The western slope of Washington’s Olympic National Park is home to one of three temperate rainforests in the world. Giant old growth conifer trees exceeding 10ft in diameter tower above the rainforest canopy, casting a shadow across a moss draped landscape that best resembles a scene out of a fairytale novel. The geomorphology of these rainforest rivers is truly unique and during months of Jan – April they’re home to one of the greatest wild steelhead fisheries on Planet Earth.
With every cast there’s a chance you might hook into the steelhead of a lifetime. Still to this day, I don’t believe there’s a more majestic moment for an angler than after a hard-fought battle you find yourself kneeling in the river looking down at a 20lb steelhead resting in front of you. There are so many factors that have to align perfectly in your favor for that instance to occur. When you finally release that fish back to the wild, it is one of the most accomplishing and elevated experiences an angler can have in all of fishing.