In this I must be clear> These are merely suggestions to other fellow readers in the Fly World who would like some references that I have personally read AND are in my own collection. There are others I have read and borrowed from fellow fishing buddies that must be mentioned. Titles like Selective Trout by Swisher and Richards, What the Trout Said by Datus Proper, In the Ring of The Rise by Vince Marinaro and Trout by Ray Bergman to name a few. I have also made good use of my local library card and read a few excellent observations by Tom Rosenbauer- don’t hold it against him, he gets paid by the guys that also make dog beds, but his writing is often provocative and to the point. Such works like Orvis’s Guide to Fly Fishing, Reading Trout Streams, and Prospecting for Trout go down as highly recommended reading for beginners and experienced anglers alike.

Sometimes I have read a few of my books three, four, even a half a dozen times before something in it clicks within my mind. Whether it is because a certain event occurred on the stream and a sudden realization enlightened me, or because I finally got to a level or point in my angling that I was ready to accept or invite that information into my knowledge base. We as humans are funny creatures. We can repeatedly do the same manual maneuver over a thousand times (like with tying flies) and then , in an instant- KAPPOW!!- you suddenly see a better way. Posting hackle on a parachute pattern for example, the easiest way to tie it off is to actually wrap the thread around the post, thereby capturing the hackle feather and then whip finishing the fly. No more messing around with tying the tip of the hackle feather and most of its barbules to the hook itself. What an Epiphany that was!!! How many years had I been missing that one? And why didn’t it come sooner?

“The List” from the TU readers is as follows: TROUT by Ray Bergman, TROUT FISHING by Joe Brooks THE COMPLETE BOOK OF WESTERN HATCHES: AN ANGLER’S ENTOMOLOGY AND FLY PATTERN GUIDE by Rick Hafele and Dave Hughes, A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT AND OTHER STORIES by Norman Maclean, STEELHEAD FLY FISHING by Trey Combs, THE CURTIS CREEK MANIFESTO by Sheridan Anderson, CADDISFLIES:A MAJOR STUDY OF ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT AQUATIC INSECTS-ENTOMOLOGY, FLY TYING, AND PROVEN FISHING TECHNIQUES by Gary LaFontaine, A MODERN DRY FLY CODE by Vince Marinaro, TROUT BUM by John Gierach, NYMPHS- VOLUME 1 & 2 by Ernest Schwiebert, FLY CASTING TECHNIQUES by Joan Wulff and finally THE RIVER WHY?  by David James Duncan. All are extraordinary, they have made huge impacts on many fishermen and women of all ages, just that some don’t particularly pertain to my neck of the woods. Allow me to explain.  When asked to embark on a journey of faith to Belize eight years ago to assist in the wedded bliss of a fellow angler, I did all the research on bonefish and the varieties of Crazy Charlie’s I could tie. I haven’t touched Mr. Fernandez’s insights on boney behaviour since. Last year, when prepping our family fall color trip to Colorado and staying near Estes Park, I read and bought several books on the multitude of rivers and techniques to fish that foreign landscape prior to going. The Best of a slew of “Fly Fishing Colorado….” destination books was “Where to Eat, Sleep and Fish Colorado” by Mark D. Williams and W. Chad McPhail. Hilarious, comical, informative, priced right, great budget/itinerary, awesome fishing, did I mention funny? They catalog summers of trekking up and down the Rockies while searching out the best honey holes, inventing great ideas for toilet paper dispensers and chuckling at Kum & Go gas stations. It is amazing what crazy things men can find humorous and creative in the same breath while on a fishing journey.

The novels and instructional books that have changed the game for me aren’t altogether completely different, it is more a regional taste. I would trade a Traver/Voelker novel for a Gierach book in a heartbeat, simply because it is in my backyard. LaFontaine, Hughes & Hafele for Swisher and Richards, Bergman and Maclean for Tomas McGuane and Jerry Dennis. I have also dedicated a certain section to the history of Michigan and its authors. If you are curious about Trout Unlimited and its origins, as well as how one acquired gas stamps to sell hosiery and fish the AuSable and Boardman Rivers during the 40’s and 50’s pick up a copy of For the Love of Trout by George Griffith, it is a truly remarkable trip. The Olde AuSable by Hazen Miller gave me a glimpse of a former logging boom-town I have only known the aftermath in my lifetime.

Michigan Authors

You can’t fish these waters without giving credit to Rusty Gates for fighting to keep them as they are today and hopefully shall remain for generations to come. It was in his ability to get you to sign up for a duty or task without you ever knowing you had committed to the job. We need more like him and his presence when we visit the shop will eternally be missed.  Seasons on the Au Sable recounts the many trips to the waters edge to see what was hatching, who got stuck in the two track getting wood and who managed to get that hawg out of that secret stretch of water nobody will tell you about. Josh Greenberg does an excellent job of recounting many of these moments, faithfully maintains the Lodge and has a hot cup of coffee waiting for you if you stop in for the latest river report. My other favorite Michigan author writes so eloquently of the little things we treasure in Northern Michigan- Jerry Dennis. From A Wooden Canoe, The Living Great Lakes and The River Home are all recommended, but if you have a child or a wife who asks sensible nature minded questions like- Why do leaves change color? or What kind of clouds are those? and you would much rather have a correct answer other than “Those clouds are cirrus-stratus/cumuli-nimbous.” Because there is much more to seasonal change and the climate of the Great Lakes and in the book It’s Raining Frogs and Fishes by Mr. Dennis covers a host of natural and other phenomenal acts of nature that I occasionally like to refresh my knowledge on.

You could search and find a million titles regarding all types of fly tying and tying techniques. The one I always go back to for reference is appropriately titled Fly Tier’s Benchside Reference by Ted Leeson and Jim Schollmeyer. A hefty book with 437 pages of varying posts, hackle, dubbing and other techniques, you may never exhaust it’s true potential. It may set you back a smooth C-note, but you will get every penny in return when you produce quality good looking flies that perform and outlast your previous attempts at awkward quill body wrapping. FISHBUGS by Thomas Ames Jr. combines magnificent photography and a touch of entomology to entwine a magical close-up look at the macroinvertebrates we seek for trout food. I have brought this book in to my college Macro-Invert professor and he continually uses it to show the stages of complete metamorphosis the giant stonefly goes through to reach adulthood. If you want to up your tying game or improve on your latin dialect, grab this beautiful coffee table book and see if you wife will let you keep it out, even if it is only at the cottage. NYMPHS- 1 & 2 by Ernest Schwiebert takes it to the next level. If you are looking for Ph.D in your Latin and want to know every family of mayfly or stonefly, this is your tome. Ernest was dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge and passing it on. A true giant among men, he is one of the many men I wished I might have had the opportunity to meet but his passing in 2005 makes him one of our most treasured contributors to our past-time. He was an architect by trade and held two doctorates in Architectural design & principles from Princeton, but his true passion was found in the rivers around Chicago where he grew up. A few stories recollect fishing the Pere Marquette near Baldwin and this is where I feel a connection. In the same order of science and nature, TROUT and SALMON by Dr. Robert Behnke is a must read for those learning the species and elevations/locales of our quarry. Amazing detail and color illustrations by Joseph Tomelleri, this is my go to reference for all ichthyology related questions when you want to debate the difference between Oncorhynchus mykiss gilberti and Oncorhynchus mykiss newberri (not that this may ever impact my Great Lakes fishing).

Environmental issues have been plaguing us in the Great Lakes region ever since we opened up our doors to the Atlantic Ocean via the St. Lawrence Seaway. Muskegon Chronicle reporter Jeff Alexander wrote a great book on its development and history- PANDORA’S LOCKS. In it we find how we had nearly become the nations largest seagoing system, we could move large shipments of various commodities halfway across the United States by boat and save millions of dollars in trade. But at what cost? We are only beginning to find out the price tag on environmental issues and we don’t see the end in the near future. Invasive seagoing lampreys that quickly modified to our sweet water and mussels that could filter liters of water a day had a brand new neighborhood to call home. It was similar to  a perfect storm, all the right pieces were in place, greed for growth and lack of ethical policy, a vast freshwater aquarium teeming with fish and life just waiting to be brought to near extinction. We had already wiped out Grayling and the Passenger Pigeon, Whitefish and Lake Trout were soon to be on that list.

Four Fish by Paul Greenberg recounts the trophic levels in the Ocean as we decimate each one, starting with the Salmon and alewives of the East Coast, everyone’s favorite table fare Chilean Sea-Bass, or should I say Patagonia Toothfish? Not a very palate pleasing nor menu selling moniker, so we edited a little. Then moving out deeper in the sea for great Cod depletion of the 1980’s, further out yet to find the last of the great Tuna fisherman and how we have built massive ships that can do everything from catching, cutting, deep-freezing and packaging our filet-o-fish before it even reaches shore. Read it if you dare, it is eye-opening, much like watching FOOD Inc. for the first time, we are slowly becoming aware consumers. How did we get this way? Well, first we had to go to war, a world war, not once, but twice. then we became a wealthy country, then we had educated young men with talents and not much to do with those talents after the war. So we built things. Great things. Huge superhighways, and massive dams large enough to drive several lanes of traffic over the tops of them. Some airplane pilots discovered they could fly up into the mountain lakes and drop rainbow trout into isolated and barren lakes in the Northern region of California. In An Entirely Synthetic Fish: How the Rainbow Trout Beguiled America by Anders Halverson, we see the development and the spreading of America’s most accepted fish hatchery trout- the rainbow trout. It was once indigenous to the McCloud River, and after early settlers risked their lives camping in hostile Native American territory to bring this fish to thier fishing ponds, it quickly became a sportfishing favorite and delectable campfire nourishment.

I believe everyone has read or at least seen the Robert Redford narrated version of Norman Maclean’s A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT, easily a classic, and if you haven’t, I do suggest you give it a read. I rather enjoyed THE RIVER WHY? by David James Duncan as much. Taking a journey to find oneself in the Pacific Northwest while chasing steelhead and figuring out

enjoy a good read~

 life’s bait versus fly technical query is every young fisherman’s fantasy, throwing in a mermaid who can cast and catch a fish is merely a bonus. For other light-hearted stories I have enjoyed the writing of David Ames. True Love and the Woolly Bugger and A Good Life Wasted are fun and frivolous accounts of the guide life put to prose in a way we all can relate to. Thomas McGuane, THE LONGEST SILENCE and 92 in the SHADE> wow< I saw that 92 in the shade was made into a movie in the 60’s, it would be remarkable to see it adapted to modern times and share that fishing story with the world. McGuane has a writing talent like few others, you immediately are sucked in, and like all good writers, you don’t want to stop. Pick one of these up, throw a log on the fire and see for yourself.

Two game changers that have played the biggest active role in my angling success and failures- I only say failure, because without skunked days, I cannot improve on what I could have done to be more effective in my fly angling pursuit (let’s be honest, it’s called ‘fishing’ and if everyday was a bang-up hilatious-catch-a-fish-on-every-cast kind of day, would we really keep coming back?- I sure would)- The TROUT and The FLY by John Goddard and Brian Clarke look at the world through a trout’s

revisit old standards>

eyes, like many others, but in this edition- the third, they have revisited earlier theories, line color, mono-versus flouro, feather and hook dimples, and they have rettracted and edited previous thoughts or shown significant differences. These are the invaluable resources  for the angler to improve his odds on the animal that has a brain the size of a pea and a guesstimated memory of a mere 30 seconds. I have also been a big fan of the big take. Huckin’ meat some would say. Throwing wet tube socks is another great analogy. The pioneer of my day would have to be Kelly Galloup. When he teamed up with another Michigan angler, Bob Linsenman and co-wrote the  modern code of MODERN STREAMERS for TROPHY TROUT, many anglers took notice. Yes, it can be tiring slapping that 7 or 8 wt all day and hitting wood, snagging, dislocating shoulders or rotator cuffs, but when a 22-24 inch swamp donkey comes crashing out of the LWD and absolutely crushes your Circus Peanut or eternal favorite Zoo Cougar- your adrenal quickly reduces your sunburnt/aching shoulder to a non-existent numbness and you yell —>”FISH ON!!!”

It all begins with a collector’s permit that the teacher will get upon certification of training. The State of Michigan offers workshops at either Oden State Fish Hatchery or Wolf Lake Hatchery to properly train the teachers on regulation of pH, algae, fungus, water temperature, life cycle of the fish and a host of other incidentals. The DNR has had a tremendous growth in popularity of this program with little or no moneys used to advertise or promote its growth. Currently there are 154 schools in the state and more apply every year. Just ten years ago, this was merely an idea. Seems we really do want our next generation to connect to the outdoors and the wonderful resources we have here.

Our pick up destination is the Platte River Hatchery, near Honor Michigan. The ride is a pleasant one for early November, the air is crisp and many of the leaves have fallen. Hunter’s are eager for opening of deer season and I have spied a few salmon pairing up on the upper stretches of the Bear River  behind our home. This is one of the most spectacular times of the year to live in the Great Lakes State. Rolling hills with majestic golden views, inland waterways dotted with fire-lit trees along the background and sunsets that set the horizon aflame as they burn out. At the hatchery, we were lucky to get the nickle tour and see what a vast system they have set up from the weirs and the rearing tanks and the rows and racks of egg trays. This facility takes care of most of Northern Michigan’s stocking for Chinook and Coho Salmon reproduction and it is huge. If you can get a chance to visit this or any of the state fish hatcheries, as a family or a school trip, I highly recommend and promise you won’t be disappointed. We are given two scoops of eggs- roughly 200 green eggs and place them safely in my Glad air tight disposable container and safely wedge them in between a few ice packs in my trusty Fishpond cooler for the 1 1/2 hour ride back to Petoskey. It is exciting, I know we are not transporting bullion, but I do feel like we are in a Brinks truck with highly prized cargo, it is liquid gold. We need to make it back to Sheridan Elementary by 1:00 pm so that we can meet with the News Review and have the photos taken with the students and their newly acquired babies. The kids are beaming. They are all selected to represent various elementary schools based on thier academic achievements and it quickly becomes apparent who are the ones with a million questions and who are the ones with a story about whatever it is you are trying to convey. Ironic, I see a little of myself in each of them. I guess thats why I love connecting with so many kids through something I love.

A small handful of people have asked me – Why raise salmon? Why not Trout in the Classroom? It is true, many states, New York, Vermont, Connecticut, South Carolina and a few others, do raise trout in the classroom (TIC), many of these states have been doing so for nearly twenty years. The most common response I have heard is that salmon are more tolerant of environmental conditions, meaning, small fluctuations in temperature and pH don’t have an immediate nor detrimental affect on the species as would be the case with brook trout or brown trout. Another popular answer is that salmon spawn in the fall, while trout are spring spawners and that wouldn’t coordinate well with the school year. Last time I checked, only rainbows/steelhead (Oncorhynchus mykiss) spawn in the spring while the other two tend to be autumnal spawners. Another school of thought is the  expendability factor – for lack of a better term. Salmon do seem to have a minimal long term impact on an ecosystem. They usually die off in three years after spawning and return vital nutrients to the watershed.  The sensitivity issue seems to win most arguments, but that doesn’t mean we won’t see TIC in Michigan. We have hopes and may one day soon see a pilot program that can test the viability of its success.

This is the day we meet for the first time. I get to introduce myself and the lucky individuals who will be volunteering throughout the year. This past year we thought it would be wise to have 2 assistants that can either carry the program on if something should happen to me on the river (Heaven forbid) or if I get the opportunity to chase trout in distant waters in the future. I am fortunate to have two equally gifted gentlemen that have brought different aspects and points of view to the SIC/PALS classroom. The first is Spencer McCormack, who studied Environmental Sciences at Ohio State University. He has a way of connecting with the kids in a very simple and kind manner. They say in teaching others, especially children, you either have it or you don’t. Spencer has it. They listen and they tend to hang on his very next word. The other gentleman is Paul Wiemerslage from the Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies. Paul has his resume dotted with names like Western Washington University and Bethel University along with the North Cascades Institute- he taps into that spot we all relate to as a child, the place we held secret and safe– a place on the water. It is a joy to have both of these men adding to this year, and I can’t wait to see where it develops.

Every year we glance back and reflect on what worked, what didn’t, timing throughout the school year, how can we make it better and how can we keep it simple. There is no need to re-invent the wheel so I am not going to go through all of our rough sketches or drawing board failures, but rather how we have perfected it to fit our kids and our school. It looks somewhat like this:

• November~ Egg Pick up> meet class and get acquainted with new students.
• December~ What is Trout Unlimited? watch TU 50th anniversary DVD and talk conservation, restoration and protection.
• January~ Fly Tying> bring materials and vises and teach every child how to tie their first woolly bugger!
• February~ What is a Watershed? Visit Tip of the Mitt Watershed Council and see a scale model of how non-point pollutants enter a stream. We also talk about invasive species and the Great Lakes.
• March~ Fish Dissection >Joined by DNR employee and we take a look inside what makes a fish stay bouyant, among other things.
• April~ Macro-Invertebrates> Kids love Bugs!! walking trip down to Bear River and classify stream quality by the number of class I, II,  & III organisms. ID and key insects to order (ephemeroptera, plecoptera, odonata, trichoptera).
• May~ Salmon Release- entire school walks down to the river as we bless the tiny salmon parr a safe journey. Field Trip to Jordan River National Fish Hatchery- students try their hand at catching a trout. Casting Clinic- five or six MVWTU volunteers come out and we teach the entire school the better methods of landing a fly in a hula hoop across the playground.
• June~ Bear River Clean-up> in coordination with local non-profit organizations such as Tip of the Mitt and Little Traverse Conservancy.

These programs have generally been one day a month for an afternoon. Michigan Department of Natural Resources has a web page for further information and questions regarding application dates and requirements http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10369_50075—,00.html The month of May is crazy because it is the nicest weather for us to do the things we can do outdoors without freezing in a foot of snow or sleet> Northern Michigan can be temperamental and we must be flexible in our scheduling. We have done our fly tying this month and the students absolutely LOVE IT!! They get to take something home and show their parents, something they made that isn’t an ashtray (do they make those in school anymore?) We have found having the materials pre-packaged in zip-locks ease in distribution with the narrow time frame we work with and keeping the 24 kids on task. I generally tie the first fly with the class watching and then they go to their seats and we walk through it step by step. I have purchased vises at garage sales and on-line, so we have close to a dozen. The students partner up and switch off for each fly they tie. Allow yourself plenty of time, newcomers have lots of questions, thread breaks frequently, they get confused on right hand versus left hand and clock-wise wrapping. Best advice- have plenty of assistants, be patient, have a couple bobbin threaders, you do the whip-finish on all flies, get a picture with each student with their finished fly and <Keep It Simple>

Tight Lines!

Koz

A kind angler found a fly patch and left it. Flies are rotted now, but it’s a good clue to where we fished over this last warm-up.
With a number of days pushing the forty degree mark, fishing this past week was a must. I met up with Mike K. on Wednesday to do a little catching up and a little fishing. December was a crazy month for me. I’ve been ultra-distracted—got some big changes coming next year. Very exciting. It’s all I can think about.
Anyway, the best way to get a lot of thinking done this time of year is to lean into the tying vise, crank flies, and daydream. But the best way to get out of your head is to stretch your line on an Au Sable River trout. Sometimes you just gotta get in the river. So that’s what we did.

Nymphing the sandy edge of a nice pool.

Now you’d think that since I practically live in the fly shop, that I’d have six of everything and rods stacked in every corner of my house. Well that’s pretty much true. Pretty much. And it was actually part of the problem on Wednesday.

I started making a gear pile by my front door. All the usual suspects joined the party: waders, boots, tackle bag, nymphs, tippet, and . . . no rod! My good stuff was at the shop. But okay, no big deal, I’m no gear snob I’ll just dig out an old beater, right? No such luck. Dusty rod after dusty rod. Corner after corner. Everything was busted in just about every way you can imagine. Broken tips, cracked ferrules, you name it. Like I said, I’ve been distracted.

You know it’s a nice fish when you just toss your outfit off to the side.
So the hell with it. I just went down to the river and hung out knee deep in the river with my friend. Honestly, it was good enough. For me that’s as much a part of fishing as are the fish.

But, rosy notions aside, I’d of liked to hooked into that beautiful Au Sable River rainbow trout.

Take Care,
Andy

Nymphs:
Pheasant Tails 14
Hare’s Ears 12
Midges 20

It figures, we have been out to lunch on updating our river reports and the day I sit down to do one Andy beats me to it. No worries, more is better. This was the first time in January I got sunburn on my face that was not from the reflection off the snow. It felt like mushroom picking and Hendricksons were right around the corner but it was a cruel farce. We got smacked in the mouth with 6 inches of snow last night. I did have a few guys take advantage of the warm spell and chase some Steelhead on the Manistee River. Some days were better than others but again it was hard to complain with temps hitting 48 degrees!

We had a great turnout! from beginners~

along with a few pro’s~

If you are ever in the Petoskey Area, swing on in for a Short’s Hanging Frank or a frosty Bell’s Seasonal Ale and join us for some Tying>>

We always have a great time sharing stories and planning our next venture on the water.

“If you had to choose one fly for all occasions, what would it be?” I posed.

Often thought about, we each pondered a moment and gave up our preference.

“The Woolly Bugger is by far the fly that catches the most species of fish.” One retorted.

“Yes, true, but an egg pattern catches everything, anytime.” The second pitched in.

“I would have to choose the Muddler Minnow.” They both paused briefly and uttered a resounding~

“Good call.”

Many flies adorn my boxes, from pheasant tail nymphs, copper johns, little black stones, hares ears, to Adam’s, Hendrickson’s, BWO’s and a slew of streamers, but during my childhood adventures, I recall a late Saturday afternoon in September to which I base my loyalty.

Each year growing up, I eagerly anticipated the opening of trout season and traveling three hours north to Grayling to visit family and further explore reaches of the Au Sable not yet known to a fourteen year old. Something magical and mystical happens on your journey north. The elevation changes, the trees become more coniferous, the air more decidedly trout habitat. You know when you are in Grayling when the scent of tall pine trees mingles with the fragrance of fish pellets on your hand. A quick walk along the river’s banks in bare feet introduces you to the prickly needles dotting the trails and, if you pay attention, a trout rising in the bend behind the hospital. There is a section of river below the Fish Hatchery on N. Down River Rd. that was dedicated to Children Only (under 16) and I waded its cool waters as much as possible. It was in this beautiful stretch of river that I began my soon to emerge lifelong love of all things trout and flyfishing. Dozens of brookies, a few browns, and a fair share of rainbows enticed me deeper into the art and beauty of my leisure. It happened on the last Saturday of the season, after a semi-haphazard roll cast to a half submerged tag alder that I became enamored with the mystical power of the Muddler Minnow.
A sudden vicious grab and take startled me to attention. My 8’6” 4wt. silver fiberglass Abu Garcia doubled while the matching metallic Ryobi reel screamed off line like never before. Panic was my only reflex, fingers fumbled and knuckles were beaten until I regained control of my line and managed a beefy twenty-inch rainbow to the bank. I couldn’t stop my knees from shaking and in delirium ran back to my aunt’s house to get my younger brother, Barry, and coax him in to returning to the hotspot. He initially tied on a Warden’s Worry and I kept with what I was throwing. Not long after and I was into another hefty ‘bow from the shadows of the fallen shrub, and again a third, all nudging the twenty inch mark. Barry became perplexed and inquired as to what the secret fly was and I cautiously relinquished one of my #12 Muddlers to him. Moments later he connected with the monster of the hole and we both freaked. After a run up and back down the river, he finally guided the 23 3/4” brute to the net. It’s girth and magnificent color made my fish pale in comparison. The season ended that day with my brother only catching the one and I with four between 19”& 21”, but Barry decided to cash in on an offer my father presented to us both. “I will pay for each of you boys to have one fish mounted, but only one.” His offer still stood and resonated in the corridors of my mind some twenty plus years later.

Each year growing up, I eagerly anticipated the opening of trout season and traveling three hours north to Grayling to visit family and further explore reaches of the Au Sable not yet known to a fourteen year old.

The introduction of the Muddler Minnow happened quite by coincidence at our cabin in Canada just the year prior. Evenings become very dark, pitch black would be more appropriate. So, our family gathers each night to play cards, bantering about the day and planning the next day’s events. “A hike up to Rainbow Lake or Lost Lake? How about that porcupine we saw scamper across the train tracks today?” In the midst of one such evening, a gentleman from across the lake showed up at our door to say “Heh.” Friendly enough of a chap, he soon found out I had just

begun to take to flyfishing and he offered a feathered combination from his worn bushman’s hat. “This here is a Muddler Minnow, eh. Its all you need up here for dem specks.” Apparently, across the border, brook trout become ‘speckled trout’ and lakers become ‘greys’. After that, the solo canoeist slipped into the darkness and cut a smooth ripple into a black hole. I had done very well on previous trips up to Camp Grayling, throwing the very trusted Panther Martin in yellow with red dots into the mouth of any tributary on our vast lake, but the art and act of enticing the trout with a fly- that was the beginning of the end. Our ventures took us to a beaver dam above a favorite waterfall we would often tease 7-inch brookies with our gold tru-turns adorned with leaf worms. The Algoma Central Railroad had slated to blow a dam that had become too large and posed a threat to the train tracks and the bridge below if it were to go on it’s own someday. Tales of beaver ponds as large as football fields and loaded with eager brook trout were the stuff of lore and fiction I had read in other anglers journals, a treasure of this magnitude had to be found. We trecked, sweated, hiked, and moaned about the weight of our gear and raspberry scratches from the bush. Bitten and swollen from black flies that somehow elude your attention when we finally discovered our personal Holy Grail.  This was like finding the Great Wall of China. Poplar, birch, beech and assorted pine with the engineering detail of an MIT grad. Multiple beaver families had amassed a complex network of mini dams that consumed more than a football field. I had on my lucky Mickey Mouse T-shirt, yet to discover the wonders of Simms and other industry standards we have today and as soon as my fly hit the water, it was spanked by a parr marked stunted brookie, then another, and another. I don’t believe any of the specks we caught that day broke the 8″ mark, but they were too colorful and I too enthusiastic to care. That dam was blown out shortly after our discovery, and we like to believe all those malnourished adolescent brook trout found a new home in our much roomier lake. To this day, I never had the chance to say “Thanks!” to the man who gave me that fly which caught well over 30 fish that day.

I have had the pleasure of fishing much of Michigan’s waters, some of Canada , and a trip to Belize for Bones. For most of my freshwater excursions you will be sure to find a Muddler in various mottled turkey colors and sizes in my box.  I am still waiting to catch a true ‘trophy’ fish, but will indeed need to have it mounted on my own dime. My father passed away last April, the week prior to opener, and I hadn’t yet taken him up on his offer.

Tight Lines,
Koz

[Age, wisdom and personal growth have brought me to the stage of appreciation, conservation and education of our limited natural resources. While in this day and age it wouldn’t be PC to stuff a creature merely to hang it on a wall. I rather take a few quick pictures and relish in the reward of releasing a creature that he/she may pass on their beneficial genetic make-up for the next generation. The memory of those moments, and others like them are more than enough to keep the spirit in me alive.]

As I am sitting at Christmas Eve service, my mind reflects on the past year. Some memorable fish, excellent trips with good friends, and stellar moments on the water. Coupled by bitter-sweetness in the loss of my father and the wish I had more time spent on the water with him. Then I think about salvation. I would like to believe if the rapture were to occur next week, I would have a better than average chance of ‘getting clearance’ — not because of the good deeds I have done or the quality of life I have led, or even the benevolence I have shown towards God’s wonderful creatures; but because I have spent countless days learning patience while casting my 3-weight at dozens of upper-class trout that would have no part of my offerings. Along with the many hours dedicated to helping and sharing my passion with family and friends the art of the fly, maybe this is the repentance for the multitude of hours I formerly squandered in dirty bars of my younger days?

This all began when I received a Christmas card a few weeks back. In it were the words, “Too bad every time we talk, all you can talk about is fishing. Like that’s all there is in life.”

Funny, but not. I have been dwelling on this for days. I know I should not let it rent space in my head, but then other things people have said pop into my brain. Things like, “I had to delete you from my ‘friends’ on Facebook because all you ever post is about fishing or rivers or tying flies.”

I was OK with that and have  not accepted friend requests because they didn’t have proper fishing credentials to be allowed in the circle, so they were permitted to deny my ‘friendship’ status. But the Christmas Card — that struck a chord, and it was becoming a tenant in my head. HAVE YOU MET ME?

Whenever I drive by an empty retail shop,  in my head, I already have the layout for a fly shop, where I can set up the TV monitors so we can have TU movie nights and extra tables for a Tie-One-On! fly tying nights. I have gone over countless inventories for the start up materials needed for a successful shop — it needs a good balance of high-end and entry-level equipment, it needs to have monthly events to draw in people and a warm staff and fresh coffee always brewing. On the flip side I would give up this life in paradise tourist town to live in the mountains along some stream with hopes of starting a lodge or B&B to invite others into my world of addiction. There, I said it. I have admitted I am addicted to all things FLY.

This all began when I received a Christmas card a few weeks back. In it were the words, “Too bad every time we talk, all you can talk about is fishing. Like that’s all there is in life.”

Last week it became all too clear. Channel 34 — Discovery, it was after work and I enjoy a diet coke and slowing down from the hectic pace of taking care of everyone else’s needs and desires. The program was on Addictions. These people were legit crazy. They had given away everything. They would work every angle, every minute, to find a way to their next high. I am grateful I am not like that  [or am I?]  I do think every minute about how to tie that Hendrickson pattern a little better or a stronger material for that upright wing, but will still float it. I go over and over in my head that one cast I sent in the cedar above that 20 incher that sent him/her for cover and how I could get a do-over. For the Meth/Crack/Cocaine/LSD addict — they are “Chasing the High”. A term used  to refer to the first time they used — often unattainable and the cause of their repeated search leading to death, delusion or confinement. I am on a search for that first time, however, I believe in the purity and beauty this addiction has rewarded me with a quality of life I would rather not replace. A short decade ago, I too was living on the streets looking for something — chasing a high that  would not have a beneficial direction for my life. I am thankful I found my way back to the Tying Vise — and making it my only vise, others are not so fortunate.

A newly made fishing friend from FB mentioned on his status something his wife said — and my wife completely agreed. She hinted that their family Christmas photo should be a postcard of her and the two girls and the Dad in the river holding a brown from the Rogue in Rockford. He jokingly said that was cool. I do envision a family photo of my troop, all in waders in the middle of the Thompson or the Blue Rivers, with heavily padded and flocked trees in the background. Someday.

My wife is a blessing, as is my entire family — truly. She doesn’t totally understand the addiction thing. She can have a glass of wine and leave it on the coffee table 1/2 full She is kinda crazy like that. Chocolate and shopping are the only things that might be considered her vices. I only qualify shopping as her addiction because few ‘normies’ actually plan on going shopping at midnight on Thanksgiving and shopping all evening into the next morning with pre-arranged intervals of juicing up with Redbull and Monster drinks. Who would chase sales and deals for nearly 18 hours on end? INSANE! or is it? I have worked all day and gone Hexing into the wee morning hours for nights on end, and when that was over — it became Mousing Time. In the end, it is all about your passion. What is your passion? I am very happy to have found mine swimming in the swift currents of any river that is cold and cool enough to dangle that carrot before my face….

If you are anything at all like myself, most of us were knee deep at the end of a cool running riffle, a gentle breeze at your back in the early evening with the sun prepping purple and golden hues upon the horizon. The fragrance of freshly muddled watercress from your path into the stream and genuine cedar sachet wafting through the air as we eagerly await the first bug to take flight and the dimples on the river’s surface soon thereafter.

Many of you may already know me, our paths have crossed either on the stream of life or actually in the water doing some great work for the benefit of our cold water denizens. My name is Brian Kozminski, my friends call me ‘Koz’ — Miller VanWinkle TU ex-officio – lifelong advocate for all cold water streams in North America and GreenFish Ambassador — promoting proper techniques for catch and release. I carry the message of Cold, Clean and Clear everywhere I go. I have been in the service industry my entire life, which allows me the flexibility to volunteer at school for first grade daughter (Simone), spend time with the family (Lesley Koz) and our two labs (Roxy & Stella), while managing to get my waders wet once in a while. Hospitality has taught me how to interact with guests and make new acquaintances. From Bar Tending to Serving to Management, I have met some of the best individuals from all over the Mid-West and many of those have been anglers. If I have made your acquaintance at one of the restaurants I have worked, we probably have made the riparian connection and the passion that immediately follows.

I have met hundreds of people who have never even heard of TU, or what they do; soon they become aware of such issues as water withdrawal, Asian Carp, Fracking, Pebble Mine, wild versus farmed salmon and dam removal to mention just a few. Hopefully, in meeting so many new individuals, I have persuaded them to go home and look up their local TU and get involved with various conservation efforts or to begin a lifelong passion of fly tying or fly fishing, while crossing another item off the bucket List. Trout Unlimited also has great programs like Stream Explorers (Junior TU membership) Salmon in the Classroom and Trout in the Classroom (where permitted). I have been involved for the past 3 years with our local elementary schools SIC and would like to share what the children and teachers of this learning event have benefitted.

I belong to a very exclusive and private club of anglers who may lynch and stone me if I were to mention any specific details about some of the rivers we frequent. In order to protect myself and family, the names of such rivers may be changed to the Bugs Bunny River or the Warner Brothers section, in order to keep the tone light and comical. I believe they are both in the Nunya watershed system. It is a delicate balance for me, I love to share my joy and love for the outdoors, my father taught me to give it away at an early age, but I also know I need to protect what is sacred, or it won’t be for very long. Sometimes these sacred places need to be shared in order to protect or restore them to a once better place in time, otherwise, it would be like caging an injured animal just to watch it die. Then what are you left with? An empty river, devoid of life and beyond salvage.

My background is like many; fell in love with trout with my first brook trout caught on a yellow and red Panther Martin in Grayling many decades ago, discovered untouched waterfalls in Canada teeming with ’specks’. Grew up, went to college, started my career at a members only club in Grand Rapids, and fishing became less frequent. Many years later, I re-discovered what it was that truly made me ‘happy’- water between my legs and the eternal chance that I may dupe that picky trout rising to miniscule bwo’s upstream of me. I submersed myself, began tying flies with tenacity, chasing salmon and steelhead sometimes 5 days a week. Being a bartender does have its advantages if you don’t stay and entertain all hours of the night. I had the perfect life, fishing by day, working at night, making great money in the heyday of the 90’s when people had the tendency to be less frivolous, and enjoying every minute of it. Soon, I met my wife to-be, and after we married, she suggested we move north to Petoskey, I told her my bags were packed and ready to go. We do live in paradise. In a little over an hour, I can be either on the Manistee, the Au Sable, or a myriad of smaller rivers in the tip of the mitt or in the UP.

I am not a teacher – although have taught a few how to tie a fly and many newcomers the nuance of a good roll-cast.

I am not a ‘guide’ – although have taken a few fortunate individuals fishing who were high bid at local charities such as Habitat for Humanity, Women’s Resource Center, Crooked Tree Art Center D’Art for Art and a few others.

I am not biologist – although I have taken a few classes and love macro-invertebrate studies.

I am not a writer – the closest correlation I have is that I work in a place where Hemingway allegedly scribbled on bar napkins for a few novels. But this wonderful opportunity came along, my wife and others said “It is totally you! You should do it.” So here we are. I hope to keep many items the same, we look forward to many more river/guide reports, I may dabble a bit on some conservation/environmental topics to keep myself abreast of current events and add a little flavor here and there. I hope you will join me on this journey and pass this on to your friends, fishing buddies and family. I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year!!

Tight Lines & Tighter Loops,

Koz

The Upper Manistee and Boardman Rivers received some much needed rain and the rivers have cooled down and levels are good. Streamer fishing conditions have improved for those looking to hit the bigger fish when the bugs aren’t out.  Olive, white and yellow streamers have been working well, but mix it up to find the fish’s daily preference.

Hatches have been sporadic, but on the right night, they have been good and varied. Look for Isonychias, Brown Drakes, Gray Drakes (Boardman), little Yellow Sally Stones, Medium Brown Stones, a few of the large salmon-fly stones, Bat Flies, Light Cahills, Tan Caddis and the last of the sulphurs to be coming off in the evening hours. It’s time to have your head lamps with you as the bugs will often go well into the dark. Stick around a little later as a few hex have been seen and they will build over the next week with the warmer and more stable weather in our forecast.  This is the best time of the year to go after trout with dries.

The fishing on the Lower Manistee below Tippy is still good with trout eating a handful of flies from caddis, midges, scud and sow bug nymphs, BWOs and wet flies. Smaller baitfish/fry patterns have been working stripped and swung and the big stone fly has brought up some nice fish too. Streamer fishing has improved on this section with the increase in water flow and cloudy days.

Carp fishing has been a little tough in the past week with the change in weather and water temps. Wind direction is key and the warmer water is imperative to finding fish that want to eat. Look for the fishing for both Smallmouth Bass and carp to improve on the Grand Traverse Bays when we get some warmer weather once again. Crayfish patterns have been best lately, specifically Hadda’s Creek Crawler pattern since the fish are a little deeper and this pattern sinks quickly. Leeches and hex nymphs deserve a place in your box too with all of the nymph activity.

The Bluegills/Panfish on local lakes continue to provide fun for the fly angler. Top-water flies like min-poppers and spiders have been bringing fish up and smaller streamers like bead head buggers and minnow patterns are doing their damage sub-surface.Largemouth Bass have been getting a little more aggressive on top-water flies now that many of them have completed their spawning activities and if there are pike in the lakes you fish, don’t be surprised if they take the sliders, divers and poppers. Fish them quietly rather than big and loud until the weeds get heavy.