After weeks and weeks of targeting hatchery hens
with the technique of a skilled surgeon we remove them ever so carefully and add the right amounts of the secret cures ,sealed in jars and labeled etc.etc.
the egg supply is now at full capacity,

We decide to take a float trip, we tossed so many beutiful egg clusters..natta
after getting lazy ..well I just decided to leave whats left on the hook as we call it schmag a quick toss a short drift and FISH on!!! this was the story all day we didn't touch a fish with full clusters ,it wasn't till all that was left was the skein and our little corkie that we started nailing fish all beautiful Summeruns the little rosie cheeked beaties...boy were they fun
BTW:we only kept the hatchery fish
anyone else have a simular experience with just the schmag

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Row Quietly and fish a Cataraft }<<(('>----<'))>>{
Release all Wild Fish

No stories to share, but I thought the golden rule of summer runs was to downsize, downsize, downsize. It would seem that a tiny corky and schmag did the trick!

With that in mind, anyone care to tell me why the last summer run I caught on the Nooch hammered a wrapped K-16? That's the anti-downsize, if anything!

Parker

I hear ya the same happened to me a few weeks ago fishin silvers.New cluster nothin!!When all the eggs were gone and nothin but the skein left.WHAM fish on.This happened all day and the next few times I went to this spot.TM

I have a fishin buddy that swear's by the schmag left on the hook after the egg's disappear, for steelhead.Funny this post was brought up, we talked about it this weekend on the hoh,queet's and the beach clammmin.
it kinda has me goin now????????????????????
Good luck, STRIKE ZONE

Sometimes when the "schmag" is all that's left off the cluseter it allows the corky to float higher in the water column allowing for the fish to see it better. Mostly with salmon in deeper holes which are somewhat suspended. I have noticed that there is a lot of action/movement just off of the "schmag" itself. The white leftover can resemble and even smell like a chunk of floating dead salmon flesh with similar movement; think how well flesh flies work on trophy trout in Alaska.

Often times the full cluster is thumping along the bottom itself because it is to heavy to maintin a drift while the "schmag" is lighter and presents itself much more naturally.

Justin
CEO, Sauk River Steelhead Ranch

Had the same thing happen to me many times on the Kalama. I think down sizing is the ticket at this time of year. Some times for me I just give the eggs up and use a cheater and yarn with some smelly stuff. Seems to work just as well. Caught my biggest Steelie on just a corky and yarn. Soaked the yarn in egg juice. Hope to see ya on the rivers some day.

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dank
Keep The Rivers Clean!

Hey did you ever consider that just maybe the crap you are curing your eggs with might be the problem and that after being soaked in the river for a while it was washed off and then the fish could stand to get next to that corkie and your hooks!

While fishing the North Lewis the other day a guy was fishing with what he called "snot" (schmag), he said he caught 2. I have had my best luck this year for the silvers fishing just a small piece of crawdad tail or prawn, usually after hammerring the run with eggs, so maybe the ticket this year is small white baits.

Buzzerbaby, did the guy fishing on the Lewis that hit 2 fish on the snot have dark red hair and about 6'2?

I'm not sure he was tall and lean with a hat, said he lived in Vancouver.

Well I gota say I've had that same thing happend many times. got that picture in my head of a huge fish taken that fresh cluster of eggs and then about the time I'm let down and thinking about trying another I get it on just the snot!!! summer runs and salmon.

I don't know why but I know it is something to it. now that I think about it 90% of the fish I've got w/eggs have been after the eggs are gone and it's just snot. if even that.

dcrzfitter

I've noticed this before, and try to leave the skein residue in my bait loop when re-baiting...also, a piece of yarn or two simply slipped into your bait loop helps hold that shmeg in place...and allows you to squish a freshly-applied egg cluster flat while retaining some of the juices in the yarn--another technique I've found useful.

But where shmeg really shines is in castability. I've re-baited and eyed my intended drift and made a perfect cast except...yup--the eggs flew further than the terminal tackle, or hit me in the back of the head, or hit my buddy in the back of the head, who then hits ME in the back of the head...you get the picture.

When casting a fresh egg cluster, I'm forced to use a little bit of a lobbing motion, and this leads to decreased casting distance and slack in the line due to current. With shmeg, I can hammer the rockline on the opposite bank, use a sidearm cast to avoid overhangs, &c.

There are situations where I'd rather run a spherical fresh egg cluster, however, and bobber fishing is one of them. Clusters suspend better, due to their weight, whereas shmeg seeks the level of the adjacent split shot.

Sharp hooks!

Sounds like simular situations,with the water being so low and clear this year a smaller offering is best at times and yes they cast great.I think it was just one of those days ,last week I did great on fresh clusters ...go figure
BTW native son who pissed in you're egg cure
becuse the "CRAP" I put on my eggs works great
try and add positive input or at least add some humor.....otherwise...Oh never mind theres always one maybe you need to catch a fish
(Halloween Joke)
Know why you never goose a ghost....you'll end up with hand full of sheet

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Row Quietly and fish a Cataraft }<<(('>----<'))>>{
Release all Wild Fish

Osprey,

I like that ghost joke. Good one!

I dressed up for Halloween last Saturday as a fresh roe cluster. I washed the costume and now it is a schmag costume. Maybe I can pick up more chicks now.

Justin

Chicks dig Schmag

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Row Quietly and fish a Cataraft }<<(('>----<'))>>{
Release all Wild Fish

I experienced the same thing last summer (1999). I was making my last cast of the day on the Cowlitz, and just had the skein left ("schmag") along with an orange corky, and to my surprise I ended up hooking a nice 16# King. Not sure why the fish ended up hitting my set-up, I had all but given up for the day.

I guess this string begs the next question.

Any one got any good "Schmag" curing recipes?