Home Waters

With the holidays present it's been pretty easy to get lax.. visit with friends family and over indulge at an alarming level. We're still enjoying very light snow condition for this time of year. Have had a couple 'fishable' days [temps that would have kept guides from icing or at least been minimal] that should have been capitalized on.. but weren't.

Today I managed to laze around all of the morning before looking at the thermometer again.. 39*F! Trouble being that a good brisk breeze had picked up, not good on the wide open marsh - estuarys of my favored haunts only a stone toss from Lake Michigan. Thinking of the 3 hour round trip drive.. even my weak math skills brought things into focus. Jumping into some cloths & tossing gear in the truck it would, at best, be after 2:00 p.m. before getting the first cast off. Plan B was implemented.. fish the home waters. This is no small placid trout stream, she's all river, just lacking runs of potomodrous fish.

The winter of 2011 is the first one since regulations and general season have been in effect [unsure what year that would have been] that I could legally fish this huge section of water. The pull of 'connected' tribs is always strong but there are some very good residents -mostly Browns- living local. With dry flies and stripped streamer I live for and on this water ..spring summer and fall.. seldom going anywhere else.. no need.. but never the chance to fish it in winter.

It seemed the drive had hardly started and I was there. A bit of a bushwhack in to where I'd mentally slated to start. All kinds of tracks.. none of them men. I love this remote area and feel unbelievably fortunate to have grown up and continue to live here.

Casting the little CND was going well, I fell into a rythem and stepped down the run covering some very good looking water. Not a nip lip nor half hearted grab to show for it 40 minutes later and at the tail. My guess; it was just a touch quick paced for holding.

More bushwhacking across a couple flats into the head of a nice run, just below a sweet split, surface heavily broken by submerged rock. Quite a stretch of straight before turning into a bend. I'd covered most the straight with again no pulls. Just into the head of the bend as I'm daytripping casting on auto pilot I get cracked.. manage to put in a decent set and am now hooked up. Fish is instantly airborne once, then twice. Probably about a pound and a half but I'm unsure just what variety. Cast was long and my eyes that never were that great are less now.. couldn't define. No matter it was off. Guessing a Rainbow purely by the instant acrobatics and snow white clean belly. I've seen plenty of Browns go ariel but not really in same fashion.

I start wondering about the hooks barb, or lack of. I'd crushed it as soon as knot was in place. A few more swings and I'm right into the 'gut' of the bend, theres a little soft spot on a midstream seam where the fly slows and all but stalls. I'm giving it the slow teaser strokes through there and sure enough it gets blasted HARD. Whatever it is is weighty.. the big wide head shakes reverberate up through the rod right down into the grips! Fish is just sulking mostly while I try to get on the reel. he makes a sudden run at me and I strip hard but no avail.. he's gone. This hurts, that was no 18" fish.. I'm getting my tail kicked! Having second and third thoughts about crushing that barb. Getting down into the tail of the bend something grabs on as I began stripping in. Feels like a minnow in comparison to that last one! As he comes in he turns into a decent little Brown, very healthy and fat. Good signs. He was even kind enough to hold there near the rod while I fumbled for the camera.. the fly had fallen out again ..lol.. Not sure what to make of that.. I've always enjoyed very good luck fishing crushed barbs. Sun was dropping below the ridge so I called it a day with the one to hand. I'll be back on it though.. there are some BRUISERS here ..lurking & hungry.

New Trout Spey ~ Winter Seasons kick off

How bright he is.. even outshining the reel seat!


It's been an odd fall early winter so far but you'll hear no complaints from me! Water levels are up considerably with the good fortune enjoyed from earlier multiple significant rain falls.. also leading fresh fish up the tribs. No accumilation of snow ..yet.. An unusual circumstance for my home front.

Sunday, 12-04 I made first journey of the fall season to a smaller river that fishes best [for me] latter november into winter. It was obvious flows were increased but I was about to be confronted with just how much! Getting in at a normal realiable crossing point and approaching the channel I wasn't long finding the tops of my heavy neos . No worries, I simply dropped down a few yards and tried again with same result [feeling first pressure seeps in groin area.. YIKES] Getting impatient, I dropped several more feet and assertively started fwd intent on crossing.. almost at wader tops and midway into next step the fact was borne home that I was not yet on floor of channel but that there was another step down still. I teetered on the brink a second thinking this might be a very short day.. With the current pushing there wasn't much time so with a leap of faith I turned hard and made a big bouncing tip-toe step back.. and luckily came up with solid footing above water line. First lucky break of the day and though I didn't know it at the time ..not the last.

Today was Maiden fishing voyage for my new 'Trout' rod, CND Speytracker 12'2" 5wt line. Caught on opposite bank forced me to restructure my pool route and I was unsure if I'd be able to make the cast needed to reach the holding water, a tight deep outside bend with considerable depth. Not easy wading in the head of my casting station either, always a challenge even in low water. Nearest line fit I had on hand was a 9/10/11 Windcutter ..Yes I'm serious.. well most of it anyway, being one of the older versions I'd disconnected both fwd tips one and two leaving only the body of 23' @ approximate 330 grain. A mini integrated skagit thats been around and in use gaining on a decade. 8' of sink tip then the fly, a black UV bodied skulpin with orange throat. Casting was sketchy getting going but I'd tried a couple combos on my test water 5 minutes from home. I knew it would be passable with right stroke combination. Fished length of this pool without a pull but benefit of casts improving. That was good news as one of best pools was next on roster.

Starting next pool I considered changing out tip and fly, the water was up that much. Opted not to and not long in, just at the head of the Steelbow bucket portion, I get good solid 'plucks' twice. I knew there was no way this was bottom.. Backed up a few steps and came at it again ..No go.. Dissapointing. Continued down through the long pool arriving at a deeper slow center channel thats always appealed to me but never produced. About midway down the fly stops.. and I lift into solid headshaking weight. The Zenith sounds off, back and forth a couple times and my suspicions of the powerfull bulldog antics are confirmed as I get first glimpes down in water collum. It's a Brown, a very nice Brown! My luck held and he was landed.. what a beaut!









Went back up to head of pool, wanted to try the plucker again. Re-tied with a fairly loud Temple Dog tube friend Forrest had gifted me last year. Right in the fish zone he came again, once more a couple good taps was all he gave. Oh well, save some for seed.

Crossed the stream at 'old reliable' [more groin seeps] nip & tuck but made it, thankfully. Swung same tie through a known producer with no plucks offered. By this time the wind is picking up, chilling big time. One more pool.. it's a bastard to fish but has produced enough to make it worthy of effort. Funky mid-stream back eddy, considerable depth.. current seam and undercut bank on opposite bank. Could barely get in the water with extra flows.. brush tight to back. Made a quick pass that left me feeling less than satisfied with my presentation. This pool changes hugely with water height, it's almost like an entire new set of rules each time. Starting back up at head of bucket trying a couple things different on about fourth cast it's the one you occasionally recognize as 'it'.. Just as I was thinking 'that should get cracked' BLAM it did! Instantely tearing up the pool and jumping, the nice fresh skipper pictured at front of this post. A fine gift to close out the day.. and illustrating how big of a factor presentation is. That fish had seen the same fly multiple times and only with the change did it turn him on.