I have caught many sturgeon, but no monsters. Mainly fish "other" rivers. But Bob has it right. BIG STOUT rods, reels, and Tuff Line Plus. Any of the Spectra lines will work. The anchor rope should be at least three times longer than deeper. The best anchor set up is a break away with a large bouy so you can get back to it. If you carry nothing else carry a SHARP serrated knife like a Spyderco or Benchmade. If the rope gets hooked by a log or the boat starts going under, that knife will cut through rope fast.The best bait for monsters is shad by far as everyone has said. Keepers seem to like smelt or sandshrimp. I use spawn wrap to keep trash fish from pecking the bait off too fast. Also use very sharp hooks. I use Gami 7/0 barbless. The leader should be heavy dacron. Most of this you probably know but just in case I thought I would put it out for others too. BTW, my first sturgeon was a keeper caught on 15 pound mono and a 10 foot surf rod. THAT was a blast, but next trip was up to 30 pound mono. This was from the bank on the Chehalis. Good luck and welcome to the world of "DAMN, That fish is HUGE".

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Just because I look big, dumb, and ugly, doesn't mean I am. It means I can stomp you for calling me it!