Another Potential MI Micro Fish-In: Muskegon Salmon!

Not to take away from the discussion on the last thread, but it was getting a bit long, so thought I would start up a new one for this next potential Micro Fish-In. I will quote the previous thread:

"The best part was seeing everyone and spending the day with them. And to that extent, I wanted to let everyone know what we decided to do next. In about a month, the salmon should be stacked in the local rivers, and in full spawn/nasty attitudes. We decided to give her another go, this time on the mighty Muskegon near Newago. Tentatively we are thinking about Saturday, October 13th (pending everyone's schedules). If you have never tried hooking up with a salmon it is a real experience, sort of like trying to lead a bull around by a rope and a halter (whereas hooking up with a steelhead is more like trying to RIDE THE BULL)! Grab a 8 or 9 wt and head up for some fun! Don't have steelhead outfit? No sweat, I have an extra outfit someone can use, and I am sure someone else has one as well. I will be tryin out a new 14 ft spey outfit that day , so my old standard 9 ft outfit should be free. You can also, bag the salmon and target the lake run and stream browns and even possibly some steelhead that pod up below the spawning gravel to gorge on salmon eggs. The Muskegon is a beautiful river to be on in the fall, so make your plans to attend".

Well, anyone seriously interested?

Jim if I can get away from work count me in. It would be an honor and a privilege to fish with you again. Keep me posted please.

I might be up for it( read that recovered from this past weekend) I wont know for sure till next week. Would need to borrow a Heavier set up though heaviest I got around here is a 5wt.
Bill

Jim

That is a bad weekend for me. Unless the date changes, I will not make it. Don't change your plans just for me, I just wanted to let you know.

Brad

I would think that the salmon, and certainly the lake run browns, steelhead, and resident trout would still be around for another week or two after or perhaps a week earlier than the 13th, but not much more than that. What would work best for others? I would need to confirm with the wife about her work schedule.

Jim
I will commit to the 13th but I have never gone for salmon before. My heaviest weight rod is a 7 with a Trion reel. Love to learn some stuff regarding them. I live close to the St. Joseph which I understand has a decent run of summer (skamania) and winter slamon. Which part of the Mo are you thinking of? Is it wadable or do we need my skiff or pontoon? Sounds like fun.
Mark

Mark - You are welcome to use the extra 8 wt rod I have, and I am sure that others would have some extra rods as well. You could also use the 7 wt to target the lake runs and steelhead that pod up below the salmon beds. My thought is to start at Thornapple access and move down from there possibly. End of the day perhaps end up at Henning Park. Right now the river is quite wadable, and barring any major rainfall, it should stay that way, though it could also be fun to take the pontoons down from Thornapple to Henning, stopping here and there to fish to pods of fish along the way. Hmm... interesting idea.... How many people have pontoons out there? Or even a boat? I have a pontoon. Perhaps some float and others stay in just a couple of areas to wade fish, then we get together at the start, at lunch, and at the end of the day? Nothing set in stone, just kicking around some possibilities, seeing what may interest people. This is a big river, so it isn't hard to find plenty of water to fish, be it floating or not.

Jim
I have a fourteen foot wooden skiff I built which two can comfortably fit in. I also have a pontoon which I would use if we decide to go that way. Either wading or drifting, your call. Sounds like great fun either way.
Mark

Mark - check your pm

Jim a few questions on gear if I may ask:

1 My 8wt 9ft I think would be a good choice but at the moment it is loaded with WFF would that be OK or should I go to a sinking tip or sinking?

2 What flies would you recommend including sizes?

3 I have no pontoon or boat but do have a float tube would that be suitable?


Further more I should be able to make it on any date as long it is on a weekend.

Look forward to hearing from you and hopefully fishing with the gang,

Tim

Now this get together has some potential... This could really be epic! 8) Hmm... how could we finagle a stream side cookout into this?

Floating is a possibility, but we could also just wade. So far we have enough seats for four people. If others can bring pontoons, drift boats, or skiffs we could take more. But no biggie either way. Biggest thing is who is interested in doing it, and if not the 13th, then when (Brad and Bill)? I know Rainbowchaser is a go. Joe Valencic are you out there? New folks are welcome as well, this isn't a select club.

Regarding your questions Tim - weight forward floating is fine for an indicator rig. I think some guys use sink tips, but a lot of people use amensia running line and do what is called chuck and duck. For an explanation of both, start here: http://www.fishbaldwin.com/StevesExplan ... nation.cfm

For flies, you will be using mostly egg patterns, hex and caddis nymphs, and wooly buggers or egg sucking leeches, such as these: http://www.schmidtoutfitters.com/index. ... ry_id=266. Make sure you get them on heavy wire hooks. Best bet is to order them from Glenn's shop or even from Schmidt Outfitters. You won't find many people who know Great Lakes salmon and steelhead better than Ray Schmidt.

I would not recommend a float tube, unless it is one that gets your rear end out of the water. The river rapidly changes from shallow to deep rapidly. Even then, the flow is pretty brisk and I would much rather have oars to get myself around. I would leave the float tube at home.

Jim (et. al)
I can do the 6th or 20th also...whatever..I would like to hear from the Ohio contingent. If one of those dates is better, go for it. I would like to see Joe and Brad.
They have good fish karma.

Jim in order to have a stream side lunch we would have to catch some fish LOL

Quote:

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Originally Posted by scubatim

Jim in order to have a stream side lunch we would have to catch some fish LOL

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PB& J is always plan "B". As long as you pack a lunch, you will usually catch fish, but never depend on the fish.

I have a 15' canoe. Is it suitable for the Mighty M? Could take one with me (McSteff rides this time instead of spotting the truck). The 20th looks better for me, but will get back to you when I return from my 40 mile canoe trip this weekend on the Mighty "A" (Allegheny River, Oil City to Emlenton, PA)

Hey Mark, maybe we could stay with Jack? Huh, huh, huh?

http://bestsmileys.com/crying/15.gif "NO, NO, NO, NO, NO..."

Joe
http://bestsmileys.com/lol/4.gif

I may have to show up for this one, I have a pontoon and all necessary gear.

Joe - I think the canoe should work. Can't really see why not. Just bring an anchor. Will likely be hopping from hole to hole and then getting out to wade fish along the way. Big water... holes for everyone! 8)

Dog - Would love to have you join us! Welcome aboard!

All kidding aside I have a Weber Kettle Grill I can bring along if we want to BBQ stream side. Maybe even bring along some wood chips so we can smoke some salmon.

I don't know any of you but I believe I can get free for the day and I have a drift boat.
I have not fished the mighty muskegun That Time of year only for trout in the spring so I might need some advise how to outfit my 8wt. I live in southeast Mich so if anyone would like to ride across with me let me know.
-Jeff

Birddog - we would love to have you join us! How many people can you take in the drift boat? Between all the boats we have, we may be able to take up to 8-10 people if the date works out! This could be EPIC! 8) See the websites earlier in the thread for a description of the setups, but an 8wt rigged for steelhead should work fine.

Tim - Not sure how good these salmon would taste, they start getting skunky in the river, but then, I have never really liked the taste of fish, so I will defer to others. But grilling

The 13th looks like it will be the only date that works for me. Heidi has to work the 6th and the 20th. Sorry. How many people can make that work?

Jim

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Jim Flamming

Birddog - we would love to have you join us! How many people can you take in the drift boat?

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I can take 3 besides myself or 2 if we want to flyfish out of the boat.

I sounds like it could be fun but we can't forget about the most important part of the trip (Lunch).
I have plenty of room on my boat for a cooler and grill.
-Jeff

-also from what I undestand the salmon run is a little later on the Muskegon so we should be hitting it at a good time. also fro my experiance with kings on the P.M. an 8wt is as small as I would ever go. really a 10wt is the rod. I have seen alot of 8's and some 9's broke easily. (I listen to the creaking sound my rod makes to gage the pressure on the fish) big fish have their way with me.

Jim,
We are having a MANDATORY Driver's Meeting that Saturday for All the Drivers,
So I don't think I will be able to join you.
:( Bill

BILL?! SAY IT AIN'T SO!

Jim;
If the guys need sink tips I could gather up all my flourocarbon furled leaders and get them in the mail to you this week. They will be about 12# test. The 4# test Berkley "Transition" sinks like a rock!!

If the boss doesn't put on a mandatory overtime I'll be there. If anyone wants to get in some more fishing Sunday I could be up for that too though you will have to explain a whole weekend without hunting to my GSP pup. She is still a long ways from the best dog I have ever hunted with but she may be the most enthusiastic.

This thread has been kinda dead the last few days. Anything new?

Sorry for not posting lately and being a little light on the details. I would definitely like to make this happen. Once again, the weather isn't exactly cooperating, but that's life, and you know you won't catch any fish if you stay home.

Here is what we know as of now. We have 5 people "committed" to coming (myself, Tim Creighton, Birddog, dogtown, and Mark Steff) and we have enough "committed seats" in various boats/pontoons to accomodate 8 people (one 3-person driftboat, one 2-person skiff, and three one-person pontoons). We have two "maybes" (Jim Riemersma and Joe Valencic). Joe, what are your thoughts on coming? If Joe comes, he could possibly bring up a canoe which could handle two people, so we still would be able to make room for 3 more people if anyone else is interested in tagging along. Just grab your pole and hop in! :) And we have two definite "catch ya next times" in Bill and Brad.

Let's plan on floating the river and stopping here and there to fish the holes along the way. Let's also plan on having a stream lunch. Maybe some grilled steaks and chops? I would be willing to grab those if others want to bring other stuff. Whatever you want to bring, just let the group know what you are bringing. Think man-food here. Snacks and drinks too. Grills that can go in the boat for the ride would be good.

The difficulty is going to be in picking the float. To be honest I have never floated the Muskegon before, so if Birddog or others have, your experience would be valuable here. There are four boat launches below Croton Dam that we can access, Kimble Park right below the dam, Pine Street one river mile below Kimble, Thornapple five river miles below Pine, and Henning Park seven river miles below Thornapple. I would guess we could run 6 to 7 miles in a day and not be out too late, so we could float either from the dam or Pine to Thornapple, or Thornapple to Henning. Your thoughts birddog? I can also give the flyshop a call about this. If we try to get the boats launched, spot cars and get afloat, we will need to start early. If there are salmon in the river to be caught, they seem to be more aggressive earlier in the morning, before the sun comes up over the trees. A cloudy day may help. After that, we may want to just target trout, since the salmon may get snobbish, so don't forget the 5 or 6 wt.

What does everyone think about meeting just east off US 131 at the M82 (Howard City) exit at say 7 am? Then we can hope to be headed downstream by 8-8:30.

Count me as very probable as work is quite slow right now. Of course with a job shop that can change suddenly with a couple of phone calls from customers. I get the official word on Thursday night and will try to post Friday Morning.
I think the float from the dam to Thornapple is the busiest stretch of the river but also probably has the most wadable water. Also there is another access site a ways below Henning Park off of Felch Avenue that has a pretty good launch ramp and plenty of parking that might be usefull if we float the lower stretch.
Whatever we decide, wouldn't it save time to meet at the take out point; leave oone car there and procede to the launch area without another stop at the exit ramp? I'm pretty sure I can post a map and driving directions to the take out point once it has been decided on for those who are not familiar with the area.
Flies for targeting trout should include a few winged ants as I have seen them attract a lot of attention from the trout there in September and I think they will continue to work in early october. I usually fish the White more for Salmon and really don't know first hand what to expect for hatches , if any. Besides egg flies which should work during the salmon run small brassies and squirrel hair or hares ear nymphs have always worked for me on the muskegon. I always have brown and /or olive weighted wooly buggers too. There are a lot of crawdads in the river and I think the wooly bugger is a good imitation of them.

So far it looks like a good plan and so far it looks like I should be able to make it. I am going to see a new contact for work so things could change in the blink of an eye but right now I AM IN. Jim just remember my talent for wind knots so hand me your rod at your own risk. LOL


LET'S FISH


Tight lines my friends tight lines

I fished the White last night and had four salmon on without landing any ( I usually do better than that). I tried to remember some things our novice salmon fishermen would need to know for this post. First, check your tippets often for abrasion. I lost the first fish when I broke off a few inches below the split shot and I know that that part of the leader gets dragged across the sharp gravel a lot. Second bring plenty of split shot. I use BB shot and add one or more as needed to the leader just above the tippet knot. They were all gone after playing each fish and I lost some others when the line hung up on the bottom. Third bring enough flies to lose them two at a time to fish and snags. You will want plenty of tippet material but I usually just use a straight piece of fifteen pound mono as the main leader. Pliers are useful in removing flies from salmon as they have fairly large sharp teeth. Bring a wading staff if you have any doubts about wading fast water with slippery rocks. I expect even more moss on the rocks than usual with the warm water we had all summer. I'll be leaving my studded boots behind as they are not good to boats. I'm sure someone can add some things I've forgotten but this might be helpful. Looking foreward to seeing all of you Saturday.

So far, I am planning on seeing rainbowchaser, Tim Creighton, birddog and Mark Steff on Saturday. If any of you need to bow out, please let me know. How about dogtown and Joe Valencic? Are you guys joining us? Others are welcome as well, just let us know so we can get food. Does anyone have a portable grill they could bring along for the shore lunch? Actually, more than one grill wouldn't hurt. I have one I can pack. Also, anyone want to bring along some favorite food or snack to pass, feel free.

Jim, how are we set for boats? I have a thirteen foot canoe I can bring but it has very little leg room if you sit in the front. I can bring a chain anchor and rope if anyone needs it and I don't have the canoe.

birddog has a 3 person drift boat and Mark has a two person skiff and a one man pontoon. I also have a one man pontoon. If dogtown comes he said he has a pontoon, and if Joe V comes he said he has a canoe, but those guys are firm committments as of yet. Hopefully we can firm up the number attending and boat seats soon. I think we will have more than enough seats regardless, but you may want to throw the canoe on the truck just in case? Let's see what everyone says.

I just got back in town after a week hunting trip. I have found that my shop has a very hot project and I will have to be here until the middle of next week. I am bummed! I thought I was finaly going to get to fish with some of you on what sounds like a fun float. I will be watching to see how you do and certainly hope to make it next time.
-Jeff
:(

We'll miss you birddog. Jim - better bring the canoe.

Son of a gun I am not sure if I am gonna make it as I have a job to do on Saturday. Now for the real kicker. The job is in Muskegon, Michigan at the Consumers Energy Plant. I am hopping to get it done Friday but right now it ain't lookin good.

Jim I have your number and will hopefully give you a last minute call telling you I can make it. If you don't hear from me know I am not happy. :(

Good luck to you all keep us informed.

And now we are down to three... Jim and Mark, you guys up for this still? Do you still want to float it or just fish in the morning at say Thornapple access?

Hey guys don't count me out yet. I am still gonna try and make it. If the clamp comes in Friday sometime I will drive up and put it on, get a hotel ( the company will get to pay for the room :lol: ) and meet you guys in the morning. Jim I will keep you posted.

I really want to fish with you guys, I had so much fun the last time. Shoot I might even catch a fish this time LOL

Tim and Jim - check pm

Well this Micro Fish in went to heck :( Maybe we can try again before the run ends.