It is easier to discuss the times and places where jigs do not work well than it is to list all the times they
will work. The steelhead jig relies mainly on color and action to trigger a strike. Therefore, you can expect them to perform poorly in low visibility water. When the visibility is less than two feet, it is time to switch to some other type of lure or bait. For similar reasons jigs do not work well in the fast pockets of water in the rivers. In almost every other steelheading water, jigs will prove to be deadly.

Jigs come into their own in slow moving or still water. Which in my opinion is some of the hardest spots to fish for a steelhead with the conventional drifting techniques? With the wiggle of marabou or rabbit fur combined with a small dab of bait or scent, jigs are deadly. Jigs are the most effective steelhead lure you can use in slow or still water.

Jigs also work well in moderate to fast currents as long as the water has good visibility. In clear water, nothing beats tiny jigs. When tipped with a single egg, a piece of earthworm, or a piece of shrimp they become deadly. In conditions most of us find ourselves fishing, the two to ten foot deep-water jigs work extremely well. Moreover, in a current that is moving at two to four knots the jig will prove to be irresistible to steelhead. As your float bounces along in the wavy surface of the water, the jig mirrors that action right in the heart of the steelhead’s den. Few steelhead can resist a brightly colored bit of marabou or rabbit fur that dips and swoops through their living room. Tip your jig with a small piece of shrimp or worm and it is a snack that steelhead find hard to refuse.

I will not go steelhead fishing without the equipment I need to setup for jig fishing. It has proven itself to me repeatedly. Jig fishing is also a great way to start someone out steelhead fishing if they have never been steelhead fishing before. You set them up with a jig show them where they need to drift and tell them that when the float goes under they need to set the hook.