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3. "P.P.S. Spence...FISHING REPORT???" -Jonathon

Jonathon,

I will apologize in advance since this will not be your normal "fishing report"...:)

As some of you know, my wife and I sold our business earlier this year. We have worked together for 20 years and this messed with our vacationing together. Big time...So, we took an old fashioned summer vacation, Michigan style.

We were on the road for 17 full days and though fishing wasn't the focus I did manage to "sneak" some fishing in. We started in Grayling and spent 6 days at Gates' Lodge on the Au Sable.

I headed out one morning early, so I was in a good spot before 5:00am. I had in hand the 7'6" Scott 3wt that I had won last winter at a Michigan Fly Fishing Club meeting...I was blown away by this rod! I had little expectations, hey I won the damn thing, but it has backbone and was an absolute blast to finally get to cast it. I had my Hardy Flyweight attached with a weight-forward 3wt line.

Had a light blast of Tricos early and the spinner activity was short lived. I think I had hatchers earlier than my arrival, its been so warm, and basically had 30-45 mins of small fish action...Mixed in near the end were the D lata's and I fished this out until I decided to get back to the room before noon as I had promised the wife.

My second day out was a tad over cast. At least for a while...I had few bugs and only a couple feeding fish and I hiked the old beat my friend and I used to call "The Wade"...It is known as Lower TU after some property owned by TU...I can think of few places I'd rather be just about anytime, but today was a slow fishing day.

I haven't fished all the way down in quite some time and it was interesting to see some of the changes to the river since I last hiked it. Near the beginning of the wade is Carl Richards old place "The Ginger Quill" and a ways down is George Griffith's "Barbless Hook" where TU was founded in 1959. Aside: The property was owned for a bit, after George's passing, but it has been sold to a private owner who I met on the dock...They have removed George's old sign meant for the canoes that pass, but they still have the stone there comemerating TU's founding there.

This second trip was with the new, this spring, Winston B3x 4wt...another strong "stick"...

Basically two days of casting practise...:)

Latter in our trip I returned to Beaver Island and my fishing hole there...The first time out I rented a row boat and my wife and I went fishing and she caught her first Bluegill on that Scott 3wt. The funny thing was I had another rod and didn't get it strung up as we "fought" :) over that 3wt...

Most of the fish were smallish "gills" except for one mystery fish that ran my reel a bit...It headed in to some weed bed and somehow got off with out us seeing it...I'm not sure what it was other than to say that It didn't fly out of the water like a bass might...Could it of been a monster, master-angler like Bluegill??? :) Who knows?

We had a wonderful trip even if the fish were not cooperating much. I'll let my pictures tell the story here...

Whatever you do...Don't ask me about my trip to the Black River...:) There are no trout there...You understand what I'm saying here...No fish! ;)

Spence

Great report Spence! Looks like you are doing exactly what I would be doing if my wife and I had the time!!! Congrats! And keep on enjoying it!
Eric

Thanks Eric...It was more than a little spoiling and more than a little over due...It was nice showing my wife around where I've hung out for so many years...The trout were more than happy that I was distracted and hassling them really wasn't at the top of my list. :)

Spence

I could live 5 degrees north or south of the 45th parallel pretty much around the globe...A northern forest kind of guy.

Spence -

Great photos, especially the smile on Lisa's face holding the little sunnie and the portrait of a contented "watcher in the woods."


Or at least if a little more South, let there be mountains!:)

BTW - that piece of water above the dock looks amazingly similar to one of my favorite stretches on upper Fall River.

Kurt...That little shallow run in front of Gates' dock is decieving...There are always little "dinks" feeding out there on just about anything that might float by. I am going to PM you a photo of a run between that dock and the bridge just above it...A run that I have seen break some of the best. :)

The DNR have shocked the stretch of which I speak and have pulled out a half doz fish 20" and up...

During our stay at Gates' they were hosting a Reeling & Healing retreat for women who have survived cancer in one form or another. They gave them basic casting instruction, some bug sessions, and went fishing after. One of the sessions the DNR showed up for and they shocked again the stretch and there was a Steelie sized Bow sitting in there...Go figure?!

I think the only thing that keeps them little Brookies from being a nervous wreck is the fact that where the big boys are sitting is primo space and they have little reason to give it up and go for a cruise in the Brookie Hole. :)

It is an extremely tough spot and over the decades I have ammused myself by watching a zillion anglers try their luck at playing "Nods" there only to see the dejected quietly move down to just below the dock and make a sad attempt at a cast over the "Bread Hole". :) (Hassling the fish in the bread hole is "bad form", by the way, but after you have had your ego spanked most just look the other way). :)

The fish feed like a well oiled machine, like pistons firing away in an old small block Chevy, until your offering floats by. They may even take the natural just in front of yours and the one just behind it no matter how many times you cast.

Anyone familiar with the area cannot walk passed it without a pause and a look or two for risers...If no one from the Lodge is looking they may even toss a cast or two along with their favorite prayer. One of the brighter moments for me, with the Reeling & Healing group, was watching them glance up that way after they had seen the big fish up there the day before...They had an aide that fished with them and they all seemed to want to wade up that way...Maybe make a cast or two and dream the dream all us anglers dream just before we fall off to sleep.

Spence

Very nice trip. Thanks for sharing. You two look comfortable and happy. Makes me happy to see.

So...you like "bacbone" and "strong sticks" eh? When I introducing my then-latest small stream rod, dubbed "Arctopsyche", in a thread here, it caused quite a fuss due to my strong comments about strong rods. I need to revisit that thread though since that rod has been put to the test since. Let's just say it does what I tell it and responds pronto! "Yes, sir!" "Over there, sir!" "Under that, sir!!" "Set! SIR!!"

Since my name is in the title of this thread I suppose I had better comment...

Looks like you and the wife had a mighty fine vacation there, Spence. Nothing like a drive around northern lower Michigan's finest scenery and waters to refresh one's soul. Glad Lisa caught something too! Are you becoming a 7'6" 3-weight convert yet? And I'd have to toss a few flies off that dock if I were there...

That there Black River you're talking about - is that the Black River that I'm thinking about? If so, nah, nothing in there...

I haven't been out in a few weeks due to a summer cold, final exam preparation, a visit from the folks, and deer flies...starting to feel better today, gonna try to get back into it this week, though with the drought I certainly don't expect the outrageous luck I had earlier in the season.

Jonathon

Respnsive...Yes! And not afraid when I put a little bend in it. :)

Jonathon...Just for the record. I have owned 3wts since the early 90's...I have a LL Bean (Loomis blanks) 8'6" and this was my Trico rod back then. I also have a Loomis 6'6" I like playing with when I'm hassling bluegills...I just haven't been able to make the Tricos in sometime and this new rod is a treat.

The saving grace to the Black is its not too easy to get to it...I have been meaning to explore the Pigeon River Country area for a long time, but my limited free time drove me back to my Au Sable. The picture of me "near" Vanderbilt is at the Town Corner Lake camp ground. How I made it there in my Saab Sportwagon on low profile tires I will never know...I gave that Euro chassie a serious, twisting, stretch. :)

For the lower pennisula, I think there are no more serious woods. This is where the elk herd is. You need to be in the UP to be that out there. One of the funnier things for me was the emergency numbers listed on the bulletin board at the camp...The nearest doctor was Gaylord so if it was something serious...Oh well! What good are emergency numbers? I couldn't even get a signal on my cell for hours...You know I was smiling!

There was a family camping there and had camped there many times over the years...When I told her how I got there she smiled and said, "Oh. You came in the back way! You probably shouldn't head back that way." Then she gave us some maps and wished us luck. Gave us a not-so-short short-cut out. :)

I chased a small bird around the damn lake with it keeping the reeds in between us...I never got a real ID. The woods are so dark. I did see a Raven.

Jonathon, Paul, Kurt, Eric. Thanks for all your thoughts. We haven't been as relaxed in years...It was a great trip.

Spence

It's been a while since I've been in Pigeon River Country. That is a very beautiful and wild part of the state. See any elk? I figure you would have mentioned them if you did...

Jonathon

Nope!

Spence

Spence, glad to see you and the "better-half" had a very relaxing and enjoyable time. Nuttin' like the northwoods to relax in and keep life in prespective.

John...We are lucky up here, no?! My invite to share a beat with me still goes mister. You ever get curious let me know.

How was your fishing season, by-the-way?

Spence