Happy Easter!

Good Morning,

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Easter. It is a beautiful morning up here in the U.P., clear skies and a wonderful sunrise. The snow is melting and the streams are starting to open up, so hopefully we can get out fishing soon. 

Enjoy!

Melting Snow!

So....It has been awhile. I apologize for not getting any fresh posts up lately. My final semester at Michigan Tech has been the hardest yet and I haven't been out ice fishing in over a month. I hope people were able to get out and get some good fishing in before the seasons started to close.

Pike and Walleye season finished up a couple of weeks ago now and it will be time to get new licenses for 2013 in a couple of days, so keep that in mind. Finally, it appears that the snow is started to melt, so hopefully there will be a run of steelhead starting. I've seen some really great pics of steelhead from downstate that are already running.

Once again I hope all is well with everyone and I'm sorry for not getting posts out. I've got a few cool items to post in the next few days so stay tuned.

Tight Lines

CopperDog150

Hey everyone!
I just wanted to let everyone know that this weekend is the CopperDog150. For those of you who aren't familiar the CopperDog150 is a pro and recreational circuit for sled dog mushers. It is a great race in a great area. I definitely would encourage you all to come out and enjoy the fun!

Please check out the website below for more information.
There are still race slots open!
There are also still some volunteer slots open, so if you want to come and hang out, meet great people, and see some really amazing dogs please come out. The weather should be pretty awesome, too.

The race goes March 1-3, which is this Friday through Sunday, with pit stops in Calumet, Eagle Harbor, and Copper Harbor.

CopperDog150 Website

Ask About Fly Fishing Rescheduled

Unfortunately, the host of Ask About Fly Fishing has come down with a cold and will not be able to put on the radio show this evening. It has been rescheduled for next week, Wednesday the thirteenth. Hope you can make it next week.

Thanks

Ask About Fly Fishing: Golden Trout 2/6/13

Golden Trout of the High Sierras

From AskAboutFlyFishing.com: "Ralph Cutter spent his nine month honeymoon hiking through the Sierras with his new wife Lisa going through nearly every pass and fishing many of the waters.  The Sierras are the home of the golden trout, California's state fish, but it's not easy to fish for them. Listen in to hear Ralph tell his secrets about fly fishing the Sierras for the golden trout."

Please Tune in by clicking the link below: 

Fly Fishing - Internet Radio
Join us on our next LIVE Broadcast! We've brought together The Experts on fly fishing to tell you in their own words the secrets to their success in both Freshwater and Saltwater. Covering fish from Trout to Tarpon, from tying flies to casting them you'll find it all right here on Ask About Fly Fishing - Internet Radio.

Enjoy!

www.pikepoke.com

 

Buggy Whips

This morning I found a pretty cool video with a very funny title. Have you ever heard the term "buggy whip"? Apparently, it is some sort of alternative term for fly fishing, and maybe it could be taken as slightly offensive. Enjoy the video. Let me know what you think. 

Finally a Clear Day

The weather seems to finally have broke. It was a beautiful day and much warmer.  Check out the picture below that was floating about the net of Michigan during the last week of freezing weather. We got pounded in the U.P. Can you find the Keweenaw?

Anyway, we tried to go out fish today on Lac La Belle. It was perfect except that we didn't get anything. For some reason, I haven't had much luck there in a few years now. Hopefully we will be more successful somewhere else this weekend.

Also found a couple cool links for people to check out. Enjoy!

Michigan Flies
Classic Michigan Flies (Great Artwork!) 

Here is a great link

Ice Fishing 1/20/13

After that first awesome day of walleye fishing, we returned to gratiot a couple days later to find some unsavory conditions. It was very cold with temps around three or four degrees. We had several bites but were only able to catch one small, baby walleye.  Since that first day, a lot of snow had fallen on the lake, making the hike out to our spot a little more difficult. I'm sure with all the snow we have received the last few days it will be even more difficult. I certainly suggest bringing a snow sled of some sort to carry your gear.

I'm hoping to get out this afternoon since the weather is finally looking up. Hopefully the fish will feel the same way and give some good bites!


Good luck,

Enjoy.

Walleye Season Begins!

So, today I made a pit stop after school to pick up bait from Northwoods in Hancock, and then my girlfriend and I headed off to Gratiot Lake to hopefully catch some walleye. Everything today just seemed to feel good, and after talking briefly with the clerk at Northwoods, I also picked up a few new jigs to try on the ice today.

We got onto the ice a around three thirty and immediately put a few tip-ups down. Then we headed off to deeper water. I put down a jigging rod with one of the new jigs. It's called a forage minnow, and I put a suck on the hook of the jig. My girlfriend got a bite within just a few minutes, which was very exciting, but we could not get anything to stick. Finally, just before dark, I caught two walleye on the jig line and missed a third. The bites were very light and hard to feel. What was surprising, however, was that they never set off a tip-up, which leads me to believe I had them too far off bottom. All in all, it was a great evening and a great start to the fishing season.

Good Luck! Enjoy. 

First Fish of the Season

On Thursday, my girlfriend and her little sister went out to enjoy some of the first ice fishing this year. We traveled to a little lake north of Calumet. There was good ice and we got set up quickly, shortly after four p.m. Her little sister was set up with a perch rig and we went out to set up a few tip-ups. Not long after, her little sister was letting out whoops and hollars and we looked back to see her pole doubled over the hole. She had hooked something and was very excited. I ran back and helped her to pull a 16" pike through the hole. It was a big fish for her and it was great to see her so excited. We caught another similar sized pike on a tip-up just before we left for the evening. It was a great first day.

We returned the next day but were unsuccessful. There must have been some sort of low pressure moving in because there were no bites at all.

Hopefully we can get out again soon. The ice should be firmed up again with the return of this colder weather.

Enjoy and get out fishing.  

Janns Netcraft

I may be a little late to the party, but I wanted to let everyone know about a great site that I just found. It is called Janns Netcraft and they have an abundant supply of everything you could ever need for fishing. If you have not visited this site before, you may want to check it out because they have so much stuff for fishing hobbyists, fly tiers, lure makers, and net builders. Check it out and let me know what you think. You can find the link below or on the links page.

Thanks!

http://www.jannsnetcraft.com/

Ice Report 1/10/13

Good Morning All!

It is a bright and beautiful day up in the Keewenaw! I hope you're enjoying the nice weather and are heading out ice fishing soon. But before you do, please post a few comments letting people know how the ice conditions are. It seems to have been a bit warm lately and not much ice. My girlfriend and I stopped in Lake Linden last night to check the ice. It was very clear which is exciting but not terribly thick. We are planning on getting out soon though!

Also look back shortly as I plan to put up a few more how to posts. Thanks and enjoy!


Happy New Year Everyone!