I get my copy of STS a couple of months after the rest of you guys so the following quote is from the Dec/ Jan issue:

"I asked [Guy Schoenborn] how he knew when it was time to rear back and drive the hook home. 'Simple" he said 'I just WAIT FOR THE SECOND TUG.'" (p. 34 -- Trey Clarkson's article 'Steelheading "Magic"').

OK, I've read elsewhere about fly fishermen swinging flies and waiting a second or two for the fish to turn before setting the hook so maybe there's something to this delay game (and that's why I made the post).

But having had the rare opportunity to see steelhead take aeroflies/ aeropuffs in ultra clear water I was surprised -- even amazed -- to note (a) how far ahead of the fly the mono entered the water even when the drift felt like it was being handled with minimal slack; (b) how long (several seconds) the fish held the fly in their mouths before they spat it out; and (c)how all this could be going on and the angler not see or feel anything (until the fish swam off, or the line finally came tight on the drift) unless he had a similar 'window' and could see his fly as well.

Now maybe this was under exceptional circumstances -- a gin clear river with steelhead holding in 3 feet of 4 mph water, and a lightly weighted drift rig cast mostly upstream and dead drifted straight down the seam (as opposed to across and swung) but it still made us re-think a lot of what we were doing out there.

At the time my conclusion was that we must be missing about 75% of the takes because we never felt them. (Watching the fly disappear into the fish's mouth certainly improved the detection rate.)

So meanwhile there's a steelhead top gun who's waiting for the SECOND tug before he sets the hook?

Anyone have any thoughts on this other than 'Cross their eyes as soon as you feel a whisper'?

Harware, bobbers, corkies, etc.....set it right away-without a doubt! It only takes em' a split second to figure out it's not real and "spit"- out it goes.

I fish bait 95% of the time and the second tug rule is a rule I have followed for years with great results. Bait is natural and the fish is simply trying to eat it. Give them what they want. At the first nibble/pump of the rod, I immediately lesson thumb pressure and feed a little line. When that second tug occurs, I cross their eyes with a good hookset. Actually, I usually only need to reel up slack(if there is any) and apply even pressure because I typically fish small hooks and the fish usually hooks itself, hence the second pump.

I fish plugs alot in Single barbless areas and the rule is wait!!!! till it barries the tip of the rod. The fish hit it and you wait till it turns or you could pull it out of its mouth. They hit Flys much the same way so if your above the fish, as with plugs, almost always the fish will hit it on the end of the swing and you should wait till it turns because the fish will turn the opposite direction of the initial pull before a good crossing of the eyes.


hope this helps...

Snagly, I read that same passage which lead to an additional 15 minutes of pondering while on the shitter. He could've also been referring to the classic "thump-thump" steelhead bite while drift fishing. These two bumps felt in rapid succession elicits a quick hookset on my part.

But, more likely he's giving us advice he probably gives all his clients. WAIT for the second, third, even fourth takedown, until that rod is buried, before setting. Works for most techniques, especially with good bait.

From my experience if you do not set the hook until the Steely "has it", that second pump, you stand a chance getting him on the next cast or two. If you try to set the hook before he really has it you most likely will never get him to hit again.

Interesting......most of the time I am fishing with only enough lead to tap the bottom every now and again. My Dad always uses way more lead than I do--kinda that "gotta let them look at it" approach. As far as missing 75% of the bites-I think that would only pertain to that type of drift situation(mabye not).I fish alot of faster shutes and pocket water and as fast as some of that rips through there I would be suprised if you missed 10%! At the risk of looking stupid,anybody care to comment on that?

I agree with waiting until the fish has it good, especially on natives. Once they decide they want it they rarely drop it if your fishing bait. I'll usually let them get the rod tip down on me before I set. If they do drop it before you set they'll come back. If they don't, switch baits. I carry shrimp and eggs and if I miss one on shrimp and he won't come back throw the eggs in and most of the time they will take them.

Personally I don't believe long leaders are necessary in most conditions. With standard drift fishing gear such as corkies and spin-n-glows, I never use more than about 24 inches, and even less if visability is 2 feet or less. It would also depend on what type of water I'm fishing. In faster water with a broken surfice, I'm definately going to use shorter leaders. However, if I'm in a smooth slower tailout, I may want to lenghthen it a bit. Steelhead don't know what mono is and generally don't care unless you are in extremely gin clear conditions. One of the best steelhead fisherman I know, never uses bait for steelhead, and consistantly outfishes everyone. He uses very short leaders(18 inches) I really think he's able to feel the fish sooner, therefore he is getting more opportunities to set the hook on fish that may otherwise have pick up the lure and spit it out if you were using a much longer leader. Using bait, I think the longer leaders are ok since their going to hold onto it much longer. The other thing I see him doing is setting the hook more often when the line stops. I would like to think that I can detect most steelhead strikes,however, I think there are many times where a steelhead does nothing but stop you lure/bait and if you don't set the hook, they're going to spit it out without you feeling a thing. Anyway,you should try shorter leaders when fishing with a buddy to compare your catch rates. I think you'll find your catch ratio will go up. Tight lines.

Good stuff. Thanks, guys.

Definitely shorter leaders than you see most guys use. Not only can you cast better using a smaller weight but if the fish is looking at the lure he's not looking at the lead so why use a long leader? Shorter leaders also put the lure right in their face. Especially dirty water. Slow it down with more weight and a short leader.