Fishing Michigan

One of my favorite casting lures for salmon is the KO Wobbler, followed by the Little Cleo, both made by Acme.  Click on the site and look around at some of the classic lures that they have to offer.

Glow colors have been highly productive, as well as some of the metallics like the Perch pattern.  Nickel and Blue is another proven producer over the years.  Sizes vary,  but stick with the 1/2  and 3/4 oz for best results.  I have always liked the Cleo for its great action, with the Wobbler it gets even better.  If salmon isn’t quite your bag, try these lures for pike and muskie fishing.  Springtime has been the right time for spooning toothy critters,  but catch fish most times of the year.

Cover as much water as you can when casting,  just don’t throw upstream and treat them  like spawn or flies and try to drift it.  Cast across or slightly downriver and keep the retrieve steady,  speed is determined by the flow/current in the river.  You want the spoon to be down, but not dragging the river bottom.

With all the lines available to salmon fisherman these days,  what are your options before heading north?  Quite a few actually,  and very few of them are a wrong answer.  Some will have their time and place, while others will be used in a combination.

When fishing spoons your best choices probably are still monofilaments.  In most cases when using a spinning reel, I would go with a limp line like Trilene XL.  It just comes off the spool nicer all the way around.  When it comes to river fishing,  you almost have to bulk up and go with a line that will resist abrasions and trees.  You can still use the XL,  but for spoons, 17 and 20 lb test will be the best bet. Maxima makes a good line, and you could get away with 12 lb, but 14 lb would be better.

For flies and spawn, you can still go with the heavy stuff, but you will need to drop down to a 10,12 or 14 fc line for a leader to the bait.  Not only for the fish, but for your benefit as well.  You can snag up with this rig a little easier, so its good to have a little less poundage down there.  Better to break off the fly than your rod snapping.  Another good way to rig this is make  a short dropper line with weight on it.  When the weight snags, the split shot normally will just peel off the line and come free.

You can also use the super lines for spawn and flies,  15 lb Power Pro, or 14 lb Fireline are good choices.  Rig the same way with the fc lead.  Going with different hi-vis colors helps to watch the line as the rig is carried downstream by the current.  There are lots of hi-vis mono’s available too.  Pink Maxima is a crowd favorite as well.

When wading and river fishing for salmon, this is not the time to go cheap on your reels.  Depending on how you plan on fishing for the salmon,  you can choose between a casting and spinning reel.  The rod manufactures will make models for both reels.

When do you use one reel or the other?  First of all be confident in your ability to use a casting reel.  This isn’t the pros you see on TV,  if you haven’t used a casting reel, give yourself some time to practice first before heading out.  Its easy to get a casting reel to start to spin with the line going out,  but very important to have the weight at the end of the line to carry it across the expanse of water.  For the most part casting reels should be used when spoons are your lure of choice.  They have the weight to keep the line moving off the spool of the reel until the end of the cast.  Some of your bigger crankbaits will work in this application as well.  Be wary of windy days,  a lot of these baits are made of balsa wood and are light weight.  They can get caught in the wind, and you have to be prepared to stop the spool with your thumb if its progress has been held up.

Spinning reels are your versitle option for hitting the rivers this fall.  They will perform well in all kinds of conditions and with lure options.  Besides the spoons and cranks,  for the dedicated salmon fisherman,  flies and spawn bags are a favorite bait of choice.

The first characteristic of a good reel for salmon fishing is the drag.  This is a key because you can expect a long run once the fish has taken the bait.  Line will peel off as you try to head the fish off before they make a run for downed trees and other types of debris in waterway.  You will want a reel with instant anti-reverse,  on the hookset you do not want a reel that has that little bit of play.  Reels with the fast cast or little lever that lifts the bail for you can lead to many missed fish.  Most often when drifting baits down the stream or river.  Smoothness is important as well,  while 10 and 12 bearings in a reel sounds pretty darn good, 3 or 4 from a good manufacturer is plenty.  More bearings is a good thing, but the quality of the bearing is actually more important in the long run.  A good starting price for a quality reel (spinning) should be about $60.00.  For a casting reel, right around $80 for an Ambassadeur, or  $150 for a Shimano or Daiwa will put you into a good quality range.

Line capacity is important because of those long runs salmon are capable of.   Its a good thing to actually purchase the reel at the same time as the rod, to get a good balance between the two of them.  Often you can get a combo price as well,  a hundred dollars is a decent starting range, maybe a buck 20.  Remember if you are using a lighter rod, you have to match the line to it.   If you get snagged up on rocks or limbs with 20 lb line, and the rod is rated for only 12 or 14 lb test,  there is a good chance the rod will give (break) before the line does. 

Line capacity will range from 200 yards of 10 lb mono, to 200 yards of 20 lb monofilament line.  Starting sizes for your reel in a Shimano should be in the 4000 size,  Some Daiwa reels offer a 3500 with the ability to hold the right amount of line, the 4000 definitely will.  Cardinals from Abu Garcia, look at the 504 or the 304 models.  Penns are legendary for their drags and a 4300 might get the right amount of line on,  but the SS 4400 will definitely do it for you.

Next up:  Line options.

Have you been thinking about joining the thousands of anglers who migrate north each year to search for salmon in the streams and rivers of Upper Michigan?  What kind of rod do you need to use, and better yet where can you find one that will get the job done?  This is going to be a three or four part blog on getting prepped for the annual fall trek.

Starting with rods,  what do you need to look for?  When fighting a fish that can strip 300 yards off a trolling reel in open water, you will need a little leverage.  You can get that to a point by picking the appropriate length in the rod you will be taking north with you.  Starting out at least eight foot,  and depending on your ability to around 10′6″.  The eight foot rods are a little harder to find, 8′6″ and 9 footers are most common.  Think of the length with types of lures you want to use.  Eight to nine foot for spoons and cranks, 9 foot plus for flies and spawn.

What action are you going to look for?  All depends on your technique,  and types of lures you want use to catch salmon.  If you plan on using spoons or crankbaits to land your quarry, then moderate to moderate fast is the action you want in the tip of your rod.  If using flies are spawn sacks are your means to landing these monsters, the rod will require a fast or extra fast tip.

To steal a term from the guys who fling bugs (you fly fishing guys know what I mean), what weight should the rod be?  In general terms,  you have to match it up with the lures and  sizes you plan to use.  Cranks and spoons, then medium to medium heavy.  Nine foot to 10 ft,  med heavy to heavy.  If you want to try and finesse these fish, give them that ol’ fighting chance so to speak, then go with a longer rod (ten foot plus) in a medium weight.

There are the basics,  now go and pick out a rod and price that suits you, and your budget.  Shakespeare makes a 9′ Ugly Stik that will get the job done for the guys who occasionally make the trip north,  moderately priced around $40 or 50 bucks.  You can choose a Cabela’s or Bass Pro house brand from $40 to 90 dollars.  Personal experience leans towards the Cabela’s Fish Eagle II models for $79.00.  Lamiglass, G. Loomis and St. Croix all make good river rods.  Look at the St. Croix Wild River Series or something in the Avid line of rods for your better graphite rods.

Next up will be the selection of reels, then line and to wrap it up with the types of lures to use.  As the water grows cooler, these fish are staging now outside the mouths of the rivers, some may be sneaking in now, but it will not take long before the runs are in full force.