5 expert tips for catching Ontario steelhead all season long (including winter!)

With nearly 40 years under his wading belt chasing steelhead across southern Ontario, Michigan and New York State, Brantford, Ontario’s Karl Redin (above) certainly knows a thing or two about catching chromers. “They’re very strong and acrobatic, and they make great table fare,” he says. “Fishing for them is adrenaline forming. You get addicted to it. You can’t wait for that next bite.”

Redin’s affinity for steelhead doesn’t stop with merely fishing for them, however. He also serves as president of Ontario Steelheaders, a not-for-profit network of individuals and groups working to enhance and protect steelhead fisheries across the province—and promote steelheading itself in the process. Reviving the Saugeen River has been one of the club’s major successes, growing annual returns to as many as 50,000 fish, up from just a few hundred a decade ago.

We recently connected with Redin in the steelhead tackle aisle of the Bass Pro Shops store in Vaughan, Ontario, to get some tips on targeting winter chromers. He says there are essentially three ways anglers can target steelhead during the winter: float fishing with centrepin gear, or bottom bouncing or casting lures with spinning gear. Here’s a brief primer on what you need to know to get started.