Sunshine, high 70’s temps, two dear friends, and willing and eager steelhead combined for a terrific day of Steelhead fly fishing today on Michigan’s Muskegon River. Former education colleague Dr. Bob Oster and bamboo rod maker Ron Barch are best buds, and I love Steelhead fly fishing with them. Today, the fish gods aligned the fishing stars for the Steelhead fly fishing guys, resulting in hookups and landed fish throughout the day.
Although the 2018 steelhead run is winding down, we continue to have fishable numbers of steelhead that today opened their lips to caddis, stone fly, and bugger patterns, though two of the guys’ double digit hookups were on egg imitations. The flow is slowing, and the river is clearing, but the flow is still nearly two times its normal level. Moreover, river temperatures are only now bumping up against the 50 degree mark. With rain forecasted for tonight, we likely will get a bump in flow. Here’s hoping it’s moderate so that the excellent fishing we’re now enjoying can continue.
Bob and Ron, thanks for one gigantic blast of a day! I enjoyed every minute of it. Bob poses one of the bucks he landed and Ron one of the hens he boated.
Captain Tom Kuieck