Glory Fish

Everyone’s catching fish! With the changing of season, cooler temperatures and an abundance of salmonids in the rivers, this is one of my favorite times of year. This week was time to switch gears and head east to chase sunshine & the growing numbers of fish in the upper river. I could barely sleep with all the excitement & anticipation of screaming reels and bloodshed.
The morning bite started slow for most but it wasn’t long before F’n Minnowmagnet’s report came over the radio that he had just hooked into his largest Chinook ever. Shortly after my rod buries and I get a short teaser of a fight before it spits my hooks. I stay calm and troll on, keeping it dialed in while distracting myself with the beauty of the Gorge that surrounds me. Over the next few hours I seemed to have a fish on almost every pass, only to have them pop off several minutes into the fight. Sometimes you can do everything right & they still manage to get away.
It’s feeling really fishy now & I watch MM’s rod double over a& everyone’s jaw drop as he limits in front of all the PBs. “It’s just a snag!” screamed out one them. Right…  .
Moments later I’m into a long battle with my largest Chinook to date. I knew this one was hooked really well & I took my time playing her through her six or seven screaming runs. I had her right at the side of the boat, net still holstered, when she turned for another thumb burner run that eventually snapped my 40lb leader.  At this point my patience was weening. With a cooler full of chrome Minnowmag throws me some words of encouragement & I pick my gear up to continue my pursuit. With a bite like this I know there will be redemption.
I continued to lose fish before finally netting a modest King. At this point I was 2 for 12 on fish, releasing a jack, & as much as I love watching my rod go off it was time to fill a limit & bonk my glory fish. Well ol' glory came quickly & I found myself chasing a heavy hitter up & down the river bank. She hit like a freight train, pulled hard like a big King, but demonstrated the agility & impulsiveness of a coho or steelhead. This is my second largest Steelhead from a kayak & with such a trophy in my lap I soon forgot all the fish I had lost that day. 

That's a beautiful fish. I gotta get down there.

WOW!!! Incredible!

Great job!!  What a catch.  Sounds like a great day for you guys.

Great looking fish.  Those B runs are few and far between this year.

Wow! Congrats on the awesome fish! Thanks for sharing! This report is going to make it super tough to finish the work week. So anxious to get on some salmon!


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Nice! Great looking fish!

Hot bites like you experienced are the trips that make an entire year a memorable one.  Congrats on that huge steelie Hugh!  Did you get any measurements on that beauty?

Awesome report Hugh!  Lovin it.


-Mark-

Hot bites like you experienced are the trips that make an entire year a memorable one.  Congrats on that huge steelie Hugh!  Did you get any measurements on that beauty?

Thanks Chris! That was one of the most beautiful fish I've ever seen and I couldn't believe it was a hatch. She went 38", cut a dark red with thick fat marbling, & her skeins were undeveloped pinky size. An Idaho fish maybe? We really are blessed here in the PNW & I only hope we can maintain a healthy stock of these quality fish for all years to come.

Hot bites like you experienced are the trips that make an entire year a memorable one.  Congrats on that huge steelie Hugh!  Did you get any measurements on that beauty?

Thanks Chris! That was one of the most beautiful fish I've ever seen and I couldn't believe it was a hatch. She went 38", cut a dark red with thick fat marbling, & her skeins were undeveloped pinky size. An Idaho fish maybe? We really are blessed here in the PNW & I only hope we can maintain a healthy stock of these quality fish for all years to come.

38 inches!!! 

I don't know much about Columbia fish, but from your description, it sure sounds like a steelhead bound for Idaho.

NIIIICCCEEEE!!!

Wow! nice fish!

Awesome fishing, good job