Labor Day Weekend Fly Fishing Report

Posted by Ted Kraimer - August 29, 2014

With Labor Day weekend here, we find ourselves with summer like conditions which might be fitting considering how long it took summer to get here.

The trout fishing on the upper-Manistee has improved especially when combined with overcast conditions.  Most days though when the sun is high and bright the fish are gone into the wood piles making for mornings and evenings the best time to be on the water. The Tricos are still around mid-morning but they are winding  down – like most mayflies this year their emergence was spotty. The smaller streamers have been working well when fished with a floating line and rapidly twitched. Terrestrials and rubber-legged attractors have been fun to fish with some days the fish really responding well to them – especially twitched.

Because of the nicer weather and lack of rain, the migration of salmon into the local rivers (Betsie, Manistee, Boardman) has been very limited. While we have had some rain – and more is expected – we haven’t had the winds to congregate fish near the river mouths that combined with the wind bring the fish in. Each year is different with the run so you have to be flexible even though in the past this time of year has been great.  I suspect that with the lake temperatures being what they are and the fish scattered, fish will trickle in until conditions unify. Look for the salmon run/migration to be long lasting and prolonged this year.

Good luck,

Ted