My favorites include the Chagrin, Grand, and Rocky rivers and Conneaut Creek in Ohio; Elk, Walnut, and Twenty Mile creeks in Pennsylvania; and Canadaway, Chautaqua, and Eighteen Mile creeks and my beloved Cattaraugus Creek in my home state of New York. There are other streams not included on this list that are similar in size and character, and some of the smaller creeks can save the day when your intended river is running high and dirty. Many of these tributaries have similar characteristics, but each has its own personality. Ultimately, steelheaders choose their preferred water because they like the feel, the personality of it.

The Cat
Cattaraugus Creek, which flows with the style and size of a small river, is the crown jewel of Steelhead Alley. The 'Cat' has the look and feel of a classic steelhead river. Flowing riffles give way to deep, lazy pools lined with gravel and boulders, and some are filled with timber deposited by spring freshets.

There are nearly 50 miles of river from the dam in Springville down to the lake. And in recent years the returns of adult steelhead have been impressive. (My best guess is between 30,000 and 40,000 steelhead in the exceptional 1998 season returns.) Cat steelhead hammer a fly. Combine this behavior with classic water and you have the opportunity to use traditional West Coast steelheading or East Coast Atlantic-salmon techniques.

No river is perfect. The Cat and its tributaries flow through areas where the banks consist of muddy clay, and after moderate or even fairly light rains it can go to spate with dirty water that can take a week to clear. But when it clears, the fishing can be excellent. Clearing usually takes from three to four days, but repeated rains can keep it out of shape. I recall some rainy years when there were only a handful of fishable days in an entire season.

Water-sculpted Cattaraugus Creek drains the rich limestone plains bordering Lake Erie. its steelhead runs--the largest in Stealhead Alley--begin in fall and run through early spring.

Even when it clears, the Cattaraugus normally runs green with a visibility of from 6 to 18 inches. In low-water years, the river can run clear, and since it is one of the few Lake Erie tributaries with a sufficient base flow, it attracts many stray hatchery fish--such as in the fall of 1998, when steelhead were everywhere.

The Cat enters the lake near the town of Irving, about 35 miles southwest of Buffalo, and its steelhead water can be broken into three sections. The first, the lower 15 to 20 miles, runs mainly through the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation, from Gowanda on downstream. The water from Versailles down to the lake has some of the most easily accessed fly-fishing water, with a number of dirt roads leading from Route 438, which parallels the river, providing access through reservation lands.

To fish the reservation, a Seneca Nations seasonal fishing license is required ($14.50). In addition to its easy access, this lower section is the preferred fly water, since the fish found there are often fresh from the lake. Silver steelhead hardened after a summer of gorging on the lake are the prime targets. They are aggressive feeders that chase flies and provide the acrobatic fights that have made steelhead famous.

The next section of water, 10 to 12 miles long, runs through a steep gorge with walls from 300 to 400 feet high. Access is treacherous, and it is limited by posted private property on the upper parts. There is access in Gowanda and a hike-in point about halfway down, but my experience tells me that the fish shoot through this water to the upper section.

The third section extends from the Springville Dam down to a state access site (about 15 river miles). Access to this upper section is easier, but it is also restricted by private property. There is access to the water near the dam off Scoby Hill Road, but what you are permitted to do changes annually. The state site provides access to the water, but posted private property just downstream from the access and a mile or so above restricts movement. (You should always respect the private property and, when in doubt, ask permission to enter.)

The Cattaraugus is primarily a fall river, with October and November the prime months. Supercharged steelhead enter the river in September as the water temperatures begin to drop with the cool nights. These chrome-bright fish are aggressive in the 40- to 50-degree water, and if conditions are right, the superb fishing can last into December and January.

When winter arrives, the Cat ices up quickly and the fishing is hit or miss. There is a window of steelhead opportunity in the spring, but the river usually runs off-color for most of March and April, when spawning season is in full swing.

When the Cat is out of shape I fish the smaller tributaries because they clear more quickly. While there are no official access sites to the other, smaller, New York creeks mentioned above, access can be gained from Route 5 and Route 20, both of which parallel the lake shore. In addition to fall fishing, you can find good spring action on most of these waters and even winter fishing when the weather cooperates.

Steelhead Alley Map Key
1 Eighteenmile Creek, NY 2 Cattaraugus Creek, NY 3 Canadaway Creek, NY 4 Chautauqua Creek, NY 5 Twentymile Creek, PA	6 Walnut Creek, PA 7 Elk Creek, PA 8 Conneaut Creek, PA 9 Grand River, OH 10 Chagrin River, OH 11 Rocky River, OH

Pennsylvania Rivers
My favorite Pennsylvania steelhead river is Elk Creek. Smaller than the Cat, it can be crowded, but it has a healthy run of fish, and fly fishers need relatively little water (elbow room) to have a good experience. You can usually find water to yourself if you explore away from the heavily fished areas.

On the Cattaraugus, you hope for dry weather to keep the water running clear, but on the Elk and the other Pennsylvania spate streams you hope for periodic rains to freshen their base flow, energize the fish, and attract new runs from the lake.

To be successful on the Pennsylvania waters, you must pay close attention to water conditions. After a rain, the water rises and colors, providing a window of good fishing on the rise but ending when the water takes on a consistent brown color. Within a day or two the water clears and the fishing becomes red hot. Hitting the river at the right time during this prime fishing is critical to success.

You can find good fishing in the low-water periods, but the best fishing occurs in the low-light periods--early morning and late evening. You'll need smaller flies and tippets for fishing in the clear, low-water conditions, and you must make stealthy approaches and careful presentations.

Elk Creek has classic steelhead pools, but some of the better fly-water is in runs and pockets created by breaks and drops in the shale floor. Reading these drop-offs is important to locating fish. When the water is clear, the deeper areas show as darker green, and often there will be a number of fish crammed into these prime holding lies.

Both Walnut and Twenty Mile creeks are similar in character to Elk, but on a slightly smaller scale. They usually clear a little faster after a rain.

There are 20 fishable miles of Elk Creek--with the best water near the town of Girard. Upstream of Sterrettania, the stream is relatively small, with little holding water. There are a number of access points; the most popular ones are along Route 5 and upstream near Route 20 at Girard or Legion parks. October and November are the prime months on the Pennsylvania waters, but you can usually find steelhead, when the water is fishable, from September through April.

Ohio Rivers
My favorite Ohio steelhead river is pretty, pleasant-to-fish Conneaut Creek near the Ohio/Pennsylvania border. There are 40 miles of fishable water, but I prefer the larger lower 10 to 15 miles of water. Conneaut is similar in character to Elk Creek, but slightly bigger and with more large pools. Ohio has recently changed their stocking practices to place a greater emphasis on Michigan-strain fish. As a result, the peak steelhead runs have shifted more toward the spring, although there is still good fall and winter fishing.

The introduction of Michigan-strain fish has led to an increase in the average size of fish (from 5-8 pounds average up to 10-18 pounds). There is stream access along Route 7 near the creek mouth and at some of the roads that cross the water (Creek and State streets).

Both the Rocky and Chagrin rivers have good fly fishing for Ohio steelhead. The Rocky runs through Cleveland and has many access points--the most popular at the Rocky River Metro Park. The Chagrin is similar in size and character--it also has a shale bottom--and has access through several public parks on the river's lower end.