# Fresh run Steel



## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

Fished the BM all day yesterday, 2 boats - 4 fishermen.
95% of the holes were hit-less, for us at least, but 2 on the lower end were full of action after the heavy fog cleared around noon...
All on spawn.
4 for 6, all bright fat males, 24", 28", 30.5" and 31.5".
Must have come in Tuesday or Wednesday night as the meat on all was still the brightest red as lake caught.


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## Bob Hunter (Jan 19, 2016)

All males?


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## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

Bob Hunter said:


> All males?


Every one was male...usually they would be behind females but nada females caught ahead of them or even in the same holes.
Now, we did notice on the middle river, many of the sand ripples in 3-4' of clear water below gravel had eggs caught in them. Maybe 2,3,4 white eggs . There and up, a few fisherman were catching fish on hardware only. There were no eggs seen anywhere in ripples on the lower end.
We surmised the latent middle and upper fish were filled with eggs, (Salmon or otherwise) whereas the lower, new fish, were coming in hungry. Just a guess.


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## Bob Hunter (Jan 19, 2016)

jimp said:


> Every one was male...usually they would be behind females but nada females caught ahead of them or even in the same holes.
> Now, we did notice on the middle river, many of the sand ripples in 3-4' of clear water below gravel had eggs caught in them. Maybe 2,3,4 white eggs . There and up, a few fisherman were catching fish on hardware only. There were no eggs seen anywhere in ripples on the lower end.
> We surmised the latent middle and upper fish were filled with eggs, (Salmon or otherwise) whereas the lower, new fish, were coming in hungry. Just a guess.


The fish in the bottom of your pic is a hen, so I wondered why you said you caught all males.


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## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

Bob Hunter said:


> The fish in the bottom of your pic is a hen, so I wondered why you said you caught all males.


Nope, all chunky fat males.
I stayed in today, the other 3 guys from yesterday were out, 5 for 9, 1 small tight hen only, 4 fresh males again.


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## jrv (Nov 11, 2008)

Beautiful fish! I'm sitting my tree stand, listening to the jet boats headed up and down the BM, wondering why I chose to hunt! I guess there's always tomorrow morning.


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## SteelieArm14 (Jan 6, 2012)

Bottom fish is defiantly a hen. Sounds like a good day!


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## Bob Hunter (Jan 19, 2016)

jimp said:


> Nope, all chunky fat males.
> I stayed in today, the other 3 guys from yesterday were out, 5 for 9, 1 small tight hen only, 4 fresh males again.


It's definitely a hen, has a small rounded head and the lower jaw doesn't extend past the upper jaw like the males above it. All beautiful fish man, nice work!


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## Treven (Feb 21, 2006)

SteelieArm14 said:


> Bottom fish is defiantly a hen. Sounds like a good day!


Is there another picture I missed there? Tough angle to be "definite" about your proclamation, and not to mention, seeins those fish seem to be laid out on newspaper on the table ready to be cut, I bet Jimp would have noticed the difference between a male and female...

Just sayin...


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## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

Bob Hunter said:


> It's definitely a hen, has a small rounded head and the lower jaw doesn't extend past the upper jaw like the males above it. All beautiful fish man, nice work!


Hens don't have white milt sacs.
Would have loved to have even tight immature skein.
Plenty of treated on hand, Starting to run low on fresh which was working the best..


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## mikeznewaygo (Sep 19, 2011)

It's a jack buck lol, just came into river and it's small so no kype


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## jigsnwigs (Feb 6, 2011)

The only "jack buck" I know of was a sports broadcaster. If the bottom fish is not a female then it must be some freak of nature. Jacks are a reference to small salmon. And skippers are a reference to small steelhead. Is there a book out there called, Fish I.D. for Dummies? Maybe its time for the state of Michigan to start testing fishing license applicants. Very nice catch regardless.


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## Bob Hunter (Jan 19, 2016)

I would love to have Jay Westley look at the picture and give his opinion, if that fish had milt sacs something is seriously wrong with it in my humble opinion!


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## mikeznewaygo (Sep 19, 2011)

Lol okay sorry my bad, it's a skipper buck, and a fresh one at that


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## mikeznewaygo (Sep 19, 2011)

Lol okay sorry my bad, it's a skipper buck, and a fresh one at that


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## Benzie Rover (Mar 17, 2008)

jigsnwigs said:


> The only "jack buck" I know of was a sports broadcaster. If the bottom fish is not a female then it must be some freak of nature. Jacks are a reference to small salmon. And skippers are a reference to small steelhead. Is there a book out there called, Fish I.D. for Dummies? Maybe its time for the state of Michigan to start testing fishing license applicants. Very nice catch regardless.


'Skipper' is just a regional common name for a juvenile steelhead. Out west (Rogue River) they r called 'half-pounders'. 

Jacks are a common name for precocious male salmon of all salmon species. Jacks are also call 'sneaker-spawners' and they play an important role in salmon life history strategies. Jacks help ensure high rates of fertilization by sneaking in and squirting the redd with milt while the adult bucks r chasing and battling one another. In populations that are in decline or threatened you will see a larger than usual component of jacks in the population as a way of trying to compensate for decreasing adult returns. 

Steelhead also utilize jack (precocious male) spawners in the spring. 

The bottom fish looks like a hen, but looks can fool. I'd trust the poster first off cause ultimately - who cares which it is?!


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## JungleGeorge (Apr 18, 2013)

Caught this hen coho


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## foxfire69 (Sep 10, 2006)

jimp said:


> Hens don't have white milt sacs.
> Would have loved to have even tight immature skein.
> Plenty of treated on hand, Starting to run low on fresh which was working the best..


In Jim's defense...I also thought that was a Hen...not the first time we have been surprised..both ways! Wish you would have spoken up Jim...I ended up with 6 skeins!

Great time on the water with you and the brotherhood!


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## Jay Wesley (Mar 2, 2009)

Based on looks, i would have called it a hen and lost the bet in the boat and bought beer for the crew. You never know for sure until you slice them open. I have been caught by surprise the other way too thinking I was keeping a small male for grill to find out it was a female.


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## JimP (Feb 8, 2002)

foxfire69 said:


> In Jim's defense...I also thought that was a Hen...not the first time we have been surprised..both ways! Wish you would have spoken up Jim...I ended up with 6 skeins!
> 
> Great time on the water with you and the brotherhood!


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## Bigbird517 (Apr 12, 2014)

That's a nice size coho junglegeorge and fresh too.


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## Treven (Feb 21, 2006)

Lols!!!


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## Clum (May 11, 2015)

All I have to say is, How DARE you sexists make assumption about the gender of these fish.


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## GrouseMD (Oct 17, 2010)

Clum said:


> All I have to say is, How DARE you sexists make assumption about the gender of these fish.


Exactly, that male quite possibly could have been identifying as a female that day. Just like me when it's $1 domestic bottles on ladies night at the local bar.


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