March 11, 2013
After the Midwest Fly Fishing Expo ended yesterday, friend Mike Schmidt, owner of Anglers Choice Flies, and I
drove four hours north to Baldwin, Michigan located on the banks of the Pere Marquette River. We’re steelhead fishing tomorrow! However, what started as an enjoyable drive
ended difficult. As we traveled north it
not only got dark but thick fog from melting snow mixed with drizzle and rain
made it nearly impossible to see the roads.
We arrived late at 10 PM. Luckily
the neighborhood pub was open for food and I devoured a delicious grilled
walleye dinner.
Morning came early and it
wasn’t one of those jump out of bed ones either. This early daylight savings that returns
pitch darkness in the morning along with a steady rain sucked away our excitement. Nevertheless, we had Mike’s friends to meet
so we headed out.
Although it wasn’t cold, when
we launched the boats it was damp and as foggy as you can imagine. The dim lighting made it seem like dawn and
it would stay this way all day. It was
one of those where you could never properly estimate the time. Tommy called me to the front of his boat and
as he rowed us down the narrow tight bended section of the Pere Marquette I got
acquainted with my new friend.
Today was my first time on
the Pere Marquette. This famous Michigan River is known for its steelhead fishing
and its hefty wild brown trout. These
browns are from the first stocking of browns in North
America. They were stocked
in 1884 in the Baldwin Creek, a tributary of the
Pere Marquette.
As badly as I wanted to jump
up and chuck some streamers, Tommy insisted I stay put. He had a place he wanted to start. The river is small and narrow and covered by
a canopy of trees. Of course in early
March these trees are leafless and snow covered, nonetheless any hasty cast
would tangle you up.
Soon we anchored next to
Schultzy and Mike. Then I watched the
boys build the weirdest nymphing rigs I’ve ever seen. Strange as the rig is, it’s ideal for winter Great Lakes steelheading.
The leader is terribly long yet carefully weight balanced with not one
but two clumps of split shot. Attached
about 18” apart are two different colored egg flies and the entire bundle gets
suspended by an enormous bobber that resembles something I once used crappie fishing
at night in Wisconsin thirty years ago.
Next I had to learn to cast
the ungodly set up. You think you can
cast anything until you cast this. There’s
no over the shoulder back cast involved, it’s a roll cast, but unlike any roll
cast you’ve ever seen. Thankfully the
Clutch switch rod does the work for you and after about a half hour of screwing
up - I got it.
Unfortunately learning to
apply the new technique didn’t do me much good.
Steelheading has been fantastic here lately but a dousing of rain
(“Monsoon Currier” style) throughout the night along with unseasonably warm
conditions changed everything. The free
flowing Pere Marquette rose over a foot during our float and its clarity
diminished. Fishing was tough to say the
least.
Half way through the day we were
completely skunked. Tommy was noticeably
disappointed. We stopped for lunch and
beers in hopes our luck would change.
After our relaxing indulgence I switched into Schultzies boat and Mike
to Tommy’s.
I was over the steelhead
nymphing and chucked a small streamer more like what I fish at home. Sure enough, I moved a few lethargic browns
and landed my first. Although short, he
was no less than gorgeous and now I’d landed the oldest strain of brown trout
in North America.
We came to one of Schultzies
favorite banks. Rather than fish the
cumbersome nymphing rig I opted to watch Schultzy fish. This was a wise choice. Schultzy showed his experience and
meticulously worked the twirling bank then down went his bobber. For me, when the indicator went down earlier
today it meant snag. For Schultzy this
was a fish and his line sizzled off his reel and headed downstream. I turned just in time to see the strong
winter steelhead airlift himself about three feet up. I ran straight for my camera.
Schultzy landed the dark yet
bright cheeked steelhead downstream.
Tommy and Mike were near and helped by providing a spacious net. It was a fantastic fish to lighten up a tough
fishing day that was now pelting us with heavy rain.
After we released the oversized
rainbow everyone was ready to put the streamers down and nymph hard. I certainly was and did. Schultzy coached me through several of his
top spots as we drifted. Two hours later
we were steelhead-less, the rain was falling harder and the river was rising
and losing its clarity fast. I went back
to the streamer and conjured up two more browns, one of decent size.
I know when its time to
surrender the rod and enjoy the day.
Mike and I hadn’t fished together yet so Schultz switched with him and I
rowed Mike the last hours. Mike made a
horrible mistake today – he left his rain jacket in the truck. He was drenched and needless to say shivering
miserably. He kept casting but it was
tough to watch. We’ve all been brutally
cold a time or two and it's no fun. I
enjoyed my rowing however. The Pere Marquette is small and twisty with an obstacle course of fallen trees. Navigating it was just as fun as my cold beer
and cigar were tasty.
My first fishing partner was
South Fork Lodge friend and manager Ian Malepeai. Ian insisted I take the front of the boat, a
spot I’m unfamiliar with as I like to keep an eye on things from the back. Nonetheless I took the bow with a smile and
our fishing went from the occasional small cutthroat to some rod jolting
rainbows like this one pictured with Ian and Allen.
