Early Spring Stoneflies

Every year we get two different black stones that show up with the warmer weather.  One is small--like a sixteen.  But the other is big.  I like it on a 2XL #14 or a standard 12.  That's probably over sizing it, but the trout don't seem to care.

When you're fishing the stonefly, be sure to twicha nd skitter it.  Work it in all the same places you would a streamer.  Fish the wood piles and the bubble lines.  Drop a nymph off this beefy critter.  It makes a fine bobber.

I like fishing  the stone best upstream as a single fly.  Really focusing on the secondary and tertiary bubble line behind logs. 

However you use it, it can be a great way to get your first dry fly fish of the year.

Have Fun.

New Open Water

Here's the skinny on the New Michigan Trout Fishing Regulations as they pertain to Catch and Release Fly Fishing in our waters.

Starting April 1, 2011 we can fish flies on the Au Sable River from Burton's Landing all the way down to the power lines by Rainbow Resort (remember Rainbow Resort is a private launch).  And we can fish from Mio to McKinley below the damn.  Now a lot of this water is also open to Catch and Release fishing in the off-season with artificial lures as well, but I'm just talking about what we can do with flies for this entry.

The Manistee has some cool off-season opportuntiy, too.  You can catch and release fish there from the bridge at County Rd 612 all the way M-115.  Again, quite a bit of this is also open to artificial lures, so if that's your game, just check the reg's.

That's just so much water.  What a great trout fishing opportunity the Michigan DNR has created for all the Michigan trout fishermen and women.

29 1/2 Inch Crawford County Brown Trout

Well this early Spring freeze up certainly slowed down the fishing.  But I did get a pic of one huge brown trout from Crawford County.

Of course it was through the ice at Lake Margerethe.  We see a couple of these huge browns out of Lake Margerethe each year.  The theory is that these fish actually move out of the Manistee River up Portage Creek and into the lake.  Once in Margerethe, they fish have lots to eat and cool fall into winter temperatures.  Every once in a while we even hear about a stray brook trout getting caught.

This coming week should fish well on the AuSable River and on the Manistee River.  Nymph fishing will likely be the best bet early in the week, but as the warm days start to stack up, I bet we have find some very nice streamer action by next weekend.  If we're lucky, we may get the early Black Stoneflies skittering around, too.  That pattern makes a great indicator for your bead-headed nymphs.

Good Luck.

Watch for the Warm Spells

Man, we've had some great fishing this past week.  We're finding fish on nymphs but streamers have really come on strong as well.  I even heard of a fish in the 27/28 range.  That's ridiculously huge. 

Anyway, the website is down so I can't get a new report up today.  But here's the scoop.  The river fished really well on both Monday and Tuesday of this week.  Why?  Well, it's not about secret spots and it's not about secret flies (well maybe a little).  My guess is that it had lots more to do with the cloudy, drizzly days at the end of an extended warm-up.  Weather is always the most important factor in fishing for trout.  Always.  Ahhh . . . I may have over spoke 'cause luck counts too.

It's been said that April is the cruelest month.  Far as I can tell March is a little bitchy, too.  So great fishing on Monday and Tuesday and I woke up to this on Wednesday.

I guess we got something like 10 inches of snow over night and it's just been going all day.  Here's a pic from about 10 minutes ago outside the shop.

It'll be tough fishing for a few days.  At very least it'll be tough to be outside.  But don't wait for me to tell you it was good yesterday.  Watch the weather and pick the best days.

April 1 the water below Mio is open to c&r fishing with artificials all the way down to McKinley Bridge.

Have Fun,
Andy