Spring Water

Welcome to my blog.

Spring steelhead fishing is quickly winding down as the fish fall back to the lake and the small mouths enter the rivers for the summer months in northern Michigan. Most of us know this was a late spring with cooler temps than normal and lots of rain. I know from my time spent on the water from the beginning of March into May, there wasn't a day I wasn't battling high and dirty water while targeting those large migratory fish we often refer to as "Michigan Chrome." According to some friends in northern Michigan, there still are some steelhead below Foote Dam on the Au Sable if you are looking for that Memorial Day trophy. But chances will be slim as the peak of the run has came and went. Probably more small mouth bass coming up the river with water temps on the rise.

This past weekend was more like summer than spring with temps in the 80's, carp on the flats & doing the thing they do once a year in all the shallows. Last week was the first week I was unable to spend some time on the cold water tributaries in northern Michigan targeting trout, but that didn't keep me from wetting a line. Though Thursday evening as I helped my cousin cast a fly rod for the first time in my backyard in hopes he would fall victim to the addiction of fly fishing, I couldn't help but wishing I was below Mio on the Au Sable where just one week prior I watched thousands of Hendricksons emerge. Friday evening we set out in search of pike on the back waters of the Saginaw River and had no luck, but did have a blast wrestling in a few hundred pounds of carp! Most which were well over 10 pounds. 

I plan on heading up to the Au Sable later in the week to beat the Memorial Day weekend crowd and hopefully find a few risers to cast some dry flies at. Reliable sources have informed me the Dark Hendricksons are slowing, but the Sulphurs, Light Hendricksons, and Mahoganies should be going strong pretty quick!