King Salmon: Heart-Pounding River Action

BUMP - BUMP - ACTION!

A large male king salmon held almost motionless in a four-foot-deep run along the edge of an undercut bank. Long tendrils of grass hung down, creating some problem in accurately placing a fly.
My fly would swing past his nose, time and again, and he’d either back away or ignore it. The casting became repetitious, cast, drift, lift the line and fly out and cast again and again.
After perhaps 50 casts the big male moved forward an inch or two to intercept and inhale  the wet fly as it drifted near bottom. The fly’s drift simply stopped, and only one thing makes that happen.
The rod tip slashed back with a forceful hook-set, and the 17-pound king uncorked a jump that would have made any fish proud. The big buck salmon surged upstream, throwing up a wake in the shallow water, made another belly-smacker jump and the yellow-orange fly hung from its lip like a lit cigar. Rod pressure was applied, and the fish took off on another short, stuttering run.
Minutes later the fish rolled up on its side, and rod pressure  slowly skidded the fish up onto a gravel shingle, and the hook was wiggled free. The fish was held upright in the current until it gathered its energy, and swam off toward the deep holding water. It was 15 minutes and 200 yards of river that was traveled to beach this hefty fish.

KING SALMO ON FLY

It’s still a bit early, and the water is still too warm for active spawning, but salmon have begun their spawning runs. This is a fly-rodding sport unequaled by any other river fishery in this or almost any other state.
There are king salmon in varying numbers up the AuSable, East Branch of the AuGres, Betsie, Boardman,  Cheboygan, Little Manistee, Manistee, Muskegon, Pere Marquette, Pentwater, Rifle, White and many other streams that are tributary to Lakes Huron and Michigan.
Cooling air temperatures and a good cool rain will lower river water temperatures and cause king salmon of both sexes to head upstream to find spawning gravel. It’s here during the next four weeks where flyrodders can find great fly rod action.

IF YOU DECIDE TO GO

..take this advice from an old river guide who originated most of these techniques 45 years ago.

• Wear polarized sunglasses and slowly walk the river banks and study the water. Stay out of the water until you spot fish, and then slowly move within casting distance. Slowly can mean taking 20-30 minutes to get to within 30-40 feet of the fish. Move slowly, and if the fish start milling around, stop and remain motionless until they settle down.

• Fish only for the males. If fish numbers are scarce, and the female is hooked or caught, the reason for the males to hold in that spot is gone. They will disappear in search of another female.

• Sight-fishing for visible fish seems like it should be easy, but it isn’t until you’ve got a few trips under your belt. Learn to read current speed, depth of water, and sinking time in fast water. Flies should be tied in sizes 4 and 6. I usually used wet fly and nymph patterns.

• Two fly categories exist: attractor and imitator patterns. The attractor patterns are tied with bright colors while imitator patterns are tied in shades of black, brown, gray, dark green, etc. On any given day, fish will go for an attractor or imitator pattern. Choose one pattern, and if after 15 minutes of pitching it to a salmon without a take, switch. It also pays to switch from smaller to larger sizes or vise versa.

• Anglers can choose shooting heads, sinking fly lines, floating lines with a sinking tip for shallow water, but in many areas where a back cast is impossible and a roll cast won’t allow the fly to go deep enough to interest the fish, it may be time to switch to the chuck-and-duck method.

This method means using enough split-shot to take the fly deep. My choice is to determine depth and current speed, and add just enough weight to take the fly to the proper depth, which means scratching along the gravel. Carry a hook hone to keep the hook points razor sharp.

• Casting positions vary depending on location and water current conditions, but my preference is to cast from below the fish. If fishing with a fly line, mend the line often to slow the drift and keep the fly near bottom. If chucking-and-ducking, I still prefer a downstream approach. Read the water speed, water depth, and cast quartering up and across. Strip line as the fly comes down, and make certain the fly line or shooting head, lead core line or whatever you use is out of the fish’s sight. Fish each cast out but once the fly drifts past the fish’s nose without a hit, lift the line out and cast again in a quick, repetitious manner. Don’t wait for a salmon to chase it downstream. It doesn’t happen.

It’s possible to be a bit more precise with the split-shot, monofilament (usually testing 10-12 pounds) and fly. The split-shot will take the fly deep must faster than a fly line, even if the  leader has a split-shot or two a foot up the leader from the fly. Once the fly passes the fish’s nose, lift the fly out and cast again. You’ll soon learn that a cast too close to a fish will spook it, and judging exactly where to place the fly takes time to learn so take your time and don’t get discouraged.

• I don’t care how skilled you are as a fly caster, if you cast enough times to a motionless salmon, if your cast is off a little bit, there is a chance of foul-hooking the fish. If this happens, don’t set the hook but jiggle the line to make the fly fall off. Or wait for the fish to move and often the fly will fall off. Occasionally salmon will hit a fly hard but you can’t count on it happening. Most takes are very soft as the fish picks up the drifting fly, moves it a few inches and drops it.

• Some people don’t feel competent at casting flies. Guide Mark Rinckey of Honor (231) 325-6901 uses spinning gear with bait or spinners to catch king salmon in the Betsie River. He has a night job, and may be sleeping or guiding when you call so leave your name and number on the answering machine and the best time to call.

Posted via email from Dave Richey Outdoors