i did a search but no results, so here is my question. assuming you are fishing the same river what fish do you think fights the best a 15lb Nate or a Chum,King,or Silver of the same size? My vote goes towards a Chum for an overall kick a$$ fight, I've caught numerous salmon of that size but only 1 steelhead that big an 18lb nate on the Sol Duc he was a chromer but all he did was pull hard and stay on the far side of the river, I wasn't very immpressed but thats only 1 fish to compare to. Any thoughts?

Fresh Sockeye on med wt steelhead rod...best 6-8 lb fish I've ever seen!

Not just a sockeye, goforchrome. The sockeye in Lake Washington are wussies.

Now, an Alaskan Kenai or Kasilof sockeye is a whole different ball game!

My vote goes to the Kenai Red Salmon. Hands down one of the hardest fighting fish I've caught! They are like summer run steelhead, except mean.

No doubt in my mind, 1 vote for the King! I've found the smaller 10-15 lb. kings will out-fight almost anything in a river setting. Silvers start out good but seem to burn-out too quick. Chums can be good, jumping and taking line or just slug it out down deep. Same for Steelhead although the native fish I've caught do seem to fight harder than thier hac. brothers .....c/22

chum salmon are the most dogged of the salmon spieces I personally think, cabezon are the strongest for the bottomfish kind. never caught a native steelhead so I'm missing out on that, yet I've never fished for them, go figure. tight lines, Ben

This is a little outside the zone you are looking for, but if smallmouth bass grew to 10 lbs you would never hear of steelhead.

In terms of salmon/steelhead, I think either chums (fresh ones) or fresh sockeye are the hardest and most tenacious fighters. I like kings, too, but I think that they can have a fight that is less exciting than other fish.

Has to be a tail hooked halibut (I managed to do this somehow). Everytime you pull up his head faces down and back to the bottom it goes. This can make a 50 pounder feel like 300. As for legally hooked fish my money goes with planted trout on 12 pound test.

I will have to agree with Parker the second run reds on the Kenai will flat out kick your butt. I foul hooked a big buck red and before I knew it he was all the way across the river.Can you say smokin your fingers!!

Fresh AK Sockeye gets my vote as well. All the pull and acrobatics of the others, combined with the gator death roll. Brutal on light weight equipment, yet the only fun way to fish them.

I've had 48" sturgeon jump clean out of the water twice before they spend it. Even the undersized have a ton of umph. Pound for pound, Columbia river sturgeon fresh from the salt are probably the strongest fish around.

Sockeyes are tough little fighters, no doubt. But in a lb. for lb. test, I think the ol' SRC rates pretty high up the scale.

Count another one for the fresh AK sockeyes!

Pound for pound, there is NO other salmonid that can compare!

This is just my humble opinion of course, but I see that I'm in good company.

Smallmouth are the best of the warmwater fish in this state (now I need to try a tiger muskie though...), but give me a break - don't even put a bass on the same thread as a metal head!! (:

I'm most impressed with Chum. Nothing pretty or gracefull about them, but they are tough as nails. I had several get so pi$$ed that they'd peel out my fly line heading one way, next thing I know a monster fish leaps out the water the 200 ft away in the opposite direction. Then I realize that it is the same fish - my line just hasn't caught up yet!! And they'll do this several times. I've also seen some wimpy chums and a few that think they are just big logs and you need a pry bar to bugde them.

Any of you ever hooked one of the upper Elwha bows on light gear? You'll never look at stocker trout the same... Heck, even the little cutties I find on the forks of the snoqualmie jump half a dozen times.

Really i'm not too picky - a chrome fish dancing on the end of my line is all I need!!

-Chad

I have to say a fresh Chum is the hardest fighting fish. They jump, pull line, and are strong as hell.

Honorable mention goes to Fraser River Springs. They get in the fast current and are gone...200 yards in 20 seconds.

Out of those choices, I'd have to say the chum. Those fish want to kick your ass. Overall, I'd have to say a smallmouth bass. (remember, this is pound for pound). I was catching them over at the Potholes one year using trout gear and there were times I didn't think I'd be able to land them.

I agree with the chum boys. A chrome chum if it takes off will break you off easy! I was using 20lb test and 25lb leaders this year for them and still was getting broke off by 10lb fish. My elbow is still tender from these bruts.

my vote is for smallmouth bass, last summer i was fishing in idaho, and in 1 hour or so, i managed to have 11 bites landed four and was using a 8'6 i use for stealhead and 10# ande and still had doubts that i was gonna land some of them fish, which i barely did on some and lost perty big smallies, my biggest was 15", i lost bigger that i couldnt land..next vote would be kings... **berkley boy

anybody catch cabezon on light tackle 6 or 8 lb test. reel handful. if you like smallmouth, you'll love these. you fish for these the excact same but a little deeper with the same gear, and fight better I think from my experience catching smallmouth on the columbia. and there very prolific if you can learn to fool them here in the sound, espicially around port townsend, whidbey Island.

Hands down the hardest fighter pound for pound is the bonefish on the flats. I've caught a few the biggest being 13lbs. all on the fly. A 6lber will take you 100yds into backing! But for the NW I still think springers or steelhead on the coast!

My vote is for those thumb-burning Vedder White Springs(Kings). Better wear track shoes if you want to land these beasts on anything less than 15# mono...

RIP LIPPS!