Posts tagged "traverse city fly fishing"

Early March Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - March 1, 2022

Now that it’s the first of March, it’s time to start thinking about fishing again!

It’s been a pretty cold winter with a few mild days mixed in to help keep the snowpack reduced. These mini run-off situations gave some bumps to the water levels which encouraged a few steelhead to come into the local rivers like the Manistee, Bear Creek and the Betsie. Water temps have been pegged in the mid-30s with, but with overnight temps staying in the double digits, things will slowly warm and fishing will only improve.

This time of a year the sun can come out just enough to help warm the water up just a bit. But if it is too warm and causes run-off from melting snow, the water temp usually drops making fish that tend to be lethargic even more so, and a little grumpy too. As we get a few warm-up cycles, look for fishing to improve, especially on the smaller rivers that tend to fluctuate quicker (think warmer) than bigger rivers.

Dead-drift egg and nymph combinations are your best bet this time of year, especially in some of the deeper slower moving water where a lot of the fall and winter hold over fish have taken up residence. The fish are shuffling around a little with the days getting longer with some steelhead starting to stage near the gravel sections of rivers. If you are fishing near gravel where salmon spawned in the fall, don’t hesitate to fish Alevin or even Fry patterns as these are starting to become active. Small (#10 and 12) Green Caddis in clear water can be real effective this time of year, too.

If you are looking to get fired up about fishing, check out the Fly Fishing Film Tour (FT3) this Saturday, March 5th, hosted by The Northern Angler at The City Opera House here in Traverse City.

Good luck.

Ted

May Days – The month that offers so much variety for a number of species. <<More info>>
Match the Hatch – Late May and June offer dry fly anglers some of the best trout fishing of the year.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates remain available in October, November and into December.

alevin pattern, betsie river, egg patterns, fly fishing guide, fonzi fry, fry pattern, green caddis, manistee river steelhead fishing, steelhead fishing, traverse city, traverse city fly fishing

Early September Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - September 1, 2021

The water has come up and down again after heavy rains over the weekend leaving the water stained which should clear up by the weekend. The hot weather has thankfully left us with nice, cool, evenings and sunny afternoons in the forecast.

The Tricos have come and gone on the trout rivers and the terrestrials are hit and miss, so is the fishing. After a long season the trout are warry. Experience tells me once the water temps drop, the days get a little shorter and the brook trout get that pre-spawning tingle in their loins, fishing improves for both brookies and browns. Cloudy/overcast days continue to be preferred over the bright days.

Terrestrials and twitch flies are a great approach but keep some smaller Isonychia and BWO dries in your box and a few of your favorite wet flies. Have any flying ants in your box? You should because if they show up like they often do in Sept, so do the fish. Once Labor day is behind us, most folks forget about trout fishing making the local rivers good place to spend a few hours.

The cooler weather will help improve the lake fishing for those looking to get some more gill and bass fishing in as they move from deep back into the shallows again.

Good luck.

Ted

September Trout Fishing – Cool nights and warm days, this time of year you have the river to yourself.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates remain in November and into December. Finish the season with some chrome.
2022– Booking next year’s fishing seasons through August. Don’t miss your favorite seasons and good dates!

guided fly fishing traverser city, salmon, september trout fishing, traverse city fly fishing, trout, upper manistee trout fishing

Late July Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - July 28, 2021

After some heavy rain last weekend our local rivers came up significantly but have dropped again and are close to average flows/heights for this time of year. The clarity is still running with a bit of a stain to them but are more than fishable, for now – if the rain we get tonight occurs, we will be back to higher, stained water leaving most of the fish with full bellies from eating everything getting washed downstream making fishing a little tougher than it should be for this time of year.

The Tricos have showed up mid-morning most days but some days it’s a short and brief hatch, other days longer; both scenarios bringing up the smaller fish with the occasional surprise on the end of the line. Isonychias are still hatching very sporadically this time of year and the fish are still responding to them surprisingly well considering how few are hatching. Light Cahills are also around, but I rarely have seen a fish eat one over the years so they aren’t my first choice in patterns – they must taste bad.

This time of year is also what I refer to as the “Foam and Rubber Hatch” – that is terrestrials and attractor patterns made with foam bodies and rubber legs that wiggle, twitch and shake bringing the fish to the surface. Grasshopper fishing gets a lot of attention in this sport this time of year, but frankly put – I don’t see too many natural hoppers on waters like the upper Manistee. These bigger hoppers fished with a twitch can still be productive, just not sure they are taking them as hoppers vs. something big and gangly on the surface.

The lake fishing has slowed down on the brighter days fishing for bluegills and the bass seem to have gone deep except for the low light of the a.m., evening, or rare cloudy day. Poppers slowly and patiently twitched, gurgled or even popped with long rests afterward have had some fish near weed beds and drop offs eat. And a few gills are just finishing up what is likely to be their last spawning in the shallows on certain lakes and ponds for some surface activity.

Good luck.

Ted

Trout Fishing – July and August is Terrestrial and Trico time! Start the day off casting to brook and brown trout
and get back to the family for lunch time – it’s a great way to start the day when in Northwest Michigan.
Learn to Fly Fish – Tailor a half-day trip to learning how to fly fish –perfect for beginners.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates remain in November and into December.

bass fishing, bluegill fishing, isonychias, manistee river fishing, traverse city fly fishing, tricos, trout fishing traverse city

Mid May Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - May 13, 2021

The past couple of weeks have had some cold overnight temperatures dropping water temps which in turn made for sporadic bug emergences and negatively affected the fishing.

Water temps had dropped on local rivers including the Manistee, AuSable and Boardman into the 40s. Already two days of sunshine is helping those temps stay in the mid-50s with more sun and normal night time temps forecast ahead which should help stabilize temps, improve emergences, and make for better trout fishing. Trout hate drops in water temps, especially when under 60 degrees so time of day and sunshine can make a difference on when to likely experience a hatch.

Already we are seeing the last of the dark Hendricksons (mostly spinners that didn’t freeze), light Hendricksons, caddis, and brown stones. Look for more bugs to show up including Sulphurs, black quills, Mahoganies, and more. This time of year can offer some really good dry fly fishing, but it’s technical fishing with clear water and educated fish – bring your A-game and a lot of different mayfly imitations including an assortment of Borcher’s Drakes.

The clear water is making streamer fishing a little tougher, too. Between hatches/emergences, fish the smaller patterns low and slow and cycle the colors until you find one that works for the day’s conditions. And the fish’s preference.

Lake fishing hasn’t been on fire but like the trout rivers, this warm weather will get those fish into the shallows any day if they haven’t already.

Good luck.

Ted

Trout Fishing – May and June offer some of the best streamer and dry fly hatches of the year.
Learn to Fly Fish – Tailor a half-day trip to learning how to fly fish –
perfect for beginners or those looking to dial in a new technique.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates remain in November and into December

au sable, Black Quill, caddis, fly fishingreport, hendricksons, manistee river, sulphurs, traverse city fly fishing

Mid July Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - July 12, 2020

The recent deep heat the region experienced for the last 10 days has finally let up, at least for now. I am happy to report that some cooler evenings and cloud cover has helped the local rivers drop into the low to mid-60’s making trout fishing an option again. I don’t ever recall such hot weather for such a long time. Looks like warm weather is in the forecast, however the cooler overnight temps will allow the spring fed nature of the Upper Manistee and Boardman Rivers to remain cool enough to fish.

With the majority of our hatches beyond us, we find ourselves in the typical transition period of early July where fish are digesting the hex mayflies they have loaded into their guts the past three weeks (feeling like many of us do after the holiday season) as we wait for Tricos to start any day. As typical for this time of year, the morning is the ideal time to take advantage of shadows and fish looking up. Smaller terrestrials, wets and twitch flies are a good approach as we get deeper into summer.

More on fishing post Hex Hatch can be read here.

Unless you are “mouser”, it’s time to put away the head lamp, reduce half of the fly boxes in your gear bag and simply fish. River levels and temps are ideal for wet wading if not fishing from a boat

Bass and bluegill fishing has slowed down some with the heat, but like the trout fishing, lake temps will cool off a little with the cooler temps and some wind. Some big gills are still coming to the surface in their second post-spawn phase. Bass have been bass hiding in the weeds and slurping sliders, divers and the occasional popper.

Good luck and thank you to the sportsman that held off on fishing during the recent hot weather to help the fish population.

Ted

New to the Sport? Bass and Bluegill fishing is the perfect way to learn to fish after a quick casting lesson.
Tricos & Terrestrials – A great way to start a summer day. Float and Trout fish the Manistee in July and August.
Fall Steelhead – Some good dates are available in November – a great way to finish a fishing season.

boardman river, fly fishing guide traverse city, hatches, hex, manistee river, river fishing, terrestrial fishing, traverse city fly fishing, tricos

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