I am going to just be getting started next year at river fishing. I am mostly a puget sound salmon fisherman. Do you guys have any tips on what to use for bait on rivers (nitecrawlers, eggs??) I am interested in fishing for trout at first, and then moving up to trying for steelhead. Do you use a bobber? Like I said, I am a virgin at this, and I need some help Thanks a ton!!

I know a guy that bounces crawlers on bottom for trout and does really well, he also gets a steelhead once in a while. That's probably the best way to start, but for strictly steelhead fishing I would go with jig and bobber fishing. It's very productive and pretty easy to learn. Just try and keep your jig about a foot off bottom and try different colors and sizes untill you start to catch fish. Steelhead fishing isn't something you can learn overnight so don't get frustrated, keep with it and when you start to catch em you'll be an addict like the rest of us.

Thanks for your help! I have heard people say that just bouncing a crawler off the bottom with a bb split shot is deadly for trout. What size line would you use for this? I normally use 6lb main line, and 4lb leader, but that is for lake fishing. Thanks!

I'm not sure what kind of trout fihsing your going to do or where your going to do it at. For steelhead fishing I usually use a dink float with ten to twelve pound test main line and eight to twelve pound leader. If you need any information on what kinds of rods and reels you need just ask.