Steelhead are the large ocean going cousins of the Rainbow Trout. The Steelhead are born in fresh water and then migrate to the oceans for 3 to 4 years. To spawn, they return to their birthplace and unlike the Salmon, they do not all die after spawning.
The Steelhead is the ultimate game fish and can be found in the big rivers in the West and the tributaries of the Great Lakes.
The fly patterns that are used to catch Steelhead are usually wet flies, although there are a few dry fly patterns tied to imitate Stone Flies, or Caddis Flies.
Most of the Steelhead Patterns are colorful creations that seem to annoy the fish, causing them to attack the fly.
It is believed by some that the Stone Fly Female is imprinted on the Steelhead when it is young as a food source, and even though the Steelhead does not feed after entering fresh water, it has been caught on Stone Fly Dry Fly Patterns.
Some Steelhead Fishing Fly Patterns are;
| Albino Muddler | Autumn Gold |
| Autumn Skies | Autumn Spey |
| Babine Special | Badger Skater |
| Bella Coola Bomber | Black And Golden |
| Black Heron | Black Palmer |
| Brad’s Brat | Brown Heron |
| Burlap | Coal Car |
| Courtesan | Cumming’s Special |
| Damselfly | Del Cooper |
| Dicos Skater | Disco Mouse |
| Dragon Fly | Fall Bright |
| Fall Favorite | Flashin Pat |
| Fluttering Termite | Freight Train |
| Gold Heron | Golden Demon |
| Grease Liner | Green Butt Skunk |
| Grew’s Muddler | Harry Kari Bucktail |
| Kalama Special | Lemire’s Black Irresistible |
| Lemire’s Fall Caddis | Marabou Red Tube |
| Marabou Spey | Max Canyon |
| Maxwell’s Purple Matuka | Moose Hair Caddis |
| Moose Turd | October Caddis |
| October Wulff | Orange Golden Edge |
| Orange Heron | Orange Roughy |
| Orange Shrimp | Otter Bar Purple |
| Paint Brush | Patricia |
| Patriot | Pink Marabou Spider |
| Pink Sundowner | Polar Gibson |
| Polar Shrimp | Polar Skater |
| Purple Muddler | Purple Peril |
| Quillayute | Red Ant |
| Red/Orange Marabou Spider | Reiff Skunk |
| Ricks Revenge | Rusty Bomber |
| Rusty Spider | Shooting Star |
| Silver Admiral | Silver and Black |
| Silver and Orange | Silver Hilton |
| Skunk | Skupade |
| Skykomish Sunrise | Sol Duc |
| Sol Duc Dark | Sol Duc Spey |
| Spawning Purple Spey | Steelhead Bee |
| Steelhead Caddis | Steelhead Coachman |
| Steelhead Macintosh | Steelhead Silver Doctor |
| Stewart Stone Nymph | Street Walker |
| Summer Spey | Super Skunk |
| Thompson River Caddis | Umpqua Red Brat |
| Umpqua Special | Van Luven |
| Waddington Thunder and Lightning | Wagoner’s Steelhead Skater |
| Washougal Olive | Waller Walker |
| Water Ouzel | Willie Gunn Tube |
| Winter Spey | Winter’s Hope |