Fishing hasn’t improved a whole lot since the last report. There are salmon around in local rivers, but they are not as numerous as we have come to expect for this time of year – the first of October.
The Betsie has a few fresh fish moving through it but the majority of they are either spawning or getting real close to starting that process. Surely, the numbers of salmon are down in Lake Michigan, but I think we are really experiencing the effects of unprecedented warm weather the past month. Thankfully, after some low nightly temps in the 30’s lately, we are seeing things change as water temps in the Manistee drop (low 60s) and a few days of Northerly winds will help push water and fish near the river mouths. Look for salmon to move through the rivers over the next couple of weeks with some steelhead mixed in.
Trout fishing is about the same, too. With the cool nights, get a mid-day start to let the water warm a bit. It’s the last of the terrestrial fishing on the surface and some BWOs are showing up and some fish noticing. Brook trout are vibrant right now and the browns are in a pre-spawn behavior – it’s not a bad time to cast a streamer but with the clear water, try doing it with either a small sink-tip or floating line on the smaller sections of river and going big on the larger, deeper sections.
Keep in mind that Trout Season is now closed on a number of rivers and/or sections thereof. Click here for MI-DNR regulations.
Good luck.
Ted
The Fall 2015 Newsletter just went out – Click here to read.
Late Trout – Brown trout fishing into late December can be some of the best streamer fishing of the year.
Salmon/Steelhead Combo – Late September & early October offers a mixed bag of both species with fall colors.
Fall Steelhead – October, November & into December is the time for steelhead on the Manistee.