Fichigan

Small Stream Trout fishing in Michigan

26 Jul 2014

2000 GMC Sonoma Troutmobile

2014-07-22 17.55.01

The 2001 Subaru Forester Troutmobile (see earlier post) turned out to be a temporary solution which developed a head gasket problem that even a part-time weekend mechanic like myself was afraid to tackle. Too bad because I liked the car but it did have a major drawback in that it was too wimpy to pull my 17′ fiberglass bass boat – so that was an issue I could never resolve. I sold the forester to a mechanic that understood the engine problem and likely replaced the gaskets in a day – so happy trails to him and I mean that sincerely.

After much anxiety and a couple test drives of vehicles found on craigslist I went with the GMC Sonoma pictured above. It has 98K on the odometer, auto trans, 2.2 L 4 cylinder for better mileage (but still tough enough for towing the boat), a third door with the extended cab, heated side view mirrors, broken radio, and darn it, no trailer hitch. So I have that ahead of me but know I can install a hitch myself and save a couple bucks. Coinciding with purchasing the truck I pulled a muscle or disk in my back so the vehicle has been parked in front of my house for a week with the sad face you can also see in the above photo. That might be my imagination.

The searing back pain spasms are subsiding and my wife left a grocery list on the counter so I must be doing something wrong. I’ll make that tortuous trip to Meijers but you know I’ll be tempted to buy a twelve pack of Labatts and make a detour north to visit Feral because wading a trout stream is doctor recommended medicine for a sore back. OK, the doctor recommended yoga but anyone that has ever waded a trout stream can appreciate the similarity.

It remains to be seen whether the Sonoma can live up to the reputation of my earlier troutmobiles because it has some giant shoes to fill. Like the Pathfinder (see The Incident at Tin Bridge – try the search tool) which may have been disintegrating below my feet but it sure got the job done. Or the Xterra which saved me from extinction in spite of the concrete wall, but that’s another story.

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15 Jun 2014

Wading Deep

Wading Deep

One of the interesting things about trout fishing is meeting whatever challenge comes up. In order to catch trophy trout you have to put yourself into a position where you have a genuine shot at getting a big fish to take your lure. It may be necessary to wade though deep holes, balance on invisible and unstable logs, lean into a hard current, and try to lob an awkward cast into thick cover while swatting that mosquito that is buzzing you ear.

Successful trout fishing is all about making the perfect cast and to do that you need to be in the right spot whether in the middle of the stream or near the bank. And you have to be on the move – continually working cover with a few select casts and then pushing further upstream to the next piece of cover. Generally you stay on the inside of bends so you cross the stream constantly. Imagine a shoot-em-up video game where you are constantly moving forward and blasting enemy that come into view. Sort of like that but you need to be as accurate with your casting as you are with your imaginary rifle.

But this post is about wading deep. If I take the route up through the stream that others don’t – I know may be rewarded. I am often on my tip toes in water so muddy or stained that my feet are my eyes. It’s ballroom dancing on a minefield. You learn to walk sideways in a fast current to reduce drag and gauge the steepness of the decline into pools and whether you can muster your way around some trash or blowdown to stay in the stream. Climbing up on the bank to go around blowdowns or deep pools is a last option – you want to stay in the water because that is where to make the next perfect cast. The one that takes a big trout.luther on Pigeon 2

 

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14 May 2014
3 Comments

Spring Trout Camp 2014

Natchl with 66 Apache Chief

We had a late start camping this year finally meeting up at Leverentz Lake which is centrally located in Lake County, Michigan and therefore putting us close to several great trout streams. We set up camp on wet ground and were surprised when Natch showed up with a vintage 66 Apache Chief camper. I had my 61 Apache Chief so if you are a fan of old campers and swung in you would have seen two classic campers made in Michigan a half a century ago. Natch’s 66 Chief is in great shape including the canvas. His version has a rubberized floor (Nice!) and an add-a-room option that zips into the awning. (click on any photo to enlarge, backbutton to return) I’ll do a separate post on his camper sometime in the future.

We ran up to the Pine River with the idea of stopping at our morel mushroom spot first and then hitting the stream. The morels were up. Feral scored a nice bag of about 30 and Natch and I picked up another dozen or so. The Pine River was flooded but we had guessed that ahead of time. We went in south of six mile road and cut off a couple short stretches mostly casting from the bank. I caught a brown trout about 17 and tossed him back figuring we were camping for a few days and would likely catch more if we wanted a trout dinner.

Thunderstorms blew in and the next morning we woke to a downpour. When that happens, and in Michigan we count on it, we put on waders and rain jackets and look for fishable trout water because hanging out at a wet camp is no fun. We knew the Pine was flooded and, from experience, the Little Manistee, The Baldwin and main tributaries to the PM, the Middle Branch and Little South would be at flood stage and impossible to wade. So Natch, Feral and I drove to a far upstream (headwaters) stretch of the Little South where the water is is normally a foot deep. It too was flooded but at least we could get in the river. Rain came down in sheets and wind gusts rocked the treetops. Feral commented it looked like tornado weather as the sky took on a strange color.

Natch and Feral are trout addicts like me so we spent several hours getting in and out of the stream and casting every piece of trout cover. I went fishless but Feral and Natch each caught several in the 12 to 16 inch range and released them. Natch was wearing a go-pro camera so at some point maybe he’ll send a video I can post.
Natch and Feral, Little South

This might sound like blasphemy but one reason we released all trout is because we were thinking about pike for our trout camp “fish dinner.” When the weather broke we went out on Leverentz Lake with our kayaks and I was fortunate to catch a pike around 26 inches that provided a nice plate of boneless fillets. Natch also got lucky and caught the biggest bass I’ve ever seen come out of Big Leverentz.  Might have gone 5 pounds but we didn’t have a scale handy. He released it because it wasn’t in season and we don’t normally eat bass.

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Luth with Pike

2014-05-09 18.23.03

Feral prepared a fried morel mushroom appetizer as a prelude to our pike dinner. A couple beers and trout camp magically transformed from dreary Kansas to the Land of Oz.

On Saturday, Keith rolled in. Keith has been to a couple trout camps now and when the guitars come out at dusk it is his job to play the heck out of some of the classic rock songs that we all know but can’t remember the words to. So that puts Feral, lead vocalist for “Rock Bottom and the Out-of-Tuners” in a position of having to make up words on the fly while I struggle to recall old songs that combine killer electric guitar with some acoustic guitar – so I am at least contributing something. Not an easy job if the Labatts beer is flowing.

Keith with Gibson

I always mention Keith’s exceptional guitar playing but he is a story teller like Feral and Natch with a vast reservoir of odd experiences. So the guitar is great but he fits right in as person. When Natch and I took him morel mushroom hunting with dubious results (2) it wasn’t a problem. We just knocked down a cold beer and talked about whatever came to mind. So guitar or not, he’s in.

I’m always circumspect about asking non-fishermen to trout camp mainly because if it rains we fishermen take off for the streams. If it’s overcast we hit the lake.  Keith seems to have a radar about the weather and shows up at just the right time – sunny and seventy and time to jam.

It was all over way to fast. The lake was beautiful and we had the campground to ourselves. We caught trout and pike. Morels were up. A great start to another year.

Camp 2014

 

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05 Apr 2014

The Man Cave

In the off season when good men go crazy knowing trout season is so far away it helps to have a place to escape so their wives don’t shoot them. Of course all men do not have that problem (wives) in which case their entire home is a man cave. I have one buddy in this situation who is kind enough not to rub it in. Each room in his 1920’s two story is dedicated to a hobby such as gas powered model airplanes, guitars, computing, hunting.  There is not enough table space in any one room to sit down a cold beer so when the couch is de-cluttered you set the beer on the floor at your feet. The solution of course is having a dedicated beer room but that could invite other problems like too much time dedicated to the one hobby.
Man cave 1

Feral has maybe the classic man-cave. The basement in his old bungalow could be rated on a variety if scales including horsepower. Feral is fascinated by machines and motors from the steam age forward and at one time or another he has torn apart, rebuilt or even built from scratch most any type of engine devised by man. He’s also fascinated by primitive weapons and has hand built scores of strange rifles including his own invention, the blowgun firearm. His current projects include a mini-bike that looks like a chopper which he wants to have ready for Baldwin’s annual Blessing of the Bikes and an antique Mighty-Mite outboard motor which may end up powering his fishing kayak.
Project Bike 1

There seems to be a direct correlation between square feet of man cave and a man’s hobbies. Fortunately for me my main hobby of trout fishing requires very few square feet so my man-cave is ten square feet of the garage. It’s not much space, but truth be told I am pretty comfortable in the 2000 square foot women cave attached to my small parcel.

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16 Mar 2014
3 Comments

If you teach a Girl to Fish

Someday they may bring you a fish and that would be great. Nothing like a fresh fish for the grill or skillet. I wish I would have spent more time fishing with my daughters but maybe the important thing is not the amount of time we spent fishing, but the fact that we did fish. Now, when they get the opportunity, it is not some foreign thing. There is fun to be had. My youngest daughter sent me this photo last summer when visiting her Uncle Bill. Her cousin Brent rented a charter on Lake Michigan and Lisa was game.
Lisa with Salmon

Lisa teaches outdoor biology and is our family’s world traveler including trips to exotic lands to catalog wild amphibians and reptiles. Handling fish? No problem.

I wish my oldest daughter had been there too – I would have loved another photo!  As kids the two of them were competitive about catching bluegills out of Big Star lake and I expect Sara would have been in the hunt right along with Lisa.

Feral has a daughter also whom he taught to fish – not just boat fishing but wading trout streams. Patti has stopped by at trout camp a couple times and once asked to fish with me. We went to a mosquito infested spot on the upper sturgeon that can be described as difficult to wade and cast but that did not slow her down – she took a nice trout out of a hard to cast pool. Wow.

Patti with Brown Trout

So here is the message: If you are a young man with daughters please share your outdoor experiences. Don’t stereotype your young daughters as too feminine to enjoys the things you enjoy. Someday they may bring you a fish, and memories to last a lifetime.

Posted in Trout Advice
11 Mar 2014

Bank Fishing for Brown Trout

Natch and Feral asking for advice

Natch and Feral hanging on my every word.

Bank fishing is a very enjoyable way to fish for trout because it combines sitting in a chair with the illusion of doing something productive. Maybe you can relate to that. Here are some tips to make the experience memorable and with a lot of luck, catch a trout.

You’ll need at least two buddies who are more serious about bank fishing than you because someone needs to catch a fish, otherwise what’s the point? Study the faces above and try to find guys that look different. Maybe that nerd from work. Or that guy that drinks Pepsi all day?

The important details: If possible, cut your forked stick before you head down to the stream because that will allow you to set up in the best spot while your buddies are cutting their sticks. The best spot will be the one that is upstream of the big pool so when you cast your line it drifts to the middle of the pool so your buddies have to get their lines out of the way. If your line does cross theirs, shake your head and make a face to let them know you’re not used to fishing with amateurs.

If you get a bite (rare) or hook a trout (more rare) deliberately move downstream so they have to get out of the way. Add some excitement by flailing the rod so they understand they could get an eye poked out. Then let the the trout zig zag the whole pool so your buddies are relegated to strictly watching. This is your moment – put on a show! Caution: This can backfire. If the trout is under ten inches try to release it discretely before they get a look.

Between bites most anglers like to lie about the huge trout they caught in the very same pool. Believability goes up in direct proportion to the amount of beer in the cooler so if you are prone to reminiscing make sure someone, preferably one of your buddies, bought the right brand of beer and ideally carried the cooler down to the stream by himself. Make sure you do a few jerky spasms and mention your bad back well ahead of time, ideally back at camp when it’s time to gather firewood. If it still falls on you to bring the beer – make sure it’s not twist tops and that you have the only opener. Someone needs to regulate consumption. It’s for their own good.

A comfortable chair is a must. If you have a leather recliner that will fit in the back of your pickup and will roll down the hill to the stream – that is ideal. (If you have a winch you can use to get it back up the hill – even better). Barring that, try to avoid those confounded collapsable camp chairs that sit crooked on level ground. You know the type. You have to be a yoga expert to get out of them.

Tackle: Don’t use your good stuff. The chance of getting hung up on a log on the bottom of the stream is 100%. Breaking the tip off your pricey Fenwick rod is a loss no angler can afford. Now’s the time to haul out the garage sale surf rod with wrought iron core. Something with backbone. Grab a reel with light line – chances are you’ll only catch tiny trout anyway and light line has some advantages that go right to strategy.

Stream Strategy: When you get hung up on a log pretend it is a lunker and break your line quickly. It’s the big one that got away and your status as a bank fisherman jumps ten points.

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01 Mar 2014

John

John with Feral (holding the trophy knife)

John with Feral (holding the trophy knife)

Camped on a hilltop overlooking the Pine River in northern Lake County we heard the unmistakable growl of a big motorcycle coming up the sandy 2-track. It was a surprise visit from Feral’s brother-in-law John. Taking a 1000 pound Honda Goldwing trail riding is not a sport many men would attempt but John wrote his own rules. This was before helmet laws came and went. If I remember right he was wearing a cowboy hat right out of a spaghetti western.

John came bearing gifts. John was a craftsman. He had made a fish filet knife with a bone handle and a bone sheath. He proposed it belonged to whomever caught the biggest trout on the opening weekend of trout season, the reason for our gathering. It turned out to be a traveling trophy for the group. For the next 15 years whomever caught the biggest trout won the knife for a year and right to carve their initials, and year, in the bone sheath. After 15 years there was very little space to carve anything. I think Feral has the retired knife.

Back then, in my early days of guitar, with Feral on mandolin, we would bang out some popular folk songs aka Bob Dylan, CSN&Y, 70’s stuff that was defining our messed up generation. Strangely, John took campfire music to be just that – songs that resonated around campfires a generation before us. Think “Frog went a Courting”. Songs I vaguely remembered from grammar school music class. And it was all fun, particularly if we were knocking down a few cold ones before scaling the big hill down to the river for some night fishing.

It’s been about ten years since I saw John last. I got word this winter that he passed away. Cancer got him. I’ll say this about him – he was a lot of fun back in our early camping days and when he smiled, which was all the time, you couldn’t help but smile right along with him.

 

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20 Jan 2014
5 Comments

1961 Apache Scout Camper & JC Higgens

Scout 1

I’ve had so much response to the post “1961 Apache Chief Tent Camper” that I thought I should do one on the Apache Scout. Some years back Feral’s son Jake spotted a Scout for sale on the side of the road and told Feral, who bought it. The Scout turned out to be a JC Higgens brand version made for Sears, but is identical to the Apache Scout. Sears sold camping and sporting goods equipment under the JC Higgens brand up until 1964 including campers, camp stoves, lanterns and coolers. Searching the internet I see the brand extended to fishing equipment including reels and tackle boxes. Most of it is collectible and considered vintage. So if you happen to find a JC Higgens camper you have the option to find other vintage items to go along with it – to me that adds value!

Feral passed the Scout camper onto Jake who has been considering redoing the canvas, which is usable, though Feral used to throw a tarp over it if it looked like rain. The Scout is similar to the Apache Chief but takes a little longer to set up. It uses regular tent poles at the corners rather than the expanding interior pole system of the Chief. The door is on the side rather than the front as seen in the photo. It has the same floor space, bunk for sleeping, and compartment storage space. And coolness factor. You just don’t see these campers often. From what I have read, after the canvas dies a lot of people turn them in to utility trailers. That’s a shame but understandable. The boxes are made of aluminum so they never rust out.

Here’s an original ad for the Apache Scout. $345 dollars. I guess that dates it!

1961 Apache Scout Ad

If you would like to see the post for the Apache Chief, including a similar ad, type chief in the search bar in the right column.

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05 Jan 2014

Subaru Trout Car

Mike and Denny at Pickerel lake

Mike and Denny at Pickerel lake

It was and still is a tough winter in Michigan and I’m sad to report the death of my last trout car. I have moved on to a 2001 Forester previously owned by Mike who offered a great bargain I couldn’t refuse. Mike is a consummate angler, wilderness explorer and used car salesman/former attorney that may be related to me depending on just how dependable the new ride turns out to be. Or not be.

I am counting on a couple things here including the Subaru’s on board computer which will hopefully have an auto pilot that takes me into remote stretches of trout stream that have previously been kept secret. Mike and his fishing partner Denny have driven down half the two-tracks and back alleys of northern Michigan in search of virgin unmapped trout streams and have on one or two occasions actually outfished Feral and myself. If I can hack the computer that will be the end of that nonsense.

Mike disclosed absolutely everything wrong with the car before handing me the keys including the small piece of black electrical tape hiding the check engine light that would otherwise be aggravating to look at. He also pointed out the annoying Door Open warning light and his theory that it may have something to do with the rear hatch, which it didn’t, but the light wasn’t cover with tape so I was forced to think about it. Using my extensive garage mechanic skills I was able to isolate the problem by opening and closing each door. It turned out to be the spring loaded passenger door switch which I fixed by pushing it in and out a couple times. Gee that felt good. Something fixed and zero dollars invested.

When I got the car home I took my wife for a joy ride and was surprised when she rolled down the window in sub-zero weather. There is a burning oil smell that barely registers with me but apparently made her almost sick. I shouldn’t have been so surprised. When I come home from fishing she always greets me with a clothes pin on her nose and points anxiously at the shower so you know she is hyper-sensitive. I have vowed to figure out the oil smell even though it is a minor distraction.

The car has a 5-speed manual transmission. Strange thing, if I am thinking about taking off smooth I can make the car jerk like a bucking bronco. If I am not thinking about it I become part of the machine, almost Borg like… so smooth onlookers may wonder if the car is electric. So I need to train myself to never think about the transmission. No problem.

If I add up all the features on the car it may actually be the best trout car yet. It’s a station wagon so there’s room for my fishing gear. I can sit on the rear gate to put on waders. There is a roof rack for a kayak or two. There is a trailer hitch for my 61 Apache Chief camper. The car is all-wheel drive so I should be able to drive it anywhere (famous last words). And it has a 6-CD stereo so I can listen to ancient rock songs on the long drive to my favorite fishing streams. Thanks Mike!

 

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01 Jan 2014
2 Comments

Michigan Brook Trout

Feral with brook trout

Feral with brook trout

I’ve been wanting to write about brook trout ever since I started blogging but the problem has been getting photos. Feral loaned me some of his and I found the one above which is a respectable brook trout for the water we fish. Generally speaking, brook trout reside far upstream from where we normally fish. They are more suited to the small headwaters where the water is colder. If we catch a brook trout on the lower stretches of a stream it will often be where a small feeder creek empties into a larger stream. Or where a small spring introduces cold water, sometimes trickling off a hillside.

Brook trout are more aggressive and less wary than brown trout. That works against them (vs fishermen) and may be one reason browns have taken over their territory. According to the Michigan DNR browns were introduced in our rivers in 1883 and say what you will, browns are great sport, run bigger, and are very abundant. That makes catching a nice brook trout all the more interesting. I probably catch one brook trout for every 20 browns. I always release them in the hopes the population will grow and I’ll see more of them. Feral releases them too.

We catch brook and brown trout on the same lures: minnow baits and spinners. If we were to concentrate on catching more brook trout, small spinners with wide blades would be the way to go. Blue Fox lures in gold or silver. Wider blade means more “hang time.” In effect, the trout have more time to see and catch the lures.

Mike and Denny, two trout camp regulars, often fish the Black River in the fall for brook trout. The Black angles through the Pigeon River State Game Area up near Vanderbilt. I fished it once with Mike and the stream was overgrown with a canopy of saplings and brush. It helped to be an expert at underhand flip casting because there is no way to overhand cast a lure into the trout cover. I am sure there are open stretches without so much canopy so that is a good excuse to do some exploring.

I am trying to place exactly where the above photo was taken and have concluded it is  on the Pine River in Lake County. The Pine may be one of the best naturally reproducing streams in Michigan. It’s landlocked with a dam so it doesn’t get salmon or steelhead runs and that may be the clue to it’s health. We catch browns, brooks, and rainbows out of the Pine which makes it interesting. A brook trout over 14 inches is an event that deserves a cold beer back at the truck. Of course, just getting back the truck also qualifies as a beer event.

Feral at truck

Feral tailgating the S-10, Labatts in hand.

 

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