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[milo]

I  took advantage of the fact that no people were fishing a usually busy spot yesterday on the Vedder (thank you rain!), so I had the opportunity to observe some interesting salmon behavior in slack water.
I saw coho and pinks holding together (no big deal - we see them all the time), but NOT ONE pink in the holding water wanted to hit a pink fly that usually makes pink salmon go crazy when it is presented in the current. Instead, some of the coho in the "co-ed" went for that particular fly with gusto, although it is a fly that you would never consider keeping in your coho salmon fly box.

Another interesting thing I noticed is that when a fresh school of coho arrived, pinks would yield the 'sweet spot' in the water column to them. My theory is that coho try to show pinks who is boss, and get particularly aggressive when holding together. I almost couldn't believe the aggressiveness of the coho - hence my low hookup to landing ratio. The take of the fly was very violent, and the fish went crazy after I set up the hook on them. I was really glad my reel has a good drag although that is usually not an issue.
For this early in the season, I had an absolutely stellar day hooking into 7 coho, landing 3, with all pinks (except one) staying away from my flies.

Care to share some other interesting tidbits on salmon behavior?

[salmonrook]

Sounds like a great day, in spite of the rain
a good day fishin'.........

[bluenoser]

Sounds like an awesome day Milo

[Tadpole]

It was actually great two days  . Despite  steady rain on Sunday the river was holding well and she was like a conveyor belt. Fish after fish after fish in a thick lineup traveling close to shore. It was a view to admire.

[milo]

It was actually great two days  . Despite  steady rain on Sunday the river was holding well and she was like a conveyor belt. Fish after fish after fish in a thick lineup traveling close to shore. It was a view to admire.

I agree. Great to see the Vedder slowly returning to its former glory. The last few years have been brutal with the mudslides coloring the river with every rainfall.

No more large presentations...they only scare the fish in clear water. Go small or go home.

[koifish]

Hey milo does roe work for spring?

[Tex]

Care to share some other interesting tidbits on salmon behavior?

Yes actually, though this isn't a revelation for anyone who has fished a while but it was neat to watch from a birds-eye view:

I visited the Vedder a couple of weekends ago and spent some time watching the gong show from midspan on the KWB.  The chinook that entered the run would typically come right up the deep slot in the middle and then hang in the main current.

The pinks and coho on the other hand would swim up the shallows - I'm talking 2 feet of water - until they would reach the anglers who were thigh-deep in the water.  Then the fish would push out into deeper water or hold in the shallow water 10-20 feet below the anglers. 

The obvious lesson is there is often no need to wade into the river - especially not up to your thighs/waist!  Fish are lazy and will take the route of least resistance... this means they often travel in shallow water.  Try the shallow seams before you splash recklessly into the water. 

Great story, Milo! 

[Tex]

Hey milo does roe work for spring?

Roe is probably the best bait for springs.

[bigblue]

The obvious lesson is there is often no need to wade into the river - especially not up to your thighs/waist!  Fish are lazy and will take the route of least resistance... this means they often travel in shallow water.  Try the shallow seams before you splash recklessly into the water. 

X2  So many fishermen trying get their moneys worth from their waders!

[koifish]

Would artificial roe work as good as real roe,?

[koifish]

I'm hoping to catch a coho or a spring on a fly haha
Chums and pinks are easy to catch so I guess I would prob get a chum first

[milo]

I'm hoping to catch a coho or a spring on a fly haha
Chums and pinks are easy to catch so I guess I would prob get a chum first

Make sure you use no less than a 9-weight if you are targetting springs and chum. Anything less than that usually results in a lost fly, or worse, a broken rod.

Forget roe, koifish, and stick to artificials. Anybody can feed the fish; but it takes true skill to FOOL the fish. 

[Sterling C]

Would artificial roe work as good as real roe,?

No. When drift fishing chinook, nothing comes even remotely close to roe in terms efficiency.

I take exception to Milo's comments regarding feeding fish vs fooling them. I have no issue with his point of view, frankly if he wants to limit his catch rates in the name of sportsmanship then that is his perogative. However, to discourage new fisherman from using proven legal methods is just silly.

I can imagine it now, koifish (for the sake of my example) shows up on the river armed with gooey bobs and wool because he read online to forget roe. Six hours into the day with no bites he notices the other anglers around him/her are hooking into fish using wool. As a new angler they notice the the key to success seems to be a longer leader and a few extra hook sets along the way for good measure. I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this...

[colin6101]

If you want to have the best chance at catching a spring use roe. Keep in mind that not all roe is created equal though, and good quality roe can make a huge difference. Even more so when going after coho in my opinion.

[milo]

I take exception to Milo's comments regarding feeding fish vs fooling them. I have no issue with his point of view, frankly if he wants to limit his catch rates in the name of sportsmanship then that is his perogative. However, to discourage new fisherman from using proven legal methods is just silly.

I can imagine it now, koifish (for the sake of my example) shows up on the river armed with gooey bobs and wool because he read online to forget roe. Six hours into the day with no bites he notices the other anglers around him/her are hooking into fish using wool. As a new angler they notice the the key to success seems to be a longer leader and a few extra hook sets along the way for good measure. I'm sure you can see where I'm going with this...

LOL! The best gear salmon fishermen catch more coho and springs with a 12-18" leader and the tiniest tuft of peach or orange wool imitating a single egg or a with a well presented blade than those armed with big blobs of stinky roe!

I wasn't trying to discourage Koifish, who seems quite willing to try different methods. He already even fly fishes from what I understand, so I am pretty sure he knows very well what long leaders and wool under a float (or worse, a bouncing betty) are all about.

I am not demeaning the use of roe. Heck, I fished it myself a lot in my early days. But why not encourage someone who seems to be willing to evolve to take a short cut?