The woods are lovely, dark and deep...
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
A little patience paid off with this one, after spending a half an hour stalking to make my first cast in armpit deep water.
A beautiful saturation of color on this late night specimen.
This pair of hefty browns ended up on my grill for dinner.
Nice post, thanks for sharing!
fishyaker wrote:
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
And I have many casts to make before I sleep! br ... (
show quote)
Nice grillage fare and the story I've seen those Mayfly so heavy you couldn't open your mouth without getting it filled with them. Tight lines for next time!
fishyaker wrote:
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
And I have many casts to make before I sleep! br ... (
show quote)
Great narrative and photos FY, beautiful browns.
Great story FY,nice browns 👍
Well written story and beautiful fish. For the nights the Hex don't show, carry a mouse fly. The big browns love a hefty protein snack.
fishyaker wrote:
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
And I have many casts to make before I sleep! br ... (
show quote)
I was right there with you, thanks for the story...and pics!
flyguy
Loc: Lake Onalaska, Sunfish Capitol of the World!
Beautiful story and beautiful fish. They get so thick on the bridges crossing the Miss. River that they have to plow them off with snow plows sometimes.
Folks native to the U.P. used to refer to Mayflies as 'Canadian soldiers'. They were smallmouth candy on the St. Mary's River.
Enjoyed your paraphrasing of Frost.
fishyaker wrote:
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
And I have many casts to make before I sleep! br ... (
show quote)
Those are nice trout and you obviously worked hard to get them
Great story Yaker, beautiful fish. Yes that storm was a real one. Flooded my pond and the run off was deep enough to strand a car where it crosses the county road. Wheel barrow had a good 4 inches of water in this morning.
Langer
Loc: Lake Havasu City, Arizona
Enjoyed the story Yaker and wow what gorgeous Browns!
MNMudminnow
Loc: MN (MSP metro/Alexandria) & FL (Ft.Myers)
As has been mentioned by other responders, I found the reading to be quite engaging & am envious of your recollection's construction method. Found myself wanting to read more when it ended. An excellent visual account of your experience.
Much Apreciated.
A "hearty" thank you to all that have noticed this post and made comments! I enjoy sharing small snippets of the time I am able to spend fishing for whatever is swimming in our local waters.
fishyaker wrote:
And I have many casts to make before I sleep!
It's getting to be "hex time" around Northern Michigan, and I went to the river this evening for the first time to check for any potential signs of hexagenia limbata on the water, also known as the common "giant mayfly". The prime hatch time is typically around 10:30 pm, and depending on the larvae cycles, will last for about a half hour to an hour...although sometimes much less! Once the main hatch for the night is over, assuming that there is one, you can also get lingering action well into the wee hours of the morning with sporadic bug activity like "spinner falls".
I was targeting brown trout tonight, although numerous fish species gorge themselves on these plump morsels at this time of year. You name'em, they will eat it!
A big storm was crossing over Lake Michigan this evening...coming from Wisconsin, so I knew that timing would be critical as far as safety is concerned. Nobody should be out fishing in lightning!
As the last footcandles of natural sunlight evaporated in the night sky, the lightning bugs and whippoorwills began to showcase their after dark rhythm and communicational activities. This is always a good sign as far as timing for the season! I was equipped with a fly rod, which tends to be the best system of choice, although these large trout may also be coaxed into a strike by using small top water hardware and shallow diving lures.
After an hour of patrolling a 1/2 mile stretch of the river, not a single rise of a "bug" was to be noted or heard. I was alone, so competition for a casting spot would be nil if anything were to happen. Alas, it was not to be...no hatch and no feeding fish so I called it a day and drove home just ahead of a significant amount of flashing on the horizon from the approaching storm. The heavy rain was cued up right behind it.
Ideally, when you fish this hatch, the best nights are the first 3 evenings after it begins. Once that happens, the fish get really spooky and are rather hard to catch off guard, depending on just where you are on the river. As the hatch season moves along, the best places to fish become the ones that nobody is willing to tackle because of horrible or nearly impossible access during total darkness. The most convenient way to fish is from some sort of watercraft. If you are wading things get tricky and it is advisable to wade the sections of the river you plan to fish in the dark during daylight hours so that you can memorize what is going on with the stream bed and shoreline cover.
I was probably "early" on the calendar by going tonight, but I'd rather play it safe by checking ahead of the "sweet spot" for fishing. Since you took the time to read this far, I would be remiss not to close with a couple of photos from recent seasons past. These have been posted before, but if you are a new viewer then perhaps they will be appreciated by your first look.
Cheers....and good fishing to you in whatever your next pursuit on the water may be!
And I have many casts to make before I sleep! br ... (
show quote)
DANG, what beautiful trout, I envy you. What a thrill on a fly rod. What wt rod are you using?
Thanks for the great pictures!
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