Jigging for big-river salmon

When fishing buddy Julio Chiodo invited me on a trip to Lake Superior's Nipigon River, I quickly grabbed my rods, reels, and tackle trays filled with crankbaits and spoons, as well as my steelhead vest. I thought I had everything needed to catch chinook, coho, and steelhead. When we arrived and launched the boat below one of the huge hydroelectric dams, I peered into the turquoise-coloured water and wondered what would be in store during the day's fishing. After all, fishing on the world-famous Nipigon stimulates one's anticipation. I had no idea, though, that the day would produce a new method for catching salmon.

Hydroelectric dam on the Nipigon River, the fall home of a variety of salmon and steelhead.

The sun was just slinking over the horizon as we began trolling a variety of crankbaits and spoons from bank to bank and across current breaks. We also held the boat in the current and allowed deep-diving crankbaits to drop back into holes and depressions in the river. We also cast spinners and spoons to slack water and back-eddies. After about three hours we'd seen a number of fish jump, roll, and porpoise, yet among our boat and all the others on the water, I'd only seen one salmon landed.

The Nipigon River is challenging to fish. Whether you're trolling or drifting, powerful currents can easily spin a boat around. Anglers need to constantly vary speed and direction of the boat in order to compensate. We decided to take a break from the current by anchoring in dark, slack water on the edge of the dam's turbulent outflow. As I stared into the slack water with my polarizing glasses, I could see shapes of salmon, whitefish, and possibly trout swimming along rocky ledges and in current areas. After a fruitless hour of casting spoons, spinners, and crankbaits, and drifting spawn, I was getting frustrated. Chalk it up to the Nipigon's whims, I told myself; you have to put in your time to reap its rewards.

Bored, I pulled a small lure box out of my steelhead vest and stared at a 3/8-ounce Dan Klatt Jig-Fly, composed of deer hair, wool, and peacock feathers. I thought back to more than 15 years ago when Dan had guided our party on the Nipigon in search of trophy brook trout, and how his jig-fly imitated a swimming, darting minnow. I took my spinning reel, loaded with 8-pound line, and quickly attached it to the shortest spinning rod I had. Then I cast the jig-fly into the turbulent flow. As I hopped it like a walleye jig, I soon felt tension and set the hook. A thrashing shape appeared out of the white foam and then tested my drag as it headed downstream. After a 5-minute battle, I landed a 5-pound(2.3 kg)silver coho.

A selection of river jigs that will work including(left row, bottom to top)Rainbow Divers, Gypsi Jigs, Hopkins Hammertails, Tinsel Jig.(right row, bottom to top)Dan Klatt Jig-Flies, Lipstick Jigs and Fuzz-E-Grub Jigs.

A few casts later, the jig-fly was snagged hopelessly in rocks. I thought momentarily about using a spoon or spinner again, but Julio said he'd brought some walleye jigs. I selected a 3/8-ounce white Fuzz-E-Grub. To my amazement, several casts later I was battling another salmon, this time an 8- or 9-pound(about 4 kg)chinook. When landed, the jig was buried so far down the fish's throat that I had to use needle-nosed pliers to remove it. A fluke, I thought to myself. Catching two salmon on jigs? Over the next 3 hours, we used Fuzz-E-Grub and LipStick jigs in white, smoke, and root beer(orange and brown)to hook and land six more salmon weighing up to 15 pounds(6.8 kg), one whitefish, and a lake trout. Several times we had to pull up anchor and chase large salmon downriver. Although we never landed these fish, fighting them on light tackle was thrilling.

We returned to the Nipigon later that month with a variety of jigs, including Rainbow Divers, Gypsies, Hopkins Hammertails, and more Dan Klatt Jig-Flys, LipStick, and Fuzz-E-Grubs. One-quarter to 1/2-ounce models in white, yellow, red, and multi-colours worked well on that trip. We also changed to 5 1/2- to 6-foot medium to heavy-action jigging rods and large-capacity spinning reels loaded with 8-pound-test line.

Fishing jigs from shore is also effective on big-river salmon. A switch to slightly heavier line and longer, light-to medium-action steelhead/salmon rods and large-capacity reels is recommended for better casting distance and jig and fish control. Unlike a boat angler who can move with a battling fish, shorebound anglers sometimes have to hang tough and take a stand. For big Ontario rivers, such as the Nipigon, lower Niagara, and the St. Mary's, a boat can't be beat for reaching fish-holding areas.

White-water/slack-water interfaces, back-eddies, current edges, and deep holes behind structures all held river salmon when we fished the Nipigon last fall. Anchoring or positioning the boat so we could cast jigs was effective for us. Something about the darting, jigging presentation drove those salmon nuts. Next time you fish for big-river salmon and traditional baits fail to produce, try jigs. Be prepared for reel-stripping action as the big ones tear downstream.