Machine charlie gave excellent advice with the shallower lies after the sun has been up. The rocks heat up and bug activity takes place. Steelhead can become very active at times from this for both reasons (bugs/warmth)...

One small piece of advice that may apply or not- depending on your level of fitness.  Plowing through the snowdrifts and even hiking in a distance on packed trails can get you pretty warm. What sucks is getting sweaty, then stopping and getting in the water to fish. Results are you freeze your azz off.  You can even get hypothermic.  Save a warm layer  in your pack, or regulate your body temps with a hat, and take your time getting in to where you're fishing.  Dry is warm.

Might be around in bout 2 weeks- the wife and a couple of grandkids will be X country skiing up  in Osceola.
 Will  be  for 3 or 4 days and might get a couple of hours upriver.
 I have been VERY concerned about Steel fishing and wether or not I should catch them and tire them with the disease thing- any advice ???
Not  on c and r methods but on wether  they should even be caught if it may have negative affect on next years potential.
Perhaps making too much of it but really appreciate the entire fishery and don't want to negative affect it--if that's even  possibility.
Thanks--

Thank finchy, I've learned my lesson.  I will always carry layers in... like you said those temps are tough enough without being sweaty.  Last year I went over black Friday a couple nights the temps dropped into the single digits if not negative the one night.  A lot of the tribs started to lock up.  I learned real quick what it was like to fish in the cold.  I'd even have to get out of the water every now and then because my feet would be numb not to mention looking out for icebergs....
 
As for the diseased steelies, I thought that situation had sort of resolved itself.  Guides are reporting fish with no lice if I recall.  I realize that wasn't the only rationale behind the whirling steelies i.e. fishing pressure/water conditions and diet of course being a big problem.  However I haven't read a thing indicating its still going on in the river.

Trevor, it would seem that the DEC would have initiated some closings if they felt the fishery is in trouble. Hook-ups will be slim anyway. For myself, I just try to use some sense and don't keep the fish out of water or  use light tippet. You know all that. IMHO,  Go and enjoy yourself. If more people cared about the river as much as you, it'd be in pretty good shape. That goes for all the regulars here. There's a lot of intangibles to appreciating a river that don't involve hooking boatloads of big fish and making money off it.

Thanks -much appreciated.

All good advise and observations.
 
I'm going to have to try the sorel with the liner out over my stocking foot neoprenes and carry the wading boots with the cleats.  The snowshoes are all fitted to the sorels, just change at the river, and leave the sorels right in the Iversons.  May have to travel to try it, everything around here is locked up except the genny,and that has a lot of ice and snow issues that make it dicey.

Those ash and rawhide shoes float a lot better than the higher tech models. If I lived out your way, with the deeper snows, I would have never sold mine. Hope you go, have a great time, and tell us about it, Lucky.

As you know lucky the river is getting very locked up for the lower half with 12 straight days of snow... Arctic blast coming in now... Trev, your neighbor is right. And that 2+ foot is a compacted total of about 8-10' from the past month and a half. Irs really piling up now

Hope he can get it outa the driveway Andy- first time done this year.
He uses  a large blower on his tractor. Heard they eat stuff a plow cant budge.