Steelhead tend to move upstream rapidly through the slow, lower river, especially on flood tides. Most anglers set up plunking or back-trolling rods on steelhead migration corridors, especially in the water below the town of Snohomish, and wait for a run of fish.

Traditional hotspots are the WDFG access at Thomas Eddy, both above and below the Highway 9 Bridge and at the mouth of the Pilchuck River, and the Skykomish and Snoqualmie confluences.

A boat launch in downtown Snohomish upstream from the Highway 9 Bridge provides trailered-boat access to the middle river. The town stretch is popular with jet boats, and can be navigated by prop boats.

Ramps are also located in Everett, Marysville Park at First and State streets and in Ebey Slough. In most areas, the lower Snohomish’s placid, snaggy flow is deep enough to be fished by both prop and jet boats.

Bank-fishermen park and walk from the paralleling river roads that link Everett and Snohomish.

2. PILCHUCK RIVER
The Pilchuck is a quick, narrow, rocky 30-mile long steelhead river that spills into the Snohomish River at the east edge of Snohomish. Open only during the winter, it produces about 100 winter-run steelhead a year, more than half during February.

Boat-fishing is not allowed, but the river is wadeable and between Snohomish and Machias is paralleled by Machias Road. The Robe-Menzel Road leads south from Granite Falls along the river for four miles.

This is rumbling pocket-picking water, good for spinners, spoons and yarn-corkie combinations.

3. SKYKOMISH RIVER
By far the best of the 11, the Sky is the most popular winter steelhead river in the region, and with good reason.

Fed by two steelhead hatchery rearing-pond facilities, dozens of spawning tributaries with a long run from the crest of the Cascades to the dairy farms in Snoqualmie Valley, the main-stem Sky attracts more winter steelhead than any river for 100 miles in any direction. It’s red-hot in December and January, but catches fall off after Ground Hog Day.

The Sky is a broad, deep, boulder-pool, riffle-and-rapid freestone river paralleled for most of its length by roads along both banks, with plenty of excellent walk-in and boat-fishing opportunities. The lower river from Monroe to the confluence is a favorite with jet boats.

The Sky almost always ranks in the state’s top five steelhead rivers, but unfortunately, it’s caught in the same downward spiral of all Puget Sound drainages. Fortunately, it’s spiraling slower than the others.

In 1999, for comparison, the Sky produced almost 2,000 winter steelhead and 3,000 summer steelhead. Just 10 years earlier, anglers routinely caught about 5,000 winter-runs and 3,000 summer-runs. WDFW’s latest report is that only 1,840 winter runs were caught.

Steelhead action extends upriver beyond U.S. 2-High Bridge to WDFW’s Reiter Ponds and on into the North and South Forks. Most fishing pressure is from Gold Bar downstream, and is centered on the stretch between Monroe and Sultan.

Highway 2 follows the north bank at a distance, for the river’s entire length. The south bank is closely tracked between Monroe and Sultan by Ben Howard Road, which has walk-in access. The WDFW Ben Howard access is on the south side of river two miles east of the Monroe Bridge. It’s a favorite take-out for drift-boats fishing down from Sultan and a launch point for jet boats working the Monroe area. Bank-anglers will also find good access here. Another WDFW ramp is on the north side of the river at the Highway 203 Bridge in Monroe. Other popular bank-fishing and boat-access points include the mouth of the Sultan River, Highway 2-High Bridge and WDFW’s Reiter Ponds steelhead rearing facility. Bank access is limited between Sultan and High Bridge, which is a prime drift-boat float.

5. WALLACE RIVER
Wading steelheaders keep about 150 winter steelhead a year from this brushy little river, most from the lower stretches below Wallace Falls in December and January.

This is small, quick pocket water. It gets very limited fishing pressure, and if you take the time to find the holding areas, it can develop into a fine pocket to pick. Brings lots of tackle, since the donation rate is high.