Fragile Things

When I was growing up, my dad loved watching birds.    I remember driving down a dirt road one day and seeing a wild turkey.   At the time, wild turkeys were just being reintroduced and seeing one was an extremely rare occurrence.    My dad screeched the car to a halt and fortunately no one was injured as cars sped bye (and gave obscene gestures).

The same can be said of bald eagles.   When I first started fishing the Muskegon River, it was a very rare occurrence to see a bald eagle on the river.   Now, it is a daily occurrence (this pic was just taken today).     A lot of things have come back and there are great stories in our natural resources about these things.

One thing that is really obvious if you are a guide is how fragile nature is.     Though many things have come back, others become increasingly rare.   In the past 200 years, our rivers have changed drastically.     Some fish, such as grayling and blue pike, are totally extirpated from our state.     We have filled vacancies in our ecosystems with some great fish, such as the steelhead and brown trout.   Other openings are filled with invasive species and our game fish are in a constant struggle to hold their place in the environment.   We have to be careful to protect our great game fish, so that they will always have a prominent place in our rivers and streams.

Kevin Feenstra

winter steelhead

The Dead of Winter and Fishing Tactics

The last week was one of the coldest of this winter.    We didn’t get much snow but it sure was cold!    After a couple of days indoors, I needed to get outside, if only for a little while.    I know most of you can relate to this after being indoors for a while.   I went down to the river to take some photos on a dreary day.

One of the things that I look for is falling water when it is very cold.    Often times, falling water makes really cool ice formations along the banks of our great rivers.

Another great photo opportunity is when there is lake effect snow in the area.    Often the sun will break few for a little while in the afternoon, making for a beautiful array of pastel colors in the dwindling light.

It may sound crazy but winter is one of my favorite times to photograph things underwater.  The reason for this is that the water is extremely clear at normal water level in the winter.   Additionally, most fish and insects move very slowly in the cold water, making them easy to photograph.

I sure was glad when the weather did finally break today, allowing me to hook a few steelhead.    My favorite places to fish in the dead of winter are the inside of bends and behind fallen trees.    Trout and steelhead to a lesser degree congregate in the slower water as it holds oxygen and food sources in the winter.

Last year, we were fishing quite large baitfish patterns as there was a lot of lake run browns in the Muskegon.   Each year is different, and this winter we are fishing smaller patterns in the same types of water.   These smaller patterns catch as many steelhead as last year’s larger flies.   Since the lake runs aren’t as abundant, the smaller swung flies take advantage of the stream trout that are biters.   A slight change in tactics makes for some relaxed fishing, sometimes with many bites in the course of a day.

A lot of times I look for sandy bends that have a bit of deeper, darker water between the lighter colored bottom and the swifter current.    Often times these are productive places for a variety of game fish.

As spring gets closer, there will be a period of excellent fishing in these areas as stone fly nymphs move in close to shore, and king salmon begin to hatch.   You don’t need to necessarily match these hatches below the surface, as the increase in subsurface activity makes the fish search out moving targets.

When you look at rivers every day, you see the subtle changes that occur day to day.    Soon the signs of spring will be apparent.   For now, I am happy to fish whenever the weather breaks.

Enjoy this time of the year!–Kevin Feenstra

chargin river outfitters video

Tubes Flies, Video with Jerry Darkes

Check out the video from Chagin River Outfitters featuring Jerry Darkes covering the basics of why Tube Flies are a good option for when fishing steelhead.

mangled fly

The Icy Cold Rewards

Cold air into cold water

These are a few of my favorite recent photos.   Without a doubt, January is one of the hardest times to fish for steelhead, especially if you are waiting for a pull.    It really is rewarding when you have a chance to land one.   This year it is even more so, as it was a challenging fall.

The Reward of a Very Cold Day

The fish above took a fly after the better part of a day without a bite.    I was very excited to fish on this day as I had a pair of battery powered heated gloves.    The gloves were a $120 failure but near the end of the day, the fish made the time on the water a success!

Until We Meet Again

 

A steelhead is a flash of lightning and a  splash of color in an otherwise dreary day.    This fish viewed its home and went there….See you next year, I hope!!!!

-Kevin Feenstra

Keep em wet Fishing – Steelhead Pic of the Day

Keep em wet Fishing asked if they can use one of our images.  Visit their website to learn more about this great organization.

 

Thanks for the underwater steelhead magic @mangledfly #keepemwet #catchandrelease #mangledfly

A photo posted by Keepemwet Fishing™ (@keepemwetfishing) on

Catch and Release – Pic of Day

Manistee River Steelhead

Happy New Year Steelhead

NewYearsEveSteel

Closed out 2015 on with a nice steelhead on the muskegon river today with Kevin Feenstra.

Happy New Year

Abel Reels – Click Click

Purchased my first Click Pawl Spey Reel.  Time to make some noise.  Inspired by Sean, if you haven’t read his article about the Abel Click Pawl reels check it out.

 

Huge Victory for Wild Steelhead (West Coast)

http://wildsteelheadcoalition.org/2015/12/huge-victory-for-wild-steelhead/ – to learn more about the Huge Victory for Wild Steelhead.