Anglers hare starting to have some early steelhead fun on the lower Clearwater River.
This area due to the thermal differences between the Snake River's warmer water and the cooler Clearwater flows creates a haven for the cool water loving steelhead.
Most of these fish are upper Snake River and Grande Ronde River bound fish that move into the lower portion of the Clearwater until the water temps start to equilize. Fish size tends to be in the 4 to 8 pound class. These are bright beautiful fish that are full of fight and will aggressivily take plugs, spinners and if you manage to get a fly in front of them are very willing.
8/9/2007
Anglers are starting to have some early steelhead fun on the lower Clearwater River from its confluence with the Snake River upstream 3 to 5 miles.
This area is a haven for the cool water loving steelhead, due to the thermal differences between the Snake River's warmer water and the cooler Clearwater.
Most of these fish are upper Snake River and Grande Ronde River bound fish that move into the lower portion of the Clearwater until the water temps start to equalize. Fish size tends to be in the 4 to 8 pound class. These are bright beautiful fish that are full of fight and will aggressively take plugs, spinners and if you manage to get a fly in front of them are very willing participants.
The numbers of fish will continue to increase as new fish are coming through the dams on a daily basis.
This early fishery will be replaced as the larger b-run steelhead the Clearwater is famous for begin showing up in numbers by mid to late September. October will see continuing numbers of the 8 to 18 pound fish and the fishery grows until the water cools to settle them in for the winter.
By that time the Snake River fish have moved up river into their wintering areas in the upper Snake, Salmon River and the Grande Ronde.
All these inland rivers have world class winter steelhead fishing through the winter and into the early spring months.
