Any Steelhead fisherman that has put in the time and the energy into catching these magnificent creatures, knows the perils of losing all your line to big feisty fish.
There is a chill in the air as you walk through the darkness to your favorite fishing hole. You step up onto the rock, and look into the spot you know should be holding a fish. As you watch the water go by and begin to see through it, like a rough diamond, you get glimpses of the purity, but the riffles on top keep your sight from being perfectly clear. Then you pick up the faint Grey line through the riffles that can only be a Silver Bullet Steelie. It appears as though there are two Steelies laying in your slot. You get a little shaky with anticipation, you start to get ready to cast and you have to stop and compose yourself before you screw up and spook the fish. Moments later you are ready to start casting, with the confidence that your nerves are in tact. The strike comes without warning, and with a thunderous bolt from the liquid cage that held the Silver Bullet in it's chamber, a monster of the creek shows itself in all it's glory. Straight into the air, head shaking, glimmering in the sun, and staring you down as he re-submerges his chrome sides back into his liquid home. Seeing this massive fish in the air has you shaking again, but you are a master of your domain, so you rear back on the Goliath and get ready to settle in for one hell of a fight. Running down stream with the speed of an Indy car, the fish never even looks back to say goodbye. You lift your feet up to prepare to run after your catch, when you suddenly remember the other fish that was laying in the slot next to the one on your line. You take a quick glance back into the slot,(Thinking you can come back later and get him also), and realize that the two fish you thought you saw was actually the one fish you are fighting. Ripping line off the reel at an incredible rate with no sign of slowing down, you take off after him. Like a Gazelle, you jump from rock to rock, and from tree stump to tree roots. You do everything in your power to keep the line tight , keep your balance, and to catch up to the massive fish that is taking you to school at a fast rate. Finally your arms and legs start to give out and you are sure any strength you have left is not enough to win this battle. Just then, you realize you haven't seen your fly line in quite awhile, and your backing is giving way to the bottom of the spool. You give it one last burst of energy in hopes of getting your fly line back into the reel, but the fish has to much space on you, and with the current in his favor, the fight has to be put to a stop. Laying back into the fish you wait for the fly to break off, but instead you nail knot breaks off and you watch your $80.00 fly line float away and down through the riffles. Standing there you look down at your reel that now consists of just a little frayed backing, and the hopes of a lost fish. You ask your self what could you have done different, how could you have got that fish?
Well if you have ever been in this situation then you know just what I am talking about. Now this situation has happened to me on several occasions, and I have learned over time a few hints that may help the next time you lay into the BIG ONE! First of all always be sure that you have the right equipment to handle the job, (having confidence in your gear is 50% of your ability to land fish). So when you hit into one of these big fish and he decides the ocean was a lot safer place to live, there are several things you can do to slow him down and make him rethink his retreat from the river. First of all when you first notice he's running away, take a look down stream and take note of the water speed and the barriers that may be in your way. Once this is done you can now decide where you want to stop your fish. It is important that the hook set at the beginning is done well, and the hook must be set at least 3 times to sink the barb into the hard mouths of these fish. Now you are confident in your hook set and you know your gear is up to the challenge. So now what? Now you do the unthinkable. As you head down river after the fish you are aware of the slow places in the river where the fish will hold if not pressured. As the fish enters one of these areas you need to release the tension on the fish and now you can slow down. Fish will stop almost instantly when the tension is released from their jaw, and they will hold there and rest from the run downstream. Meanwhile as the fish is resting you can retrieve your line and catch up to him. Now that you have regained the upper hand, you need to move downstream from the fish and then put the tension back onto him. By going below the fish it will cause the fish to react against the pull of the line and head back up river. Now this can be several times until you have worn your fish out and are able bank him. Now if you have a stubborn fish that just won't co-operate with you and it runs down river even after going below him and giving him tension. What you can do is repeat these steps in every slow spot along the way until the fish relinquishes itself and gives way to the bank. If you have the one that just won't stop in any one of holes and just keeps running away, I say to you good luck and run your butt off, that could be your record fish.
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