A Day on the Water

Still a North wind, bad if your at the tip of the Michigan's Thumb but the wind speed was moderate and launching at the river mouth was easy.  I needed a rematch for some of those big ones that got off yesterday but first stopped off at the Carp Channel where I had seen hundreds of them spawning in the past.  Spring was late and they were only a few there.  I did get the first Smallmouth stripping in a big 1/0 Pike beadhead bucktail steamer. A dead end channel had produced some of the biggest Smallmouth in years past...

The forecast was for such ferocious North winds, to attempt fishing or kayaking anywhere near a river mouth would be insane.  There is a river where you can paddle up a winding dredged walled in channel past stately houses to a beautiful clear wild winding river.  Launching at the river mouth was a challenge.  The paddle up river over the deep still channel was exhilarating with that wind at your back.  The water levels were down over a foot this year and in the lower part of the natural river,  I could see some fleeing bass in the deep runs.  ...

Friday, the wind had shifted so I headed down the other side of the Thumb.  This small clear creek is easier to access on foot because of several steep shallow riffles.  It's a 2 mile paddle from the closest access I know.  I saw 4 guys hooking fish wadding out from the rock bar.  Inland from them I found some deep dark water and looped around it to anchor upwind.  On a #4 coyote fur, beadhead tied like a Clouser, I caught 4 small bass on 4 cast.  This was unusual, I kept track and got 16 bass on the...

Thursday I fished a tributary that was on the down wind side of Michigan's Thumb.  Near the mouth where I thought I might find a pike.  I started casting a 2/0 Black Banger, a flashy popper still on the rod from my last Largemouth and Pike trip. On the third bass hit I hooked this Smallmouth.  I ended up getting 17 on that popper and finding where they were concentrated in deeper water.   I switched to flashy #4 Tungsten bead head bucktail that was tied like a Clouser.  Oddly, they wanted it in a brisk stripping retrieve high in...

Portage Lake Bible Camp was host Shiver on The River steelhead camp.  I fished jigs on spinning tackle under a bobber.  Had to leave the dam at 5:00Pm to make it to supper on time and Sunday didn't get on the water till after 12:00 noon so 3 short days.  Friday Afternoon tried jigs down at the lower end of the pool and hooked 3 fish on 3 different color jigs.  Landed a steelhead and a skipper.  Saturday was crowded and I could only get in as the last man at the bottom of the hole where I quickly hooked...