Posts tagged "grand traverse bay"

Variety – In Fish and Weather

Posted by Ted Kraimer - June 6, 2013

Some cooler temps have made fishing comfortable and sometimes cool, but fishing has mostly been good for the variety of species anglers can chase this time of year in the Traverse City region.

The trout streams are looking good and fishing decent thanks to some good dry fly hatches. The cooler weather- it seems is creating emergences and spinner falls a little earlier in the evening to help see what is going on. Small bugs and fish dimpling the surface in low light can be frustrating so the early emergence is a treat. There are a number of bugs that can be found on the water – Sulphurs, Mahoganies, March Browns, Little Yellow Sallies, Med-Brown (Mattress Thrashers) Stones, BWOs, and a few others like Isonychias that are just starting. A Borcher’s Drake seems to do a pretty good job right now of imitating a lot of the spinners and a number of the duns on the water whereas the Robert’s Yellow Drake in 14-16 is starting to take a number of fish on top. Look for brown drakes to pop on the Manistee and Boardman any day now. The rivers are full, have good clarity and the fish have been chunky from all the subsurface feeding they have been doing making for some inconsistent streamer fishing. Remember, you are only one cast away from making a slow day a great day so keep at it. It’s a great time of the year to dry fly fish the Manistee and Boardman.

Carp fishing has been up and down because of the weather – cold nights, strong winds from different directions each day and the lack of a hot sun are all contributing factors. One day they are in shallow, the next they are not. Some days they eat, some days they don’t. In other words, they are acting like carp which helps add to the challenge of carp fishing on the flats. The smallmouth bass on Grand Traverse Bay tend to be a little more stable near rocks guarding beds in shallow water, but it seems that in the popular areas, they have seen a lot of flies. Mix it up and fish off less pressured waters if you can.

The lakes and ponds have been fishing well – some lakes have had a lot of shallow water bluegill fishing with some fish being done with the spawn and others just getting going. The deep “kettle lakes” are examples of the latter. Top water flies/poppers/spiders and small nymphs swum subsurface have been working. Largemouth bass are in the shallows too and are eating both flies on top and below – swim a diver for the best of both worlds.

Please practice catch and release.

Good luck,

Ted

Father’s Day – Ask for or give a gift certificate to dad this Father’s Day – June 16 2013
Hex Fishing – Just a few ideal dates are still available for the big bugs and big fish in mid/late June.
Fall Steelhead – Its not too early to start thinking about fall’s best fishing. Late Sept. – Nov.
2013 Fishing Season – Now booking for all 2013 seasons – don’t miss out on this year’s fishing.

boardman, borchers, brown drakes, carp, fly-fishing guide, grand traverse bay, guide, hatches, manistee, streamers, traverse city, upper-manistee

Top to Bottom, Rivers, Lakes & Bays – It’s a Diverse Time to Fly Fish

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 30, 2013

There is a lot to choose from right now for those fly fishing the Traverse City / Northwest Michigan region. The rivers, lakes and Grand Traverse Bay offer anglers everything from graceful trout to the temperamental and brutish carp – from dry fly fishing rivers to bottom bouncing weighted patterns on the bay.

The trout fishing has been decent on the Upper Manistee and Boardman Rivers. There is a diverse collection of bugs on the water most days making for some of the fun match-the-hatch chess games and head-hunting.
There have been some prolific Sulphur spinner falls the past week as well as the last of the light Hendricksons, mahoganies, caddis, bwos, black quill/Borchers and a few stones – both little yellow sallies and medium browns. Look for more of the same bugs to emerge over the week and pay real close attention to what bug and what stage the fish are keying in on. Emergers and spinners – flies fished in the film, seem to be working best. The smaller flies can be tough to fish in the dusk light – look for smooth water and slight dimples and underwater bulges for your targets as the broken water can make it tough to find fish. The streamer bite has been up and down with the cloudy days being ideal, as usual. Water levels are good – the rivers are full, have great clarity and temps are hovering around 60 degrees.

Smallmouth bass have moved into the shallows in the bay – many of the large rocks that offer some shade hold some fish, but keep your eye out for cruisers on the flats. Crayfish and minnow imitations are standard patterns you should have in your box.

The pre-spawn carp have move in, but remain transient with the weather changes, fishing pressure and low water of the bay. Water temp is key and if we continue to get warm weather, mild nights and favorable winds, it will only improve. The shallow water of East Grand Traverse Bay is a great place to look for the “golden bone” right now.

Bluegill continue to be in the shallow water offering the fly angler great opportunities and some great fish. The fish took a bit of a beating over Memorial Day weekend with many of them taken home, but the strong survive and require additional stealth to catch them.

Good luck,

Ted

Trout Fishing – May & June offer some or our best streamer fishing & great hatches!
Bluegill – Experience great fishing on the ponds and lakes in mid-May and June
Father’s Day – Ask for or give a gift certificate to dad this Father’s Day – June 16 2013
Hex Fishing – Some ideal dates are still available for the big bugs and big fish in mid/late June
2013 Fishing Season – Now booking for all 2013 seasons – don’t miss out on this year’s fishing

carp, fly fishing, grand traverse bay, guide, hatches, l, manistee river, smallmouth bass, trout, trout fishing

Early June Fly Fishing – Lots Going On

Posted by Ted Kraimer - June 7, 2012

After last weekend’s rain, river levels are full and returning to normal levels. The Upper Manistee is in good shape, the Lower Manistee is still on the high side with an ideal stain, the Boardman is running full and the Au Sable is back to normal. The flush of water made for good streamer fishing and with the forecast heat, the dry fly fishing should ramp up after a cool period with very sporadic hatches.

Look for Isonychias to build in numbers as well as a mix of other bugs including: Brown Drakes, March Browns, the last of the Sulphurs, Yellow/Golden Stone Flies (#10), Bat Flies and Mahoganies. When the days are hot and temps stay warm into dark, look for the hatches to be condensed into a short window near dusk. In other words, bring your headlamp and walk back to the car in the dark after fishing until dark. Because of our mild winter, warm March and otherwise odd weather this Spring – the timing and predictability of hatches has been off. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to have a few hex and gray drake patterns in your box should this warm weather inspire a few bugs to show up early.

{A few years ago I wrote an article pertaining to trout fishing in the weeks leading up to the Hex hatch – you can read it by clicking here.}

Carp fishing on the bay has been very mixed as the fish haven’t been nearly as predictable as they normally are this time of year. With a few fish showing signs of spawning the past few days, look for this warm weather to ramp up fish numbers and spawning activity in the shallow flats. Plan to cover a lot of ground to find fish willing to play along and be armed with the usual patterns: hex nymphs, crayfish, Clouser minnows and b.h. black wooly buggers. While the carp fishing hasn’t been up to par, the smallmouth bass fishing has been solid with small minnow/baitfish patterns working well.

Bass and Bluegill fishing continues on the smaller lakes and with a lot of the spawning done, males protecting nests have brought aggressive behavior as well as from the females looking to eat, too. Look for deeper breaks and drop offs to produce the bigger bluegills/panfish. The popper fishing has improved however the small streamer and nymph/dry combo has been most effective mostly because it allows us to fish deeper water.

Good Luck,

Ted

– Upcoming Fishing Seasons –

Trout: Fishing with streamers and dries. Don’t forget the Big Bugs – Drakes, Isonychias and Hex.
Carp and Smallmouth Bass on Grand Traverse Bays – find out why this has become a favorite of many anglers.
Terrestrials & Trico hatches in the Months of July & August – start your mornings off on a cool, quiet trout stream.
Booking for all 2012 Seasons – Some Fall Salmon and Steelhead Dates Remain Open

ausable, bass, bat flies, boardman, brown drakes, fly fishing, grand traverse bay, hatches, hex, hex hatch, manistee, manistee river, smallmouth bass, streamer fishing

Weather – Ups and Downs

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 31, 2012

Addendum
After over 40 hours of rain spanning Friday into Sunday the region received significant rainfall. Anglers will find local rivers running high and stained for a while. Be careful wading and for up to date river conditions you can click on the USGS Michigan Streamflow Conditions

The weather has had its ups and downs the past week and as a result the fishing has followed suit. While last week’s heat had condensed the hatches and dry fly fishing into the final 15 minute of each day and into dark , the cooler weather this week has slowed things down. The good news is we got some much needed rain in our rivers and water temperatures have stopped warming rapidly.

While the dry fly fishing had been decent on the Upper Manistee, AuSable and Boardman Rivers, the bug’s emergence and spinner falls have become difficult to peg. Brown Drakes, Sulphurs, March Browns, Mahoganies and stone flies have been on and hovering over the water but the past few days not so many. Typically the evenings are a good time for spinner falls and emergences, however with the cold front upon us, look for late mornings and mid-afternoons to be a time for sporadic hatches. As the more seasonable temps return, look for typical emergence/spinner fall behavior to return and the trout to take notice. The good news is this weather and the rain we received improves streamer fishing conditions.

Fishing below Tippy Dam on the Manistee has been off a little due to the carp in the river spawning. Targeting the trout with nymph rigs downstream of the carp has paid off but it still isn’t what it should be as the fish are keyed in on a heavy supply of eggs. Streamer fishing the first couple of miles downstream of the dam is a good way to cover water and find those larger, more aggressive fish. The crayfish have molted recently are soft-shelled making them a good pattern to have along with your other favorite streamer patterns fished on sink-tips.

The Carp and Smallmouth fishing has been mixed with Smallmouth Bass offering the more consistent fishing. With the heavy winds, changing temperatures and storm fronts, the carp are more than ornery and aren’t on their predictable schedule of time and place like they were in last week’s heat. A lot of moving around and careful attention by anglers is necessary to get a shot or two at the “Golden Bones” of West and East Grand Traverse Bay. While looking for carp, keep an eye out for the smaller, but still fun smallmouth bass cruising around.

Lake and Pond fishing continues to offer good fishing for the bluegill and bass angler. Also affected by the fluctuations in weather some days have simply been better than others with these species. The surface fishing hasn’t been as good as normal so consider swimming nymphs and small streamers sub-surface for improved results.

Good Luck,

Ted

– Upcoming Fishing Seasons –

ausable, bass, boardman, brown drakes, carp, golden bones, grand traverse bay, manistee, trout fishing

Another Week

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 23, 2012

Not much has changed from last week’s report other than river clarity has become a major issue – the rivers are running very, very clear and there is virtually no rain in the forecast – stealth and lighter tippet/leader is pretty much a necessity.

The Manistee, AuSable and Boardman are all running low and clear making it easy for the fish to see bugs on the surface, when they are out. Dry fly fishing has been mixed with lots of bugs to chose from but often at odd times. Look for Sulphurs, March Browns, Mahoganies, and caddis to continue and with all this heat in the forecast – have some Brown Drakes in your box . These warmer evenings should make for consistent evening hatches and spinner falls.

Streamer fishing has been tough with water low and clear, but is still a good way to get some of the bigger fish to come out and play. Look for low light times of the day or the rare, cloudy day to provide the best opportunity for success. There hasn’t been a secret fly working better than another lately – mix them up and fish them closer and deeper to wood than normal – be prepared to lose some flies, but also have better luck.

The ponds and lakes are really warming up and so is the fishing. Bass and bluegill continue to build in numbers and provide good fishing for the fly angler. Small nymphs suspended under poppers or buoyant dry flies make for a great duo and a small weighted streamer cast on a long leader can provoke aggressiveness from even the most discerning bluegill. Bass are coming up and eating poppers from time to time while the streamer and nymph fishing seems to be more effective.

Grand Traverse Bay – east and west, are warming up with all of this sun and the carp and smallmouth have taken notice. Numbers of smallmouth bass have increased as they go into spawning mode and feed in the shallows while the carp are a little more selective on water temperature and can be fickle on when and where you can find them. Often when you find them there will be a lot of them. Pay real close attention to water temps affected by wind direction and overnight temperatures to select the best places to fish. Crayfish and hex nymphs are working on both species and additionally minnow patterns for the smallies.

Be safe this weekend, share the water and bring bug spray. Good luck!
Ted

– Upcoming Fishing Seasons –

May & June: Trout fishing with streamers and dries. Don’t forget the Big Bugs – Drakes, Isonychias and Hex in June.
June: Carp on Grand Traverse Bays – find out why this has become the favorite early Summer fishing of so many.
Booking for all 2012 Seasons – Some Fall Dates Remain Open

ausable, brown drakes, carp, fly fishing, grand traverse bay, hatches, manistee, smallmouth bass, streamer fishing

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