Only one big problem Nymph, he's fishing on the OP, and some big fish there. Fly rods are designed for certain size lines/flies. You can overline the rods, or even oversize your tippets, but rods won't handle it on a fight. You just put the weakest link of the outfit from the line to the rod. I'd rather snip a leader then my rod. I personally wouldn't go below a 7wt (and that's a spey rod, or 10' one hander) and prefer an 8' for single hand. Then go bigger for winterruns (minimum 8wt and up to 9/10wt for tips). I've battled quite a few fish on the Hoh with a 5wt, and worse experience in my life (young kid trying to fish for "trout" and end up hooking into a big steelhead). Took all I had to land that fish, and was near exhausted when I did. Key is to land the fish as quick as possible. Now, if it was a spey 5/6wt, maybe. A bit more play in the rod. Similar to a noodle rod. But still, you'll be beating the crap out of the fish. A heavier tippet/leader won't help you bring the fish in quicker when your rod will be working way too hard.