Finally, finally, I was able to get back on the river! After competing in the annual northern Michigan, Deming/Kuieck "pasture pool" tour based at our cottage in Leland, I was thrilled to be back in Captain Don's boat on the Muskegon. With the...
Absolutely the most gorgeous conditions possible on the Muskegon today: clear skies, temps in the 70's, and calm winds. Orioles, lots of orioles, sang their beaks off, much to the delight of Don, who loves these colorful, elusive birds. The river is dropping and is...
Captain Don Graham and I spent a delightful day stripping streamers and literally boating more trout than we could count. Most were plants of this year, to be sure, but many ran 8-10" in size. Toss in some carry-over trout from last...
Captain Don and I came prepared today for whatever the MO would give us: C&D rods and indicator/fat line rods for steelhead; sinktips and weight forward floating lines for trout. Turns out, most of the extra tackle stayed in the case: we fished steelhead all...
With less steelhead in love every day, we were indeed fortunate to find a couple a young ladies attended by numerous admirers. Ron Barch, bamboo rod builder extrordinaire, and his friend and former educational colleague of mine, Dr. Bob Oster, joined me for a...
For those of you who are just now recovering from January/February/Michigan Cabin Fever, I suggest a day on the Muskegon like the one Captain Don Graham and I were privileged to enjoy today. Captain Don's and my personal fly fishing time is rapidly coming...
The great times with Captain Don and the Might Mo continue. What a day to be on the water! Sure, the bite is tough; sure, the water is nearly invisible; but the sun, the light air, the 50 degree temp! Can't beat it! Stone flies were...
Great day today! Heck, they're all great but today was special. Bright sun, low, gin-clear water—but cooperative steelhead. And especially happy I was because today I hosted my youngest son Ryan for his first steelhead trip of the year. Ryan works full-time in the metals...
We RiverQuest guides respect and value all the fish we pursue, but, man, fall/winter steelhead are special! The speed, power, and acrobatics of these fish are phenomena more fly fishermen really ought to experience. When one has steelhead clearing the water repeatedly,...
Today, Captain Don Graham and I had the pleasure of hosting the Henneveld group. Although the salmon run is over and the remaining fish are way less than pristine, the guys wanted to fish salmon, so a-weeding we went. Both boats had lots of...