June is a great month for many people and for many reasons.  As a kid, the warm classrooms had you eagerly waiting for that final school bell to ring marking the end of what seemed like an endless school year and opening the doors to the awaiting summer adventures your friends and you have planned.  A new chapter of life begins for a few after they find themselves graduating and moving on to the next of many more challenges in their lives.   June weekends find families taking off for their lake cottages or hitting the beaches for some sun and barbeque.  June starts to show some of Michigan’s first harvests of the season such as the first cut of hay, rhubarb, blackberries, and my favorite strawberries.  The month of June brings a special time for the fly angler both novice and veteran here in Northern Michigan,  marking the true beginning  of the night time fishing one can enjoy on the fly rod on Michigan’s rivers and lakes. 

Each sunset in June, a different type of insect emerges from the swampy, muddy bayous of our water ways that most rarely see or pay any attention to.  These large yellow bugs grow over an inch in length with two long hair like tails, yet they lack a mouth to eat!  The Hexagenia Limbata is the largest of the Michigan mayflies and are viewed as steak dinners to the Brown Trout that wait each night to feast upon them.  Their pre copulating flight is a spectacle in some areas like few have seen.  Millions of these bugs gather over the river in search of others to mate with to finish off their short lived journey of life.  While in flight, the “tube” of hexes can be as wide as the river and sometimes 10 feet or more from top to bottom.  The multitude of the tiny beating wings can bring sound to a silent night and even create a breeze even while there is no wind to speak of.  After a few minutes of this super flight, females one by one start to drop to the water’s surface to drop their egg sacks so that one day the next generation of hexes can repeat the process.  Exhausted males start falling to the surface as well creating a smorgasbord of giant bugs blanketing the river. 

This is the moment that the mid-west fly angler has been waiting for.   For some, this journey has started long before June was even on their calendar.  Some fish the hex hatch exclusively and plan all year long to once again walk and wade to their favorite “secret” spots and try and tangle with their old and wise adversaries dimpling the surface in the river in front of them.  When darkness falls, so do the bugs making all the sweating and swatting of mosquitos all worth the wait!  As you are making your final preparations for the night you hear the sound of what sounds like a toilet flushing across the way, and the smile spreads across your face as you realize your opponent has survived yet another year and is foolishly feeding in your crosshairs.  Will this be the night you catch that dinosaur of a trout on a dry fly or will that wise old fish find his favorite log to bust you off on yet again?  It’s this intimate setting that draws an angler back each night in June, year after year.

How does anyone fly fish in the dark you wonder?  Well it’s really not as hard as it may seem.   First of all, a northern Michigan night never truly gets that dark unless of course it’s a cloudy or moonless night.  The forever long and late sunsets of June offer a little backlight glow for making out what is what near the river.  Fishing around the full moon provides a natural night light so anglers do not have to be scared of the monsters hiding in the bushes across from them.  June’s Full “Strawberry” Moon offers optimal timing for fishing in the dark as the moon is high in the sky in the midst of the darkest part of night.  This year’s Strawberry Moon is rare in that it occurs on a Friday the 13th!  What a great reason to get out and get “hexed” this coming Friday.  Headlamps, though I rarely turn mine on to avoid being blinded the rest of the night, also help with getting around safely, tying knots, or even pulling your fly out of the surrounding trees and grass (it happens to everyone).  There are also glow in the dark fly lines that help you to gauge where your cast is going or not going in most cases!  Some good tips on having a successful night are to know where you are going, figure out your “arena” before the fun begins, and maybe even take a practice cast or two well before dark to see how everything works.  Oh, and don’t forget your bug repellent!  If you are in the right spot to see an abundance of hexes, the mosquitos should try to carry you away (especially this year) just before Hex thirty on the old watch.  While wading, sitting still, long sleeves, and maybe even a net for your head help protect from the bugs.  When I am in the boat, I like to use a Thermacell to help provide a bug shield around the boat and keep things comfortable for those that are with me.    

For something new or old, get out the next couple of weeks and enjoy one of the biggest hatches Northern Michigan has to offer.  For more information on Michigan’s Hex Hatch or other night time river fun, check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com or like Fly Fishing Michigan Rivers on Facebook, Google Plus, or twitter.  Have a safe and Happy Father’s Day Weekend and best of luck to all the Hex anglers out there!

March is a month well known for many different reasons including college basketball, maple syrup, and of course the official start of Spring.  March in Michigan is also well known for its annual run of steelhead.  As temperatures rise and the snow melts, the rivers swell with both runoff and fish.  The avid fly angler can find themselves right in the middle of the unofficial start of the new fishing season.  Many flock to Michigan’s west side to immerse themselves in rivers like the Pere Marquette, Muskegon, and the Manistee in search of giant lake run steelhead. 

As the winter melts away, the steelhead that hold over from the previous fall migration begin their instinctive spawning rituals.  With higher flows and warming water temps these fish seek out the gravels to fulfill their journey upstream.  The hens start fanning out their reds as the males actively compete for the right to carry on their DNA.  This year’s run of fish has some very LARGE traits to pass along as most of these fish are much larger than the average size we usually see.  Steelhead larger than 10 pounds has been quite common this winter with a few fish of 14 to 15 pounds and even larger being brought to the net. 

These gravel parties offer an abundance of food for spring run steelhead and resident brown and rainbow trout.  Fishing the runs and holes behind these active gravels provide success with the right setup.  Using floating lines, an indicator, and some light split shot helps to present the right drift for these feasting fish.  Egg flies of course top the list to fill your box with.  Smaller stone flies, wiggle hexes, and pheasant tails also will induce a strike from these fish.  Another method rapidly gaining popularity throughout Michigan is swinging or stripping streamers on sink tip lines.  Brown trout love to give chase to anything that threatens their area and the crushing hit of 10 pound steelhead will give any angler the thrill of a lifetime. 

The Pere Marquette River is one of Michigan’s more recognized rivers in the fishing world.  This river is rich with history with great Indian battles, the first half of Father Jacques Marquette final resting place, and even used to float the giant White Pines to Ludington during the logging era in the mid 1800’s.  Some of these trees can still be found half buried on the river bottom today.  With over 60 miles of river stretching from central Michigan to the mouth at Lake Michigan near Ludington, the “PM” offers an abundance of fishing opportunities.  It is here where the German Brown Trout was first introduced in North America in the late 1800’s.  The PM also receives annual runs of Chinook and Coho Salmon as well as Steelhead.  There are even some sections that offer decent northern pike fishing.  The river draws anglers of all kinds which once included the likes of Ernest Hemmingway.  The PM is designated as a blue ribbon trout stream as well as a Wild National Scenic River.  It also boasts a gravel rich 9 mile stretch of “catch and release, flies only section”, creating ample opportunities for some giant Brown Trout.  Wading access is provided up and down the river.  Sometimes busy at these access sites, there are plenty of professional guides as well to help provide an escape to less pressured areas.  Every fly angler should include the Pere Marquette River on their bucket list and etch their name in the river’s rich history.  For more information on the area, guided trips, or an updated fishing report check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com or like us on Facebook.

After what seems like a holiday marathon for some, family gatherings, work parties, dinner after dinner, and more food, you feel like you run right into a brick wall.  January in northern Michigan truly slows the pace of life almost to a screeching halt with winter settling in, showing its cold grasp on the beautiful landscape we live in.  Some outdoor enthusiasts love this time of the year and take to the ski hills, snowmobile trails, and frozen lakes and ponds.  January in Michigan can also offer what a select few are constantly in search for, a place of solitude.

Solitude can be defined as a state of seclusion or isolation, or lack of contact with people.  Fly fishing Northern Michigan’s  streams in January provides such a place for those that want to unwind, relax, think, and even reflect on the time that has passed and look at the year ahead.  The silence of winter can almost be deafening with its soft white blanket and leafless trees.  The swoosh of your crisp waders followed with the exaggerated crunch of the snow beneath every step of the trail, you enter into a world few have experienced.  As you slide in off the snowy bank you are greeted with the bright shimmer of light bouncing of the riffles.  You find yourself waist deep at your favorite winter pool knowing that it is just you and the fish at your feet.  The frosty air tickles your nose as you strip line from the reel preparing for your first cast.  As your flies enter the water searching for steelhead, you find yourself transported almost to a different world, a world of solitude.

Everybody needs a little solitude in their lives.  Whether that place is on an ice covered pond in the middle of nowhere, cozied up at home with a good book, or even standing in a busy shopping mall, solitude gives a person that mental break from their everyday grind.  Having personally fished thousands of days and being blessed with a fish’s presence through many of them, I find myself asking what it is that draws me to such a place, day after day, season after season.  It was Henry David Thoreau that said it best, “Many go fishing without knowing it is fish they are not after.”  Many days this rings true to any angler whether they fish once a year or 7 days a week.  Some go fishing just to get away from the hustle and bustle of their everyday lives.  There are others, modern day vagabonds more on their own accord, in search of the rivers to escape from anybody and everybody.  For the rest including myself, fishing is more of a passion of necessity.  All have a common bond that they share in that they are all in search of solitude.  Catching fish, of course, never hurt anyone either and puts the icing on the cake on an afternoon of fishing.

Fly fishing Michigan’s rivers in the still of winter can provide that much needed get away as old man winter gets settled in.  Granted with the normally cold temperatures, there are only a few windows of opportunity to get out and be able to fish, but steelhead and brown trout fishing can still be good even in the dead of winter.  The key to success usually has little to do with flies and tippet size, but more about timing.  There is always a fish feeding somewhere at some time, but more often than not, there are a few more when the water temperatures warm.  It usually does not take much, just a degree or two can be enough.  Sunny or mild days when temperatures reach the freezing mark or better usually provide the needed bump in water temperatures and make for a fun afternoon of fishing.  Fish tend to be more grouped up this time of the year too, making them more accessible in fewer places.  Fishing the deeper, slower pools where most of the trout and steelhead hang out will give you a better chance as well.  Patience and perseverance can go a long way as well to help with a successful day.  Fish can be sluggish depending on conditions requiring a few more casts than you may usually try.  Swinging spey patterns or fishing with egg patterns or nymphs under an indicator will strike interest from your targeted quarry. 

Fishing doesn’t have to be the only thing to enjoy on a sunny winter’s day.  The river provides an excellent place for photography as well.  There is nothing like the clear day after a freshly fallen snow.  Snow covered trees, wildlife, and the shadows of the low sitting sun all make for good picture taking.  The river itself is a thing of beauty as it meanders its way through the winter landscape.  The banks sometimes extended with a shelf of layered ice entrancing the camera’s lens into an icy kaleidoscope.  The snowy backdrop makes for some great and colorful fish pictures as well.

So the next time you think about staying inside with your hot cocoa for yet another day this January, grab some clothes, your camera, and fishing gear and head out in search of a little solitude for yourself.  For more information on winter fishing, fly tying, or an updated fishing report check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com or like us on Facebook. 

 

As you are finishing up with the last of your turkey dinner, you keep running through that “Black Friday” list in your head. 
Everything seems to be good to go except for that hard to find gift for your Dad, Son, or significant other.  Instead of finding that really good deal on a drill that does less than a hand driven screw driver, get them something they really want or may actually use!  

Ask any fly fisherperson what they really want and they might respond with a few days fishing in the Bahamas.  Unless you were the latest lottery winner, that is probably not on top of your shopping list.  There are several items that they can really use without having to spend a small fortune to obtain them.  Small but essential things like flies, leader material, nippers, pliers, or even next year’s fishing license are items that anglers need no matter how long they have been fishing.  If they like to tie their own flies, simple things like thread, hooks, tying materials, or even a vise to replace their old semi still working one. 

There are several more ideas if you want to spend a little bit more too. Waders, wading boots, wading jackets, wading belts, and wading staffs all can be needed at some point for most anglers.   The fishing vest has become more of a relic from the past now and have most anglers have converted to smaller chest or back packs to carry their gear with.  Rods, reels, and even a new fly line are all god ideas, though you would probably want to ask first just to make sure on the right items they need or want.  A guide trip is not a bad idea even if they have been fishing since you can remember. A trip can provide a different experience in that all the angler has to worry about is relaxing and fishing instead of finding the right spot and tying knot after knot after knot!  Lots of guides offer casting lessons as well if they may be considering fly fishing and aren’t ready to dive in all the way.  

Some of these things can seem confusing but there are plenty of sources to use to find the right gift.  You can contact a guide or stop at your local shop and get the help without feeling lost. All you really need to know is what they like to fish for and where they like to fish and they should be able to point you in the right direction.  For more advice on gift ideas or to find where is the closest shop check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com.



 Steelhead Action is Hot While the Weather has Been Not!


 Despite colder than normal temps for the months of October and November, the steelhead fishing has been pretty good this fall.  With lower than average numbers of fish last fall, 2013 is trying to make up for it with above average sized giants!  The steelhead this fall have followed suit from that of their Big Lake cousins and some very big fish have been landed already.  So far, quite a few anglers have accomplished the 15lb mark, with a couple of rumors milling around of fish pushing 20lbs!  It is the year of the big fish and there is a chance of seeing the 20lb mark attained before the end of the run next spring.  This winter should be a fun one with plenty of holdover steelhead to keep everyone busy!  So put on your long
johns and grab a hot cup of coffee and get out and enjoy.  For more information on guide trips, casting instruction, fly tying, or the latest fishing report, check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com and don’t forget to like Fly Fishing Michigan Rivers on Facebook.

There are many outdoor activities to try during the summer in Northern Michigan.  Golf, fishing, swimming, camping, barbecues, toasting marshmallows over a campfire, or even
chasing lightning bugs as a kid just to name a few.  But after the lanterns dim and the last log of the fire slowly burns out, some are out deeply engaged into another activity that most do not know even exists, Mousing. Fly Fishing in the dark waking rodent like patterns has become quite popular with the diehard trout enthusiasts over the past decade.  

Guided by the moonlit starry sky, (and sometimes not), anglers
cast away at the banks in hopes of fooling the next big trout.  And big fish are what you can expect when trying this midnight method.  The fish size can range anywhere from 12 to 30+ inches depending on where you fish.  You never know what you may pull in sometimes.  On one trip we managed a few brown trout, an 8lb steelhead, and even a snake!  Mousing can be done just
about anywhere as well.  Lake or stream, there is a fish swimming that will take a swing on your mouse fly. 

Fishing after dark can be done by anglers of all skill levels.  Whether you are a seasoned fly fishing veteran looking to try something new or completely new to fly fishing looking for your first fish, mousing offers an excellent chance to bring one to hand.  Mousing is a great way to get a “feel” for casting a fly rod while often catching some nice fish in the process.   

There are a few things to think about before heading out on a night adventure.  If you are wading make sure to walk a section that is familiar to you or scout out the river bottom before dark so you can fish safely at night.  Rowing a boat is much different in the dark as well.  It’s best to stop and fish different spots and turn the lights on for navigation in between.  Booking an experienced fishing guide is the best way to avoid all troubles and make the most of your night time fishing experience.  
 
For more information on guided trips, fly patterns, or updated area
fishing reports check out www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com.

Stripping in November

Have you ever considered stripping in November? For those of you who have tried it, you know there is nothing else like it. No, I am not talking about streaking through the commons on campus or taking a polar plunge into the local lake.  I am talking about stripping streamers in search of gorgeous fall colored brown trout.  These fish look to put on the feed bags
after finishing with their annual spawning rituals.  While they can still be caught using traditional methods, sink tips and
  erratic stripping will bring the wolves out to hunt.  

Large brown trout may not be the only challenger to take a swing on your streamer either.  There truly is no other experience that matches that of a fully charged, fresh run, chrome steelhead sharking your fly as you strip it out of the deep
darkness in front of the boat.   These fish slam your fly, taking you for a blitzkrieg of a ride as they try to shake the stinging hook out of their mouth.  

Streamers come in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Natural colors like olive, brown, and even orange mixed in with just a pinch of flash will fool any fish.  It’s more about the attitude of the fly that entices the bigger fish.  In fly fishing, the angler creates such attitude with each erratic strip and pop of the rod.  Combined with fishing deep and confident casting, you will soon notice a whole different class of fish in the river.  So while most people turn their focus to the woods, grab some extra layers and your fishing gear and try a little stripping in November instead.  Maybe you will find your next gold or even chrome
trophy!

Switch Way for Chrome?

The switch rod offers the northern Michigan fly angler a couple of options to chase chrome on their favorite rivers.  A
switch rod is two handed rod that is a little longer than most single handed rods and a little shorter than more traditional spey fly rods.   An 11 foot 7 or 8 weight switch rod works well on Michigan’s smaller rivers like the White and Pere Marquette. 
Armed with an extra reel or spare spool an angler can quickly cover their favorite water with options without having to bring more than one rod with them.  You can try your luck with eggs and nymphs with a floating line and an indicator setup. 
Then switch out your reel to go back and see what will give chase on your swing gear.  There are some days where one tactic just won’t work and when on foot having a switch rod saves you the hassle of carrying extra gear to forget on the bank or the long walk back to your vehicle to make the change.  The extra length makes single handed casting a breeze and gives you extra line control when mending.  Almost every rod company out there is now offering switch rods. Take a minute and check one out the next time you are in your favorite fly shop.  For more information on trips or fly patterns check out
www.flyfishingmichiganrivers.com or on Facebook.