I fish alot for cutthroat and basically anything along the shoreline, I never have caught a steelhead along the shore, I've caught 3lb blackmouth regurly but not these. what exactly do they do out there. all the trollers in the sound never pick them up. for such big numbers of hatchery fish returning and there like a ghost in the salt water. does anybody have info on what excacly they do and there feeding habits?

The most famous fishery for salty steelhead is the west side of Whidbey Is. Bush Pt.,Fort casey,Fort Ebey and Deception Pass all give up steelhead on a regular basis. Tackle is the same as in the rivers except the lure is almost always an orange or red hootchie on a double hook mooching type leader with a spin-n-glo size 4 or 6 in the same color schemes as the hootchie placed on top of the hooks. You cast out and slowly retrieve, pay attention all the way to your feet these fish commonly hit right at your feet in 1-2ft of water!

I've had clients hook 3 in the salt, 2 on herring 1 on a Superior spoon, released all 3, 1 was over 20 lbs.

Good question. I've often wondered about this too.
My experience while living on the beach and fishing around B.Isl. has shown me the following:
1. The steelhead I've caught were always incidental. All were hungry downriver fish in early summer while using very light tackle (spoons, etc.). Always shallow, but along both shoreline and in open water, in the salt and fresh (Lk. Washington). Usually fishing for cutts or trout.
2. We used to watch them cruise along the shoreline and under our dock in very shallow water on their way to spawn in late fall and winter. Usually solitary, very spooky and making tracks.
Seems to me that steelhead really don't hang around the Sound much or they would show up in salt and Lake catches more often. I'd be surprised if they schooled like salmon.
Just some thoughts and obs.

When I was commercial crabbing off the coast (did it for 7 years anywhere from Destruction Island to the Mouth of the Columbia), we used to see steelhead at night idling in the current next to the boat. We'd be on anchor and the sodium lights would illuminate a large area around the boat. They seemed content to just lazily hang suspended in the water column next to the boat. Possibly the boat made a current break for them or the lights were an attraction to them. In addittion, when we'd get offthe mouth of the Queets, Hoh, Willapa, Grays HArbor, or Columbia we'd see fish jumping, sometimes frequently. Could never tell if they were steelhead or spring salmon. Since the waters were closed we could never try to fish for anything, but it does make sense that these fish would stage outside the river mouths waiting for the right time to head in. Even in the middle ofthe night and dog tired, I'd get excited at he size of some of the steelhead I saw while taking a leak over the rail..worse things to look at while peeing I suppose.

one day I'll get lucky I suppose, catching a steelhead in the salt that is. tight lines,Ben