Southwest Florida Fishing Report

September 10th, 2009

Kate and I FINALLY made the time to go fishing yesterday. Seems like between us we’ve had relatively minor health issues for several weeks. First, I had a sugar/glucose imbalance (caused by sheer stupidity on my part), then she had an impacted wisdom tooth (plus the adjacent molar) removed.

YUCK! Who want to hear about THAT stuff?

The good news is that it finally stopped raining and the air temps are up into the mid-70s and the sun’s shining and flying ants are popping up out of the sand and life is good!

So, last evening Kate and I went downriver a little bit to a place we call “Norway” because of the pine trees, and started pitching size 14 mahoganies. I waded upstream into a recently excavated sediment trap (and darn near went swimming), while Kate waded down through a nice chute of fast water bordered by some deep holes.

Guess what? The brookies were absolutely enthralled with the flies I had just tied for our excursion. Rise after rise after rise.

Oh, we didn’t catch anything very big. But they sure were beautifully colored in their fall “plumage.” We’re gonna hit ‘em again tonight, too. And tomorrow evening and…well, you get the idea!

The Manistee River is absolutely at its peak right now. Both way up here in the Headwaters, and down below Tippy Dam where the salmon are congregating.

As I said, the Isonychia are happening up here—along with ants, beetles, crickets and Baetis (blue wing olives). Unfortunately, the Hopper Hatch just hasn’t been “on” the way it should be. But, it’s been a very strange year all the way around.

In fact, the National Weather Service reported that August was five degrees colder than normal, and that this entire summer was tied for the sixth coldest in 113 years of meteorological reporting in Michigan.

Conversely, that means the Chinook—soon to be followed by chrome-bright steelhead—will fill up the lower Manistee and the Pere Marquette.

I haven’t been over to the Boyne River—about 30 minutes from our house in Deward—but I imagine it’ll start getting loaded with salmon within no time at all. Maybe it’s time to take a drive (after loading up the 9-weight and some big streamers) to take a first-hand look!

Get with me soon for an end-of-season trout trip, or for Chinook (maybe even a “Cast & Blast”).

ENGLISH SETTER UPDATE

Heart has totally destroyed two of the screens on the front porch! They’re directly in line with a couple of Kate’s bird feeders, and the Mourning Doves hang out there. Which sends Heart into a frenzy!

Sigh.

Ah, well. What’s ANOTHER re-screening project? If it’s not the red squirrels (20 have “gone away” in the past two months), it’s Heart’s enthusiasm.

Thank goodness FOR that birdiness, though. It’s just six days until grouse season opens and he’s going to carry the load while I’m guiding clients who don’t bring their own dogs.

Ghost is still pretty frisky, but she’s twelve years old and I don’t know if I want to keep her on the ground for more than thirty or forty minutes at a time. That put the onus on The Puppy!

Fortunately, it looks like he’s going to be one of the really good ones. Maybe even Great! He sure has The Want-To!

Most of the ferns are brown, and the next hard rain will knock them down. Looks like it’s going to be an “early” bird season. I still have a few prime days open in October, so check your schedule and let’s have some fun!

Tight Loops,
Capt. Tony