I have a trip planned to fish on the Southfork of The Clearwater for Steelhead on the 12th,13th,14th and 15th of March. Last year we went up and fished the last weekend of March and the Steelhead were already up the river. So my question is; will this be too late to catch the large pods of fish coming up the river?
Answer:
In most years, the dates you selected would align with a peak in steelhead movement up the South Fork Clearwater River. However, the warmer weather we are experiencing this winter has got the steelhead moving early. In fact, based on the number of PIT tagged steelhead we are detecting moving up the South Fork Clearwater, I would say that the peak in movement is probably occurring right now. Fishing should still be good in mid-March, but the steelhead should be distributed more throughout the drainage.
Answered on:
Monday, February 23, 2015 - 2:01 PM MST