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River Report - July 29, 2019
The Old Au Sable Fly Shop Fishing Report
Somehow the world has turned enough to put us right into August. Understanding where Summer started to slip away is a head scratcher. Seems like we just got started and already we’re only weeks from September.
I guess it’s because everything in our trout fishing world took so long to get rolling. Our season was significantly pushed back.
We’re set to reap some benefits from that now. Cool nights and good rainfall has our streams in fine fishing conditions. The Upper Rivers are in great shape and even the normally too warm stretch below Mio has been producing after cold nights. And we’ve got a lot more promising weather in the forecast. This looks to be a great week of trout fishing on the Au Sable River.
Tricos and olives are hatching in the rising, morning light. They’re back again at dusk mixed with some caddis and cahills. And mouse fishing is peaking.
Mouse fishing is an after dark affair. It’s a dance in the dark with the best trout in the stream. We say “mouse” but what we really mean is any large fly that looks like a mouse, frog, small trout, or giant moth that make for large brown trout fodder. Big trout are killers. Predators that take any opportunity to pack on pounds. Gurgling a bug through the currents here is simply the best way to consistently catch trophy trout on our rivers. Anglers need not cross their finger for conditions conducive to fly hatches—they just need to go.
Mousing, like all trophy fishing here, is much more like hunting. Stealth trumps skill. Time on the water trumps everything.
This is also the best time to make new trout anglers. The waters are completely wadable and the brook trout are willing. My six year old, Jack doesn’t know it yet, but he’s pulling on waders this week. I can’t wait.
Book a guide. Trips start at $300 and instructionals at a mere $200. We also offer rental gear for $20 per day. Military discounts apply to rentals. Floating down the river with a trout rod in hand is never a day wasted. And when you’re about to croak, you’ll remember the day not the dollar.
Trade in your old gear. We offer top of the market prices for used gear. Money to get you into that new rod you’ve been coveting. Not much has changed all that much in the gear side of fly fishing in the last fifteen years except for what has gone on with fly rods and waders. Waders are lighter, fit better, and last longer than ever before. Rods are amazing. They’re lighter in the hand, more responsive and just better than they used to be. It’s not that the fish care—they don’t. And immature angler can’t tell the difference. But savvy anglers can feel the difference. Folks often ask “What makes that rod cost so much?” The answer is easy—being able to tell the difference. Clean out the closet and get something you’ll not only use but love and pass down as an heirloom.
I hope I’ll see you on the River.
Thank you,
Andy
Somehow the world has turned enough to put us right into August. Understanding where Summer started to slip away is a head scratcher. Seems like we just got started and already we’re only weeks from September.
I guess it’s because everything in our trout fishing world took so long to get rolling. Our season was significantly pushed back.
We’re set to reap some benefits from that now. Cool nights and good rainfall has our streams in fine fishing conditions. The Upper Rivers are in great shape and even the normally too warm stretch below Mio has been producing after cold nights. And we’ve got a lot more promising weather in the forecast. This looks to be a great week of trout fishing on the Au Sable River.
Tricos and olives are hatching in the rising, morning light. They’re back again at dusk mixed with some caddis and cahills. And mouse fishing is peaking.
Mouse fishing is an after dark affair. It’s a dance in the dark with the best trout in the stream. We say “mouse” but what we really mean is any large fly that looks like a mouse, frog, small trout, or giant moth that make for large brown trout fodder. Big trout are killers. Predators that take any opportunity to pack on pounds. Gurgling a bug through the currents here is simply the best way to consistently catch trophy trout on our rivers. Anglers need not cross their finger for conditions conducive to fly hatches—they just need to go.
Mousing, like all trophy fishing here, is much more like hunting. Stealth trumps skill. Time on the water trumps everything.
This is also the best time to make new trout anglers. The waters are completely wadable and the brook trout are willing. My six year old, Jack doesn’t know it yet, but he’s pulling on waders this week. I can’t wait.
Book a guide. Trips start at $300 and instructionals at a mere $200. We also offer rental gear for $20 per day. Military discounts apply to rentals. Floating down the river with a trout rod in hand is never a day wasted. And when you’re about to croak, you’ll remember the day not the dollar.
Trade in your old gear. We offer top of the market prices for used gear. Money to get you into that new rod you’ve been coveting. Not much has changed all that much in the gear side of fly fishing in the last fifteen years except for what has gone on with fly rods and waders. Waders are lighter, fit better, and last longer than ever before. Rods are amazing. They’re lighter in the hand, more responsive and just better than they used to be. It’s not that the fish care—they don’t. And immature angler can’t tell the difference. But savvy anglers can feel the difference. Folks often ask “What makes that rod cost so much?” The answer is easy—being able to tell the difference. Clean out the closet and get something you’ll not only use but love and pass down as an heirloom.
I hope I’ll see you on the River.
Thank you,
Andy