No Steelhead

Great days, but no fish!

This fall I have been a bit uneasy. Last year I said that I wanted to get down to the river more and fish for steelhead, but our travel plans pushed that off. We went to the Islands, then to the Badlands. When we returned it rained and rained. The rivers shot up to very high levels and the fishing was poor at best. I waited.

The weather leading up to election day was nice. I checked the Idaho River Flows site and levels were dropping, the truck and camper were ready.  I picked up Tom Husby's drift boat and loaded up with food. As soon as I could on Tuesday I drove south to the Salmon River just below Cottonwood.

Pine Bar is a nice little spot. In the summer it is busy with raft trips launching for extended trips through the whitewater of the Lower Salmon River. Fall brings hunting and fishing trips to the area. Along with the boat launch, here is a small, but nice campground with about six level spots with fire pits and two very clean pit toilets.

Selfie on the Salmon.

Arriving just at dusk I readied the boat and backed it down to launch. All went well, but it is sure hard backing a small trailer down the ramp with our camper on the truck. I went very slow but still had to pull forward and straighten my load several times. By the time I got the boat launched it was dark.

I then pulled the truck up and detached the trailer and locked it up. I rowed the boat upriver to a beach and tied it off for the night and then drove to the campsite area.  I set up the truck and settled down to make dinner. The night was clear and relatively warm. I enjoyed all the hustle and bustle of my travels.

My evening visitor, 8 deer fed by the camper each night.

As the sun came up I rowed the boat upriver via the eddy lines until I was parallel to my fishing spot and then ferried across and set anchor. This would be the spot where I fished each day while I was here. This location has, in the past, proven to provide fish when fish are running.

For two days I fished the run and then as dark approached I would row across the river and walk to the camper for the night. I didn't catch any fish, but I enjoyed the adventure.

After fishing Thursday I decided to drive back home and surprise Linda. Tom and Mark had come down to fish and they had no better luck than I had. They helped me load the boat and trailer and then we parted. Those two would fish on Friday, but not the Salmon. They would be fishing the Grand Ronde River and would probably catch some fish there.

I drove home excited to see Linda and to be able to scratch Kobi behind the ears. I was not successful in the fishing area, but I am now ready for our travels to the warmer climates.