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Aug 09 2016

Whitney Gould’s Silver Swinging Rig

Silver salmon close up.
Will eat a swung fly. Photo: Ben West.

When it comes to fly fishing for silvers, it’s hard to argue against the effectiveness of stripping ridiculously colored streamers with a single handed 8-9 weight fly rod. However, one of our favorite things about silver season is that we’re fortunate to be able to target fish using a whole bunch of different methods, thus amping up the fun factor a few notches.

One such way is targeting them on spey rods! Is it the most productive method possible? Maybe not.. But it’s a heck of lot of fun, and a great change of pace throughout the day. In fact, a few of you have asked us recently how we’d rig up to chase silvers with a two-hander, so we reached out to our own spey casting guru, Whitney Gould, on how she prefers to rig up when swinging for coho.

The Summary

  • Gary Anderson 1255-4 (12’5″ 5 weight)
  • Saracione Deluxe II 3 3/4” Reel
  • RIO InTouch Powerflex Shooting Line, .024
  • RIO InTouch Skagit Short 375 grain.
  • RIO InTouch Medium MOW Tip, 7.5 Floating 2.5 sink

The Detail

  • 20lb Dacron backing attached to the spool with an arbor knot.
  • RIO Powerflex shooting line connected to backing with a loop to loop connection.
  • Skagit Head connected to running line with a loop to loop connection.
  • 7.5 Float/2.5 Sink Medium MOW Tip connected to Skagit Head with loop to loop connection using factory welded loops.
  • Approximately 7 to 10 foot built leader, ending in 15 pound Maxima Ultragreen connected to MOW Tip using a loop to loop connection.
  • Favorite fly (as long as its pink) attached to leader with a non-slip mono loop.

Disclaimer: If you don’t want a sore shoulder from railing on fish after fish, stop reading this post.

The Commentary

“Fishing a two handed rod for silvers is a great alternative to the traditional single handed methods. Its not only fun, but your arms and shoulders tend to be less sore come dinner time.”

“Skagit heads are built to turn over big, heavily weighted streamers, which is ideal for the heavy, lead-eye flies we tend to use.”

“When swinging for silvers, the best action is a broad side presentation jigged with a downward twitch of the rod tip. I retrieve the line during the swing only to remove slack, but as a general rule I only retrieve the line towards the end of the swing to keep the fly in the zone as long as possible.”

“Feel the weight of the fish, set the hook, and let the fish run. Silvers are the most acrobatic and unpredictable fighters amongst the Pacific salmon. Therefore time is your enemy when fighting silvers, so don’t waste time, stick it to ’em! In other words, don’t be a sissy.. Fight it like a woman!

“Make sure to take advantage of a shore lunch with family and friends and enjoy the whole experience. Coho are willing players!”

More on Silver Salmon

  • How To Catch Silver Salmon – Video
  • Jason Whiting’s Silver Rig
  • Now, That’s a Silver

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