"In Search of Steelhead"
Our first trip to Prince of Wales Island, April 1998
This is the journal I kept during the first trip that Brent and I took to the island. I didn't get very descriptive in this journal but it should show how we did on our first trip. The journals I kept of later trips are much more detailed. The weather primarily showered on and off most of the trip. We were in awe of the island and didn't know what to expect. As you can see in a few of the pictures, we are carrying firearms not knowing that there are only Black Bears on the island. We used a truck and camper as transportation and housing for our trip. I hope this journal helps you get prepared for your trip to the island. Enjoy.........
~ Kenji King, Thorne Bay Lodge
April 19, 1998 (landed/hooked) 0/0 After a 36 hour ferry ride from Bellingham, WA to Ketchikan, AK we finally arrive. It was a beautiful trip but I was ready to catch some fish. We then took a float plane over to Thorne Bay on Prince of Wales Island. Thorne Bay is a small town with a small cafe, grocery store, sporting goods store, hardware store, and a few other small businesses. After getting the truck and camper from John and a few supplies we headed out. Running out of time we drove a short distance and stopped along the river to fish. We caught a few cutthroat trout but no steelhead. We decided to camp there.
Sunset off the back of the Ferry |
April 20, 1998 (landed/hooked) 0/0 Waking up right on the river was nice. We fished a little but caught only trout so we headed back into town for breakfast. The water on the Thorne River is a dark tea color and is different than what we are used back at home. It makes it harder to judge the depth and read the water. We spoke to a few people in town asking them about the Steelhead runs and nobody seems to know much, or isn't willing to tell. After breakfast we explored more of the Thorne River looking for Steelhead. Not having any better luck we concluded the fish moved through the lower part of the river quickly at this water level so we decided to try another drainage. We drove over to Staney Creek which seems to rise and drop much quicker than the Thorne. Still no luck so we decided to try another stream. We are having trouble determining what technique to use and where the fish hold in this tea colored water. We headed over to the another river and camped there.
Brent Fishing on the Thorne River |
April 21, 1998 (landed/hooked) 6/8 Brent and I walked upriver in the morning and found a few nice holes and spotted a few Steelhead. Brent hooked one using a streamer fly with a split shot. He drifted by the fish and got it to turn by jigging it back. Later I hook and land a nice Steelhead on a spinner with a barbless siwash hook. After a short stop for lunch we hiked downstream. We started seeing and hooking more fish. We decided that spinners are the best way to cover the water at this level. We camped there for the night.
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April 22, 1998 (landed/hooked) 5/6 After breakfast we worked our way downstream. We didn't hook anything until we passed the water we fished the night before. We ended up hooking 6, and landing 5. All of the fish were hooked on spinners. We then drove out to Staney Creek where we saw a few fish below a bridge. We decided to camp there and fish in the morning.
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April 23, 1998 (landed/hooked) 2/3 Brent and I worked our way downstream and only managed to hook one Steelhead. We saw about 12 fish but the water was super low and clear. There were bear tracks all over the shoreline as well as Bald Eagles lingering overhead. The fish were so spooked in some areas that the fish were hiding underneath rocks. We saw fish actually working their way underneath ledges and boulders to hide from predators. Brent took video of me tailing a fish that was underneath a rock. I only had a hold of it for a few seconds. We also found another boulder which had four Steelhead underneath it. After seeing that we decided to try a river with a little more water in it. We headed over the Thorne River and saw a few Steelhead under another bridge so we decided to fish there. Brent and I fished downstream but didn't see any other fish. Running out of daylight we camped there.
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April 24, 1998 (landed/hooked) 1/1 We went back to the lower Thorne River to see how the river looked. The water had dropped about one foot and was a little easier to read. Brent got a nice hen Steelhead on a spinner in the lowest hole just above tidewater. We then headed north towards Coffman Cove on the coast road. We passed a few nice streams but they were all too low to fish. We decided to camp by Luck Lake and enjoyed the scenery.
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April 25, 1998 (landed/hooked) 2/2 It rained most of the night and the water was coming up in the streams. We fished for a ways downstream. We had a few fish chase our spinners but didn't hook anything. Brent later hooked and landed one after I had gone back to the truck to hide from the weather. Every creek that was just a trickle the day before now had good flow and the fish were moving. We explored several of the small streams. The highlight of the day was when Brent was sight fishing to a Steelhead. He made a cast past the fish and it seemed to ignore his presentation. Then all of a sudden the fish turned and covered 10 feet in a flash to strike his spinner. We saw more fish but only managed to hook and land one. We worked our way back over to Staney Creek where we watched a Black Bear and her cub work their way through a meadow. We camped there for the evening.
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April 26, 1998 (landed/hooked) 3/4 We fished the lower part of Staney Creek and I got one early but that is all we saw. After that went up to the upper part of the drainage where we saw quite a few fish. The water was up a little so the fish had moved in. Brent hooked one just below the bridge. After fishing this area for a while we headed across the island to fish some new water. Arriving at another creek we decide to work our way downstream. We saw about 12 Steelhead but only managed to hook two and land one. The weather has been showers off and on most of the day. We camped there.
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April 27, 1998 (landed/hooked) 1/1 After breakfast we worked our way downstream and I was able to get a nice bright hen Steelhead. There wasn't as many fish as yesterday. With the rain from yesterday the water was up so we assumed the fish had moved upstream. Happy with the fishing so far we decided to explore more of the island so we drove around for a while. We ended up camping at the North Fork of Thorne River near the bridge.
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April 28, 1998 (landed/hooked) 1/1 We did some exploring downstream from the bridge. The river flows down into a lake system. I hooked a nice fish in a hole near the lake. I eventually landed the fish but it broke the line while we were getting ready for a picture. It left with my spinner and I had left the rest of my gear back at the truck so I was finished fishing for a while. We did get to see a bear swim across the stream in front of us. After a long day we headed back to Thorne Bay to camp for the last night before we leave in the morning.
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Overall we hooked 26 and landed 21 Steelhead. We were extremely happy with those numbers considering how little we knew about the island. It was so much fun exploring these small streams. Each stream was a new challenge. It was fishing the way it is supposed to be.