Northwest Fishing Reports

Anybody ever see anyone fishing spey rods of the Spokane River? I'm seriously thinking about getting one. If I can work myself into a descent cast with a spey, maybe I can reach some of the unreachable water. My wading ability has all but disappeared.

If it is moving water you can spey fish it. I have some buddies who spey that river a lot with great success. They usually throw streamers on sink lines or soft hackles on floaters. Instead of a Spey why not a Switch Rod? I am thinking of adding a Switch to the group. TempleFork makes some nice ones for reasonable money. An 11' 6 or7wt would rule on all trout and some Steel around here. Plus you can overhand cast as well. And man can you throw some line with them. I threw one at the Orvis shop last fall and was tossing 120' with no problem. I doubt you have enough room for the back cast down there though. I could still Spey cast a good 80' with it even though I have no experience at the spey cast. Food for thought.

6 or 7 wt true spey rated rods will over power trout. Great for steelhead but overkill on trout. I have 4 switch rods (2 11' TFO's and 2 10'-6"Beulahs). The TFO's are true speys. The Beulahs are really just long AFTMA rated rods. If you understand that AFTMA rod/line ratings are based on a rod being 9' long. The Beulahs being 10'-6" rods are 18" longer than the AFTMA standard so they cast best up lined 2 wts. My 5/6 rod performs best with 7 wt lines & some 8's. My 7/8 rod performs best with 9's & 10's. My TFO 7 wt is a true spey and if I would want to overhead cast it it would cast best with an 11 wt line. My TFO 9 wt if overhead cast would cast best with a 13 wt.

I use my 5/6 Beulah to fish for cutties, pinks, and resident silvers in saltwater, and pinks in freshwater. It overpowers most trout and I only fish it for trout in large rivers.
I use my 7/8 Beulah for adult silvers, both in salt and fresh water, and for summer run steelhead in larger rivers.
My 7 wt TFO is my winter steelhead stick.
My 9 wt TFO is my river king rod.

I just swapped for a Sage 11' 6 wt switch rod. Haven't cast it yet, but It will probably get most of its use on summer steelhead in the smaller rivers. I'm currently mulling over getting a true trout spey. Probably a 4 wt, but I to be honest I need another spey rod like I need another hole in my head. I justify the purchases because I've had 2 rotator cuff surgeries and 2 hand casting is a LOT easier on the body than 1 hand casting is.

To get the best info on spey type rods you have a real gem over your way. Call Poppy at Red Shed Fly Shop over in Peck, ID.
He can answer all your questions and get you a set up that really works for what you want it to do.