Just curious as to how large the hatchery fish can get. Any info would be great.

CQ-

You can find quite a bit of variation among the hatchery summer runs in the Skykomish system.

Most are your average 7-9 pounders, but there seems to be a pretty good percentage of 10-13's, too, maybe 20%. The biggest hatchery summer run I've caught there was 17 pounds, but that was back in '90 and I haven't seen one that big for a while, though I'm sure they're around.

I don't really see too many 4-6 pounders, but I seem to remember a bunch of 2-4 pound jacks a while ago, but that may have been when I was fishing in the winter.

Probably was. For all the details I like to keep tabs with when it comes to steelhead fishing, a fishing journal is certainly not one of them. I must have about ten of them with one or two entries, which are then stuck on a shelf somewhere and forgotten forever, or at least until a need like this comes up for them, at which point they are utterly useless.

Whatever the size, expect some pretty hot fish, especially this time of year. Every few years I get it in my stupid head that a noodle rod would be fun and productive to use during low summer conditions. It's productive at hooking fish, and it's value falls off sharply after that. Usually I try it once or twice a year, get my a$$ kicked badly by a couple of average sized fish, and then swear I'll never do it again, at least until next year when it always seems like a good idea again.

I stuck one briefly yesterday on the North Fork, but that was the only fish I saw for half a day's fishing and twenty fishermen. Anyone have any luck? At least it was a beautiful day to be on the water, with a sunburn to prove it!

Fish on...

Todd.

Thanks for the info. Todd!

In the last few years ive seen several 19-22 pound hatchery fish come out of hte reiter area. Ive already seen one 17, and heard of another 18 on the upper sky this summer.