Trail Creek at Michigan City : Returning to Fishable Levels

The nice thing about having a small watershed, is the quickness with which the river can return to fishable levels. Unfortunately it didn't return to a low level with time for me to go wet a line. I expect to return to fight with some Skamania as soon as I get the chance. Perhaps Monday.

Here is the gauge, the river may be muddy, but steelhead should be back to predictable locations by tomorrow morning.

See ya out there!

Great Lakes Steelhead Fin Clip Information

This information is from the Michigan DNR, reguarding the fin clips of steelhead stocked between 1999 and 2008. Remember different strains of steehead take from 3 to 5 years to spawn and will spawn more than 1 year. Finding a fin clip and comparing it to fish stocked 3-5 years prior to your catch can help to identify the strain and stocking location of your fish.

This key shows abbreviations of fins for use as a reference to the chart below.

FIN CLIP YEAR AGENCY # STOCKED STRAIN

AD 2008 MIDNR 39,818 MICHIGAN

ADLM 2000 WIDNR 64,000 CHAMBERS CREEK

ADLM 2005 WIDNR 64,873 CHAMBERS CREEK

ADLM 2007 WIDNR 8,060 CHAMBERS CREEK

ADLM 2008 WIDNR 53,380 CHAMBERS CREEK

ADLP 2000 WIDNR 72,000 ARLEE

ADLP 2002 WIDNR 60,000 ARLEE

ADLP 2005 WIDNR 53,035 ARLEE

ADLP 2007 WIDNR 65,871 ARLEE

ADLV 2000 WIDNR 58,000 GANARASKA

ADLV 2003 WIDNR 66,989 GANARASKA

ADLV 2004 WIDNR 63,762 GANARASKA

ADLV 2007 WIDNR 29,624 KAMLOOPS

ADRM 2000 WIDNR 75,000 SKAMANIA

ADRM 2005 WIDNR 75,939 SKAMANIA

ADRM 2008 WIDNR 68,742 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2002 ILDNR 76,000 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2002 WIDNR 62,000 KAMLOOPS

ADRP 2003 ILDNR 75,968 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2004 ILDNR 50,000 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2006 ILDNR 55,201 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2007 ILDNR 57,732 SKAMANIA

ADRP 2008 ILDNR 56,040 SKAMANIA

ADRV 2001 WIDNR 186,000 GANARASKA

ADRV 2005 WIDNR 56,208 GANARASKA

ADRV 2007 WIDNR 68,356 GANARASKA

ADRV 2008 WIDNR 66,299 GANARASKA

BV 1999 WIDNR 66,000 GANARASKA

BV 2002 WIDNR 65,000 GANARASKA

BV 2006 WIDNR 61,533 GANARASKA

DLV 2000 MIDNR 30,253 SKAMANIA

LM 2001 WIDNR 134,000 CHAMBERS CREEK

LM 2003 WIDNR 71,863 CHAMBERS CREEK

LM 2004 WIDNR 71,863 CHAMBERS CREEK

LM 2007 WIDNR 14,830 CHAMBERS CREEK

LM 2007 WIDNR 24,193 SKAMANIA

LMLV 1999 WIDNR 61,000 CHAMBERS CREEK

LMLV 2002 WIDNR 93,000 CHAMBERS CREEK

LMLV 2006 WIDNR 61,828 CHAMBERS CREEK

LP 2001 WIDNR 15,000 ARLEE

LP 2003 WIDNR 29,992 ARLEE

LP 2004 WIDNR 29,992 ARLEE

LP 2006 WIDNR 61,285 ARLEE

LP 2008 WIDNR 59,987 ARLEE

LPRV 1999 MIDNR 17,484 SKAMANIA

LPRV 2007 ILDNR 46,943 ARLEE

LPRV 2008 ILDNR 51,003 ARLEE

LV 2000 ILDNR 88,000 ARLEE

LV 2001 ILDNR 60,000 SKAMANIA

LV 2005 WIDNR 42,363 KAMLOOPS

LV 2006 MIDNR 34,821 MICHIGAN

LV 2007 MIDNR 20,525 MICHIGAN

LV 2008 MIDNR 20,296 MICHIGAN

RM 2001 WIDNR 120,000 SKAMANIA

RM 2003 WIDNR 68,735 SKAMANIA

RM 2004 WIDNR 68,735 SKAMANIA

RM 2007 WIDNR 60,455 SKAMANIA

RMRV 1999 WIDNR 95,000 SKAMANIA

RMRV 2002 WIDNR 171,500 SKAMANIA

RMRV 2006 WIDNR 65,183 SKAMANIA

RP 1999 MIDNR 521,628 MICHIGAN

RP 2000 INDNR 40,021 MICHIGAN

RP 2000 MIDNR 517,917 MICHIGAN

RP 2001 INDNR 40,000 MICHIGAN

RP 2001 MIDNR 567,695 MICHIGAN

RP 2001 MIDNR 36,478 SKAMANIA

RP 2002 INDNR 40,000 MICHIGAN

RP 2002 MIDNR 567,271 MICHIGAN

RP 2002 MIDNR 33,260 SKAMANIA

RP 2003 INDNR 40,000 MICHIGAN

RP 2003 MIDNR 536,706 MICHIGAN

RP 2003 MIDNR 37,415 SKAMANIA

RP 2004 MIDNR 536,704 MICHIGAN

RP 2004 MIDNR 37,415 SKAMANIA

RP 2005 MIDNR 484,196 MICHIGAN

RP 2005 MIDNR 32,358 SKAMANIA

RP 2006 INDNR 40,001 MICHIGAN

RP 2006 MIDNR 29,702 MICHIGAN

RP 2007 INDNR 40,792 MICHIGAN

RP 2007 MIDNR 19,562 MICHIGAN

RP 2007 MIDNR 33,772 SKAMANIA

RP 2008 MIDNR 19,417 MICHIGAN

RPLV 1999 ILDNR 100,000 ARLEE

RPLV 2005 MIDNR 32,776 MICHIGAN

RV 2001 ILDNR 46,000 ARLEE

RV 2003 WIDNR 60,397 KAMLOOPS

RV 2004 WIDNR 60,397 KAMLOOPS

RV 2006 WIDNR 58,570 KAMLOOPS

RV 2007 WIDNR 31,344 KAMLOOPS

In addition to the information in my last blog post, I have come across this "Michigan" strain of steelhead. Having never angled the waters of Michigan for steelhead I havn't run across this strain (yet). Here is the information I have to share with you.

Michigan : "winter-run" steelhead : This strain arrose from introductions of anadromous steelhead which occured sometime between 1876-1914. Original plants were likely from gametes collected from natural runs of steelhead in the State of California. These early stocked fish naturalized and maintain significant runs in the Little Manistee River. Gamete collection for hatchery rearing was initiated by the State of Michigan in the mid-1960s. These fish return to rivers in late-fall or early spring and typically spawn from March through May.

Lake Michigan Steelhead Strain Information

I, like many other curious anglers do research to figure out when their favorite fish are spawning in creeks, streams and rivers all along the great lakes. When it comes to Steelhead, anglers have the advantage of being able to fish for this glorious gem of a salmonid almost year round. Here is some information from the Wisconsin DNR on three of the most heavily stocked species of Steelhead.

Skamania : "Summer Run Steelhead" - This strain was developed at the Skamania hatchery in the state of Washington. Wisconsin originally obtained eggs from Indiana, but now takes the eggs from adults returning to Wisconsin streams. The spawning migration begins in late June and early July. The good stream fishing doesn't begin until the water temperatures start to cool, usually in mid-September. Spawning occurs from mid-December through mid-March with the peak occurring in January and February. The majority of spawning fish are four and five year olds. Four year old fish average 28" and 8 pounds, while five year old fish average 32" and 12 pounds.

This is a photograph of a Skamania strain Steelhead from Trail Creek Indiana, which I landed in late July of 2009, it was 26" long and weighed between 6 and 7 pounds:

Chambers Creek : "Winter Run Steelhead" - This strain originated at Washington's South Tacoma Hatchery. Eggs for our program were originally obtained from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. The spawning migration starts in late fall and continues through winter and early spring. Some of the best stream fishing is during mid-November through December and again in March and early April. The majority of spawning adults are three and four year old fish. Three year Chambers Creek Steelhead average 25 inches and 6 pounds while four year Chambers Creek Steelhead average 29 inches and 9.5 pounds.

This photograph is of a Chambers Creek strain Steelhead from the Milwaukee Harbor, caught through the Ice in February of 2009. It was 27" long:

Ganaraska River : "Winter Run Steelhead" - This strain of Steelhead originated on the west coast and has since become naturalized in Lake Ontario. It uses the Ganaraska River on the north shore of the lake for spawning. Although referred to as a spring-run fish in Ontario, the Ganaraskas stocked in Lake Michigan also contribute to the fall and winter stream fishery. Strong pulses of these fish run up the rivers from November to December and again from late March through April. Peak spawning time extends from April to early May. This is the lasts strain of rainbow trout to leave the stream and has extended the fishing opportunities an extra 2 to 4 weeks. Returning adults average 23 inches at age 3 and 26 inches at age 4.

This photograph is of a Ganaraska strain Steelhead from Oak Creek caught in early May, it measured 25" and weighed just shy of 5 pounds:

Steelhead are native to the western United States but are a vital part of the Great Lakes fishery and have been naturalized in lake Ontario. There are other strains such as the Kamloops and Arlee steelhead which are stocked further north. The brood stocks for these three strains are currently at Kenosha and Racine, and the Racine Root River Steelhead Processing Facility processes many steelhead, brown trout, and salmon (both Coho and Chinook) each year. The weir at that facility has a glass window and it is an amazing spectacle to see so many large rainbow trout in such a small area. After they are spawned out by volunteers and members of the DNR they are released back to the water, where they continue their fight upstream, only to return to Lake Michigan when it is all over.

The glorious details of the gill plate of a spawning male steelhead.

An angler's catch of the morning laying in shallow water.

Trail Creek Flash Flood : 48 cfs - 837 cfs in under 5 hours

Dan and I were planning on a return trip to the Trail Creek in Michigan City tomorrow to get at some more steelhead. Unfortunatly this super precise downpour practically only rained on the creek this evening and ruined our chances.

Take a look.

The storm.

The resulting 6 foot rise in the creek within just a few hours. Flash Flood warning was very accurate.

Here is that warning.

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NORTHERN INDIANA HAS ISSUED AN URBAN AND SMALL STREAM FLOOD ADVISORY FOR...    

NORTHERN LA PORTE COUNTY IN NORTHWEST INDIANA UNTIL 930 PM CDT    

AT 637 PM CDT WEATHER SPOTTERS REPORTED THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN OVER NORTHERN LAPORTE COUNTY. RAINFALL REPORTS OF OVER 3 INCHES HAVE BEEN RECEIVED.     

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...    

EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM THESE STORMS WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL  CREEKS AND STREAMS...HIGHWAYS AND UNDERPASSES. ADDITIONALLY...COUNTRY  ROADS AND FARMLANDS ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS AND OTHER  LOW LYING AREAS ARE SUBJECT TO FLOODING.

Hold on tight steelhead... we'll be back to get after you when this mess clears up.  I'll have to think up something else to do tomorrow I suppose.  Shoot.

Here is the aftermath of that warning.  It is now a flash flood statement:

TRAINED WEATHER SPOTTERS AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT HAVE REPORTED   STRANDED VEHICLES IN THE MICHIGAN CITY AREA AND SOME ROADS ARE   CLOSED DUE TO HIGH WATER. ADDITIONAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF UP TO AN   INCH ARE POSSIBLE IN THE WARNED AREA WITH TOTAL RAINFALL AMOUNTS   NEAR 5 INCHES POSSIBLE. RUNOFF FROM THIS RAIN WILL CONTINUE TO CAUSE   PROBLEMS UNTIL AROUND MIDNIGHT. 

Trail Creek Steelhead : Michigan City : 7/27/2009

The day started at 2:30 a.m. the alarm clock went off, I threw on my swim suit and cloths, and hopped in the car, met a friend or three and got on the highway by 3:00 a.m. out of Chicago and on down to Michigan City to fish for Skamania Steelhead on Trail Creek.

At first light this is what Trail Creek looked like, a golden green wonderland, with silver bullet steelhead waiting to be hooked. I was with a friend of mine, Dan, fishing here on this stretch, and 2 more of my friends, Mike and Keith could be found elsewhere on Trail Creek today.

It wasn't too long before I hooked into my first Skamania, it was a beauty of a Steelhead. It took a little 2 foot hop in some rapids and that was the last I saw of it.

I later switched to a personal favorite lure that has produced for me when all else fails, and on the 2nd or 3rd cast, I hooked a 26" female Steelhead, an eventful 5 minutes fight ensued.

At the end the steelhead was in the net, but I had stripped to that swimsuit, and swam across the river with my rod above my head to free the Steelhead from the tree it had kindly wrapped my line around several times. This one doubled the prior Steelhead jump of 2 feet, it's fist hop was an easy 4 foot launch. It actually woke Dan up with that jump, he was napping next to the creek for a bit. Getting up at 2:30 isn't easy.

Within 5 minutes, while I was dripping in my swimsuit and explaining how I got to be that we, Dan's rod literally doubled over and I shouted fish on. He had a bull of a Steelhead, I believe it was a male. His didn't jump but it pulled up and down stream a couple of times before I was able to wrestle it to a stop so we could remove the hooks.

Dan hooked up one more time on what looked to be an orange bodied, gold bladed rooster tail with brown hackle. Unfortunatly that Skamania took a jump and kindly spit the spinner back at Dan.

Here Dan and I are with our lovely Skamanias.

All in all a lovely day in Michigan city, angling for these beautiful Skamania Steelhead, one of the most areal fighters of the Great Lakes fish. Happy to have made it out there. Mike's photographs from his recent Steelhead outings can be found at his frequently updated (and very informative) blog, here.

Thanks for reading, I'd love to spend all these hot summer mornings pitching things between fallen logs, over rocks, and down rapids with hopes that the surface of the water will suddenly erupt as a Steelhead bursts to such great heights. Amazing. See ya out there!

Great Lakes Angler off to Crystal Lake, Michigan

Great lakes angler gets in the car at 7:00 a.m. tomorrow to make the 5 hour drive to Crystal Lake, Michigan, which used to be a fantastic perch fishery, as well as a producer of huge lake trout and at one point, Coho salmon. It is now, like so many other places... not any of those. It does have a huge amount of mean rock bass though. We'll see if I can't find a little school of perch swimming around somewhere.

Here's the lake 165 feet deep at its deepest, and averaging more than 70 feet deep, its a beautiful and "crsytal" clear lake, 20 feet of visibility is common. I'm excited to camp on the beach, fish from the row boat, and just enjoy my time in the sun... err I mean rain this weekend.

Lake Michigan Stonehenge?

Since July fishing has been slow here in Chicago, with the Perch season closed for another week, and Trout and Salmon out of reach, I've been delving into archives of some of my favorite great lakes news sources and here's another find.

Mark Holley, an underwater archeology professor (I'd have taken that class in a second in college if it was offered) at Northwestern Michigan College discovered a series of standing stones under the waters of lake Michigan. Some of them are arranged in a circle, and one of which appears to have carvings of a mastodon on it.

Here is a photograph of the Mastodon Carving in question.

A huge discovery in North American Archeology. This sonar they're using to find these things is mighty cool, I'd love to make images with that thing, I've always had my eyes plastered to the depth finders of any boat I've been in, watching the bottom contours. The photographs are interesting if nothing else.

This one is a pile of sunken boats and cars. Pretty cool.

You can read more of this article over at BLDGBLOG.

Assault on a Bait Ball

This is why I strive to find a way to get my hands on underwater camera gear. I want photographs of Salmon and Trout going at a bait ball of Alewifes, I've seen them get active and chase schools around and I've even seen a pod of them thrash the top of the water only to have a big Chinook burst through the surface chasing them.

This photography speaks for itself. Click here to check out the rest. Some of the best underwater stuff I've ever seen.

This weekend I'm headed to Crystal Lake Michigan. I may do a little bit of fishing, but nothing more than shooting a few RockBass in a barrel or drifting for perch. I'll likely stop in Indiana and scout for some Steelhead spots for next week. Photographs and reports will follow the weekend. Enjoy yours, I'll enjoy mine.

In Search of Steelhead, The Quest Begins

There was a time last fall, living 6 blocks from the Milwaukee River, when I could throw on my boots, sling a messenger bag on my shoulder with a long fishing rod sticking out of the top, bundle up as tight as I could, and go stalk steelhead on cold November mornings between classes.

I remember over the course of about a week a little slot of ice, 2" wide at first, growing each day, formed along the banks of the river. I had my 2 holes, I'd bike there, slide down the frozen bank by the road where I locked my bike. Jot across the Oak Leaf Trail, a bike path, and continue my slide down another icy bank to the riverside. I would then pick my first hole, shoot through the rapids a few times, usually I'd hook up right away. If not, I'd change presentations a time or two and hike down to my next spot.

Near the end of the aforementioned week locked my bike up, slid through fresh snow, and arrived, to my horror, at the edge of the river only to look down on one continuous pane of ice. I could close my eyes and see the steelhead holding in eddies under the ice, feeding on whatever was left bouncing down the river bottom. I remembered reaching from limb to limb, pulling myself up the slick hill thinking "maybe it will thaw! I'll go check the weather!" but sure enough, when winter comes in Wisconsin, it stays.

That day I thought about the spring run, in which I had some success this year, landing my first fly rod steelhead, hooking up to chrome beauties in the Root River, and tangoing with them in Oak Creek. That run was blown out most of the time by big spring rains. My steelhead lust would have to wait... until now. Reports are good that Skamania, the big daddy of the stocked Great Lakes strains are in. Throwing big acrobatics in with bulling, line ripping, drag screaming runs, every hook up promises to be a battle.

Here is a photograph from Today, it got my blood pumping without hesitation. This fellow, by the tag cichlidfinder on Windy City Fishing bagged 4 of these beauties this morning.

I, along with my recent, and good, friend Mike P., who has a new fishing blog as well, found here. Will be headed on down to the Tributaries to put ourselves in the photographs holding the Steelhead. I hope to bring them to you by next week. In fact I'll do my best to do so. Hope to see you out there!

-Tom

Fisch Franke : Living Trout Poster

Tom Chandler, over at the Trout Underground, displayed this clip from youtube over at his top shelf trout angling blog.

Quite an interesting idea to draw people to a storefront. The clearly farm raised trout make for a quick eye catcher to draw people into eating at this German seafood restaurant.

Fishing's been slow for the great lakes angler lately. I'm buried up to the top of my waders in the job hunt, and havn't been able to put those waders where they belong... in the river. Soon the browns and kings will fill with roe, change from chrome bullets to darkly colored bulls, and I'll be waiting for them with rod in hand. Until then... see ya out there.

Diporeia Down, Quagga Mussels Up in Lake Michigan : Bad News for Great Lakes Gamefish

More bad news involving Great Lakes invasive species today. This article delves into a net dragged across the bottom, 3.5 miles offshore of Grand Haven Michigan. The ship named the Laurentian pulled up 300 pounds of quagga mussels, a few zebra mussels were mixed in, along with a single slimy sculpin.

10 years ago there were zero Quagga Mussels in the great lakes, these can live deeper than the more familiar zebra mussel and will cover a far higher percentage of the lake michigan basin, as well as a majority of the other lakes. They can live on sand, not just rock, wood, and other submerged structure.

The article, found here, naturally goes far deeper into this web of problems than this short post does. Go on over and read this post from the U-M News Service.

Great Lakes Charter Fishing Boats : Midway Through a Slow Summer

In an associated press article about Great Lakes charter fisherman detailing the lull in business this summer I couldn't help but think of times fishing from the pier last fall, watching the charter boats with 2 or 3 salmon/trout hooked up at one time. The clients plastered with toothy smiles as they fought these great lakes beauties in to the boat.

I was invited along on a fall Salmon charter last fall on : Maritime Charters, out of Milwaukee. The fish happened to be scattered that day, we brought aboard a 10 lb. brown trout, two small two year old kings, and one lake trout in the 4 - 5 lb. class. Not that impressive for a dozen lines in the water and 5 hours of Trolling. Marc Sobeski, the captain, was a very knowledgeable captain and was willing to answer my dozens of questions about thermoclines and depths in various harbor spots and spots along the walls and gaps. He put fish in the boat, it was just a slow day and he can't be blamed.

In fact, he's responsible for a tie for my personal best brown, shown above.

The thing I'm not so keen on is the level of involvement in a trolling charter. The captain runs the boat, hooks up all the lines, sets riggers, dipsy's, leadcore, and planar boards. He then runs up, sets the hook, and hands the pole off to you to reel in the fish. He then nets it, unhooks it, and puts it in the box. So basically you get to reel the thing in and eat it later.

I'd love to learn the ropes of trolling. Learn how to set all my lines, learn why to run a e-chip mountain dew flasher with a peanut fly instead of a red dodger with a 4" bloody nose ladderback spoon behind it. I'd love to learn why I should run 5 colors of lead core along with my #1 Dipsy set at 2. Or just simply how deep and in what direction I should be running my lures.

That's something for the future I suppose. I love angling on the great lakes from shore for the time being. Someday I'll have a boat worthy of the big lakes and some money to make that boat an anglers paradise.

Go ahead and read the article about Great Lakes Charter Captains by clicking that text. I'll see ya out there.

Swimming in the Yellowstone River

A fantastic documentary about Yellowstone Cuthroat trout and the environment in which they dwell. A sound recordist named Mike, who's hobby is swimming in this river takes cameras along and documents the Yellowstone Cuthroat trout and the challenges they face, such as stocked lake trout, osprey, and other mammals looking for a meal.

The photography is gorgeous, it's worth a look. You can watch it online here.

Chicago Shoreline Stimulus Money

In recent chicago news, some stimulus money coming the way of Chicago's effect on the great lakes.

Some $5 million will go toward the Chicago Ship and Sanitary Canal Aquatic Nuisance Species Barrier System, which will help keep Asian Carp out of the great lakes.

$3.5 Million in stimulus money will go directly into repairing Chicago's crumbling shoreline.

Millions more go toward keeping sewage out of the waterways, researching flood damage reduction in the Des Plaines and other rivers.

$100,000 will go into research in restoring the natural flow bubbly creek (where much of the waste from the Chicago stockyards used to flow into).

You can take a look at the full breakdown of stimulus money coming to Chicago and the greater Chicagoland area here.

Round Gobys and Zebra Mussels : Invasive Species Chain Reaction

I've had my fingers and feet cut dozens of times snorkeling and wading in the great lakes by sharp little Zebra mussels, and round gobies are so aggressive that while fishing for Yellow Perch this summer I've had to greatly edit the way I fish to avoid a goby instantly on my hook. Now along these two invasive species are a serious annoyance, but together there is something even greater to fear.

An article in the Mid North Monitor, found here explains what can happen when these two species interact.

The Round Goby feasts on not only fish eggs and fish fry but mussels themselves. Not enough to control the spread of the mussels, but there is feeding happening for sure. The Gobies that feed on Zebra Mussels develop "Type E Botulism, caused by bacterial infection". As these contaminants make their way up the food chain from the Round Goby up, they can become toxic to walleye and other game fish, as well as birds of prey when they feed on the contaminated Gobies.

Give the article a read, there is more valuable information to be gleaned.

Sheboygan Salmon Fishing Report : July

With winds gusting to 30 knots this week it's looking like a good time to make the journey up into Wisconsin looking for a pier with cool water surrounding it. As warm surface water gets forced toward Michigan, cool water wells up to replace it, making the water temperatures plunge. Surface temps last night in Sheboygan were 51 degrees.

I was invited along on this long shot July Salmon fishing excursion by a friend, Mike P., who offered me a ride on the condition I could meet him at his work around 5:00, so he didn't have to make the drive back into Chicago. Mike really loves chasing salmon, as do I, and he had no problem committing to 6 hours of driving for a shot at a good fresh King Salmon or Steelhead.

So I took the Chicago transit system up to meet Mike, where I was joined by another of our friends, Keith, and we were on our way out of Chicago, toward Sheboygan.

We got there just at Sunset, staked out a spot for 3 to cast on what turned out to be a busy night at the pier, and got to work.

Water temperatures were perfect, your spoon came back feeling like it just came out of an ice bath, there were beautiful 3 foot swells coming back out of the lake as a result of so much movement of Lake Michigan's water in an easterly direction, there were alewifes surrounding the piers. There was only one thing missing... Fish.

Even with the lack of tight lines and screaming drag, it was still a lovely night of fishing. The familiar flashes from strobes to light spoons, and then the green streaks as glow spoons were tossed off the Sheboygan Pier into Lake Michigan. I even spotted 2 shooting stars and 5 satellites, something I certainly never see in Chicago.

After our spirits were broken after 5 hours of casting and not even a glimmer of hope, the camera came out and I took some photographs of the gang. Here we are.

Me, Tom Harris, armed with my 7'6" Heavy Casting Rod with a 3/4 oz. Glow K.O. Wobbler.

Mike, with his 8' Medium weight Downrigger Rod, with a 1 oz. Moonshine Glow Spoon.

Finally, Keith, with his backwards hat and 8'6" Shore Casting Rod.

Having never caught a Salmon in July from shore my hopes were not high, I expected to see a couple others hook up and had hoped that one of us would at least hook up and lose a fish, but that's how chasing King Salmon is, you have to put in the miles, the hours, and the casts to connect. I've started early this year and if all goes right, there will be plenty of photographs of King Salmon, Coho Salmon, big Brown Trout, and Lake Michigan Steelhead in the months to come.

Until then, I'll see you out there.

Kinnikinnick River July Fishing Report

I had a chance to escape to some of my favorite St. Croix and Pierce County Wisconsin streams this last week. To my surprise on both the Kinnikinnick and the Rush there were large hatches of small flies. Naturally matching these produced best results. Smaller dries took fish, as did small terrestrials, grasshoppers were fished without luck.

On a day on the rush river I stuck to my spinning reel alone and was able to connect with a few healthy brown trout as well as a large brook trout and a couple of it's younger siblings. Very small silver spoons swung across the current took fish, as well as small, gold bladed panther martins fished both downstream and across current.

Remember this time of year the fish are very spooky, shallow feeding fish were spooked by the slightest site of me, crawling up through the grass, swinging the rod out from behind trees or large boulders produced many more fish than simply walking up to the riverside and shooting at the most favorable trout lie.

Fish were taken from deep, slow pools that had a thick canopy over them, as well as from very shallow, fast running riffles, but most large fish were taken from deeper medium speed pools and bends in the river.

The further from an easy access you get the better you will do. Once I got a mile away from the bridge I parked at the fishing really started picking up, even in spots you might not think would hold trout.

Get out to the Kinnickinick river, Pine creek, the Rush River, or the Willow River now while the weather is warm, the flies aren't to bad, the water is full of suckers, and where some big lazy summer trout are holding in deeper pools where they can be targeted. Good luck out there on the rivers!

This is Fly Magazine, July Issue

Just this week another issue of This is Fly was released on the internet. It features over 100 pages of awesome graphic design, beautiful photographs, and what we all read it for... Awesome images of fish.

One of my favorite articles in this one is about shooting fishing photographs, both of which are a couple of my greatest joys in life, one of which (photography) is my profession.

It's a great read for a rainy day when you can't get out fishing or are stuck in the office wishing you were fishing. If nothing else it is just something to enjoy if you are a (fly) fisher-person at heart.

Finally, A Threat to Invasive Zebra and Quagga Mussels

"An eco-friendly bacteria that kills invasive mussels will be tested for the first time in Canada at the Decew Falls hydro plant.

Ontario Power Generation will monitor the specialized microbe's ability to kill zebra and quagga mussels, which threaten power production at the combined 170-megawatt power stations on Twelve Mile Creek in St. Catharines."

This could be great news for any fisherman, swimmers, and the great lakes in general. There are billions of these things covering the bottom of the great lakes, consuming much of the small scale food needed to keep bait fish alive.

"The mashed-up microbes are introduced into the water as a food source for the bacteria-loving mollusks, which won't clam up to protect themselves as they do with chemical killers." Check out the whole story over at The Standard

Catch Magazine : Keeping Trees Vertical

Another great online magazine called "Catch Magazine" has a new issue out. This magazine is not printed and is only available online. It is certainly worth taking a look at just like "This is Fly", another beautiful magazine filled with mouth watering spreads of places you'd give your last fly to fish at.

I'm a fan of these online magazines as I can look at them in the bright, full resolution of my monitor and can refer to them anytime, any place I have a computer handy. So click on the image above and take a peek at this, it's full of great photos and some interesting articles.

Great Lakes Angler Heads to Minnesota

For the next 10 days I will be chasing Walleye, Perch, Largemouth and Smallmouth Bass, Northern Pike, and Muskellunge up in Northern Minnesota. Reports full of photographs and stories will follow me home, so until then... I'll see you in the north woods.