The weather can also beat you. Fall and winter months can be very cold and often windy. Also the Thompson River is big, fast and strewn with large boulders, making it hard to cover and extremely difficult to wade. It isn't uncommon for a novice steelheader not to touch a steelie all season. Thompson veterans on the other hand, have learned the secrets of this great river and are usually successful throughout the fall and winter months.
Equipment varies with the different techniques used on the river.
General rule of thumb - long rods and large capacity reels. Gear fishermen in general, fall into two categories. Bottom-bouncers and float fishermen. Float fishermen have rods that are even longer and are often accompanied with a centre-pin reel. Spinners and spoons are seldom used but should always be part of your arsenal.