Several months ago my angling buddy Justin packed up his things and headed for the Pacific Northwest to start fresh in another part of the country. After he settled in Northern California and found some work he began his quest to find some of the local beats and start fishing again. Months went by and Justin struggled to find a fish at the end of his line. He then realized that fishing western rivers is a totally different ballgame than the small spring creeks and great lakes tribs he was fishing in Wisconsin. The volume of water averages about ten times the amount of our tributaries to Lake Michigan. This requires much heavier flies and sink tips when chasing winter steelhead. He also learned that regulations vary from river to river with trout seasons opening and closing all the time, and most require barbless hooks. Recently, he has met a few other local anglers who have been in the area for some time and has been figuring things out. Here are a couple pics from the last couple weeks and there should be plenty more in the future.
