The Gray Drake Hatch 2019 has been insane!...without doubt the heaviest hatch I've witnessed in 20 years!

                                     

  ( A stunning Muskegon brown that destroyed my #NEXUS gray drake spinner- the spinner falls in the mornings and evenings have been tremendous- that is an understatement!)
Without doubt, the gray drake hatch of 2019 has been the most intense I have witnessed in 20 years. A very cold/cool damp moist spring, very heavy water flows all winter and spring and last nights 36F and cool days are favoring the mayflies and trout in a big way!

The perefect conditions are in palce in 2019 for amazing hatching by Siphlonurus. As you know, the nymphs emerge on land at night, thus full banks with lots of water and overhanging tree/sandy bank structure is ideal for them.

 Last year 2018 was one of the worst emergences since the river was dry, the heat went to 89-90 F in the middle of May when the bugs emerge and literally "burned up' the hatch before it was spinner bound ( enough eggs can replenish the hatch even when on minimul levels ) but total 100% hatch and spinner flight success takes place when all conditions -(moisture/cool/full river flows) takes place like now. 

The morning and evening spinner falls have been sawdust blanket spinner falls and often too heavy to imitate with fly. There are so many bugs that fly around all day by the gray drake lodge, land on you when you are outside...totally insane! The big browns have come out of the proverbial wood work and are chowing down on them at a venomous rate (15-22 inchers, plus the 80,000 stocked browns and 80,000 eagle lake rainbows are going feeding frenzy nuts!

Please not that the river is now a type III trophy brown river (15 inches from Croton to Lake Michigan- watch out what the year will bring in size and growth with a cool summer forecasted by National Weather Service :)

The hatch will wane and then be replaced by our big Isonychias which are less in ### and thus these pig filled browns will come to the fly with a vengance- the next few weeks and summer looks very promising!!!...we still have openings and would love to see you at the Gray Drake!...cheers!- Matt &Laurie- enjoy the images/even the Bald Eagles are on the hunt!

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Posted in: gray drake lodge , Matt Supinski Brown trout-Atlantic Nexus book , mayflies of Michigan , michigan fly fishing , Michigan hatches , muskegon fly fishing , muskegon browns , Nexus , siphlonurus gray drakes

Steelhead run still going strong...big browns on the hunt...hatches ready to explode

( Chris Hefner from Denver last week with an awesome steelhead- they are running very large this year!)

Our water conditions are ideal and slightly on the high side. Great numbers of steelhead still coimng in the river- the rest of May until Memorial weekend will see steelhead continue to come since we are running a month late due to a bitter cold spring.

Got a 25 inch brown on Thursday and more big brownies are showing up as water temperatures warm up. The Gray Drake/sulpher and caddis hatches are ready to explode- some American March browns on the water just starting.

May and June are going to be epic wiyth the cold spring retaining lots of water in the aquifers on the tailwaters and sproing creeks-still have some great open dates to expierence wo;rd class fly fsihing- especially to teach your childern and young ones the beauty of the sport and outdoors!

cheers-na zdrowie!

Matt

( stunning Muskegon brown taken recently- some amazing fish have been caught in the last week!

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Posted in: gray drake lodge , michigan fly fishing , muskegon browns , muskegon river fly fishing , muskegon river hatches , Nexus

It is Leviathan Brown "Truttasaurus" season on the Muckegon- Take heed!

(Geno Kelly from Boston with this insane donkey on the Mo)

Time of year for these "Truttasaurus" magnificant beasties...It's still no -kill on trutta until end of April here in Michigan,April 1 in NY, so no dirty stringer thoughts me scallywag laddies...aye?- #threesecondruleforsnapshotsandbackinH2O....or...#keepemwet...., if you don't need a hero shot

Double D's and Lynch Drunk and D's are the ticket!...don't forget salmon fry have hatched!!!!

                                ( streamer maddness- Truttasaurus master Paul Zagorski's obsession)
                                                                     

                                  ( Virgil from MN with a stunner)

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Posted in: chinook salmon sac fry , gray drake lodge , Matthew Supinski new books , muskegon browns , muskegon fly fishing , Nexus , streamer fishing , Trophy brown trout

The Valentines Day Winter Hump has come..Big Red Banned Bucks and Ravenous Browns await !

( Massive red band buck above from the Valentine's day "hump" period - the dusk bite, awaits you in February and March- our TRUE TROPHY time of year!)

With a ton of snow that has fallen in the past few days and arctic cold temps, we are "so" over winter at this point!

The great news is Valentine's day and Lent start the trophy steelhead/ brown season. Our males are at their most aggressive and attack minded dispositions in the pre-spawn phase.

Fresh run chrome females and males guarding alpha dominant lies are at their finest sporting/attack minded quality.

Valentine's Day Mykiss Girls

                                                       ( Chris from Texas with a stunner February steelhead- Gray Drake in the background!)

( My Valentine's Girl- a stunning chrome/pastel hen !)

 Our large browns are now seeing the biological drift of black stoneflies and newly hatched chinook fry that spurs the interests of the smaller trout and bait fish, which in turn sparks the carnivore "Truttasaurus" leviathan brown killer hunt, in the big meat articulated streamer game!- plus the smorgasbord of all those delish stocked browns, rainbows and steelhead soon to come is big brown gluttony- " fat bastard" time

                                                      ( My Newly hatched chinook "Sacman" fry")

                                                           ( A sucker minnow came out of this browns mouth on the Muskegon, that was shared and caught by steelhead brown master- Dennis Bowens- look at those German Bachforelle red spots! )

SPRING BOOKINGS

Time to plan for spring! I still have a few choice slots open this spring with me/Matt, so would love to see you at the Gray Drake

NEW NEXUS BOOK OUT THIS SPRING!

You can now pre-order the book online-link below:

http://skyhorsepublishing.com/titles/13262-9781510730298-brown-trout-atlantic-salmon-nexus

 More news coming along with the clinics/book signings and shows I'll be doing, including Scotland trip.

Cheers!

Matt 

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Posted in: atlantic salmon , gray drake lodge , great lakes winter steelhead , Matthew Supinski new books , michigan steelhead , monster brown trout , muskegon browns , muskegon steelhead , Nexus

Nexus book- Coming soon!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Coming soon…The Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus, by author Matthew Supinski, is an in-depth expose’ adorned with stunning images from world–class photographers, that pays homage to civilization’s founding gamefish- Salmo!, in a fusion perspective like no other.

It is a journey of the passion unfolding, the evolution and the ground-zero world dominance and invasion, starting from Cro-magnon man to modern mankind. It scientifically explores niche habitat adaptations and the forever changing bi-polar predator /prey foraging profiles that brown trout and Atlantic salmon exploit so uniquely from the benthos to the meniscus. Here is where the art of fly fishing keeps evolving in its mastery of the food mimicry legacy.

Historical and contemporary tactics and techniques are intimately diagnosed from a Salmo perspective, coupled with hundreds of cutting edges new fly patterns and plates from “the best-of-the-best” world–class fly tiers and the authors patterns, are combined with a world tour of rivers, lakes, seas and oceans that Salmo thrive in their indigenous and conquering domain, A special perspective of  “Truttasaurus the Aggressor”, is a dark-sided look at the primordial hunting behavior leviathan brown chasers have come to love so much. New and unorthodox Atlantic salmon techniques are fully explored that originated from the classics and brown trout techniques.

Trout bums, scientists, artisans, epicurean gourmands and foragers all add to the journey and prognosis for the future.

The love affair for brown trout and its fusion nexus with the nomadic leaping salar has been the driving force shaping the fly fishing technical legacy since the red fly of the Roman era on the Macedonian brown trout streams. Nexus will shed new light and transform and solidify our love and adoration for these truly mystical and elusive creatures forever! (Now taking pre-orders at skyhorsepublishing.com , and Amazon )

(Image- the famous Gilbert Van Ryckevorsel )

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Posted in: atlantic salmon , brown trout , gray drake lodge , Matthew Supinski new books , Nexus , Salmo , skyhorse publishing