Fishing Report 10/9/20

Well, it looks like we're going to have a beautiful weekend (weather-wise) here in Northern Michigan. Whether that will help the fishing is doubtful however so you'll need to make sure you're concentrating your efforts to the low light parts of the day!

SALMON

Our guides have now moved on from chasing Kings (Chinook) and Coho (Silver) salmon but this does not mean your opportunites to catch them are over. All of our local rivers have plenty of fish still coming in on a daily basis. The Boardman River, Betsie River, Plattle River, Manistee River, and Elk River all have fish for you to pursue this weekend! 

I know we've said it before but there is not a "silver bullet" for salmon as most of these fish are not going to be actively feeding once they enter our rivers. Egg patterns should be your first choice as Kings have been on the gravel and there are plenty of loose eggs in the system. Coho will chase a fly occasionally so it might also be worth swinging a Egg Sucking Leech through the holes to see how they react. 

STEELHEAD

The fun has begun on the Manistee which is where you'll find our guides for the next few months. Most of the Steelhead are going to be interested in egg imitations for the next few weeks so it can pay off having a variety of egg flies and beads in your arsenal. Natural colors are going to be the best until we get more rain next week. In the smaller Northern Michigan rivers, we're just starting to see fish show up.

TROUT

This is one of my favorite seasons to be on trout water in Northern Michigan; though there are some closings, there is plenty of water to fish year-round. Some anglers will still be chasing the occasional rising fish with BWOs while most anglers will be throwing streamers or nymphs. With the exceptionally low water out on the Manistee, keep your patterns smaller and leaders longer. As I stated earlier, fish the early morning and late afternoon if at all possible. Nymphing has been the one consistent technique for finding feeding fish the past week or so. Prince nymphs, caddis, and stones are all working well.