WILD STEELHEAD
GUIDE SERVICE
COME CHASE ICONIC STEELHEAD IN THE WILD WATERS OF WASHINGTON
Experience the pleasures and pains of chasing wild steelhead on the Olympic Peninsula with devoted steelhead guide, maniacal bamboo rod builder, classic reel maker, and all-around steelhead addict Mark Shamburg-Donohue. Based out of Forks, Washington, Mark guides the hallowed waters of the west end Olympic Peninsula, including the famed Sol-Duc, Calawah, Bogachiel, Quillayute and Hoh rivers. The Confluence Guide Service is a swing-only guide service.
Full day guided trip for 1 or 2 anglers - $700 per day, 3 anglers - $900
Guide trips include shuttle, rods and reels, flies. Guide gratuities and alcoholic beverages are not included. Anglers are responsible for Washington fishing license, personal gear, overnight accommodations, and transportation to and from Forks, WA.
Now booking for the 2025 Winter Steelhead Season. To book or inquire about a guide trip please contact Mark here.
There's nothing like it. Immersed in the Land of Giants, the realities of daily life disappear behind the towering old growth rainforest, and your focus narrows to just one run, one cast, and one swing. Your senses spring to life and become unimaginably acute. You feel the full flex of the rod in your hands. You hear every mellifluous note of your line slicing through the pristine water and cutting the thick air. And you sense even the most subtle bump or tug of your fly.
Your motions become simple, crisp and precise. You cast. You swing. You step. And then you repeat. The peaceful, repetitive nature of this ritual ushers you into a near meditative trance. Then out of nowhere a chrome-sided wild steelhead fresh from the salt smashes your fly and in a flash, tranquility is replaced with utter chaos.
Viscous leaps that defy gravity and stop time are followed by screaming runs. Your heart races as fast as the steel torpedo tearing line off your reel. Your mind swirls with panic and fear as you struggle to wrap your head around how you can subdue this indomitable force of nature. But no matter if this icon of the Northwest lands in your net or eludes it, this is what it's all about - connecting with the wild, pure power of majestic fish in magical places.