THE MOST PERFECT BROWN TROUT!- SIMPLY SALMO TRUTTA MAGNIFICENCE

                         ( Master Muskegon River guide, associate and friend: Jon Fortuna, one of the fishy-est dudes I know, with "THE" most perfect brownie I have ever seen!- a true massive congrats Jon! )

In case you haven't noticed, I'm passionately obsessed, possessed and compulsive with all things  Salmo: salar and trutta-browns and Atlantic's- the "Atlantic trouts" . My Nexus book on them was the most difficult and thought draining tome I've ever embarked on. #browntroutatlanticsalmonnexus

 When a fish touches your soul at at a very early age in the impressionable boyhood stage like brown trout and Atlantic salmon did on the Baltic rivers of northern Poland that I open my Nexus book chapters with, the power of these fish to cast a spell on you for life is simply spellbinding .

When Jon a few days on one of his evening trips texted me this image of the brown he just caught with client, I could feel his shaking/trembling with joy and humbleness coming through the texted image. When I first saw it, I was awestruck by the truly magnificence of this brown's "perfect" morphology/color spectrum/allele spotting patterns- everything about this #groundzerobrowntrout specimen- simply amazing does not do Jon's catch justice. When writing #Nexus I have looked through thousands of images of brown trout for the book- some of mine and other world class photographers so kind to gift me with their works) Here is why this fish is so special.

Ground Zero Genetic Infusion 

In Nexus I romanticize the importance of our subliminal  micro- ecosystem of tiny to medium cold flowing spring-fed wooded rivers from Newaygo to Baldwin, Michigan. Here in 1884, a special train came up from the Federal Fish Hatchery- Northville, MI to stock the "first brown trout"west of the the Atlantic ocean in civilization's new world western hemisphere- kinda a big deal ! 

Baron Von Behr's promise to send his beloved Black Forest German brown trout was on that train. They are typical of  the many brown trout strains of internal river systems in Europe : mix of brown spots with red dots circled with white rings, orange "butter" bellies, and a blue sapphire dot on the cheeks- a beautiful creature! These were and still are the main allele configurations of our ground -zero browns in our Michigan legacy. Our progressive Michigan DNR, leaders in fish culture for centuries, have preserved these German brown genetics by stocking Wild Gilchrist Creek browns at fingerling stages in rivers where natural reproduction needs help. 

As time progressed, other strains of brown trout came to the new world such as Scotland's Loch Leven and more coastal estuary/large water body specimens that had access at one point or still do to the Atlantic and surrounding seas, thus having less spotting and more silvery forage pelagic based allele structures that favor their life survival strategies.

Loch Levens when river based tend to have the more fuller brown spotting/leopard spot looks dominance in their appearance. Michigan uses a Wild Rose ( Wisconsin originated) brown that has faster growth potentials than the much more elusive and shy Black Forest German Forellen( Bach Forellen is German stream brown trout). Jon's perfect specimen embodies all these allele spotting into a fusion that takes on massive artistic implications. The fusion of leopard spotting with red crimson cell-like spots , extreme orange butter, reddish blood marking transitions, a cluster of leopard spotting running into the lower belly like Marble Trout of Slovenia....the artistic diagnosis never ends with this fish!)

"YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT"- THE MUSKEGON'S MASSIVE FORAGE BASE DIVERSITY
The Muskegon is one of the most fertile rivers I've ever witnessed. Since it is a tailwater that connects inland lake reservoirs and the Great Lakes it has a massive infusion of ecosystems that fuel the food chain in both directions. After years of lobbying for Type 3 regulations to create a trophy brown trout population, our new and talented /dedicated biologist Mark Tonello of the MDNR had the wisdom to implement these regulations and the brown trout populations are responding nicely and growing larger!
A big part of a brown trout's appearance /lifestyle and diet come from their genetic backgrounds and what they forage on, including adapting their morphology to their habitat type/water color and viscosity.
This "perfect" brown has an ideal mix of genetics that was fueled by an extreme diversity of prey. Robustly colored  browns usually result from extreme aquatic insect and freshwater crustacean, which the Muskegon has an enormous amount of. Crayfish, scuds and the entire aquatic insect smorgasbord of mayflies, caddis, stone flies and midges abound. Also bait fish such as sculpins, darters, chubs, sucker minnows and salmon /steelhead fry add to the mix. Couple these with the seasonal onslaught of eggs from spawning salmon, steelhead and suckers and the food supply is mind boggling, thus creating morphological vibrancy .
Bottom Line: All About The Fish
To me and many others, the fly fishing journey is more than just the catching. It is in the appreciation and adventure to witness the beauty of the natural order of things of God's creation. No fish is more stunning, sporting and beguiling , and captivating of the soul and eyes than Salmo-#civilizationsfoundingfish. Vision is a divine blessing we often take for granted. When you lay eyes on Jon's brown trout, a magnificently balanced beast of 30 million years in the making, you can only be humbled by the power of the natural world- how anyone can kill a fish of this beauty is beyond my comprehension. To all the guides and anglers that practice catch-and-release , the Salmo gods bless you!- especially with our Atlantic salmon populations that need mankind's help now more than ever.
One thing is for sure: you will be seeing more trophy brown trout ( Truttasaurus!), and stunning looking ones at that, in the years to come from the Mighty Muskegon!
(blogger's note: A year after my Nexus book was released, Jon's brown made me realize once again what emotional joy we receive when we catch a big brown!...to those that worship these fish, more of this adventure is in my Nexus pages)

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Posted in: Brown trout-Atlantic Nexus book , Brown Trout-Atlantic Salmon Nexus , gilchrist browns , jon fortuna , Loch Leven Brown , Michigan brown trout , Michigan ground zero legacy , muskegon fly fishing , wild rose browns

WHY STOCKING WILD TROUT STRAINS ARE SO IMPORTANT FOR TROPHY BROWN TROUT FISHERIES ESTABLISHMENT

                              ( A gorgeous wild Michigan strain Gilchrist Creek brownie- stocked in June/2014 on the Muskegon river as an experimental 5.6 inch fish- caught 3/8/16 at 16 inches on a size #18 scud- look at the colors and spots- especially red dots along lateral line so indicative of the original German strain)

Michigan and other states are blessed with thousands of miles of wild blue ribbon trout streams that all have brown trout strains dating back from the first importation/alien invasion of German brown trout "Bachforelle" , that were brought to New York's Cold Harbor/Long Island in the early 1880's by Seth Green. Michigan's Pere Marquette River was " ground zero first stocking", due to eyed up eggs going to the Federal fish hatchery in Northville, MI. It was the first stocking/ then NY did the same on Spring Creek in Caledonia in the western hemisphere of the little German immigrants , much to the dismay of all fly fisherman at that time that loathed them for being too "fussy/selective" when compared to their beloved brook trout , whose populations were dwindling. In the Catskills, lodges back in the 1890's encouraged killing as many browns as you can to protect the brookies- funny how now a brown trout is so beloved!!.

Michigan has had the foresight to take the wild original "German strain' browns from a northern Gilchrist creek , and raise them for their hatchery stocking programs- read more information at this link:

https://www.michigan.gov/documents/dnr/2080rr_363265_7.pdf

The link basically describes why wild strains out perform domesticated hatchery strains. It is important for Michigan and other states emphasis more wild strain stocking which reproduce in the wild much better, eventually eliminating the cost for additional stockings and eventual wild populations( Pennsylvania could use the Sate College Spring Creek or Penns' Creek strains for much better fisheries/survival /natural reproduction etc.- especially where spring creeks are losing habitat due to development and the wild trout populations are suffering and need a new "infusion" of genetics- - Letort etc.)

My observations on wild strains in Michigan's Muskegon River- a river that has the tremendous potential/massive food supply, to grow trophy brown trout if stocked with the right strain are below.
 The June ,2014 ( 4,000 5.6 inch planting- 2,000 at Pine Ave.- 2,000 at Thornapple) was a gift from former Michigan DNR Hatchery Director/fly fishing friend, Gary Whelan ( who BTW gets it! what I'm saying , and also says we need greater brown trout numbers stocked), after many years of me pleading and begging to get the strain planted again , since the local biologist we have doesnt like the wild strain..:(, since he wants all browns to be killed early as a "stock- and kill' fishery". Despite his undermining the river's fishery potential in favor of his walleye pike,  we 'CONSISTENTLY'  catch 20-25 inch fish, which demonstrates they love the massive food supply, hundreds of ice cold spring refugees, and year round feeding opportunities the Muskegon tailwater holds for trophy brown trout.

( two trophy browns anyone would love to catch on the Muskegon from 2015 and 2014)

 My observations on the Muskegon are as follows:.

* when stocked at fingerling/young yearling 5-6 inch sizes , they disappear for almost two years, only to show up around 14 inches- fat and healthy and colorful

* they avoid the worm/bucket brigade and hold over to trophy sizes in greater numbers

* they are very elusive feeders and spend the first two years under logs/cover chowing down on midges/scuds/mayflies etc...then when they get bigger , the carnivorous urge hits them and they chase bigger bait fish/fry

* they eventually create big trophy fish, but it takes time and patience

* they tolerate warmer water conditions by being wilds knowing when and how to seek thermal refuge- unlike hatchery strains

( Gilchrist brownies from early 2000's when they stocked them in good numbers)

 Last years fall wild Sturgeon River fingerling's, as a result of several factors and fist banging- not gonna get into that right now!, will be interesting to see how survival occurs  and is a step "IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION!-. The fish above is evidence and looks so much different from the domesticated Wild Rose hatchery strain the DNR insists on stocking for the most part . A mix of the dumber/easier to catch Wild Rose, and the more "elusive" Gilchrist would be a nice fit to see what eventually unfolds. Progress only happens thru experimentation and evaluation.

 We need much more of it with our complacent DNR/Fish Commission agencies. 

I can only hope that hope runs eternal and pray  TU/FFF /Alliances/Michigan DNR- most importantly anglers !!!! get the message and work proactively to make it happen- in therein lies the rub and challenge !- the river is prime and ready, we just have to stop the undermining, corruption and politics- let the Presidential candidates do that!...amen

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Posted in: gilchrist browns , gray drake lodge , lake-run brown trout , Michigan Fly Girls , muskegon fly fishing , Muskegon trout , Selectivity book , selectivity dvd , wild brown trout , wild rose browns

A NEW ERA FOR TROPHY BROWNS ON THE MUSKEGON AND MICHIGAN... EXCITMENT AND OPTIMISM-10 REASONS WHY, BASED ON OTHER WORLD CLASS RIVERS !

(The Wild Rose WI strain  here MI uses in its hatchery programs is a gorgeous brown strain- problem is they take a long time to "get their 'wild' on'- a little too domesticated...Ashallie with May 2015 Muskegon trutta perfection caught poaching on sucker eggs -golden caviar bar none- CBetts image)

(  A beasty Muskegon Wild Rose brown -JBacon image)

( check out video of wild Sturgeon strain brown trout stocking in Muskegon November 25th/2015 courtesy of Matt Z Zudweg- Facebook)

The Muskegon tailwater is an extremely fertile ecosystem that has produced trophy brown trout for decades, despite not being managed for such due to much attention on the steelhead, salmon, walleye and rainbow trout fisheries. 

The brown trout- salmo trutta, is the ideal "fit" for this very fertile tailwater river and other woody debris and spring fed MI cold rivers to produce a world class big brown trout fishery that could eventually rival the White, Delaware etc. if managed properly. The Au Sable/P.M/Upper Manistee already has those fisheries but  they lack protective slot regulations to protect 'breeder" stock for their wild fisheries, which  other serious brown trout states have in place.

With this initial planting of wild Sturgeon strain-11/25/15, finally and hopefully our point is being drilled home to our managers after years of pleading with them that we need better wild strains that will establish the fishery- everything (ecologically)  in the river is perfectly aligned for a massive trutta takeover! Time will tell how these larger fingerlings do- I'm very optimistic!- here are my 10 reasons why.

1.MARGINAL = TROPHY BROWN TROUT IDEAL WATERS

I hope I dont lose you here- bare with and indulge me for a bit. The Muskegon has always had a tinge of "marginal " label due to one impoundment- Croton, heating up in two summer months-July and August, pushing water temps up to 70 on very hot summers. Luckily, the new 'global climate change' trend for the midwest and northeast for the past three years have been very, very cool summers- the trout loved it. 

However, even when water temps approach the low 70's , trout on the Muskegon can be seen feeding heavily all day on the massive caddis and midge hatches- totally unaffected by the water temps. 

From a biological (PFP)- 'predator foraging profile', the vast benefit from the caloric mass intake outweighs any physiological stress exerted- thus the balance falls in favor of feeding rather than dormancy and energy conservation. On most 'freestone' rivers, they get heated up , trout shut down and 'slink out' like snakes-not so on the Muskegon. The trout look like little footballs all summer due to their caddis/diptera diets and are quite happy despite less than "ideal-blue ribbon-45-58F TEMPS. Keep in mind almost all the "blue ribbon Michigan trout waters " run up water tempos in July/August- the Au Sable/Pere Marquette ...on and on.

The key is 'thermal refuge areas', where ice cold subterranean aquifers provide safe haven for stress periods. Out of all the Michigan rivers, the Muskegon is "LOADED WITH SPRING SEEPS/POOLS", due to the higher river gradients of the Muskegon that cut through rocky morainal spring bedrock caverns( high rollaway good example). Actually water temps can be " the worst' at the Croton Dam from thermal warming. Note that Hardy Dam/Reservoir has a very deep water ice cold draw that mixes it up. Plus the new oxygen/cool water bubbler at Croton has made a big water quality difference in favor of all summer long trout feeding and growth- up to one and a half inches through the summer. From Thornapple to Henning there are 286 documented spring creek/seeps entering the river. This section actually remains the coolest all summer from the springs

( A beasty brownie I caught from the lower river June 

/15/15 )

It's also interesting to note that most of all the truly trophy browns are caught from Thornapple to Old Womens bend- 6 to 18 miles away from the tailwater release...seriously?- why is that?

Let's look at other tailwaters/rivers in the world and why big browns tend to favor and "LIKE" marginal waters. Often these waters are highly energized in the warmer food chain and contain a larger biodiversity of food/prey, much to a big ravenous brown's liking. They also carry more' good pollution', which actually energizes the food chain- sounds crazy! Also browns tolerate and prefer higher water temps, more bio/polluted waters than both brook and rainbow trout. Also being 'marginal' water, it has less trout per mile densities and more coarse fish density- chubs/shiners/dace , and less competition for a slow moving, cautious beasty big brownie to gorge more easily and with less competition and restaurant.No matter where you find them, suckers and carp , you will usually find big browns. I recall my days fishing Spruce Creek- a magnificant spring creek in PA- find the suckers?...you'll find the big browns!!

(the 'Big Manistee'- another 'marginal Michigan tailwater' water that is stocked extremely heavily with browns and grows monster leviathans despite the water temps from Tippy and Hodenpyl dams)

Look at the the lower Au Sable/ lower Pere Marquette, they have "marginal water temps' in summer, but that is where most of the "leviathan"/donkey browns live.  Look at the lower Letort in PA- leviathan trout water. Lower Battenkill VT/Farmington CT/Big Delaware NY/PA...all big trophy brown waters!!!-despite warmer temps!

A real eye opener came to me and the NY DEC biologists on our summer cabin tailwater river in the Catskills, the Neversink

( Mandy 'Nanda' Sanasie- 'the Euro Nymph goddess' with a gorgeous Farmington tailwater CT brown this past summer- many of the big hogs come from the lower river stretches here)

(for more reading and info: the amazing Neversink tailwater- ground zero of American Fly Fishing- Gordon/Hewitt/LaBranche waters- a complex conundrum ecosystem- see my Fly Fisherman Magazine article on it- September 2008-'' Selectivity', talks at great length about this....also my article in Fly Fisherman-Oct/Dec 2010- 'Brown Town' has some interesting insight )

Where we have our summer family home in the magnificent Catskills of NY,  The Neversink tailwater runs out of the brutally ice cold and deep( 175 feet) Neversink Reservoir- that drains the ice cold Slide Mountain section of the upper Neversink branches. I once stood in the upper tailwaters over July 4th weekend when the air temps were 99/100F, and the water temps were in the upper 40'sF and froze to death in my breathable waders- had to wait to 1..2 o'clock to see the first sulphur hatches because of the cold waters.

 Here is an example of where the biologist, Bob Angyle was perplexed year after year when they electro-shocked the "perfect blue ribbon quality' upper waters and only found juvenile wild browns in the 3-8 inch range- plenty of them, but hardly no big brood stock browns. The upper waters had migrating browns for the late fall spawn but they soon left because it was" too blue ribbon cold". Where he and his crew more progressively  kept finding the big wild browns was  where the waters turned/approached ' marginal'....59F to 68/70F- with a mean preference for waters in the low / mid/upper 60'sF....and well into the scenic gorge special regs area which gets really heated up with the hot east coast summers.... INTERESTING EH? So there you have it...marginal=big brown waters !....

2. BROWN STRAINS AND AVIAN/ANGLER PREDATION/SURVIVAL TO TROPHY SIZES

Michigan, since being the first "ground zero" brown trout stocking in the western hemisphere from Germany, with its thousands of miles of 'blue ribbon' trout waters, has produced more distinctive wild strains in its 130 year history with these magnificent European immigrants- (glad Trump didn't shut the border down for 'trutta' invaders- and hell they were German!)

.Originally scorned as impossible to catch and took away from the beloved brook trout their domain, they eventually became worshiped for their top water 'dry fly' preoccupation and their crocodile aggressive/active tendency to predate like savage beasts on streamers.

Michigan has produced for stocking two strains in particular that are absolutely gorgeous and wild as can be- The Gilchrist creek and Sturgeon river strains.

( A gorgeous Gilchrist brown taken on a sulphur hatch on the lower Muskegon when they stocked them in the early 2000's- note the butterscotch color and the gorgeous  red spottings so perfect of a German strain brown from ground zero.Last spring and the prior June,  according to Gary Whelan/former cheif hatcheries director, 25,000 of the brown plants in 2015- and 4,000 in 2014 ( those are on the stocking charts), were Gilchrist on the Muskegon planted at various locations due to the relentliss  insistence of a 'pain -in -the ass' Polish/American guide and author on the Muskegon- ;)- but if you look in the stocking tables it still says "Wild Rose strain", which I belive is a mistake or unwillingness to admit defeat..LOL!)...also the "wild rose "strain are inbred hatchery trout and as far from wild as possible- but they are gorgeous trutas once they feed on natural food and do well I must admit !

( here is a gorgeous" wild rose" strain from the Muskegon- they have very complex marble spotting and red dots once they pursue crayfish/insect/scud diets. They are a great strain from Wild Rose , Wisconsin, but they are easy to catch, suffer high mortality in the spring for their unwillingness to spread out fast and get away from people at the landings tearing worm hooks out of 6.6 inch trout that have to be legal at 10 or 15 inches- their hatchery inbreeding has made them less cautious,they  school endlessly in search of pellets and take them longer to get 'wild")

Now for the newly cultured and wild Michigan Gilchrist and  Sturgeon River strain, thess can be the "golden chariots' when combined with the wild rose. These are a hearty wild strain that can be both migratory to the big lake and come back as trophy lake/sea run browns, or can establish residency in larger river systems like the Muskegon due to their enormous food supply- ( note: some of our steelhead dont smolt until 14-15 inches since the Muskegon food supply borders on overload!- and they forgo 'silver smolting' for a year and take on river rainbow spotting- we saw this when they had right pectoral fin clipped the fish and we  thought we caught beautiful eagle lake looking bows with right fin clips in the winter at 14 inches- they should have been gone!- from a biological standpoint. Remember, fish don't always do what the bio data and models tell us "they should do"- with global climate change "the models" will become more unorthodox and whacky IMHO!)

STOCKING/PREDATION

(Nov 25th stocking of Sturgeon strain on Muskegon- MGuzniczek images)

It is also important and interesting to note that when they stocked the 'wild strain' 50,000  Sturgeon browns , they dispersed from the boat ramp stocking locations almost immediately. The domesticated wild rose and other strains lay around the landings for weeks and are subject to mortality from boats, bait monkeys ripping crawler harnesses out of their mouths and of course those beautiful  avian  blue herons/ospreys/king fishers that gorge on them- the birds can almost hear the hatchery trucks engines coming from miles away!!!. The same goes for the Gilchrist wild strain- they disappear and usually dont show up for 6-10 months until their aggressive feeding drive takes over at 9-14 inches- ( 

NOTE: YEARLING BROWNS STOCKED AVERAGE 5-6 INCHES in Michigan- most must grow to 10/15 inches to be legal harvest). 

Last years avian predation of trout on the Muskegon really destroyed the fishery-9-14 inch trout were demolished by cormorants/mergansers diving ducks since the Great Lakes froze over and the birds flew inland until they found open waters for baitfish prey and easy pickings trout. Also the water shut off by Consumers Power on two separate occasion because of their computers 'icing up-LOL" on 37 below zero nights did not help. The browns from 16-26 inches survived and had more food- thus we saw more trophies than normal- but not many!.

The extreme wariness of these wild strains is excellent for long term trophy survival. I often talk to hatchery personnel and they say the Gilchrist and Sturgeon strains are very tough to raise. They must be kept covered and in the dark often, they wont eat if startled and all their "wild" behavioral attributes are always in place.

FINGERLINGS VS. SMOLT/YEARLINGS 

Here is a big one!- and I'm sure Ill get many 'heated up, 'what the hell is this man saying!!(me) debates over this from 'by the book/old school ' biologists- have at it!

Most!!...not all studies suggest greater survival of stocked trout with larger fish- makes sense, but does it always????...not so sure and we have plenty" recent" evidence it does not always pan out like we expected .

One problem is larger smolts /yearlings hang around in schools by landings and stocking points like confused children looking for Mama's pellets!!!!... They are heron prey par excellence! Having been feed hatchery pellets longer takes them longer to get weaned off the pellet crack.

Wild fingerlings on the other hand adapt to wild food forms quicker, disperse immediately and go their separate wild ways looking for cover and a food niche-it takes weeks /months for the other yearlings. It is for a 'put-and take" fishery, what our beloved biologist,  RO ,  likes to manage for, the larger stocked fish can be killed quicker and dumber. That is not trophy mentality for  the bigger  brown trout which the Muskegon produces despite the lack of" big trout management goals"-which the trout keep telling us by their size they want to be eh???.

I believe the fingerlings disperse and blend in with all the other baitfish, thus are not highly and specifically targeted, thus cloaked for larger survival and can hide along the skinny  shorelines where bigger predators- walleye/bass /big trout won't lurk. 

When we caught the IGFA world record Atlantic at Torch, the DNR already stopped stocking smolts three years prior since the smolts were yielding poor returns and were expensive to raise. Due to public outcry and the press/me insisting the program continue, they stocked fingerlings that fall and have been doing so for 4 years. It wasn't their ideal choice since all the smolts were being dumped in Lake Huron tributaries:AuSable etc. to make an atlantic fishery there.

BUT!!!!!!...it turned out by default and accident to be the best thing ever for the Torch Atlantic fishery- even the biologists are perplexed why the fall fingerlings have created an epic atlantic fishery in the past years that yearling /smolts could not do. All the reasons above are the answer... and then some!.

3. ECOSYSTEM- THE MIDGE FACTORY

Lake Myvatn in Iceland is an amazing place...breathtaking when you first see it.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BDvatn

It is a massive volcanic , spring fed oasis of waterfowl, wildflowers and beauty at the headwaters of one of the most famous atlantic salmon and brown trout rivers in the world- The Big Laxa. Here the massive food of Diptera midges:chironomidae/similium creates clouds of midges in the air that can literally choke you on some days. The ducks gorge on globs of midges - so do all the brown trout and atlantic salmon parr. Midges are the ideal food for small fingerling parr of the trout, salmon and steelhead domain.

The Muskegon has now become a "ginormous midge factory", that most tailwaters eventually develope, but I have never seen the vast amount and thickness of midges like it anywhere else . 

Biggie!...Why do you think there are so, so many suckers in the Muskegon???- their diets are almost 90% midge larvae as they turn their snouts sucking the juicy rocks full of them.

From May thru November, the midge swarms at dusk are so thick at dark you have to put a muff over your face when you drive your jet. Up until yesterday , yes now in November, the smaller browns from last spring's plantings gorge on midge adults/pupae everyday/all day! That is an excellent thing to have for trout ,salmon, steelhead parr dont always have in other rivers- that's why fingerlings will do  very,very well!!!

(these shots were taken a week ago. The spring plant browns/Gilchrist and Wild Rose are totally immersed in a diet of midge adults/pupae and will be all winter- you can see them rise to the black midges in December/Jan/Feb regardless of below zero conditions- get your 6x-size #20's out and have fun- my current article in Fly Fisherman -Oct-Dec 2015 has my WMD midge patterns- tailwaters are giant spring creeks btw in similar  habitat /structure/predator foraging profiles )

4.MIGRATORY SALMON AND STEELHEAD

There is a mixed blessing and curse with this equation.Resident trout populations have massive growth spurts from all the steelhead and salmon eggs and millions of wild fingerlings the rivers produce. But also they encroach on spawning opportunities for fall and spring for the trout, so in some instances trout programs must be maintained by stocking do to the hierarchy of large spawning salmonid bullying out resident trout. But overall, and just look at how big our browns get on the Pere Marquette/Muskegon, they and the smaller trout benefit highly from these massive protein onslaughts from eggs and sac fry/parr- incredible growth spurts!!! - and so beneficial to

 especially smaller trout/fingerlings.

( trout love the eats!!!!)

5. THE SUCKER SPAWN HATCH

The tiny golden caviar of the suckers spawning brings out all the massive big brown brutes, but the tiny fingerling/parr really benefit from this yet another massive infusion of protein right after and during steelhead spawning. This big trout magic time goes on for a month and the trout gorge- no brainer to figure this benefit out!

6. HATCHES/HATCHES ...AND MORE HATCHES !

(gray drakes fill the nights in swarms for almost a month and a half!)

( J Murphy with a trophy brown- early spring black stonefly hatch-2014)

The Muskegon is blessed with an incredible abundance of all the mayfly hatches, massive caddis and midge hatches from the plankton infused reservoirs and epic early black stonefly hatches. Trout are feeding on tiny BWO'S and midges as I write this in late November. To a trout like the brown that always has its head up and on the surface like its cousin the Atlantic, this river is paradise!!!!

7.CRAYFISH/SCUDS- ANOTHER MASSIVE INFUSION

One of the main reasons large trout are so tough to catch after the gray drake hatch is their attention turns to molting crayfish and scuds, which are found in massive abundance throughout the tailwater- pure protein on steroids!!!!!

8.CURRENT REGS-SEPTEMBER 30TH CLOSING

As much as we need more 15 inch and slot limits to create a trophy fishery , this is good to protect the trout for almost 7 months!

9. WINTER FEEDING

Since the Muskegon is such a fertile tailwater with food on overload, unlike other free stoners were trout slow down their feeding in winter, the opposite occurs here with massive feeding by small trout on midges, scuds and caddis larvae

10. A NEW ERA OF COOPERATION AND MANAGEMENT

With the new Muskegon River Fishing and Sporting Alliance, a new willingness to work to make the Muskegon river a world class trout fishery, the future is very, very awesome and bright!!!!- visit their facebook page and join up.

Hope this sheds light on how our river has all the potential to create in the future,  and has already demonstrated how it can be an epic world class brown trout fishery givin some love and respect.

...feel free to email 

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Long live the magnificent brown trout legacy of our 'ground zero'  Michigan trutta fisheries

( a February brown that crushed a sculpin/hex..and a September scud eater-both from the Mighty Mo!)

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Posted in: brown trout , gilchrist browns , gray drake lodge , michigan fly fishing , muskegon fly fishing , Muskegon trout , sturgeon strain brown's , wild rose browns

STEELHEAD DON'T HAVE A CALENDAR!....WHAT THE SPRING RUN WILL BE...BLINDING US WITH SCIENCE!

( AN OLD CLASSIC SLAYED THE CROC/ KYPED DOUBLE RED BANDER MALE- THE RIPPLE CRUSH)

( very fat brown full of midges and scuds..the egg binge is soon to start and so is the early black stones- for these fish to survive the winter being that fat is a grand testimonial to the Muskegon's alkaline food infused ecosystem!

Getting over a painful experience is much like crossing monkey bars. You have to let go at some point in order to move forward. -C.S. Lewis.....sums up winter

This brutal winter won't let go!....went to Traverse City MI today at Streamside Orvis to do a book signing and from Mesick to TC it looked like a blowing snow tundra- icy roads..come back to Newaygo and we have sunshine...22F up there..35 F here...Lima OH where my son is playing national league soccer this weekend..balmy 45F.Tonight back to zero F in Newaygo for next few nights...and wind chills below zero!....I HAVE LOST IT!

Crossed the Pere Marquette and the cars were in the parking lots of the motels...all of them looked good and had business,,,the calendar spells the big bite?...OR DOES IT!..

So the last day I guided  my good client and friend Bill Wegge From Wisconsin a few days ago, a swing freak..no "'chunk n" F'lnk" for me, Bill says". We saw a huge drop in water temps. We dredging T-20 on 600 gr. Skagits and managed nothing but fat brownies on the swing in very deep water...BUT THAT'S GOOD!...the days before when it was a balmy 34F , we crushed some dark hen steels on two separate days

HOW WILL THE 2014 STEELHEAD RUN SHAPE UP!-BLINDING US WITH SCIENCE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JWitntwPjM4

I can remember the winter of 2003/2004- it was bloody cold-but nowhere near what we have experienced. We had steelhead in the river until June 14th. With the very slow and cold transition into spring , there will be NO fast run off of flooding like in years past. The climatological data so far - NOAA and predictions show a very mild and cool spring and summer and a progressive colder weather pattern for Midwest and East over the next 5 years...that should bring those carbon fueled warming temps down a few Celsius divots me thinks. This slow warming is very good for the entire steelhead and trout fisheries.

Let's first look at the water table and lake levels. Despite some record flooding the past two years , the water table/subterranean aquifers are down because all the water blew off in spate- didn't have time to peculate gradually into the water caverns below. With a slow melt off it will.

THE RUN AND THE GREGORIAN CALENDER!

Steelhead don't have Gregorian calendars and make their run because it is March and April. They use four prime factors to govern their migrations; water temperatures, photo period light levels , hormonal sexual maturity advancement and flow impulses. 

Let's look at water temperatures first in the big lakes-Michigan/Huron /Erie......THEY ARE TOTALLY FROZEN OVER!...The average temperatures at all thermoclines are so well below normal because of this deep frozen lock that satellite readings are not possible. Steelhead are very similar to humans...(woaaah!...I know I'm going out on a fragile limb here!) Some fish have more genetic innate predispositions and polarities towards any one of the above four indicators for migration and spawning. Some are more driven by photo light period by measuring daylight through their Pineal glands and use that as their prime indication. So steelhead parents that are used to running in mid May for instance will innate imprint their off spring to that photo length of daylight to run. So how do steelhead in the big lakes imprint to photo period of light when they are completely covered in the darkness of the frozen abyss...good question- the upcoming week's zero F temps will do nothing to hasten ice breaking up .

(darker hen steelhead from this week)

As for 'spate or flow ' driven lateral line migration, if it stays cold , there will be now major flow migration since the water will slowly trickle up - thus the run of fish will do the same...trickle in over a long period of time.

River temps, especially on the Muskegon will be so sub normal due to the massive amount of ice on Croton and Hardy which is feet thick. Also given that they are spilling off the top due to their year long turbine renovation, water that is coming out is as cold to 33F as possible. Most of the steelhead we have been catching have been darker hold over steelhead with a somewhat chrome one here and there. 

BUT , the good news is sexual hormonal advancement - this is the push comes to shove trump card! The steelhead have to move in good numbers eventually and will circumnavigate all obstacles. It may seem like early February for most fish from conditions, but their biological hormonal clocks are ticking as they have for millions of years of successful life survival strategies.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN IN A NUTSHELL!

Good stuff!-very good stuff!.........Prepare for a very long steelhead run lasting into June- everywhere-even Erie/Ontario!- spring steelhead will overlap summer Skamania!. Prepare for a long slow trickle of fish. Prepare for some very large fish since the more time they spend in the lake and estuaries the more they will still 'side chow' on gobies/alewives/shiners/sculpins etc.....just getting bigger and sexually riper and gaining pounds! And the cold temps will keep the urge to spawn down, so they won't just come in and 'dump-and-run'. like they did with warm up floods in the past- not physically possible with low water temperatures.Remember also, that Muskegon fish have to navigate long distances for Lake Michigan, then a very frozen long Muskegon Lake, then 35 miles of river....that takes weeks and months...think about it. This is not a short blast up the river like on the AuSable below Foote Dam, which is and will see chrome dime bright fish much quicker then us...so will the PM.

SO....if you think you've missed out and its too late, brother it hasn't even started!...We still have a few dates left and would love to get you back out on the water when it is somewhat comfortable and your are not beating on the same beaten winter fish that everyone else has been beating on!...fresh fish are on their way!!!!

TROUT FISHERY

This is all very good news for the trout fishery on the Muskegon. It's rich biologically diverse in food ecosystem has kept them very fat all winter with no freeze ups.The early black stone flies haven't started yet..I just saw two wiggling nymphs in the past week. Two years ago the hatch was almost over by now. The chinook fry are just thinking about hatching- water temp thing again. The very cold water temps are keeping mayfly and caddis nymph and larvae development way low, so the  hatches will be for a longer period and later into the year. Couple this with a threat of a cool summer and BINGO!...might have an outstanding trout year!

FINALLY- TROUT STOCKING

I have developed a relationship with Gary Whelan of the MDNR over the years- he is in charge of the entire state's hatchery program.Gary is an amazing biologist and passionate fly fisher who has fished all over.He told me last week that the trout stocking will be delayed because of all the cold weather and other complications this winter has brought. I have been asking him if we could get back the brown trout stockings of the Gilchrist wild strain browns that we had in the Muskegon back in the early 2003/4 period and were yanked for no apparent reason. I told him we would love to see those fish again and they did phenomenal in the MO since they are very aloof, discriminating and grow to very large sizes and can tolerate higher water temps. He is working on doing so for this year. Here are what the browns used to look like back then- this gentleman from New York- John Walsh, caught two hogs with us on the caddis/gray drake hatch back on a June gentle evening.

I also asked Gary if we could get the new wild Sturgeon strain browns which he is looking into it. The domesticated hatchery strain Wild Rose don't do well on the Muskegon. They don't have the wild genetics anymore top give them the allusive qualities necessary to survive on a river that get hammered to death by bait, hardware and fly anglers at an amazing frequency and allows plenty of  kill and no release. These two strains are survivors and that's what our trout fishery needs. The rainbows can get get big and selective also , but are more easily harvested which is OK if it protects the browns for the fly fishers who are 90% C&R anglers.

*****IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE GILCHRIST AND/ OR STURGEON WILD BROWNS STOCKED IN THE MUSKEGON?*****....please email Gary Whelan at MDNR

whelang@michigan.gov

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Posted in: black stones , chinook salmon sac fry , gilchrist browns , gray drake lodge , Great Lakes steelhead , Muskegon hatches , Muskegon River steelhead