Skykomish River – Sultan, Washington

Happy New Year – Time to start 2012 right by Steelhead fly fishing!!!
Fly fished the Skykomish River for Steelhead on the south side of the river & east of Mann Rd. Bridge. There is a nice trail that leads to a great sand bar area that can easily be fly fished from shore or waders. Location is pretty much directly across the river from downtown Sultan, Washington.
Today was so damn windy it wasn’t even worth it. Fly fished for about 1.5 hours with various pink & orange streamers & articulated steelhead flies. The wind was so strong that you couldn’t even cast more that 5 feet in front of you. And lag between 30-40 MPH gusts was so rare that you would only get 1 1/2 decent cast every 10-20 tries. Totally worthless, but still better that many alternatives. Caught nothing. I saw only 1 drift boat go down river, & one wader on the south side & one wader on the north side of the river. Only saw one fish & it was “a real beaut, Clark”.

Today was supposed to be a test of my new Sharkskin Steelhead Fly Line – well, we will have to wait until next time to get a real verdict. Not much use in 30-40 MPH winds.
You know what they say – “A bad day on the river is still better than a good day at work!”

GPS:47.859912,-121.812783
Time: Sunday, January 1, 2012, 12:45-2:30pm
Weather: 39 F
Water: 40 F, High, swift, & a bit so-so on the clarity scale
Access: Great
Rig: Steelhead flies
Notes: This is a great place to fish, close to Seattle and surrounds

Skykomish River – Sultan, Washington

Fished the Skykomish River for Steelhead just East of Sultan, Washington. Fished float rigs for 2.5 hours spin cast with various pink & orange jigs sunk under an indicator. Caught nothing. There was about 6-7 sleds going up & down the river, & about 12-15 waders on the south side of the river. I only saw 1 fisherman hook a good size one from shore about 10:30am, nice fish.

GPS:47.859912,-121.812783
Time: Saturday, June 25, 2011, 8:30-11:00am
Weather: 52 F
Water: 46 F, High, swift , & a bit cloudy still
Access: Great
Rig: Steelhead float with jigs
Notes: This is a great place to fish, close to Seattle and surrounds

Skykomish River, Big Eddy – Gold Bar, Washington

Fished the Skykomish River near Gold Bar, Washington for Steelhead and Trout at the rail road trestle at Big Eddy. Tried float rig fishing for 2 hours, then switched to spin cast w/ various lures. Caught nothing. Weather was awful, rain, rain, more rain. Water was high and pretty dirty from recent rain and minor flooding.

Time: 9:00-12:00am
Weather: 45 F – RAIN, RAIN
Water: Muddy, relatively High
Access: Great, wade, launch, shore
Rig(best): Steelhead gear, float gear w/ jig and a steehead casting lure
Notes: This is a great place to fish, close to Seattle and surrounds. 30-45 minute drive up Hwy #2 towards Stevens Pass.

Skykomish River, Money Creek – Index, Washington

The Skykomish River near Index, Washington is a great place to fish, if you catch any fish. Money Creek is close to Seattle and surrounding areas. My neighbor caught and released a 26″ native just up river from the Money Creek Campground. Fished the Skykomish for Steelhead and Trout at the bridge at Money Creek. Looking for any remaining Steelhead and Pinks. Tried float fishing for 2 hours, then switched to spin cast w/ various lures. Caught nothing.

Time: 11:00-1:30pm:
Weather: 80 F
Water: Clear, relatively shallow
Access: Great
Rig(best): Steelhead gear, float gear

-gone fly fishing,
EARTHangler