Muskegon River Steelhead Fishing

Steelhead fishing has been outstanding on the Muskegon River the last few days.  Water level is above normal for this time of year and holding nice color.  With the exception of today boat traffic has been minimal.  Mild weather over the next week should keep the fish on the bite so give me a call if you want to get out of the house and catch some Steelhead.  Pictured below are Jim, Luke, Kurt, Kris and myself with just a sampling of the fish we caught float fishing over the last few days.

2/1/2012  Jim with a nice buck from this morning.

2/1/2012  Kurt with a Muskegon River Steelhead.

2/1/2012  Luke with a Michigan Winter Steelhead

2/1/2012  Jim and Kurt with a double header and yes Luke is fighting another one!!!

2/1/2012  Chalk one up for me.

A triple Luke, Jim and myself put to the net!!!

Jim with a very nice hen.

Kris got manhandled by this fish.

Jim with another noteworthy Steelhead.

Float fishing was great!!!

Kris and myself with a Brown Trout / Steelhead double header.

Jimmy hooked up right as Kris was letting this fish go.

November Steelhead

Well November has started off just like October ended, with great Steelhead fishing on the Muskegon River.  There are fish throughout the system from Croton Dam to Lake Michigan and all the fall lies are holding fish.  The boat traffic is abouty normal with an expected jump in activity on the weekends but nothing unbearable.  October was a great month for Steelhead and November should follow suit setting us up for a great winter fishery as well.  Open November dates are limited so call or e-mail if you want to get in on the action.  Mike and Mike joined me for another action packed day on the Muskegon River.

11/1/2011  Mike with a hen that put him to the test.

11/1/2011  Back bouncing spawn for Steelhead has been great.

11/1/2011  There are some beautifully chrome fish around right now.

11/1/2011  Mike with a nice buck Steelhead.

It's Alaska time!!!

Well this is the last post on Michigan fishing until mid-September as I leave early monday morning for Dillingham, Alaska where I will find my home for the next 3 months at Mission Lodge.  As many of you know I look forward to my time in Alaska every year and by the time it is over I am looking forward to getting back to Michigan for King Salmon and Steelhead just as much.  Look back here for updates on what is happening in Alaska periodically throughout the summer, just not as regularly as while I am home.

 I am reachable by e-mail and check my voicemail messages regularly for those of you looking to book fall Salmon or Steelhead dates, although e-mail is the best option with the 4 hour time difference and a busy guide schedule in Alaska.

I fished with David, Kirk and Ryder the last couple days on the Muskegon and Pere Marquette River.  We fished the Muskegon last evening and found plenty of Brown and Rainbow Trout and a few Smallmouth Bass willing to eat just about anything we threw at them including spinners, rapalas and dry flies.  The Pere Marquette River did not produce the numbers of fish the Muskegon did but the quality was better.  When we pulled into the boat ramp I noticed the river was up a bit with some color so we decided rapalas and spinners would be our best bet, we had a handfull of nice fish in the mid to high teens chase to the boat and enough low teeners that actually commited to keep it interesting.  Ryder is pictured below with a couple nice Brown Trout from the Pere Marquette River today.

6/11/2011  All smiles.

6/11/2011  Ryder with a nice Pere Marquette River Brown Trout.

Muskegon River Fishing Report

Had a cancellation today so guide buddy Nathan and I backbounced spawn for a short 3 hour trip this morning to see if the fish would still bite in the super high water.  The end result was Yes they will bite, you may fish a few spots and get blanked but then you run into a spot where you might hook as many as 5 fish, they are definately clumped together and when you put your bait in their face they eat, location, location , location!  We also caught a half dozen chunky little trout that have obviously been gorging on eggs.  Once again there was a mix of pre spawn fish, dropbacks and actively spawning Steelhead, as strange as the weather has been Spring Steelhead fishing on the Muskegon River is going strong.  Back bouncing spawn should remain good atleast through the high water and depending on how fast the dropbacks head for Lake Michigan, even longer.  Pictured below is Nathan and myself with a few Steelhead from today.

4/28/2011  Myself with a dropback hen.

4/28/2011  A nice pre spawn hen from the Muskegon River.

4/28/2011  A tight hen that came out of a soft seam in a pool.

4/28/2011  Nathan with a good buck that fought very hard.

Muskegon River Fishing Report

We had to work hard for our bites today!!  The Muskegon River is at what I like to call a nice level for Steelhead fishing with around 3 feet of visibility but for some reason the numbers are not happening right now.  Maybe the bulk of the fish pushed up to the Croton dam in the higher water or maybe they are just off the bite, one thing is for sure if things happen like they normally do with high water we are in for some epic steelhead fishing any day.  Reports from Lake Michigan are cold water at the beach which could be keeping the big push of Spring Steelhead at bay, these air temps we are getting now should do the trick.  Ken and Nelson are pictured below with a few hard earned Muskegon River Steelhead.

4/9/2011  Ken with the last fish of the day, these Steelhead were earned today.

4/9/2011  Nelson with a post spawn hen from today,
we will be seeing more and more dropbacks with the high water.

4/9/2011  Nelson with a nice hen caught back bouncing spawn on the Muskegon River.

Muskegon River Fishing Report

Mark, Andy and Paul had a big day on the Muskegon River Steelhead fishing today.

3/31/2011  Paul with a fresh hen from the Muskegon River.

3/31/2011 Andy with a Muskegon river steelhead.

3/31/2011  Mark with a hard fighting buck.

3/31/2011  Muskegon River Steelhead fishing has been fantastic!!

3/31/2011  Fresh from Lake Michigan, Muskegon River Steelhead.

3/31/2011  Mark with a mint chrome hen Steelhead.