THIS AIN'T BRITISH COLUMBIA OR WASHINGTON'S WASHOUGAL............JUST GOOD OLD GREAT LAKES CHROME SUMMER SKAMANIA STEELHEAD AT ITS FINEST!

( JAKE WITH HIS FIRST SUMMER STEEL!)

I ain't no Hugh Hefner judging chrome .sweet, center-fold voluptuous steelhead, but what happened yesterday was a once in a lifetime day! It was LOONG in coming, brothas and sistas................looong I tell you, after a heat wave from hell!
The stats and the beauty images are all I got to say..................and it didn't come with a  Dean River price tag!

( PURPLE HAZE............IS IN MY JAW!)

DATE: AUGUST 12TH

PLACE: A COLD, SMALL TRIBUTARY TO LAKE MICHIGAN.....( and it ain't where you are thinking!)

ANGLERS:..........TONY DOMBROWSKI, ACCOUNTANT- GAYLORD, MI,........ SONS JAKE DOMBROWSKI -21, KICKER /PUNTER FOR TOP IVY LEAGUE COLLEGE ON EAST COAST HEADED TO THE NFL- OTHER SON, ALEX, 16, TOP MIDWEST GOLFER HEADED FOR THE PGA- MICHIGAN STEELHEAD FANATICS THAT NEVER CAUGHT A SUMMER RUN SKAMANIA STEELHEAD

PURVEYOR OF STEELHEAD ECSTASY: MOI!

CONDITIONS: PERFECT- COLD 58 F NIGHT, POLAR FLEECE MORNING.........FINALLY!..........WATER CLEAR AND COOLER......THE PERFECT " WINDOW OF RUN" OPPORTUNITY

SPECIES; SUMMER SKAMANIA STEELHEAD THAT JUST CAME IN THAT NIGHT ON THE COOLER TEMPS AND FULL MOON FROM THE BIG LAKE

 DEMEANOR OF FISH: ABSOLUTELY CRAZY!!!!-SUICIDAL AGGRESSIVE/ACTIVE "BULLS IN A CHINA SHOP", AERIAL DISPLAYS UNPARALLELED!.............THESE FISH GAVE THE WARY AND" FISH OF A THOUSAND CAST!" REPUTATION A REAL BAD NAME!!!.......-THEY SMASHED OUR FLIES WITH A RECKLESS ABANDONMENT LIKE STRIPERS ON THE HUNT FOR BAITFISH!.........ABSOLUTELY INSANELY DUMB AND AGGRESSIVE FREAKS!

( JAKE WITH HIS SECOND-  A KICK ASS FISH THAT WAS IN THE AIR MORE THAN IN THE WATER)

TACKLE: ORVIS HELIOS  AND T-3, 8 AND 9 WEIGHTS, ......LOOP AND MIRAGE LA REELS,.......... FLOATING WONDER LINES ,1X TIPPETS , TINY FOAM INDICATOR AND MY "Purple Haze Skamania Crack" FLY

HOOK-UPS/LANDINGS: WON'T SAY!!!!! AND BE GROSS ABOUT IT!- DAYS LIKE THIS HAPPEN ONCE EVERY 10 YEARS AND I BASICALLY CUT THE GUYS OFF TO PROTECT THE FISH, EVEN THOUGH WATER TEMPS. WHERE UPPER 50'S AND FISH COULD BARELY BE HELD FOR IMAGES SINCE YOU COULDN'T HOLD THEM  BEING  SO HOT WITH PISS AND VINEGAR!.........(ONE BROKE A WHOLE IN MY NET AT LANDING!)

( ALEX WITH HIS FIRST SKAM!)

( ENTREE DE RESITANCE: LE PURPLE HAZE!)

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Posted in: B.C. , Dean River , gray drake lodge , Great Lakes summer steelhead , michigan fly fishing , Orvis Helios , purple haze , st.joe skamania , summer steelhead , trout and eagle , Washougal River

THE STEELHEAD SCOURGE OF B.C.'S BABINE IS BACK!!!

( one of Doc Flah's 20 lbers from the Babine taken on my electric candy cane string leech)

( a buck and a hen by the Doc from the Mo , Wed. and Thurs.)

YES......back by popular demand, it was Dr. John Flajherty (Flah!) from Chicago, whose known conquest of 20 lbers from B.C.'S Babine is legendary!

Had a couple of great days with the Doc. He hit some nice steels, caught some nice fat trout stripping streamers and we got to play with his new Meiser two-hander- 13-1/2 ft-7/8 with a 525 grain Skagit.John was testing it out for his multiple yearly trips to the big""Bab".

Water was really low Thursday, but should come up with all the rain this weekend.Caddis and a few Quills and March Browns make up the surface melange.

"Strip baby-strip!"- or as Sarah Palin put it"drill baby drill" but that's with streamers, not on the golden pole....lol(actually that's o.k. too if you want !)

Morels coming- this funghi head has been stumped thus far.

OH YEAH....I HAVE SOME SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS COMING UP- HOPE TO SEE YOU IF YOU CAN ATTEND!

Orvis Royal Oak-Detroit- May 8th- 11 A.M

Hex Shop- Grand Rapids- May 20th 4-6 PM

Orvis Cleveland-May 22nd

Check out Doc Flah's Jumpin buck Blogger video below!

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Posted in: B.C. , babine steelhead , michigan steelhead , morels , muskegon trout steelhead , Orvis Helios , Sarah Palin