Available Fishing Guide:
Website: Steel Dreams Guide Service
I planned to hit the Skykomish at first light for my first steelhead trip of the winter since the river was on the drop and the timing seemed right. I got all packed up the night before but then checked some of the weather sites and saw they were predicting temps down in the teens around Monroe and Goldbar in the morning so I decided to hold off as I didn't want to fight icy guides and lethargic fish. When I got up in the morning and checked the same weather sites it showed temps around 30! Decided to head to the river and see what was happening. Got there at 9 AM and started working some areas that have worked in the past. River was in great shape but no fish were being caught around me but the weather was fine and the crowd was light so I stuck with it for a few hours. Ended up landing and releasing a beautiful double-striped native summer buck which looked to be around 12 - 13 pounds. Saw another fisherman land a nice winter steelhead which was the only steel I saw landed other than mine. Started fishing my way back to my car and hooked a feisty little winter run which tore up some water in front of me and spit the hook. Oh well, not a bad start to the season but would have liked to land a winter fish.
