Midwest Steel

[blarson]

Snuck away last week for the annual fishing trip I've been going on with my dad for the past 20+ years. I grew up fishing steelhead in Lake Superior tributaries, mostly on the south shore, and it is always special to be back on those rivers, even more so to be there with my dad who is now pushing 70 but hasn't yet slowed down too much (even took up racing motocross several years ago).

Fishing was slower than average, but the fish we did encounter were on the large size. An ecologist told me it was an exceptional year for forage fish in the lake. Was lucky to be fishing with a former national geographic photographer when I landed this absolute unit. Have caught a couple of longer fish but none with proportions like this. Nice to be fishing during the peak of Fall colors as well. Was also fun to encounter a higher proportion of Cohos than we have in years past but we were surprised to not encounter too many Browns.

Run timings are a little different every year due to flows and water temps and numbers can fluctuate quite a bit too. Helps keep things even more interesting. All the fish in the system we fished are wild (exclusively naturally reproducing) and fight just like sea-run fish, especially when they are fresh out of the lake. Some fantastic runs of anadromous fish in the Great Lakes, and it's not all combat fishing especially if you're willing to put in some miles hiking through the woods.

Looking forward to the fall and winter runs now that I'm back in CA.

[Sonoman]

Beautiful, world-class fish! You need a larger net! Were you on the swing or fishing bobbers?

Lake Superior rivers are beautiful. How did they fight compared to west coast steel? I treated my brother to a Lake Erie steelhead trip in western PA a few years ago. The fish were much smaller, and the water was very cold (low 40's, snow on the ground), but I was disappointed we did not get strong runs from the fish and the fight was weaker than I expected. The fish were all chrome, fresh from the lake. I assumed we ran into the exception, maybe due to cold water, but just wondering what you experienced.

[blarson]

That one was on a bobber, by far the most effective technique, but I did pick up two nice fish on the swing, including one of the biggest Lake Superior Cohos I have seen. The river I primarily fish is relatively small without too much good swing water, and I have only ever gotten very fresh fish on the swing. Definitely helps to have a big pulse of fresh fish entering the system, and in those conditions, I will spend more time swinging. Just wasn't in the cards with low water conditions we had. Funny about the net, and you are not the first to bring it up. I have found that with an aggressive head-first scoop, you can get a surprisingly big fish nicely into a net with a small hoop. Extremely helpful to have a deep net, though.

The fight is comparable to West Coast steel in terms of fish speed and strength, especially for fish that are fresh chrome out of the lake. I don't have extensive experience across different Great Lakes, and from what I have heard, not all fisheries have fish with equal fighting ability, especially if you've got hatchery fish in the mix. For whatever reason the fish in south shore Lake Superior tributaries seem to be particularly hard fighting. The water temp was just under 50, and I do also notice that the fish seem wilder at higher temps. In some ways, the fight can be crazier than West Coast because of the smaller water. Way more structure for the fish to break off in (once had a fish jump into a tree and break off), and there is a decent chance that you are going to have to chase some fish. Chasing a fish through multiple riffles on a curving stream with overhanging trees is a fight in a different category than battling a fish in big water with a 12+ foot two-handed rod, even if the fish on the two-hander is a huge chromer. I know that they haven't been chased by Orcas, Great Whites, and sea lions but Great Lakes steelhead are one of the few types of fish that have gotten into my backing. Fishing isn't always easy, but besides a few select West Coast waters under perfect conditions (and some Alaskan waters too, I'm sure), I don't think you can beat the numbers and quality of fish you can get in some of these Great Lakes waters. A little sad for me to know that it hasn't always been this way. But I suppose the tradeoff is that connecting with a West Coast fish almost always feels very special.

[Al Baltz]

Beautiful fish and scenery! It's nice to see that these fish are thriving in the Great Lakes region.

[Sonoman]

Great to hear your experience. I agree the Great Lakes anadromous fishery is very healthy, and my brother and I got into a lot more fish than I would expect out here. And good to know my experience with the fish not fighting hard was not the rule; I need to schedule another trip out there with him! I fished the MI Upper and Lower Peninsula rivers decades ago, but not since and it was fun getting back to small streams full of fresh chrome. It reminded me of some of my trips to the smaller NorCal coastal rivers, but without the crowds. Thanks for posting!

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Thanks "blarson" for the inspiring post, great info and pictures of lovely wild fish.


Is that first one a Coho?






I have read about the Great Lakes fisheries and the tributary fishing my entire life but never got there.



A fly fishing tributary SH guide used to give his clients a list of what to buy from us because he knew we had lots of two-handed gear

about 20 years ago. It included a #7 Switch rod, #8/9 reel, and a full length Switch rod line.


I have heard and read about lots of the tributary fly fishing for many years now.

[blarson]

All fish pictures in that first post are steelhead. Here are two coho, one fresh and one in full river colors. Compared to the steelhead, they generally have different body, head, and fin shapes and color patterns, but the black gums (not visible in the pictures) are usually the best indicator. Contrary to what you might expect, best flies for chinook and coho in these waters seem to be small nymphs with a little color and flash on a stout hook.

I use a 9' 8 weight (partly because I'm a bit of a minimalist when it comes to gear and that is my all-around "large" fish rod), but the extra length from a switch rod or 10' single hander can really help in many situations.

All credit for the good pictures (all in the first post and the closeup in this one) goes to Michael Melford, a phenomenal mostly retired professional photographer who I had the good fortune to fish with during some of the trip.