what I like to use when the water level is up and has some color to it. Roe has a nice bright color to it and also puts off a lot of sent and this can be the key when visibility is low. Another good lure in this type of water condition is a bright pink jig or a pink worm. When the water visibility starts to get a little clearer I will still use roe but less of it and I will use more jigs. Again pink, black and purple are all good colors when the water level is dropping and clearing. When the water gets really low and clear I will use small jigs tipped with prawn or single egg pattern flies.

This is just a basic how to on float fishing but I hope it gives you the information needed to get your first steelhead under a float! Trust me that once you hook a steelhead with a float you will have a hard time fishing any other way.