Summer Steelies

Unlike winter steelheads, pursued throughout the Great Lakes feeder tributaries, the summer "steelies" have more room to maneuver. And unlike the king salmon, which slams your lure and runs directly away from the boat, the steelhead rainbow trout has multiple tricks up its sleeve. Once feeling the barbs, it may swim toward an unsuspecting angler, creating a slack line and the impression the fish has been lost. And sometimes it is. At other times they will quickly swim toward the surface, catapulting out of the water, twisting and tailwalking as only a member of the rainbow trout family can. Their fight is quite unlike the bulldogging king salmon which typically hooks itself while making its noted long and powerful run. Where the king salmon is a bulldog, the steelhead is an aerialist, an acrobat that requires you be quick on the draw, lowering and raising the tip of your fishing rod while rapidly reeling in line.

The fish I'm holding in the photo I caught while fishing with Batavian Bob Scinta. I really enjoy Bob's fishing philosophy - leave Batavia at 9 a.m., stop for breakfast and then hit Lake Ontario's late afternoon feed. He put us on a lot of fish that day, all but one were king salmon in the 25 lb. class. The lone exception was the steelhead, and that's the one I remember best.

Strong, fast swimmers and noted for their leaping ability, there is something to be said for a fish which launches itself totally out of the water, the sunlight reflecting off its silvery flanks, allowing an angler a brief glimpse of what might have been before crashing back onto the surface and leaving behind a slack line.