Hey guys, it’s been a minute for me again, so I figured it was time to at least touch base… I really don’t have much to add to what John posted in his last report. (Linked here!) It’s actually been quite cool here for a bit now slowing, but not stopping, the hatch action and some pretty good rains have the water up with a bit of color at the moment making it perfect for streamers, spinners and crank baits!

As usual, there were a number of participants that showed up a little too late for the group photo of the 28th annual spring cleanup crew, but this is the bulk of us, and they all have our thanks as well as the river’s! 👊😎👍
My great friends Paul and Steve joined me for the day in our section of river… 😎
Unfortunately, I somehow wrote over or deleted the note where I had written down the names of these great folks (And pup!) in this boat. While they were among those that missed our group photo at the shop, we hop scotched with them all day and I can assure you they did a whole lot of fantastic work on the river that day! 👊😎👍

Just to reiterate what John already said, I also want to personally thank everyone that showed up and pitched in for our 28th annual spring river cleanup! It’s awesome to see those people that still care enough about the resource to make time in their lives for these events to give back and every little bit makes a huge difference! (We do realize that many of you do so in your own way when time allows and we thank you too!! 👊)

The appreciation dinner party afterwards was fun and full of friendship as usual!

Paul and I managed to hit the river the day before the cleanup, here’s a couple of our fish from that trip. Thanks for everything as well as all the business over these past 33 years buddy!!

As far as the surface action goes, we have or had been seeing some bwos, hendricksons, sulphurs, sallies, quills, stones and even a few drakes already on the right evening. Cool weather and rains slowed that for a little bit, but it looks like we’re rebounding from that starting this weekend and should be back in full dry fly mode within a few days. (We have guides and rooms available if you’d like to get in on the action!! 8am – 6pm 231 745-3529)

Not (very) fishing related, but Kam took me out to try and fill my late season Turkey tag and he kept his rather impressive success streak alive with an awesome hunt! (Those recipes you gave me turned out great as well… 😉🦃🍗)

We did go out tossing streamers for a few hours in the evening after the hunt, but it was slow only turning and rolling a few good ones and catching a couple of these beautiful “dinks”! Great spring day all in all for sure!!! 👊😎🎣👍

I’ve only committed one evening so far to staying out all night with waking flies and quite honestly the “action” was incredible on this solo trip! I didn’t hit the water until 8pm on this last-minute decision and I had planned to only stay out till midnight or so, but I was rolling so many fish at every stop that I couldn’t get to stick that the next thing I knew it was breaking daylight… 🙄🤷‍♂️🤣

This one was actually on a parachute Adams just prior to dark when a few fish started going off on a hatch I couldn’t quickly identify…
All of the other fish I landed were just about this size or maybe slightly bigger, but I gave up on the “selfies” after this one in favor of more fishing and less stress on those unlucky enough to connect…

I only got these two really bad selfies as far as photos go from the night, but I caught probably 4 or 5 others that were not much bigger. Quite often the fish you connect with the best on these excursions are those that you don’t hear at all or, barely make a sound as was the case with the ones I actually caught. The rest of the evening however was full of “explosions” from much larger fish that at least a half dozen or more different patterns did not connect with, and I never felt. (They simply were not fully committed, but now I know their addresses and I’ve got the itch! 😉😎)

The time stamp on this pretty shot was 5am and it was then that I realized how long I’d actually been at it…🤷‍♂️ (I had daylight to take the boat out with. 🙄🤣)

The water is already starting to level out up top here and conditions are pretty spot on for Streamers, crank baits and spinners but keep in mind that with all the recent rains they’ve been fed well recently also. I wouldn’t rule out some fish on dries even this evening with today’s weather, but I expect that it’ll be Saturday or Sunday before we see a major feed again. (That being said, I’ve also caught some of my best and biggest fish in these exact conditions so the right time to go is simply when you can. 😏)

Some great people doing great things!
Last Thursday we embarked on the annual “ROW” trimming. (Right of way) This is a program that was my brainchild way back when I was still a board member of the Pere Marquette Watershed Council and got tired of the battle between all of the concerned parties as to how everyone else trimmed the river to get by safely while preserving the resource as best as possible.
The idea is that we take one day each spring and get representatives from all of the concerned parties to participate. USFS, DNR, MRGA, TU, Baldwin Canoe Rental, Conservation Resource Alliance, Property Owners Association, etc., etc. and trim a section of the river together in the most needed location while discussing how and why so we are all on the same page. It has been and continues to be a great program, and we have learned a lot from each other doing this while also forming friendships, bonds and alliances.

I’ve actually had quite a bit going on outside of the river here recently with a trip out of town for a special wedding and the blessing of the bikes here in Baldwin being among the top things keeping me off the water, but my schedule has opened right up now so I’ll be getting out much more with or without some clients to share the experience with!

Congratulations to my beautiful “niece” Tana and her wonderful new husband Hayden! All the best to both of you forever… *She is my second cousin technically, daughter of Jim (and Phyllis) Johnson my actual cousin that I owe my start here in Baldwin to! 😎👊

John is returning here shortly from an exciting adventure that I’m sure he’ll tell you (And me!) all about so I’m looking forward to that and hopefully getting a few days on the water with my business partner as well.

Jake and I snuck out for a bit on Monday to share a few beers, talk shop and wet a line a little. It wasn’t “on fire” out there with those well-fed fish, but there was a decent hatch in the evening and a few fish willing to play on our way down… 😎🎣👊

I don’t have much to add on the fishing front right now, but I am looking forward to a great season of trout fishing, will report more soon and if there’s any more interest in our Alaska trip this year out there, we do have 1 or 2 spots (One room with two beds in a shared cabin.) left that we can fill.

The shop is loaded up with plenty of gear, goodies and swag if you can see your way clear to support us and we look forward to seeing you around our awesome area either way! As always, we truly appreciate your business… 👊😎🎣👍

Bentley likes the roadster almost as much as the motorcycle! 😎
Our Houskeeper took a quick pic when I had to stop to put his goggles back on… That is still a bit of a struggle. 🤣🐶

Take care, be well, be safe and have a ton of fun!

Steve

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