Is anyone doing any good yet fishing the lower Columbia bars off the bank? I've been fishing the bars for about 5 years or so (see a lot of fish caught), but I still haven't caught a steelhead down there. What leader length do you use up there? I've used about 18-24". Should I be using more? I put a spin-n-glow/corkie on the leader. I shouldn't use bait too, should I?Also, I just use a pyramid sinker on a slider. Should I be using a dropper, or doesn't that matter? I don't know what I'm doing wrong? Anyway, I hear a lot of the fish that have already been caught this year have been small-like 5/6 lbs. BUT hey there's nothing wrong with that!! If I could only get one...

Personally when I get out to plunk, I go to the kalama bar. It's not something I do much but when we go it seems to be productive. I like a little longer leader around 36-40" and run a bead with a size 8 watermelon or orange/chartreuse spin glo. I also use a dropper that's about 8" long with a sliding lead. What ever it takes to keep it down as far as weight goes. You can add bait, ie. chunk of prawn, crawdad tail, something with some texture but it doesn't seem to make that much difference. Just make sure you're fishing the proper depth, you want to fish 8-16 feet for the steelhead and up to 25ft for the kings. Keep trying and don't be afraid to ask what the local guys are doing they're usually pretty nice and don't mind helping.
Keith

Thanks for the tips, stlhdr1!

I went out last friday and tried the longer leader and a chrome/red headed spin-n-glow (one a local was using) and missed a good fish. It had to be a nice one-probably a salmon or a wild steelie anyway-because it hammered the rod about 5 good times, enough to throw the bell off a few feet back in the sand. I ran down to set the hook, but by the time I picked up the rod the fish was already gone . I would have got down to it a lot sooner had I not been up by my truck bull$hitting with some other dudes .

BTW I seen 6 fish beached and only 2 were hatcheries. Also, I seen different approaches on hooking the fish. Some guys would run down to their rods and pick them up slamming back on their hooksets like they were hooking into a 1,000 pound marlin or something. Others would grab the rod and run up the beach like they were sprinting in a marathon. Others would set the hook gentley, and yet others would reel like hell until they came up solid with the fish. Which is best in your opinion? One guy commented that most of the time the fish gets itself hooked and there is no reason to set the hook. This was not the case with the bite I had, unfortunately.

In my opinion most of these fish are hitting out of aggression. So they aren't taking it deep like bait, you'll get the occasional fish that does though and that's when it doesn't really matter if you set the hook.
One pointer I will add is when you are plunking there's nothing wrong with using a double hook set-up below your spin-n-glo. I usually run two 3/0 owner cutting points. Depending on the distance you are casting, determines how hard you set the hook. My favorite part is the bite, so I really let them have it, sometimes I'll hit them a couple of times. I haven't been down plunking the bar in quite sometime, I remember the last time I did it I was one of the few down there actually using bait, I'd rig a small pink prawn on with a toothpick and stretchy thread. This way you can't cast it off and the smolts and squawfish don't tear it off. Myself and two buddies used that set up a couple of years ago and we hooked 5 fish and landed 4. There were only three other fish caught that day out of 20 rods or so.
Keith

I'm certainly no expert, but I have been to County Line Park about 10 times recently and see fish caught every time I'm there. Mostly spin-n-glows. About a 3 ft. leader and 1 ft. or less dropper and weight. A little scent, thats about it. I still havn't caught one there yet, but someone in my party always does.

Carson! aka Pullerdog,
What the heck are you doing here? Don't you have a crystal to grow or something? Here we are in this huge semi-conductor slump and you're talking about fishing.
See ya at work,
x

can you fish off the N. Jetty with an oregon licence?

No.

Does the size and color of the bead matter? I would think that it wouldn't matter as much as the spin 'n glo. Also how about using a wire spreader instead of a dropper?

Matt

I went out on friday in the heat of the day to cool off. I figured that fish and cool water was the way to go. So my buddy and I took our girlfriends down to plunk and lay out on the kalama bar. We fished about 4 hours of the outgoing tide and we had 4 bites and landed 3.
I tried something a little different. I took a size #6 watermelon/black wing spin glo and bored out the center of it big enough to put a plastic coffee straw in it. I did this to help it spin better. You'd be amazed at how much faster the spin glo spins. There's almost no resistance from the line. I also ran a 6" dropper and a 42" leader. I added a little mike's shrimp oil to the spin glo about every 1/2 hour or so. I did this on both my girlfriend and my rods. James did it also with his and his girlfriends rods but ran a 1/2 black and 1/2 chartruese spin glo with white wings and they hooked 2 and we hooked 2. A dead tie.
For those of you that enjoy sitting out on the shore and watching a rod, it's not a bad way to catch steelhead.
Keith

How far are you attempting to fish off the bottom? 6" dropper + 42" leader + water speed (I don't know) should = how many inches off bottom? 12"? I would assume the heighth off spin 'n glo off the bottom is more important than spin 'n glo color. Have an opinion on that?

Matt

Matt-

Yes the dropper does determine the height you'll be fishing off of the bottom. I sometimes change leader length as the tide starts to pull harder. At the beginning of the tide I'll run a 4-6" dropper and at the latter part of the tide when it gets to rippin I'll run a 10-12" dropper. The reason I do this is as the tide gets going harder the silt and sand starts to pick up on the bottom and rolls along. I don't beleive the fish like to travel in this and will elevate themselves above it. But doing the math with a 6" dropper and a size #6 spin glo I'd figure you're about 8-12" off the bottom when the tides going good. Remember plunking takes time, so be patient and the fish will come. Fish will also follow the current seams and as the tide pulls harder the current seams move closer to the shore line. So, sometimes you will catch fish closer to the shore as the tide gets to rolling along.
Keith

[ 08-13-2001: Message edited by: stlhdr1 ]

Keith;
You put Mike's shrimp oil on your Girlfriend? Where did you find a Gal that likes to fish that much :p

Whatever works in a pinch!

Hey,
I'm new to fishing...but I know that if you want to catch fish, Keith is the guy to listen to!!!

Early to rise and late to bed, still no fish.......yet

Yeah, Stlhdr1 catches sh!tloads of fish, supposedly. I envy him. Thanks again for the advice Stlhdr1 and others. But man, what a girlfriend! GutZ posted quite a good question. I'd give anything to get a girl that doesn't mind smellin' a little fishy, now and then.

Actually guys, she isn't all into fishing... Summertime is the only time I can get her out to fish, she just hates those cold rainy days. But when she does go, she listens well and hooks fish. Last time I had her out she hooked and landed a nice 14 lb summer run, I just wish I could have taken the picture with a digital camera so I could get it up on the board.
I appreciate all the hoop-la, fishing is fun and it's great to just get out and hammerdown when the time comes available. A couple buddies of mine and I went out today and hooked 9 summer runs on the lewis. Only three fresh fish and the rest had some color. Still super aggresive though. I did notice some silvers rolling in the meathole and saw some fresh fall chinook rolling in the lower river, I wish I would have had the nook rods so we could have hammered down.
Keith

Keith hasn't proved his fishing skills to me yet. Maybe he would like to show me how REAL men catch fish. If you didn't notice this was a very pathetic attempt at getting to go fishing with you. Oh well, if your busy working, then I guess you don't have time to post messages. Catch more fish!

Matt