Steelhead Fishing On The Grande Ronde River
For the past few years, a group of my friends have invited me to fish with them on the Grande Ronde River. Each year something would come up in my life that would prevent me from going. Life has a funny way of doing that, especially when you have a career and a family. This year was a down to the wire nail-biter with work, a pregnant wife, and being in the process of buying a home. Having been with my wife for 15 years, she knows that look in my eyes when I have my mind set on doing something. I was determined to make this trip happen!
The last thing I did before leaving the store was to turn my "out of office" email notification on and thank Mark for covering the rest of my shift in the shop. He probably noticed that look in my eyes, too. On the way home, I stopped at the grocery store to buy essentials for a fishing trip with the guys, which mostly centered on IPA and meat products. I almost forgot the mustard, while making a mental note to grab some of my son’s leftover Halloween candy, when I got home.
The next morning, I awoke well before dawn, loaded up my car, and headed south on highway 195 toward Lewiston. As the sun started to rise over the Palouse, all of my stress seemed to disappear with one thought: I was going to spend the next few days chasing steelhead with some very fishy friends!
Steelhead are not a quarry for the weak-minded fisherman. They can make you doubt everything you’re doing on the water, and that’s during a year of good numbers. The 2016 steelhead counts had been bleak and almost all of the reports I had been hearing confirmed these low numbers. I was hoping we might get lucky with a dropping river, perfect fall weather, and the fact that you’ll never catch one sitting on your couch.
Like a kid in a candy store, I had to try one of my favorite spots on the Snake before heading to the Ronde. While this run isn’t the most consistent when it comes to catching fish, it did produce my first Snake River steelhead in 2010. I might also add that I was dying to try my new spey rod.
The first casts with any new spey rod are always a learning experience, and, when your line unexpectedly gets ripped off the reel by a steelhead like mine did that day, you find out how the rod performs under pressure. As I brought the fish to hand, I could see its adipose fin glowing in the morning light. This steelhead was going to continue on its journey back to his origin.
Content with my new rod and my first steelhead of the season, I continued to make my way upriver to meet Tyler, Blake, and Ryan. When I arrived at the run, I was greeted by a deer crossing the river. I frantically got out my camera to take some pictures of the little buck as he made his way up the bank.
After capturing the moment, I grabbed all of my gear and began the short hike into the run. Good steelhead runs aren’t hard to find on the Ronde because there’s usually a well-worn trail leading the way. As I crossed the berm, I could see my friends lined up in the water and two hatchery fish gleaming in Blake’s net resting on the bank. I knew at that moment this was going to be a memorable trip.
For the next three days, we enjoyed the scenery, had a lot of laughs, and caught some fish. This rendezvous was a good reminder for me not to get so caught up in everyday life that you lose sight of what really matters. Family, friends, and the total experience that fishing provides.