Posts tagged "caddis"

March Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - March 4, 2020

As we flip the calendar to March it’s apparent that the days have become longer, temps a little warmer, and the sun is making an appearance a little more often. Was it me or did it seem like the sun went south for the winter this year?

Much of the snow pack has diminished thanks to the recent sunshine and a continued gradual melt would be ideal as we start up our spring steelhead season. Last fall and early winter’s rain saturated the ground and filled the swamps so high water is just a weather event away.

River conditions on both the Manistee and Betsie are in good shape – clarity is fine and water temps are in the mid to upper 30’s depending on the day. A bit of sunshine can give the water a slight bump in temperature and help trigger the fish from their winter funk. Fish are mixed right now with some fall holdovers taking up residence in the deeper, slow water with some fresh fish trickling through the river systems and moving up the soft seams.

Like the fall, there hasn’t been any one pattern working better than another. With the clarity, consider using brighter eggs, but not bold, and the size should be a little larger (#6) than you would think to encourage fish to move a little to eat. Realistic nymphs like hex, caddis and black stones are all popular and proven winners this time of year whether you are fishing them below a float/indicator or bouncing them along the bottom.

Good luck.

Ted

Spring Steelhead – Only a few days in mid-March remain open for the spring season.
Trout – May and June aren’t far away and offer ideal conditions for both streamer and dry fly fishing.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates in Oct. and Nov. remain available but they are starting to become limited.

betsie river, black stone, caddis, egg patterns, fly-fishing guide traverse city, hex nymph, manistee river steelhead, march steelhead fishing, tippy dam, trout

Mid-March Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - March 13, 2019

To say it was a long, cold winter would be to misrepresent that past few months and the multiple polar vortexes, hours of shoveling snow and time spent indoors thinking about fishing. With mid-March, thankfully, comes some sunshine, longer days, warmer temperatures, and opportunities to shake cabin fever by fishing for steelhead.

There is still a lot of snow on land, but warmer temps, sunshine and rain will help reduce things, hopefully gradually. As the melt hits the water, look for the water temps to actually remain or even get cooler. Sunshine really helps warm the water up and help to get fish active and feed. If wade fishing, be careful of icy paths and river banks.

We are in pre-spawn mode and anglers will find steelhead in most of the local rivers and throughout the watersheds including the Manistee below Tippy Dam and the Betsie River. There is a mix of winter fish and fresh fish with the hold-over fall (winter) fish mostly sitting in the deeper holes to avoid the stronger currents. Fresh fish encouraged by additional sunlight and an increase in water flow are trickling upstream and can be found in seams as they ascend upstream.

River levels are holding steady and have a slight stain to them – look for more color to the water as more run off occurs and levels rise. Water temps are in the mid-30s and the fish are favoring a drag-free presentation often on the slower side of the current seam.

This time of year larger eggs and beads are preferred over realistic sizes and colors since there are no natural eggs we are trying to imitate. Other flies that are proven winners this time of year include hex nymphs, caddis, black stonefly and alevin.

Good luck.

Ted

Spring Steelhead – Now through April. Start the fishing seasons with some chrome! Some dates still available.
Trout – May and June offers some of the best trout fishing of the year matching the hatch and fishing streamers.
Booking 2019 – Reserve your date(s) and schedule life around fishing rather than trying to fit fishing into life.

alevin, betsie river, black stonefly, caddis, egg patterns, fly fishing guide service, hex nymphs, manistee river, spring steelhead, steelhead fishing, tippy dam, traverse city

Early Winter Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - November 28, 2018

With November coming to an end, it is apparent that fall itself ended a few weeks ago. Winter temps and some snow have been the norm with air temps below freezing as water temperatures hover around 40 degrees on the local rivers.

There are steelhead in all the rivers, but they are spread throughout the watersheds and acting more like winter fish with their tendencies to sit in the deeper, slower holes and tail outs. There are still some fresh fish moving through as other fish transition to the cold water so don’t abandon the runs and seams that typically hold fish in the fall.

Egg patterns are still a favorite of steelhead as salmon eggs continue to trickle down the river. Small egg patterns and beads in pale colors like cream, egg, grapefruit, Oregon cheese, and buff do a good job of imitating the natural stage eggs are in after being deposited in the river over a month or so ago.

Fish eggs in tandem with some natural looking nymphs – hex, caddis and steelhead buggers are always the first nymphs to get tied on in fall, winter and spring. The swing bite continues to be tougher than we’d like as that window to get fish to chase a swung fly is getting narrower with dropping water temperatures.

Trout fishing also has slowed mostly because of dropping water temperatures. Those fishing streamers below Tippy Dam are finding natural bait fish patterns are doing a good job of imitating recently stocked/planted fish…. Dirty Hippies, Skam-Man, T&A Bunkers and bobble heads; Big trout eat smaller trout. It’s a good time of year to switch that long and heavy sink – tip for a shorter one so you can slow your presentation down without hanging up on the bottom. Nymphing under indicators close to the dam in distinct bubble lines can extend your trout season if streamer fishing isn’t your thing.

Good luck.

Ted

Early Winter Steelhead – There are decent numbers of steelhead in the Manistee and Betsie.
Fall Trout Combo – Target both steelhead and trout (with streamers) on the lower Manistee.
Gift Certificates – With the Holidays approaching fast – give or ask for some time on the water.

Betsie, caddis, egg patterns, gift certificates for fly fishing, steelhead buggers, streamer fishing, tippy dam, trout fishing, winter steelhead

Mid-October Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - October 20, 2018

It definitely feels like Fall on and off the river. The recent winds have really put a lot of leaves into the river leaving a number of trees bare and anglers putting on an extra layer.

Cooler temperatures have dropped the water temps significantly the past week as they hover around 50 degrees. Between the lack of significant rainfall, drop in water temps and all of the leaves drifting through the river, the steelhead fishing has been more challenging than it had been, but yet there are fish around and still playing the game and every day is different.

The salmon are pretty much wrapping up their spawning run on the local rivers including the Manistee, Betsie, and Platte and those eggs are what the chrome steelhead are keying in on. Natural egg patterns and/or beads have been working well, however when the leaf-drop is heavy, jumping up in pattern size can help the fish see your fly. Target the holes behind remaining spawning salmon and the end of runs bellow gravel sections. Since there are fewer salmon (Chinook and Coho) right now and therefore fewer eggs, a nymph bite is beginning – caddis and steelhead buggers have been starting to produce. With less of an egg bite look for the swing-bite to start soon as the leaves are no longer fouling the presentation/flies.

Good luck.

Ted

Schedule changes have left a few dates available this fall: November 21, 23-27

Fall Steelhead – Fall colors include chrome Steelhead until Winter gets here.
Fall Trout Combo – Target both steelhead and trout (streamers) on the lower Manistee
2019 Fishing – It isn’t too early to get next year’s fishing dates secured – booking through October

betsie river, big manistee, caddis, egg patterns, manistee river, salmon, steelhead buggers, tippy dam

Late April Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - April 23, 2018

Boy what a difference a week makes. While last week had us thinking we were stuck in winter, the past few days have us thinking spring. Sunny skies and warmer temperatures has the water warming up just a bit after all that run-off from the snow increased water levels but kept the temp near 40 degrees on the Manistee below Tippy Dam with smaller rivers like the Betsie warming up into the mid-40s.

Water levels are ideal and have a nice stain to them making black flies stick out a little bit in the conditions. With stoneflies flying around it’s a good time to pull those out of the fly box again and tie them on. Caddis and fry patterns have taken some fish also. Egg patterns that have been working include smaller clown patterns and natural looking patterns like nuke eggs.

With the warmer water on the smaller rivers increasing so did a nice number of fish. The Manistee didn’t get as many fresh fish but there are still pre-spawn, spawning and post spawn fish around to play the game. Focus on migratory slots and the pocket water near spawning gravel for your best fishing.

This Saturday is the official start of Trout season throughout the state – for those headed out for “Opener” to keep with traditions, good luck and think streamers more than dry flies until the water warms up a bit more. With the warmer weather some of the smaller rivers could reach the critical low 50’s in time to trigger some Hendricksons but I would guess we are a good 10 days behind.

Good luck!

Ted

Steelhead & Trout Combo – The first two weeks in May can offer steelhead in the morning and trout after noon.
Trout – Reliable hatches begin in May for surface activity. It’s also a great time to fish streamers for bigger trout.
Learn How – Take a 1/2 day trip with the goal of learning how to fly fish or improve, customized to your interests.

betsie river, caddis, fly fishing steelhead michigan, fry patterns, hendricksons, manistee, steelhead fishing, stoneflies, streamers, tippy dam steelhead fishing, trout season

«‹2 3 4 5 6 ›»