by Dave Graybill, December 15, 2011

This was an incredible week for me. It was several days of a whole bunch of good stuff, which included taping two new television shows, and getting to fish for steelhead at Pateros, just for the fun of it. In between there was a great seminar at Town Ford on fishing for steelhead, presented by Shane Magnuson. There were fish caught every day I was on the water, and people learned all about how to catch them at the seminar.

On Tuesday, my fishing buddy Rollie Schmitten and I traveled to Carlton, up the Methow River valley and met Keith Roe. Roe has fished the Methow since the 70s and has developed methods for fishing this river with a bobber and jig like no other. He also ties jigs that are tailor made for low and clear water conditions.

We started our day taping a session on how to rig for fishing the Methow, Keith Roe style. He took us through all the steps and showed us the components that he uses after years and years of experience and hundreds and hundreds of steelhead landed on this river. Everyone that watches this show will learn something about how to catch steelhead in challenging conditions.

After we were through with the “seminar” Roe took Rollie and I to a couple of holes to show us how his method and tackle worked on the water. Using his 12 ½-foot rod and floating mono line, Roe put on a work shop on how all this specialized gear can make the difference, especially when fishing this river and others in chilly winter temperatures. He landed three fish in one hole! The first was even a Coho that was still eager enough to take one of his micro jigs. Did I mention that Roe specializes in fishing with jigs that weigh just 1/32nd and 1/64th ounce? Yup, and the fish love them. He caught two wild steelhead in this hole, too. Schmitten and I were duly impressed. Not just by Roe’s ability to catch steelhead when they are very reluctant to take anything, but all that we learned from him that day. If you would like to get some of his jigs, search Facebook by entering Raven Jigs. You will find his page and get the details on how to order some. You can also call Keith Roe to place an order by calling 509-429-5126. You can also e-mail Roe at ravenstjigs@gmail.com. Be sure to check my web site after to the first of the year to see when this show will be broadcast, and how to watch it on your computer if you are out of the area.

Two days later I was back on the Methow, this time to meet Kevin van Bueren of North Cascades Fly Fishing. The tough conditions that I encountered on Tuesday had worsened. It was 5 degrees at van Bueren’s home that morning, and he had tried to reach me to suggest that we reschedule. I didn’t get his message until I was in the parking lot in Twisp. Fortunately, he agreed to give it try anyway. He and his friend Kathleen took me to a stretch of river not far from Twisp. We waded across the river, found a good background and shot our seminar-style session. Van Bueren did a great job walking viewers through rigging up for fly fishing in winter conditions and the flies he will use when it’s freezing.

At least the sun was out, but the temperature probably was hovering around 20 degrees when he stepped out into the river to fish. He demonstrated how he could cast a large indicator and a two-fly set up either single handed or with a two hand “switch” rod. He explained why he likes a long rod as it is important to be able to throw a mend above the indicator so his flies are being presented properly and the indicator rides straight up and down.

As he moved down river to fish the run, we found that we had to break off the shelf ice to allow him to avoid having his line freeze to it. This not only made casting difficult, but the ice could actually nick or cut the line when playing a fish. On his first pass he hooked and landed a whitefish of 18 or 19 inches. On his next trip through the hole his indicator went down and when he set the hook he could tell he had a good fish. It turned out to be a great fish. When he slid it into the net it was much larger than I thought, watching it flash under the water. It was a 12- or 13-pound wild hen, which we carefully released while keeping it in the water. Van Bueren’s tackle and technique was good enough to get a steelhead to hit in the most difficult fishing conditions I have ever seen on the Methow. It was a real testament to his ability. You can reach Kevin van Bueren through Sun Mountain Lodge by calling 800-572-0493 and you can log onto his web site by going to www.fishandfloat.com.

If these trips weren’t enough, I got to fish with Shane Magnuson, Upper Columbia Guide Services, in Pateros to end my week. There were three other anglers along with us and we hooked at least 12 steelhead, got eight to the boat and took four hatchery fish in about five hours on the water.

Not a bad week of winter fishing in anybody’s book!

Dave Graybill - The Fishin' Magician