It seems that there can't be a cowlitz thread without someone slamming anyone who fishes blue creek. But, at the same time nothing is said about the bumper cars everyone seems to be playing on the Bogachiel. Now I am not to stupid to try to claim that the quality of fishermen or the astetics are the same, but I wonder how many guys actually take the time to find a spot that has not been published a thousand times over somewhere, but still holds fish. The type of spot where you know if you hit it right you should be able to get a fish every time, but would be shocked if you ever saw another person. I can think off the top of my head 15 to 20 rivers that should have steelhead in them that have probably have never been mentioned on this web page, and would really, really piss someone off if they were mentioned by anyone in a report. Places like, the physt, the hoko, waaatch, suez, raft, mosquito creek, Elk river, Germany Creek, Kalaloch, big river, Clallam, Johns River, Sekiu river, Neman, North River, Moclips, Palix, Salt, or a host of others that I and most everyone here has never fished. I know of one river that I was told about that is stocked that almost no one knows about. I was told by someone in the know that it was stocked, but that noone knew. It is so secretly guarded, that when I asked the person who I knew stocked it if it had fish in it, he told me no. The unfortunate thing about it is that it is so far away and so hard to judge the return on, I have only made it twice, once when it was way too high and once when it was too low. Sure enough, while I got skunked the time it was to low (the fish could see me from a mile and the river was barely a trickle), I saw around 8 fish in the few hours I was there. I know Vince has found places like this, and for me, while I love to catch fish, I feel like one fish out of a zipperlip is worth 5 on the Cowlitz.
It seems that most people must love crowds as I fished a small river last year that would qualify as a true zipper lip. Hundreds if not thousands of fisherman pass by it every year, but I doubt if more than a handfull ever fish it. It actual got mentioned here once, and a firestorm erupted. But when I fished it several times last year, I never saw another soul fishing it. I walked about a mile of river bank without seeing a footprint (this was during a dry spell). Out of three or four trips I have ever fished it, I only got one fish, but it was a beautiful 12+pound native. I would love to hear your opinions and perhaps some stories about your unnamed zipperlip river.

I fish a speyrod so most of the time little rivers dont really suit my style. Rather I just fish places where there are fewer fish but probably more fish per angler. Alot of examples of these right now that are pretty well known. Even a less crowded stretch of a popular river is cool with me, I live in seattle so I cant be too choosy. For summers, I've got some places scoped that are off trail and in wilderness and they're pretty sweet but the fish usually only bite at dawn and dusk, so you pretty much have to camp.

10 dollars will get you a copy of this map to my "secret" spot.

Zip #1: First time I ever fished it, I caught a clean 8# wild hen steelhead. Fished it twice a season for the next 3 years and never touched another fish.

Zip #2: First time I fished it, I caught a cleaned up hatchery kelt. Next several times, zippo. Then one day late in the season for hatchery fish, I hooked 4 wild fish. This river isn't noted for it's wild fish. The following season, I fished it one day and caught 5 hatchery kelts, followed by a few skunkings. Last Friday, I hooked, then lost a bright hatchery steelhead.

Those 2 hatchery summer runs from the Cowlitz last October really weren't so bad.

Conclusion: zips ain't all they're cracked up to be. But I do have less company there.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

I first started steelhead fishing in 1979, and I didn't catch my first 20 pounder until 1989---on a zipper stream no less. It was on the first cast with a spoon into the first hole of the morning just below the launch. When I set the hook the raft drifted toward the fish as it bucked toward the surface trying to shake the spoon loose. My net was ready since I was fishing alone so I floated up on this fish and netted it on the surface less that 10 seconds after I hooked it. A twenty year pursuit was over in moments.

I caught three more nice steelhead that day and never saw another person. And like Salmo said, I've been back numerous times and have never hooked another fish there.

I started looking a streams, from North to south that flow into the ocean, then checked the regs to find out if they were open, then called the regional office to find out if they were stocked, and asked for dates that were considered the best return dates, and asked for the guestimate on return percentage... after that, I ruled out the ones on reservation land, and ruled out the ones with the least info available, and then started to figure out if there was access to the rivers...

After one trip... my son was born and now until he is big enough to go with me, I am only fishing saltwater in the boat. In the boat, he is my partner until the day I expire. BUT, I am looking forward to him growing and hitting the rivers.

There is a lot of info out there, for "Zipperlip" rivers, it just takes a month or so to get it together and make some choices on where to go. My one outing was good. wish I would have put the date in the fishing log.

1. Good topo maps.
2. Read the SASSI report.
2. GPS in your vehicle, maybe a handheld, too.
3. If no handheld, then get a compass.
4. Drive, look at the maps and GPS, get out and hike.
5. Fish.

Be willing to hike around a lot, be willing to fish streams that aren't stocked, be ready to have a handful of disappointments before finding a gem...and then hold those gems close to your vest.

There are a ton of streams that aren't listed in the regs because they fall under "general stream" rules...or at least don't mention steelhead specifically in the special rules sections, just stuff like "Two Trout over 14, selective gear rules" and the like.

It also really helps to have some sense of the basic biological needs of the fish you're targeting...if you have that, then the topo maps are your best friends, along with a calendar...it doesn't do you much good to fish a stream that has everything you want, but to fish it six weeks too late for when the fish are there, or to fish an area six miles from where the fish are in the stream.

Once you've located likely streams that combine the fish you're after (SASSI), with areas that satisfy the geographic/biologic needs of the fish you are after (topo maps and calendar), drive as close as you can get to those areas (GPS), and get out and hike (compass, handheld GPS).

Then fish.

Don't expect people who have put in that work to share the information...but if they do, don't share it further for them. It's a true gift for someone to give up spots they've located in that manner, and further sharing them without their OK not only will get you cut off from further spots, but may contribute to having them feel like their work has been wasted.

I've been lucky enough to have a handful of fishing partners who do that kind of work, too, and so long as the information is kept in-house, it's pretty freely shared amongst us...makes for some good fishing trips!!

Fish on...

Todd

If I had the time, money, no wife and kids, I'd be all over a lot of the "zipperlips" in our state.

As it is, even knowing the "where", I will probably never make it out there, as I don't have the above.

Oh well, I don't take my fishing trips for granted now, seeing how they are so limited.

I try to fully enjoy each and every trip and the company I fish with. ( I don't enjoy fishing solo).

( clouds part, sun beams in) sigh. you are preachin to the choir mang. Yeah i got zippers. caught my first 20 lbs in a zipper. then everyone told everyone about it and its F****** loaded with yay-hoo's. another zipper i have had 15 summer fish days. not a sole around. hahaha hyes vince is the king of research and exploring. But man are his spots awesome. Most ppl arent as dedicated as most of us on here. they dont have time to do hard research on the internet or calling hatcherey's ( yeah, done that) or they are just plain lazy. thats why you keep it " in-house" I know that i can tell Vince every spot i know and not worry about it turning into a zoo. pick your fishing partners.


One of my zippers was the best river all around for steelhead. little river pretty local. then it started to turn into the owlitz with every other yay-hoo comin out. shoot, the small parking area would be packed an hour before dawn. I just shook my head. then one day i was fishing on the SkookumSKunk river and these three guys were just Blabber mouthing this river in loud voices in front of 10 or so yay- hoo's


i walked over to him and asked him how he found out about that river. As directions can be tricky, you pretty much have to drive someone there to show them hoe to get there. In fact i am personally responsible for tearing out some signs that ppl put up to create directions to get there. He said some guy told him about it and took him and a couple of his buddies down there and they hooked a bunch of fish. I said

" dude, do you fish the cowlitz?"
"yeah"

" do you enjoy the crowds?"

"F888 no!!, pain in the ass jet sleds and bank maggotts you spend more time tying up from the sleds and other bankies then you do hang up on the bottom"

" So why are you just shouting about a nice river with low crowds?"

" uhhhhh... just talkin with my buddies about how good of fishing it was."

in a quiet voice " Well thats why that river is packed full of ppl now. ppl like you telling everyone and there brother about this "hot" river has turned it into a zoo. do you know i used to fish that and be THE ONLY PERSON on the river??"

" no way, your kidding me, theres alot of ppl on that first stretch by the parking lot."

" yeah i know, i spent alot of time driving these loggin roads and callin hatcherey's and internet research to find this road and river. Now its the mini cowlitz. "

" wow"

"yeah"

" So i would appriciate it if you could keep your success to yourself. Unless you like crowds."

" I guess i never thought about it"

i used to post reports on the internet. then i saw firsthand of what happens when you loudmouth fishing spots, now i don't do that any more. nothing irritates me more than somebody who doesn't want to take any chances or do a little research into where they want to go fishing, and expect somebody to tell them all of that.

There is more than one type of zipper. Bill Herzog and I fish a local zipper every year. No we don't catch a ton of fish. last year we hooked two and one was a downstreamer. But there are some fish around and I never see another sould on "my" river. I would rather catch a fish every two or three trip to my zipper than limit every day for the rest of my life at one of the terminal zoos.

Very well spoken Dave!

Some aren't necessarily "secrets"...just "sleepers"...people know of the river, and have heard there's fish there, but either haven't done it, can't figure out where to do it, or haven't had luck when they try it, so don't go back.

Seems to me that one of the pics in Mr. Vedder's new book came from one of those last winter...those are almost more fun than the *real* secret spots!

Fish on...

Todd

definitely true. on some streams it's amazing how the window of opportunity to intercept some of these fish is only a few days. there is one stretch in particular where i fished almost half a dozen times before i even hooked a fish. a lot of times water levels play a huge role. in a few stretches there needs to be a certain amount of water flowing to make this area accessible to fish.

Would all of these "zippers" have a catch record code number, in case a person hooks and retains a hatchery fish (whether a stray or planted there)?

If not, how would a person record a hatchery fish retained on a zipper stream that does not have a catch record code number?

There is infinately more to know about those streams then a name on a map: access points, water levels/clearing times, etc.

Knowing where the best holding water is helps on many streams that offer very little and how to access it. Conditions always change.

It's amazing to me how little useful information there is in guidebooks for streamfishing.

If that is the case, then it would fall under statewide "unclassified" stream regulation, which would then be closed after Oct 31st.. Something to keep in mind when fishing unclassified water..

And Todd, you are right on the money with everything you have said

I think living in my general area ,I can hit 2 to 3 rivers in a day , I cannot count on heresay fishing reports , but built up friendship and trust with a few trusted individuals who know where, how , when to fish . We exchange info on rivers we plan to fish 4 to 5 days before we fish that river ( flow, season, species,etc.) . I'm lucky to know such fishermen who share information which makes my trips rewarding , but i also get skunked time to time, also , "Law of Physics" I guess. I'm still learning and scouting new rivers and having fun doing it!

Just go on an internet bulletin board and ask other people what river is hot right now, but not too crowded. Also ask them what to use.

I don't see what the big deal is.

The lazy worthless slobs that snag/floss are to shiftless to get off thier NASCAR watching duffs and actually hoof it farther than they can drag their coolerful of Busch Light.

The only places you usually see their ilk are "Rest Stop" holes where they can park their schitboxes only a few yards away on a major highway.

That being the case, I don't see the harm in posting reports on places like Mosquito Creek or Dickey River or other equally remote spots up on the OP--places that they would have to put more than $5 worth of gas in their crappy Maverick to get to.

Alright--Im done, it's been a LONG day, and I dont want to get banned.