Early April Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - April 5, 2023

Early April showers has our local rivers running high and dirty while promising May flowers. If fishing smaller rivers and wading, be advised of very high water.

Leading up until recent storms, the water had come up with rain late last week. And with it, some fresh fish. We have an assortment of steelhead in the local rivers – fresh, spawning, and drop-backs. Water temps are in the low 40s which gets the fish in and out relatively quick. Since there is a mix of fish in the various spawning stages – look for fish in an assortment of water, notably tail-outs for drop-backs, and soft seams for migrating fish.

Egg patterns and beads along with caddis and fry had been working but that was before the increase in water flow. Larger stones, buggers and bold egg patterns would be my first choice.

To learn more about your favorite river’s water levels and flows, check out the USGS website.

Good luck getting out.

Ted

2023 Fishing – Get your dates secured to ensure your time on the water. Booking all seasons.
Trout – May’s streamer & dry fly fishing turns to the big bugs of June. Good dates to choose from.
Fall Steelhead – Just a few prime steelhead dates remain available in 2023 – finish the fishing season strong.

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Mid March Steelhead Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - March 17, 2023

Despite the relatively mild winter we have had, the steelhead fishing is about where it should be for this time of year.

The sun has been shining a bit more lately bumping the water temperature into the upper 30s on the Manistee and into the 40s on smaller rivers like the Betsie. However, some cold nights or winter weather events returns conditions to what we expect for Mid-March.

Some fresh fish have been moving through the river systems but the majority of the fish have been those that have been in the river systems for a bit. The deeper, slow holes near gravel sections of water have been the most reliable with the occasional fish found in the smaller holes near gravel. A few fish have actually been seen on gravel indicating that the spawning process has just begun.

Nymphs have been fishing a bit better than eggs lately with stoneflies and caddis being the most productive. Always fished in tandem with an egg pattern, look for the eggs to become preferred as spawning activity builds and the number of natural eggs drifting downstream increases.

Good luck.

Ted

Open Spring Steelhead Date: I just had a recent cancellation – March 27 is available

2023 Fishing – Get your dates secured to ensure your time on the water. Booking all seasons.
Trout – May’s streamer & dry fly fishing turns to the big bugs of June. Good dates to choose from.
Fall Steelhead – Just a few prime steelhead dates remain available in 2023 – finish the fishing season strong.

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Late December Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - December 22, 2022

Winter officially started today, but we have been dealing with winter-like fishing conditions for a few weeks now.

Water temperatures are in the low to mid 30s, running clear and the steelhead have seemed to find great places to hibernate as fishing has been challenging. If you head out, look for the deep, slow water and the soft water tail-outs to be your best bet.

It’s time to fish some smaller, realistic nymphs and “dead egg” patterns in pale, muted colors as dead drift as possible. Fishing under indicators and floats help with that. If that doesn’t work, try big and bright attractor flies like bold egg patterns and chartreuse caddis. Swinging a decent sized fly suggesting a baitfish is still a possibility because it allows you to fish over some structure (wood) and entice a fish to eat something with a few more calories. However, as winter bears down on us, that window of opportunity is closing.

I hope you all have a great Holiday Season and that the New Year ahead finds you healthy, happy and on the water.

Regards,

Ted

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Late November Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - November 25, 2022

As November comes to an end along with the Fall season, we find river and fishing conditions to be about what you’d expect for this time of year.

Water levels are running on the low and clear side of things which makes stealthy presentations a little more crucial. The unprecedented warm water temps we experienced this Fall have dropped significantly in the past week thanks to a snowstorm and cold temps; look for the thermometer to read around 40 degrees. When the water gets colder, the steelhead tend to shift and seek the slower water on the other (slower) side of the bubble line. Most of the snow is gone and stable temperatures are in the forecast so fishing should remain decent as we head into December.

Egg patterns continue to be an effective approach but egg and nymph combos become more common as the fish get off that egg bite with fewer salmon eggs drifting down river systems like the Manistee and Betsie. Steelhead buggers and medium sized black/brown stoneflies are always good choices this time of year.

Fish numbers have been o.k. the past few weeks. After the strong start to the season, we have had to work a little harder to bend the rod. This is the time of year that all three ways to present flies will work – duck and chuck, indicator/float, and swinging. And fish have been easier to land as the cooler temps take some of the near uncontrollable rambunctiousness out of them.

Good luck,

Ted

Fall Steelhead – Finish the season with what started the season – Steelhead! A few dates in late Nov. are open.
2023 Fishing – Get your dates secured to ensure your time on the water. Booking all seasons thru September.
Gift Certificates – Quick and easy gifts of a half-day, full-day or casting lesson for friends or family.

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Early November Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - November 8, 2022

Steelhead fishing has been mixed. The last week of October left us with low and clear water and with all the salmon gone, the steelhead weren’t as easy to find. Over the weekend significant rains brought up the local rivers and have them running higher and with some color to them. This push of water moved some fish around through rivers and even sent some fresh fish from the lake into the rivers systems like the Manistee and Betsie.

Water temperatures are almost unprecedented for this time of year and are maintaining upper 40s and close to 50. With nice weather in the forecast that should remain for a few days but the “S” word that gets spoken a little more often this time of year is in the long term forecast so look for the water and air temps to begin to fall where they should be for mid-November.

With those water temps being up, the fish are still scattered, mostly happy and eager to eat a well presented fly. Once hooked, they are continuing to test our abilities to get them close to the net but getting beat up has never been so fun. Egg patterns in bold, pale or mixed colors have been the primary producers with nymphs like hex, buggers and caddis starting to get tied in tandem with an egg or bead. Those willing to fish a swung fly are getting a deeper bend in the two-handed rod with the larger size of fish this fall; streamers with copper flash and either tan/ginger or olive bodies have been the first fly tied on the line.