Pere Marquette R. Mid-October

[dusty montgomery]

Hey Guys,
Next month I will be heading up to Baldwin for my first Steel/Salmon trip. I have begun to tie some flies already, but I want to make sure I have my boxes full with anything I could possibly need. So, what are some of your must-have patterns when on the PM or rivers like it?
Thanks for the help!

Dusty

[anonymous]

Big treble hooks with lead molded right in.

Kidding.

Look up the Kevin Feenstra patterns.

[Cameron Mortenson]

Dusty…I am jealous.

[dusty montgomery]

Thanks Dave! Eggs and Hex patterns seem to be the most used. Re. the eggs, do you have a favorite color? And what size hook is best?

Here is one pattern I am tying: Hot Butt Antron.

D.

[dusty montgomery]

You going alone, friends, guides, etc.?

Hey Cam,
I met a Yankee barber up there, calls himself Mark Schafer! I am flying into Detroit, and Mark is picking me up and we head off for Baldwin. He will teach me about salmon/steelhead, and I will teach him about self-respectable beer choices.
D.

PM sent.

[Rick Marcum]

Start praying now for a wet fall.

[spencer ballard]

Not to be a downer but I avoid that area in the fall like the plague.

[Michael Exl]

I totally agree with Spencer. Every jackpine savage comes crawling out of there holes to “fish” for salmon. It is hard to call it fishing too. The most common method used by people that say they are fly fishing is chuck and duck. Lots of lead to get the fly down to floss the fish. The only true way to really take a salmon during that time is to strip streamers. A good day is one fish landed using streamers. Using streamers you are really looking for the one pissed off fish in a group of a hundred, not great odds. I would go after browns, and fish eggs behind the salmon. This will give you a good chance at a steelie. I would stick with going after browns or steelies. Not trying to rain on your parade, just giving you an honest opinion from someone that has also experienced it for years.

[spencer ballard]

It isn’t that this time of year is bad for fishing though, in fact it is one of the truly great times of year to fish.

[dusty montgomery]

Spencer and Michael, you two are echoing the words of a buddy of mine whom use to guide on the St. Joe and other rivers up there. He knows that I am use to having ample room between me and another angler, and he knows what I will experience next month. So, he cannot wait for me to call with a report of my first time out. It will be a new experience, for sure.

And to be honest, I really do not know where all we are going. So maybe we will be able to avoid all the chuck N duckers. Maybe they will all be on the Manistee looking for the next world record!

Rick, Thanks for the info on eggs. I know nothing about them as there is no call for them in TX. Good info for this noob! Are there any particularly effective streamers that come to mind?

Thank you all!
D.

[Tim Pommer]

Eggs.

[Eric DeWitt]

I agree with tim, by mid october it has usually settled down quite  a bit up there.  Honestly, its been about 8 years since i have fished salmon up there, it just ins’t worth it to me for fish that don’t bite.  Although, i may take a shot at some of browns behind the spawners this year.  If you can push the trip back into november, you will have a much better chance at at steelhead.  

If your interested in a guide, which i really do recommend for the river, especially since most of the water is private, and not accessible without tresspassing, talk to Walt Grau, or Jeff Hubbard as was mentioned earlier.  The guys at BBT are good too.  And, if tyour after steel, they will have a real good handle on where to find them.

Here’s a couple shots of Jeff’s fly boxes.

Touch base with me when your getting closer to the trip, if i’m up there, i’ll give you the tour and maybe even show you a couple secrets.

[Mark Schafer]

Night fishing is definitely on our agenda, we will spend most of our time on the flies only section of the river (clay banks) to avoid the hook n heave guys. The Orvis hatch may still be on but they clear the river pretty early I have lined us up a stretch of private water for the weekend to avoid the combat conditions. All the fly suggestions are pretty common and we should have them covered ,my boxes aren’t as varied as those Eric shows but along the same lines. We will make a stop at BBT to pick up a few of the new creations, my TFO rep lives in the neighborhood so we will hit him up for some places to try as well. If the Salmon fishing gets unpleasant, there are plenty of other river in the area. It would be great if anyone is in the area and wants to wet a line or stop and have a few of the fufu beers that Dusty suggests.

[Rick Marcum]

Dusty, my favorite streamer on the PM is a Mad Pup.

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