[Cory]

Was going back and forth about whether to hit the creeks today as I wasn’t too sure about driving conditions in the AM. Glad I made the decision to go.
Took Salmon Rookie (Doug) and headed for the bait shop on 20 and 249. We baited up and not long after our third arrived. Gypsy or Frank. I laid out a simple game plan about baits and presentations and off we went. We headed to an upper section of the Little Cal that has done well for me in the past. After laying out the hole for the guys we got set up and went at it.
I started with shrimp, but after several drifts without a bump and given the water and weather conditions I downsized to a #6 hook with a few waxies. It wasn’t long until I hooked up with a nice fish for a brief battle that ended with the fish spitting the hook back at me. Oh well that’s fishing.
Not too long after that I finally connected and stayed connected with a nice aerial display. This hen made several leaps and flips! What a great fight. Soon she was in the net for some pics





I continued to hit my section and walked down to see how Doug was doing. He had a swing and a miss and Frank hadn’t hooked up yet, but I knew he would! And wouldn’t ya know it I hear a “got one” from down the way and I head down there to net his fish. I asked “feel like a good one?” he says “not really” I told him, “Just wait” Well he got a surprise when that fish realized he was hooked! The gave him a great battle and Frank handled it like a champ!
Here is Frank’s first creek steelhead








After all the commotion was over it was back to fishing. I changed up to a 1/32oz pink hair jig with two waxies and my second drift I was into a big fish. A big fish that wanted to give another aerial display. After a few tail walks and jumps this girl came to the net and posed ever so gently with my jig in her mouth.





Doug was getting a little frustrated so I brought him down to my section and he worked it with all he had. He hooked up with a nice fish on a small Panther martin spinner, but the fish spit the hook half way thru the battle.
Frank had to head home, and he was grinning from ear to ear. Doug and I hit a couple other spots, but with nothing to show for it.
The creeks were running slightly fast, but had good clarity. It was a chilly 35deg out there, but damp and that bit right thru you.

I am glad that Frank and Doug were able to make it out today for some Chromer fun!

[skamslam]

Nice pics and report!

SS

[Jay]

Thats Awesome!!!

[Gypsy]

Pretty darn good summary of the days events there Cory. Again gracias Amigo.

[Bear]

Very Nice Cory and Co.

[Razzo]

Way to go you guys! Nice report & pics. Frank, congrats on your first stream steelhead.

[walleyeman]

Great report and great pics

[hadley 1]

Great job guys

[Chas E.]

Beautiful fish, Congrats!

Chas

[jmpruet]

Great fish!

Cory...you seem to be doing real well with the pink hair jigs and waxies eh?

That spot looks familiar ;-)

[wsj_outdoorsman]

Very nice report Cory

What rod/reel combo were you using?

[Cory]

Quote:

What rod/reel combo were you using?

I decided to try something a little differnet and I wanted to go to a 10'6" float rod. I didn't want to drop a huge dime on one yet so I picked up a nice Granger by Eagle claw for about $45. It is 10'6" Medium action. It has a soft tip, but alot of backbone. I reallly like it. As far as the reel it is an Okuma and it performs very nicely. Nice smooth drag and line take up. No problems with line twist.

Thanks guys for all your positive comments.

Thanks Frank for letting me get you out there and being patient. The look on your face when you saw that buck come to the surface was priceless!
I thought you were going to have to change your shorts!

[zimusky]

Hey someone took a pic, said where was, and we saw it. That's what I like! Da Bears!

[OBX Fisherman]

Cory wrote:

Quote:

What rod/reel combo were you using?

As far as the reel it is an Okuma and it performs very nicely. Nice smooth drag and line take up. No problems with line twist.

Thanks guys for all your positive comments.

I feesh Okuma reels exclusively. I Started feeshing them in Saltwater and fell in love with them. Lots of bang for the buck. I would hate for my wife to know what "WE" have spent on Okuma Products, but that is another topic for another day

Reech

[MCSTEEL]

Now thats what I call a very good report. Good job!!!

[Cory]

Thanks! We had an enjoyable day. The weather was nice and the fish were cooperative. I was able to hone a few presentations and put some others on fish.
I hope to do it again soon, but flows aren't looking so great.

[jawjack]

Cory,
nice pics and report. we did well on saturday also. Keep on hookin`
>JJ<

[Cory]

Yes you did, I saw those pics. That one buck sure had a bright stripe!

Great job!

[fishinnstudyin]

hi, i read your great post on fishing the little cal? what is the full name of this river/creek b/c I'd like to go fly fishing here. also, you dont have to tell me your secret holes but could you give me a general idea of a point where I can start wading in this river???


thanks,

John


btw.. you wrote several hints on how you fished for steelhead/salmon.. I decided to make this my salmon rod setup, I bought a new Okuma Metaloid 30 for about $35 dollars and I decided to put 10 yards mono backing so braid wouldnt slip, a 2nd 15 lb braid backing of 150 yards, and about 80-100 yards of 10-12 lb mono.. My reel can only hold about 120-140 yards of 12 lb mono, so with the braid as backing I could add a lot more line into my reel b/c of the 4 lb mono test size the 15 lb line has... tell me what you think about this? would it work?

[Tom]

fishinnstudyin wrote:

hi, i read your great post on fishing the little cal? what is the full name of this river/creek b/c I'd like to go fly fishing here. also, you dont have to tell me your secret holes but could you give me a general idea of a point where I can start wading in this river???


thanks,

John


btw.. you wrote several hints on how you fished for steelhead/salmon.. I decided to make this my salmon rod setup, I bought a new Okuma Metaloid 30 for about $35 dollars and I decided to put 10 yards mono backing so braid wouldnt slip, a 2nd 15 lb braid backing of 150 yards, and about 80-100 yards of 10-12 lb mono.. My reel can only hold about 120-140 yards of 12 lb mono, so with the braid as backing I could add a lot more line into my reel b/c of the 4 lb mono test size the 15 lb line has... tell me what you think about this? would it work?

Here are the maps from our Chitown links icon above, for the Little Calumet, Salt, and Trail creek.



http://www.chitown-angler.com/1tackle/maps/littlecal-salt.gif

http://www.chitown-angler.com/1tackle/maps/trailcm.gif

If you check the Indiana DNR site, they will show you public access areas for all three creeks. Your best bet is to grab the maps and do some searching. There are some places that are not marked as public access, but can be reach with a little walking in the creeks, and those are some of the most scenic and productive waters around. Do some searching, that is part of the enjoyment in catching these fish. I am not at liberty to share the spot that Cory is fishing. That's his call.

As far as your line set up. If your fish takes out 100 yards of your 10 to 12 lb mono, he most likely is going to break you off. There are too many obstructions for him to take advantage of, with that much line out. A long rod, say 9 feet or so, and 8lb test on your reel would serve you well.

Hope this helps.
Good Luck,

Tom