I prefer to Nymph Fish for Steel Head. Have done pretty well over the past couple of years. I moved out here from Montana about 5 years ago. Went into a Fly shop and asked how to catch Steelhead, the guy gave me some good advice and told me to fish the same way we did in Montana for trout. I prefer to fish a big fly on top (Kilowat, Egg sucking leach, Etc) and drop an egg pattern. Have done much better using this technique than swinging. Yet to catch a steel head swinging flies. I have caught plenty of other salmon, dollies, trout swinging just no Steel yet. Those thingamabobber really have allowed me to drift nymph some big flies. Just bought some eggs from trout beads per Coley G's suggestion thanks and hopefully the floods wont last too long.