Posts tagged "boardman river"

Mid May Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 19, 2017

Trout continue to be the main focus of most anglers right now as this is a good time for those looking to do some match-the-hatch dry fly fishing. Rivers like the Upper Manistee, Au Sable and Boardman have had some decent hatches of a number of different bugs including: caddis, light Hendricksons, Sulphurs, Mahoganies and March Browns. After the cool front that came through the timing of the hatches and spinner falls will be a little difficult to predict instead of the typical late afternoons and evenings.

Until the bugs hit the water, work a streamer hard and heavy – it often takes a lot of casts but some of the fish that come to play this time of year makes you forget about all those previous casts. The lower Manistee below Tippy Dam is starting to see the number of spawning carp build and this tends to put the trout on a micro egg and small nymph bite until they clear out. Streamers (bait fish patterns) and wet flies have been working most days, but especially on cloudy days.

The bass and bluegill are moving into shallows and most lakes have fish starting to work nests/beds making for some great top water and small nymph fishing. Spiders, beetles and ant patterns work well on top but micro b.h. buggers, swimming nymphs and leeches are deadly when fished on a slow, steady retrieve.

Good luck.

Ted

May Fishing – Trout, late steelhead, hatches, streamer fishing, bluegill on lakes – don’t overlook fishing in May.
Trout – The hatches of late May lead into June making for some of the year’s best dry fly fishing – don’t miss out.
2017 Fishing – Plan your year around your fishing – get your dates on the calendar, life will fit in around it.

bluefgill fishing, boardman river, carp, dry fly fishing, fly fishing traverse city, hendrricksons, manistee river, tippy dam, trout

May Days and Trout Fishing

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 9, 2017

Trout fishing is the main theme right now as the next two months are some of the best for anglers looking to fish dry flies and streamers for brown and brook trout. All local rivers are pretty much experiencing ideal conditions and with that comes the emergence of various bugs.

On the upper Manistee, AuSable and Boardman rivers, look for the Hendricksons to continue to come off in the afternoons and their spinner falls to drop in the evenings. A few other mayflies including BWOs, Black Quills/Borchers Drake, and even a few Sulphurs/light Hendricksons are around to compliment the caddis that are a little more consistent these days. This is only the beginning of an emergence calendar that keeps us thinking about trout, dry flies and being on the water.

When nothing is happening on the surface, focus on fishing sub-surface with streamers. With the rivers having a slight stain to them right now, it’s a great time to cast a big fly on a sink-tip for those larger fish that haven’t totally gone nocturnal on us right now. After a mild winter, the fish are looking well fed and they don’t seem to be wanting to go on a diet right now.

Good streamers include baitfish patterns – especially in waters are stocked by the DNR. While Fin Clips do a good job of imitating stocked rainbows, there are other patterns that do a good job of imitating trout and other juvenile fish….Cheech Leech, Dirty Hippy, Brook Trout, mini D&Ds, Deceivers and more. And when those don’t work – or you are fishing non-stocked water – try sculpin patterns to imitate a prolific natural food source.

Bluegill are just starting to work their way up into the shallows of certain lakes and ponds. This week’s warmer weather should push them up from the depths and into water that is more conducive to fly anglers. This is a blast when you: need to fish closer to home, are introducing someone to the sport, or are simply looking for not overly technical fishing opportunities. Largemouth bass, too, are starting to get active where we can present small streamers on floating lines to them. But look out for aggressive pike that want to take your fly and keep it, too.

Good luck,

Ted

ausable river, baitfish patterns, bluegill fishing, boardman river, borcher's drake, brook trout, fin clip fly pattern, fishing report, streamer fish, traverse city fly fishing report, trout fishing, upper manistee trout fishing

Early April Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - April 1, 2017

It’s April and this is the time to think steelhead if you haven’t been thinking about them already. With the mild winter and thaws, the fishing has been mostly good in March with a mix of winter and fresh fish with more to come as the days get longer, more rainfall brings water levels up and temperatures get warmer.

The local rivers all have fish in them including the Boardman, Betsie and Manistee. Fish are just beginning to spawn with more fish holding in pocket water and holes near spawning gravel waiting for optimum conditions. Water temps are bouncing around 40 degrees and clarity is good for this time of year with just a slight stain. While the cloudy days have made for cooler conditions, the fishing is noticeably better than when the sun makes an appearance.

No real game changers on successful fly patterns in the past week or so: Eggs in Chartreuse/Steelhead Orange, Rodeo Clown, Golden Nugget/Burnt Orange. Nymphs: green Caddis, fry, UPSC, small stones. With the water warming up we are starting to see some stones flutter on the surface and that means stonefly nymphs below. Also, as more natural eggs begin to drop, it might be time to start fishing the smaller, natural sized egg patterns especially with the clearer water.

With spring break taking place it’s been good to see some parents getting kids to the river for some fishing including some little guys with some real impressive skills. And they have been nice, happy, polite and friendly kids. Don’t let your kids be the ones that get away – get them outdoors when you can.

Just a reminder – new fishing licenses are required beginning April 1. And sections of certain rivers (Little Manistee and Platte) are now open for steelhead fishing.

The MI-DNR has released their trout “management” plan and are seeking comments – if interested, you can read by clicking here.

May Fishing – Trout, late steelhead, hatches, streamer fishing, bluegill on lakes – don’t overlook fishing in May.
Trout – The hatches of late May lead into June making for some of the year’s best dry fly fishing – don’t miss out.
2017 Fishing – Plan your year around your fishing – get your dates on the calendar, life will fit in around it.

April fishing, black stonefly, boardman river, caddis, egg patterns, green caddis, manistee river steelhead. MI-DNR trout, manistee river steelhead. platte river, steelhead, stonefly

December Steelhead and Trout Fishing

Posted by Ted Kraimer - December 1, 2016

With December here, it’s time to think of transitional fishing as water temps cool and the days get shorter.

Our extended Fall Season was enjoyed by most being able to hit the water without the typical number of insulating layers that’s common for this time of year. The lack of cold has kept water temps on the local Steelhead Rivers in the mid to lower 40s which is still an ideal window for good steelhead fishing. But as we approach cooler water temps with colder nights, look for the fish to transition from the seams to the inside edges of runs, in structure and the deeper holes. You will still want to target the proven fall water, but don’t hesitate to fish “off to the side” a little should you not find the fish. In other words, the fish should be scattered and a mix of fresh fish and some that have been in for a few weeks.

After a pretty dry fall, we finally received some rain fall and the water levels bumped up a little. While levels aren’t high, the rains were needed to increase and inspire more fish to move in from the lake as well as redistribute some of the fish already in the systems. Smaller rivers like the Betsie, Boardman and PM should get their first significant push of fish into the systems. The Manistee with its volume off flow has had fish in it all fall, but now the gin-clear water has finally picked up a little stain which is more than welcome.

This time of year fly choice and technique can include just about any with considerable expectations on their effectiveness. Drift/Duck and Chuck, Indicator/Floats, and Swung Streamers are all worthy of exploration for good steelhead fishing. Big egg patterns fished with a nymph (hex or bugger) is great on fresh migratory fish but more realistic egg color and size and smaller nymphs are a good choice for those fish that have already settled into a river environment. Swung flies include black with chartreuse, Olive with Copper and natural sculpin schemes/colors have all been good choices.

Trout fishing on the upper Manistee and below Tippy Dam has been decent as they begin to transition a bit, too. Smaller sink-tips and mid-sized streamers fished slower than normal and with lots of twitches is a good approach. Colors, shape, size and retrieve is often different each day so mix it up until you find success.

Good luck!

Ted

Fall Steelhead – Warmer than normal water and air temps will keep us chasing chrome fish for a while yet.
Late Fall Trout – After gorging on salmon eggs, streamer fishing below Tippy Dam can be outstanding.
Gift Certificates – With the holidays upon us, ask for or give the gift of a guided fishing trip – Half or Full-Days.

Betsie, boardman river, egg patterns, manistee, migratory fish, steelhead rivers, tippy dam fishing, trout fishing

Late September Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - September 19, 2016

As we approach the Fall Equinox it still feels like summer with warmer than normal temps and without those cool nights that say it’s fall.

Despite the warm weather some salmon have been moving into the local rivers, just not in the numbers we have come to expect after a few early runs in recent years. After the two previous year’s runs, some anglers are skeptical as to what this year will offer. So far the number of fish in rivers this year exceeds what we saw last year and once we get the cooler weather, N.W. winds, and some rain – the run should kick into high gear. The success of the charter boats on the lake help support our optimism.

The Platte has had decent Coho salmon move through it despite the water being so warm. The Betsie has had a consistent trickle of fish moving through it and the Manistee system is slowly building in numbers. Fish are often holding in the deep holes and waiting, too, for the weather to change before they hit the gravel.

The extended summer has given trout anglers a longer terrestrial season than ever expected on the upper Manistee and Boardman. From flying ants to grasshoppers, activity on the dry flies has been decent. Twitching big wet flies and small streamers on a floating line helps get the attention of those brook and brown trout that are feeling skeptical this far into the season of foam and rubber flies twitched on the surface. Have some large BWO patterns for any matching of the hatch opportunities and enjoy having the river pretty much all to yourself.

Good luck.

Ted

Salmon – A few dates remain for Salmon fishing on the Betsie River throughout September.
Late Summer Trout – Have the river to yourself fishing wets, dries, terrestrials and streamers.
Fall Steelhead – Starting in October, extending into December. Fall Color Tour includes Chrome!

betsie river salmon, blue wing olives, boardman river, charter boats, coho, lake michigan, Platte River, platte river coho salmon, salmon, salmon run, upper-manistee

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