My sister had been bugging me to take her fish for awhile. I wanted to take her someplace where she had a chance at getting a keeper. All the rivers that have some hatchery fish were too low to fish and since my sister had yesterday off I took her to a river that has all wild winter steelhead and some early hatchery summer steelhead.

We started of the day boodogging a long stretch, I usually plug that stretch but the water was too low. My sister has only been steelhead fishing 3 times before yesterday. She picks up a chrome bright scrappy little hatchery summer steelhead. The first one Ive seen this year. The guys I usually fish with have a contest to see who can get the first summer of the year. The winner gets free breakfast on the next trip. My sister gets the free breakfast! That fish was it for long time.

Two of my good fishing buddies were in another boat and we stuck togather all day. One guy in that boat hooked and landed 3 wild fish, th biggest went about 10 lbs. My sister started in on me about him catching fish and we were not. I was working my butt of trying to get her on some more fish. I was doing every thing that had been producing fish for me. Plugging was cant miss method on that river. We did get 2 half hearted take downs but they didnt stick. I was getting discouraged. I had been averaging 3 fish a trip on that river and it was looking like my average was going to take a big hit.

We were getting close to the end of the float and I was trying to figure out how to get at least 1 more hook up before we got to the long row to the take out. The water was gin clear so I was using smaller profile drift bobbers when we drift fished, And when I was plugging I was using muted colored plugs in metallic pink, blue and green. These pugs were my producers in the days before. For the hell of it I rigged up a 6" bubble gum pink Vision worm with a size 10 hot pink/black striped mylar winged spin-n-glow on a 5' leader with a 2/0 Vision hook behind a hot-n-tot. On the other rod I put on my killer dirty water plug.

I fished the plug and worm in a spot that I had found the day before as floated over it. The spot is on a tail out about 6' deep. There is a large stump under water about mid river in the tailout. I run the worm right down on the stump hoping it wouldnt hang on it. The worm hung something else besides the stump. The rod goes down hard and the fish peels out about 20 yards of line before my sister can get it out of the rod holder. When she gets it out of the holder the fish charges back upstream to where it was hooked. My sister thins the fish had come off because the line went slack. I was yelling at her to reel as fast as she can. My excited coaching just flustered her and she shoved the rod at me. I reel up fast and come tight on the fish and gave it back to her. Just as she gets the rod back the fish jumps. When my sister saw the ish she gets scared and trys to give the rod back. I coach her on how to fight the fish, she finally gets it close to the boat, Its a big buck in the 14 to 15lb range. My sister is freaking out because its the biggest fish she has ever had on. I pull anchor and row to the ank to beach it. My sister wasnt wearing waders so I jump out of the boat, take the rod and beach the fish. The look on my sisters face was priceless, She was staring at the big colored up buck and kept saying thats big. Un fortunatlel the camera was in er car at the takeout and my camera had dead batteries.... Oh well thats the way it goes.

As that was all happening my buddies in the other boat were downstream around the corner waiting on me to run the curtain of death with thm in this really wide hole. We tell them about my sisters fish, They dont beleive it took the pink worm. We start running plugs and the worm through that wide hole we get almost to the end and when my cell phone rings. I have my sister answer it. Itturns out to be a call I need to take so I drop the anchor and take the call. The call is from a guide I booked a trip with, He is calling to get final confirmation and to tell me wat I need to bring. As Im talking to him the rod with the pink worm just gets crushed. I start yelling fish on!. I tell my sister to grab it as I get the other rod in. Im coaching my sister and giving the guide on the phone a pay by play of the battle. My buddies in the other boat reel up there plugs and row back up to watch. This fish is acting more like a chinook than a steelhead. He just stays deep and goes where ever it wants. After about 10 minutes the fish rolls next to the boat, 4 jaws drop at the same time! Ths fish is BIG. I tell the guy on the phone I need to go we and get this fish landed. After the fish showed him self he takes of down river at warp speed. I pull the anchor and we chase after it. Another 5 minutes go y and the fish is next to the boat. I try to tail it but I cant get my hand around his tail wrist. Th freaked out the fish and he takes off fast and the hook finally pops out. I consiser it a landed fish because I touched the leader. I guess the wieght of the fish at between 18 and 20 lbs. He was alot bigger than the other fish we landed and bigger than the 18lb fish thats on my wall. All 4 of us were disappointed because we didnt get to measure out the fish and get a picture. The guys in the other boat had 2 camera's. After that we stowed the rods and rowed on down o the take out, calling it a day...

I think my sister is now addicted to steelhead fishing. She was already talking about how she cant wait to get out again. The lucky little brat gets the first summer of the year and gets to battle 2 trophy class steelhead in the same day, Some people have all the luck!

Have your parents adopt me.

What fine tackle company made that worm again????

Excellent narrative! You had me totally engrossed in the story. Congrats on the fish.

Sweet! Gotta love the power of pink!

I think I'll be trying plugging the worm from now on!

Good times...she'll never be the same!

WARNING discourage the adoption process or that future brother will rub some of that bad mojo off on you...a sure fire recipe for getting DJed if he's around! :p

FJ...out.

Great story, wish I was there, maybe sometime!

Dave,
I dont think my parents can handle the stress of raising another punk kid They have had to deal with me for 30 years and its starting to take its toll.

Parker,
I said it was a VISION worm! Oh yeah did I mention I was using VISION hooks? Well I was. I was even wearing a hat the has Vision hooks and tackle on it.

Oh yeah, Check this out..... The fish my sister got boonedogging was the first fish on her new Allstar 1024 I got her for Christmas. The day before I popped the cherry on my new Allstar 1263. Got to love those rods!!!

That story was just what I needed to finish off a day that was only good for promoting grumpyness
I like them VISION hooks but I would not know about them VISION pink worms!