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Michigan Fishing
Michigan fishing can simply be described as an angler's Paradise. It has more than 12,000 miles of Blue Ribbon Trout Streams. Lakes filled with fish are everywhere. In fact, you're never more than six minutes away from water.Wild brown trout in world-renowned rivers such as the Au Sable, Manistee, Pere Marquette and Muskegon grow to 30 inches!Gorgeously-colored brookies abound, and sometimes fish to 18 inches are brought to net.Michigan's wild steelhead and Chinook salmon runs are legendary.I once listened to a Western angler brag that he caught six steelhead during the season.Humph! Michigan anglers frequently land that many--or more--in a single day!Largemouth and smallmouth bass abound. The walleye run is superb. Pike, and even musky, are lurking in hundreds of lakes.Bluegill, that friendly little fellow who taught every one of us how to fish, are everywhere.Best of all, each and every one of those species are "game" for anglers tossing flies or artificial lures.Although the general trout season closes September 30, Michigan's "Fly Only" streams are open year round. That means you can scratch your itch "24-7/365." The finest salmon and steelhead rivers also have extended seasons, allowing anglers to wade or float even in the coldest temperatures."Dipping" takes on a whole new meaning during the winter steelhead season. Here, it refers to sticking your rod under water to free the ice that has frozen in the guides!Once the Spring steelhead spawning run is over, the heavy rods get put away and it's time for the 4-weight fly rods and ultralight spinning gear. The last Saturday in April is a Michigan trout angler's New Year's Day.Alas, the bass-chasers have to wait another whole month to hit the lakes for largemouth.One thing's certain--no matter what species an angler prefers, Michigan's got it!
Inland Trout Streams
Inland Trout Streams
Two of the finest trout streams in the world were “born†six miles apart—--practically in my backyard up in northern Michigan'’s Northern Highlands--about fifty miles south of the Mackinaw Bridge. “The Sisters,†as they'’re called by locals, then flow southerly for about forty miles until the Manistee breaks west to Lake Michigan and the Au Sable flows into Lake Huron at Oscoda. Said to have the most stable and constant flow of any rivers in the world, they’'re each essentially 175-mile-long spring creeks that never freeze and never flood.Along the way, they offer trout anglers some of the finest sport to be found anywhere trout swim. In fact, the Manistee River between Michigan Route 72 and the venerable CCC Bridge is arguably the finest stretch of Big Brown water in America! Trout to 30 inches are not uncommon here.The Au Sable River’'s legendary "“Holy Water"†truly is revered for its prodigious hatches beginning with Chimarra caddis and Hendricksons in April, through the brown drake and giant Hexagenia limbata in June, and the little-known giant stonefly hatch in August. Baetis, Dorothea, and swarms of tan and olive caddis are constant.The Manistee River starts out as nothing more than a wet spot in the sand alongside the golf course within the Lakes Of The North resort community in Antrim County.I know that because my wife, Kate, and I walked miles to find its source when we were part of the Citizens Advisory Committee that was working to win designation for the Manistee under Michigan’'s Natural Rivers Act.We followed it downstream, watching it become boggy, then a puddle, then a wee bit ‘'o pond before finally yet another spring gave it enough flow to float a leaf downstream.It glides past my house a couple of miles south, offering us thousands of small but gorgeously-colored brookies and some impressive brown trout.The river gets larger as it flows under Cameron Bridge and County Road 612 until it reaches its zenith at M72. From there to CCC Bridge, the river is fly-only and best fished from a classic Au Sable Longboat—--24 feet long, 37 inches wide, flat-bottomed, and steered around obstructions with a pushpole as it freefloats downstream.Below CCC, the river gets deeper, and produces catches of enormous browns on streamer patterns until it reaches the ghost town of Sharon and turns into warmer water best suited to pike. The Au Sable, meanwhile, originates in Kolke Creek--—which flows into Lynn Lake. The outflow becomes the Au Sable river, glides through the village of Frederic and reaches its full glory downstream of Grayling.Originally home to the fish of that name (Grayling sadly became extinct in Michigan shortly after the introduction of brown trout in 1884), the Au Sable “system†actually is comprised of four rivers.The Mainstream flows from Grayling east to Mio, where it butts against an old Consumers Power Company hydroelectric dam. Along the way, between Burton’'s Landing and Wakeley Bridge, the “"Holy Waterâ€" is strictly fly-only/no-kill and is open year-round.There was a huge battle over that no-kill designation back in the mid- 1980s. But it was clear to responsible anglers that slot-limits weren'’t working and the remaining trout population was a pathetically stunted genetic strain.Today, fish well over twenty inches are common.Below the Mio Dam, the Au Sable is referred to as "The Trophy Water" because it’s wide and fast and the minimum size for one “keeper†per day is fifteen inches.The hatches are excellent because of all the gravel. In fact, the Ephron lukon hatch in early September (commonly called the White Flies) is nothing short of phenomenal. Billions of insects cover the water and fill the air on those warm nights. The fish, of course, go nuts!So do fly anglers lucky enough to “hit the hatch.â€The North Branch flows through the village of Lovells, and also is home to fantastic mayfly and caddis hatches. In addition, it has long grassy stretches that are the “Hopper†aficionado’s dream-come-true. Access, however, is limited because of private property along both banks and its long stretch from Twin Bridge to McMasters Bridge is best fished from a Longboat.The South Branch, which is where George Mason had his lodge and the concept for Trout Unlimited was hatched in 1954, is Big Brown Country.Mason, then the president of Nash-Kelvinator (American Motors) thought "“his"†river needed protection "“just like those guys did with ducks."†So, he persuaded a bunch of his Detroit/Flint/Saginaw automobile-maker pals to pony up their rights to land along both sides of the river.The 1,500-acre wilderness area is named The Mason Tract in his honor, and it holds some very impressive brown trout.If the Au Sable has a “poor sister†that would be the East Branch. It'’s narrow and choked with tag alders. A tough place to fish. But Wise Men know that very large brown trout live there because very few souls are hardy enough to make the effort to bash through the shrubbery. Difficult to fish, but it can be spectacular.Then there’s the Pigeon, the Black, the Sturgeon, the Muskegon, the Jordan, the--…well, there are more than 12,000 miles of Blue Ribbon trout streams in Michigan.Come find out about them yourself!
Salmon and Steelhead
Salmon and Steelhead
Without question, Michigan’'s runs of Chinook and Coho salmon--—not to mention the fabulous steelhead fishery that was created here in the early 1970s—--are the finest in the United States!I clearly recall days on the North Umpqua River in Oregon, standing along side the road using binoculars to try and spot a lonely steelhead holding behind a rock over here, or on the edge of a gravel bar over there.“"You'’ve really gotta look hard to spot one,â€" I was told by the local guy who was showing off his prized stretch of water."“It’'s a real challenge—--sliding down the steep bank through poison ivy, then making a sixty or seventy foot roll cast—--but the fight is worth it."“Hey, last year I hooked SIX and landed four!â€"He was so very proud that it was all I could do to keep from laughing out loud. I simply didn’'t have the heart to tell him we frequently land six steelhead in a DAY in Michigan.I’'m absolutely certain that if I had told him my personal best was seventeen steelhead hooked and eleven landed one brilliantly beautiful day on the Pere Marquette River he would have called me a liar.Maybe he even would have taken a swing at me for saying something he probably would have considered the ultimate in blasphemy.But I do know for certain that I’'d much rather hang out at Schmidt'’s in Wellston and work the Manistee River below Tippy Dam, or carefully wade the Little Manistee around Six Mile Bridge.Of course, I’'m smart enough now to realize that it was a mistake to wade out below the coffer dam with my fly rod and hook two steelhead under the noses of guys slinging Croton Crawlers or somesuch big, heavy spinning lure.Back then, I didn’'t see anything at all wrong with it. Until guys lining both banks started bombing me with their baits when I waded out to hook steelhead number three!And I certainly have put in so many hours wading the flies-only stretch of the PM outside of Baldwin that I could draw a rivermap from memory. The Green Cottage. Big Birch Hole. The Whirlpool. Doc Green’'s Run. All world famous for the sheer number of salmon that spawn there in the fall and steelhead in the spring.Hex nymphs, Rhyacophelia caddis larva, weighted black stoneflies--—and of course the ubiquitous glow-bug “"egg flies"†in chartreuse, cerise and pale orange--—all have nailed a bazillion steelhead over the years.Spawn sacs are the bait of choice on the "“open" water of the lower Manistee River, the Muskegon, Bear Creek, and the Betsie. But Mepps Spinners, plugs of every description--—even Bass Assassin baits--—creep out of fishing vests and tackle boxes when the big runs are on.Don’'t feel limited to the “"Big Name"†rivers, though. There are dozens of streams and small creeks that feed into Lake Michigan and get some very impressive runs of fish.I have a particular favorite--—which I really don’'t feel inclined to name right now--—that is a wonderful place to mix some fishing with grouse hunting for an October “"Cast & Blast."â€With today'’s computer-generated satellite imaging, and just a little bit of effort, you, too can find that special "“hidey-hole"†that’'s yours alone.Happy hunting--—Michigan'’s salmon and steelhead really are worth it!
Warmwater Fishing
Warmwater Fishing
Although Michigan is primarily renowned for its trout streams--and magnificent runs of salmon and steelhead--largemouth bass, pike, and bluegill fill thousands of lakes and ponds in every corner of the state.One of them, in fact, is about a mile from my house. It's a pretty little place named Lost Lake, and there aren't any cabins, gas stations, or fast-food joints marring its pristine banks.Folks camp there regularly--one look at the place and you can understand why--and it has what the state's fisheries people describe as "an unimproved access site." Translated into English, it's an open spot on the shoreline where you can launch a boat if you're careful not to get stuck in the sand.Lost Lake is not quite two miles long, and maybe a half-mile wide. It's surrounded by some mighty fine grouse cover, and the road in is choked with enormous stands of blackberry canes. Deer love the place.So do a couple families of beaver, and a some of the biggest black bears I've ever seen.It's a wonderful place at sunset. As the sun's dropping past the tips of maples, oaks and magnificent cedar trees, you can listen to loons talking back and forth as they gather up their chicks for a night's rest.Oh, yeah. There are some awfully big pike in there, too. Down near the southeast end of the lake, where the water's deepest.We used to put my canoe in there--before a winter storm dropped a rotten popple tree and broke its back--and fish for them. Rock bass, too. And the lake had an enormous population of freshwater mussles. Probably still does, but the state won't let you harvest them anymore.Which is a shame, because when my high school pal, Ron Hallock, used to come up from Ohio with his son RJ, we'd scoop up exactly forty of them and I'd make cioppino for dinner one night.I asked a DNR Conservation Officer about that closure, and he told me the state found out people were grabbing those mussles by the thousands to make jewelry from the shells. Threw away the meat and kept the shells.What a waste.What a shame, too, because those silly, thoughtless SOBs ruined a good thing that a lot of other responsible people enjoyed.Anyway, Ron, RJ and I were in my canoe on Lost Lake one year. They were tossing spinning gear, and I'd occassionally flip out a foam spider with my fly rod. We were working along the shoreline, where dozens of cedar blowdowns stretched into the warm shallows of the lake.Rock bass were tucked alongside those tree trunks, and everywhere I plopped a spider and twitched it a time or two one of them would gulp it down like a kid with a jellybean. I must have caught a hundred.Ron and his son, however, were fishless.Finally, RJ begged my rod and managed to land a few. Ron--stubborn like his Hungarian heritage would suggest--kept throwing huge plugs. He never did catch any of those rock bass.When RJ got bored with the redeyes--he was about twelve at the time and like all young boys impatient with status-quo--we paddled out to the deep part of the lake."Toss some kinda big plugs that'll get down deep," I told them. RJ rummaged through the huge tackle box they'd brought and found one to his liking. He snapped it onto a swivel, pitched it out and let it sink.Three or four cranks into the retrieve his rod bent over like an elbow macaroni and he started to whoop. It took nearly twenty minutes for him to land that pike. I didn't have a BogaGrip in those days, so I'll estimate it at fifteen pounds.Ron--still being stubborn--was fishing a topwater plug that made a lot of noise but never attracted any fish.I finally managed to get that jumble of treble hooks out of the pike--another reason I prefer fly fishing--and RJ made another cast. Same technique. Same result. Maybe the fish was a bit smaller, but RJ was having a ball.Ron was sulking.Fortunately, there's one thing young boys prize above all else--food."Isn't it time to clean those mussles before they go bad?" RJ finally asked. I knew him well enough to understand what that meant in boy-speak.Besides, Ron was in a full-blown pout by now. I simply didn't have the heart to put them onto the largemouth bass spot over at the north end of the lake. I didn't figure his ego could stand yet another whupping.It was time to eat!
Great Lakes Fishing
Great Lakes Fishing
The largest concentration of fresh water in the world literally surrounds Michigan, from Lake Superior in the northwest to Lake Erie in the east. And each one provides anglers with its own spectacular fishing opportunities. Superior—, the largest, deepest, and coldest of The Great Lakes, —feeds countless rivers and streams a supply of brook trout that rival in size and numbers those famed char in Labrador and the other Canadian Maritime Provinces.We'’re talking brookies that are gauged in pounds— not inches! In fact, one of Superior’s tribs—--the Nipigon—--was the birthplace of one of the most famous trout flies the world has ever known. It was originated by a fellow named Dan Gapin, and it’'s called the Muddler Minnow.The Big Lake, as natives refer to Lake Michigan, is world-renowned for its population of Chinook salmon, which were introduced in 1972 to control the lake'’s alewife population. Little did Michigan'’s fisheries biologists at the Department of Natural Resources know what they had done.During the past 40 years, literally millions of anglers have hired charter captains, bought their own boats, and even fished from jetties and piers to satisfy their “Salmon Fever.†The fishing is incredible!Downriggers and planerboards essentially were invented in this Michigan fishery, and several trillion tons of fish have been hooked, played and landed. The action is furious all summer, until the really big boys and girls move up into the Manistee, Pere Marquette, Betsie, and dozens of other rivers and creeks in late August or early September to spawn.Steelhead, another import from California, also is a major player in Great Lakes fishing. These chrome-bright battlers live and grow in the Lakes for four years. Then the action switches from big boats and blue water to inland rivers and streams for the April spawn.Guys out west brag that they landed six salmon in a season. Humph! Michigan fisherman do that— and more —in a single DAY!Huge brown trout (the world record 42-pounder came from the mouth of the Manistee River at the town of Manistee two years ago) and lake trout also simply drive guys nuts! These fish have serious "“shoulders."â€Lake Huron also is home to salmon and steelhead. Plus a phenomenal smallmouth bass fishery from the town of Cheboygan at the Tip ‘O The Mitt all the way down the east side of the state. The bays and inlets are filled with “smallies†that come into water shallow enough for fly anglers to wade and catch prodigious numbers of large fish.Once Huron “runs out†Musky fishermen congregate on Lake St. Clair—practically in the shadow of Detroit’s Renaissance Center towers—and fish from Florida-style flats skiffs.If it’'s not the world’'s finest musky fishing it’s gotta be really darned close! Even guys from Minnesota and Wisconsin grudgingly admit that “"The Saint"†is holy.Lake Erie, of course, is the shallowest of The Lakes. But it’s perch fishing is world-class, and anglers flock there in droves. Certainly a far cry from the 1960s, when Erie was practically a cesspool and it seemed that it would take a miracle to reclaim it. Well, miracles obviously do happen! And millions of anglers who fish Michigan'’s Great Lakes every year will be the first to say “"Amen."â€
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