I’m sure any number of wives of fishermen today thought their loved ones were out of their minds to go fishing given the weather forecast, but on the Muskegon River, I found myself thinking, “It’s snowing out here, but I’m loving it on the Muskegon River today!” But then, with no wind, temps in the low 30’s, plenty of cloud cover, willing steelhead, and two terrific long time customers, Terry and Pat, why wouldn’t it prove a most enjoyable day of fly fishing? Layer and waterproof up; no problem!
Despite low river flows, good numbers of steelhead are present, though concentrated in widely separated areas. We continue to boat a mix of winter and spring run fish with both egg and nymph imitations striking the fishes’ fancy. That said, we could use some rain to bump the flow and to prompt another push of steelhead upriver.
Pat’s fish were camera shy (one was a beast teenager that Pat tried his best to power away from a menacing sweeper, but his 10 lb. tippet was no match for what—judging by the size of its shoulders and the massive boil it produced—was an extraordinarily large steelhead. Another one of the outsized steelhead that are showing up this year. Terry’s fish, on the other hand, were more cooperative; here’s a bright hen he brought to hand. In short, great day, all ’round.
Captain Tom Kuieck