“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.]

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.

Hex on the Wing

Think the hex madness is over, eh? Well, that depends on where in the state you live, and also on whether you fish for smallies as well as trout. In this story from the Detroit News, Dave Spratt shares his notes on fly fishing Michigan’s “other” hex hatch — the one that takes place around Metro Detroit.

Depending on where you live and fish the hex are just getting warmed-up, particularly on the Huron river, just outside Ann Arbor. The Huron is probably Michigan’s finest smallmouth river fishery, though I think that the Kalamazoo and the Chippewa are close contenders for that title, too. Years ago I fished the Huron right in Ann Arbor one night with a friend and got hooked-up with one of the largest smallies in my fishing career. It all happened just after dark in a stretch of water right out in front of the medical school, and within sight of a bridge full of cars.

Spratt notes that for Detroit anglers who target trout, there is also Paint Creek (Oakland County) and the Clinton River (Macomb County), and both get a hex hatch this time of year as well.

The smallmouth is an underrated fish on a fly rod in so many ways. In addition to being an aggressive striker, and a hard-fighting fish, it is my favorite species on which to introduce a new angler to the art of fly fishing. If the time and river are right, the smallie will hit even a poorly-presented streamer aggressively, and the white fly (ephoron) hatch, particularly on mid-Michigan and southern Michigan rivers, can be phenomenal. It will give a novice angler the best possible shot at hooking a large fish after dark.

Summer Trees on the Manistee

The Upper Manistee is running about its normal height right now as it didn’t receive much rain and what did fall went right into the sandy soil. Tricos are a little fickle to find right now in the mornings. Look for warmer, sunnier mornings for the best hatches and fish responding.  Afternoons are spent either casting smaller streamers on cloudy days or terrestrial patterns on the surface. Cinnamon/rust colored ants have been fishing very well (Turk’s Power Ant) where as most other terrestrials vary from Chernobyl Ants to Grasshoppers. Rubber legs and foam have been working, but look for the fish to have a daily preference on size and color – mix it up. Other bugs include Isonychias, Lt. Cahills, Small Caddis, Yellow Sallies, BWOs and midges. Try fishing small Griffith’s Gnat or Renegades when you see rising fish, but no real emergence or spinner fall.

The Lower Manistee below Tippy Dam is running cooler than normal and this can be a great destination for those looking to do some trout fishing. Good caddis activity in the afternoons and technical midge dry fly fishing can get you into fish of all sizes. Wet flies and streamers fished both dead drift and/or twitched. Small Clouser Minnows have been working for both trout and smallmouth bass alike. Look for your better smallmouth fishing to happen when water temps increase a bit more.

The Boardman is almost all done with the Gray Drakes, but have a few in your box if you are out there in the evening. Caddis, Yellow Sallies and BWOs can be expected most days. Since this river has a nice mix of grass banks and overhanging trees, it can be a fantastic river for terrestrial fishing. Small hoppers, ants and beetles fished dead drift, twitched or even sunk can really provide some good fishing close to town.  Fishing a soft hackle in deep slots and riffles is also a proven technique on this river on a floating line with either a standard leader or a sinking leader.

The area’s lakes are still providing some good fishing especially with the darker, cloudy days. When/if the sun returns, look for mornings and evenings to be best and target structure (weed beds, docks, swim platforms and fallen trees). One can expect large and smallmouth bass and pike to play the game.

Ted Kraimer is a professional guide and fly tier, owner of Current Works Guide Service, and field editor for True|North|Trout. His fishing reports will continue to appear in T|N|T and on his website.

It's summer ... take a kid fishing.

On the Upper Manistee the Isonycia hatch has been good in the evenings. With the clouds, BWOs have been giving the fish a steady diet. Other bugs you can expect to see include: Light Cahills, Yellow Sallies, Golden Stones, and small black caddis. Tricos are just staring for those of you on the water before noon and look for the numbers to increase as warmer weather settles in for a period of time in the region.

The Boardman – Still some hex, but look for tricos to be the primary staple for fish feeding on the surface right now throughout the mornings with caddis in the afternoons and Lt. Cahills and Grey Drakes just before dark.

Both the Upper Manistee and Boardman are just coming into their “terrestrial “ season – that is, where grasshoppers are getting blown into the river and the fish grabbing them. Beatles, ants and rubber-legged foam creations can bring up some of the larger fish of the year. Experiment with size and action – some days they like dead-drift, other days twitched. Catch a trophy fish without a headlamp on! Like headlamps? Stay out after dark and throw the mouse/surface pattern.

The Lower Manistee River below Tippy Dam is still providing some good trout fishing since water temps have remained cool for this time of year. There is a mix of both trout and smallmouth bass in the river and look for the bass to continue to build in numbers with more heat and warmer water temperatures. Natural baitfish patterns ranging from 2 to 4 inches have been the most consistent producers of trout and smallies for the streamer fisherman, where wet flies and bead-head nymphs have been catching trout in the seams. Tricos should get going soon.

Regardless of where you choose to fish, the crowds are non-existent at this time of year and you can pretty much have a section of river all to yourself.

There are still some smallmouth bass in the bay with the early angler on a flat piece of water catching the fish. A carp here or there are around, but for the most part the carp fishing is done. Those who enjoy largemouth bass fishing are finding the weed beds in most lakes at the perfect height – that is providing cover, but minimal surface rafts getting in the way. Sliders, deer hair bugs and poppers are not only effective, but a fun way to catch fish – make sure your tippets are strong enough to pull a fish through the weeds.

Ted Kraimer is a professional guide and fly tier, owner of Current Works Guide Service, and field editor for True|North|Trout. His fishing reports will continue to appear in T|N|T and on his website.

Two-Hearted and Hex

Finally after a cool spring, summer just came, and so did the hot weather. This week’s pressure-cooker and sunlight were just what we needed to get the bugs going on local rivers.

The Manistee has hex bugs, but it’s just the first couple of nights, and the numbers are decent, and it will only build over the next week or so. The heat has an effect on the bugs – they are emerging at odd times as well as traditional hours.  The hatch can be short-lived and sporadic and even isolated; if you don’t find bugs, go around the corner and you might find some. In addition to the hexes, there are still some brown drakes around and Isonycias. Some more of the big stoneflies can be seen bouncing on the water and that can be a great way to get a fish to leave their lair while waiting for the night’s mayflies. Look for the smallmouth bass to continue improve on the Lower Manistee.

The Boardman, too, has Hex in some sections. A lot of the bugs are coming from the ponds, and there can be prolific spinner falls as well as emergences. Make sure you have some brown drakes in your box and also be stocked up on gray drakes – a must for this time of year on the Boardman.

Grand Traverse Bay is still fishing well for carp and smallmouth bass. The recent heat has pushed many of the fish beyond the spawn and they are looking to eat some flies after their spawning ritual. Hex nymphs, gobies and leeches are best.  There seem to be fewer crayfish around for some reason and therefore crayfish patterns haven’t been as effective as in past years, but if you see some bouncing around, tie one on. The Smallmouth are continuing to build in numbers, too, cruising in the shallow water looking to eat. They can move fast so be on them quickly, with a good presentation, and hold on as they jump a few times during the fight.

Ted Kraimer is a professional guide and fly tier, owner of Current Works Guide Service, and field editor for True|North|Trout. His fishing reports will continue to appear in T|N|T and on his website.