BUZZ BLOG: Making a case for the spinner for salmon and steelhead
NEW Sept. 9, 2009 / 8:30 a.m.

With plenty of steelhead and salmon lurking in nearby rivers, now’s the time to give spinners a try – here’s how to fish them.

Likely due to a spinner’s sonic vibration, fish respond to spinners by striking them savagely.  Their built-in weight makes spinner casting easy while their vibration-producing blades attract fish in waters ranging from slow to fast moving.  In short, the right spinner will produce almost anywhere salmon and steelheads hold.

Working the spinner right: The most common way to fish a spinner in a river is to cast out, across and slightly upstream and reel it back to you with a retrieve speed that keeps it working near bottom. If the water is deep, you should allow your spinner to sink near bottom before starting to reel. 

Fished this way, the river current will swing your spinner downstream through the fish-holding water. Once your spinner swings in near shore, it's time to reel in and cast again.

You’ll be much more successful if you don't get caught up in a steady, ridged, retrieve mode.  Let your spinner work with the current.  For example, if you feel a burst of water grab your lure, slow down or momentarily stop retrieving and let it work. 

Spinners are the most effective when slowly retrieved, as slow as you can, and as close to bottom as possible.  Strikes are usually definite, but some fish will just stop the spinning blade, so if in doubt, set the hook.

In addition to allowing your spinner to work with the current, you can sometimes tease these fish into biting by working your spinner in an erratic fashion with lots of starts and stops, speed-ups and slow-downs, even changing the angle of your retrieve can sometimes produce results.

In extreme clear water, where upstream looking fish might spook when seeing you, upstream casting can be the “go to” spinner method.  Easy, position yourself within casting range of the fish-holding water and cast at an upstream angle.  If the water is shallow, begin your retrieve as or just before your spinner hits the water, which can help you avoid hang ups. 

After an upstream cast, especially when the water is shallow, reel fast as possible until you’ve picked up all slack line and begin to feel the resistance of the spinning blade; then slow down your retrieve speed and work your lure just above bottom. 
                  
Another productive technique is downstream casting, which works best on wide holes or tail-outs.  Cast your spinner out across and downstream.  Since, the current is moving away from you, it requires a slow, or no retrieve, as your spinner swings through the holding water.

Sizes, colors: Realize that fish can be finicky about what spinner size, style and color they’ll respond to.  Coho salmon are famous for turning up their nose at nearly every offering but then going crazy (as in a fish-feeding frenzy) after only one cast with their chosen lure.  My advice: try different offerings and let the fish tell you what they like.  

Spinners are available in an amazing array of weights, sizes and colors.  The most popular weights include 1/4-, one-third (3/8) and 1/2 ounce. 

Some of the popular names include the Flash Glo (designed just for salmon and steelhead), the new Worden's Vibric, Blue Fox and Rooster Tail.  Keep in mind that regulations might require the use of a single, rather than treble hook, when fishing freshwater rivers.

Although fish will respond to solid metal finishes like nickel, brass or copper, they may prefer lures featuring a combination of color and reflective metal.  Spinners having fluorescent chartreuse, pink, green, blue, black, orange or red colored bodies in combination with metal blades should be included in your arsenal.  Remember, these fish can be fickle as the stock market so take along a wide assortment of different spinners, sizes and colors. 

Try Tipping: While tipping is a common practice among bass and walleye anglers, the trick is often overlooked by those chasing salmon and steelhead.  With spinners what works is to tip the hook of your spinner with a short section pinched from a scent-filled worm - like the 3 or 4-inch PowerBait worm.  And while different colors can work, what often adds to success is to hang a one-inch section of a fluorescent red, pink or chartreuse colored worm from your hook – just let it hang straight back.

-Buzz Ramsey

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