Lake Erie Steelhead 
Fishing Adventures for the Not Normal Individual

Two years ago I had the good fortune of being introduced to steelhead fishing by fellow DVWFFA club member and fishing goddess, Dee Lehman. We went to Lake Erie and fished the New York tributaries. It was quite a memorable trip – one that would not likely have a normal individual want to return any time soon. Then again, in the world of fishing – who and what is normal!

Our adventure started with weather that was just miserable and water that was ever so cold. While I spent hours walking up and down stream warding off frostbite – and minutes catching fish - Dee and her TU friend delighted in the rawness of the fishing and their every growing steelhead bounty – and, virtually never left the water.

Well, this November the steelhead were calling me – or more, accurately reported, Ian, who is my friend, personal fishing guide, and sherpa - was gently insisting that a return trip to Lake Erie was in order. So, off we went.

We made a weekend trip to fish the Pennsylvania tributaries of Lake Erie for steelhead. Fortunately, Ian drove all the way (7 hours from Philadelphia) – and back! The Erie tributaries are all small spate rivers that fish best when they are clearing after a flood and the pools have a clear green tint. 

When I arrived on Friday afternoon it had just stopped raining and the large streams (Elk and Walnut Creek) were high and muddy. Nonetheless, we were able to pull in a fish or two and were quite excited to be there. On Saturday, because of the high water, we fished two smaller streams, Sixteen Mile Creek and Twelve Mile Creek, to the East of the City of Erie. Both were at a perfect fishing height with steelhead running upstream all day. Twelve Mile Creek was especially fun because we were fishing to clearly visible fish that were eager to take a well-presented fly. On Sunday we fished the middle section of the largest stream, Elk Creek, which takes longer to clear after rain, and again had perfect conditions. 

Recognizing that it would be a long ride home if Ian didn’t somewhat satisfy his insatiable appetite for fishing, I generously allowed my guide to fish and between the two of us we hooked 50 steelhead over the weekend, landing around 30 fish. Many of the fish were bright silver, fresh from the lake and most were between 3 and 6 lbs, with the largest 9 ½ lbs. Steelhead are basically rainbow trout on steroids whose speed and incredible hard fight make for exciting fishing. 

We fished two flies below a strike indicator, casting upstream and across to get a dead drift. The flies were about 10” apart, with the top fly a small egg pattern (size 12 or 14) and a similar sized black nymph on the bottom. The key is to adjust the amount of shot on the leader and the position of the indicator to get the fly into the target zone close to the bottom. We caught fish on a variety of colored eggs, but cream and pale salmon pink worked best as the water cleared. Elk Creek was especially pretty, with several pools having high cliffs rising straight from the water. 

If you go, be prepared for crowds, especially at the weekend. However, in the peak season in October and November there are plenty of fish to go around, and most anglers are friendly. I asked several for advice (much to my doting guide’s chagrin) and several anglers gave me flies that were working for them. Mike from Pittsburgh shared his “secret” fly – a pink piece of yarn with thin gold thread (akin to a green weenie); while Pat from Ohio shared his lucky orange bead head nymph. My guide was even more unhappy when I gave two of his flies to a fellow angler who wasn’t catching anything! Oh well! Everyone has their own fly swapping style… 

We stayed in the local Best Western, which is reasonably priced (and includes a breakfast buffet) and has a restaurant with good burgers and excellent fried Lake Erie Yellow Perch. If you want a more upscale dining experience I recommend Oscars on West 12th street in Erie which also has great beer selection. 

A good read is John Nagy’s Steelhead Guide (Great Lakes Publishing), which describes the streams and tactics. You should also check the fishing reports on www.fishusa.com/fisherie/ that has good maps and descriptions of each stream. 

In 2007, Ian and I plan to steelhead fish in the Lake Superior area and will report back on what should be another great fishing adventure.
‘Til then – Happy Holidays to All!

--Mary E. Bowler--
Winter 2007 Issue