westrate

Another good week of fishing out of Saugatuck with chinook salmon, lake trout and steelhead making up the creel. Catches of 10 to 20 fish per trip were common. During the week, we fished from 90 foot of water all the way out to 220 foot of water with the most productive being 120 to 130 foot early in the week and 180 to 220 foot by Sunday. The water continued to change during the week in temperature and color and as a result the fish moved to whereever the break was that day. With the north and northeast winds toward the end of the week, the fish tended to be more scattered than in the early part of the week. In the 130 to 150 foot depth, the best method was 100, 200 and 300 copper with stingray spoons in the copper orange Cory, green machine, NBK, gold orange crush, gold Craig’s X-mas and Craig’s X-mas color combinations. The downriggers were run from 40 to 80 foot down and the best bait was the green double glow Hot Chip and the Rapture Lakeshore green fly. Other flasher and fly combinations worked but not consistently. By Sunday, the magnum blue dolphin and magnum lemon ice produced well on the divers and copper line. As we moved out to the 200 foot depth the catch consisted of steelhead with some kings and coho mixed in. The water out in this depth was in the low 40 degrees and the fish were in the top 30 foot with the regular size stinger reverse Crag’s x-mas, double orange crush and mixed veggie combinations. The east wind today should conntinue to cool down the lake and the fish should continue to move both in and out and vertically. For fishing information or charter reservations email me at [email protected].

May 17, 2009 This past week was another very good week of fishing out of Saugatuck with a mixed bag of Chinook and coho salmon, steelhead and lake trout. The Chinook salmon are running in the mid to high teens in weight, with the largest taken this past week going just over 18 pounds. During the week we caught from 12 to 20 fish per trip with 75% being Chinook salmon. The fish are located in to general areas, 85 to 130 foot of water and out in 160 to 180 foot of water. Most of our fishing was in the inside depth with 110 to 120 foot being the most productive. Early in the week most of the fish were caught on 5 color lead core, 100 ft. 150 ft and 200 ft. of copper with Stingray lures and magnum Stinger lures. The best color combination was mixed veggie, freakin veggie, coyote ugly, NBK and the reverse Christmas. By the end of the week the best method were the wire slide divers at 100ft and 200 ft. and the downriggers at 50 to 85 foot. On these we pulled flashers and flies in a variety of color combinations. The best colors flashers consisted of Hotchip and Prochip 8 in flashers in the white/glow, green/glow, silver green tape and silver chartreuse tape. The best flies were the Rapture Tolling flies in the green hypnotist, last supper and purple mirage colors. Early in the week the perch fishing out of Port Sheldon was still producing limit catches, however the winds this weekend may have prevented anchoring for perch. The walleye fishing in the Kalamazoo River was a littile slow, however I did get a report of one walleye that was over 16 pounds. I did not see it however a reliable source said it was the largest he had seen. The good fishing should continue as long as the bait is in the area and we do not see any drastic changes in the water temperature. For information and or charter reservations, contact me at [email protected].

Finally, some good consistent fishing though the whole week with catches consisting of a mixed bag of 12 to 22 fish per trip. The catches consisted of Chinook salmon in the mid to high teens, lake trout, a few coho and some steelhead. The salmon, both Chinook and coho are averaging a couple of pounds heavier than in past years. We started fishing in 110 to 120 foot of water early in the week and by Sunday we were in 60 to 80 foot of water. Reports on the perch are still good with good catches in 60 foot of water off of Port Sheldon and some spotty success off of Saugatuck in 40 foot of water. If you are going out into the Big Lake, fish the downriggers from 50 foot to the bottom and 75 copper, 200 copper and 300 copper behind the boards. Our best success during the week was magnum stingers and stingray lures on all copper and downriggers in green/glow, green/blue and green/black combinations. Slide divers 100 and 120 foot out with pro chip and hot chip flashers (green/glow, white/glow and silver) with green hypnotist rapture tolling flies produced some nice fish. Fishing in the Kalamazoo River is still slow for steelhead, however there are a few walleye being caught by drifting from the bridge into Kalamazoo Lake and by trolling between the piers. It looks like our spring fishing is here to stay and it should only get better as more bait shows up. For information on the fishing or to make charter reservations, contact me at [email protected].

he Chinook salmon are showing up from Saugatuck to Port Sheldon. This past week has produced some very good catches of Chinook salmon with occasional coho and steelhead thrown in. The water along the shore is very discolored and most of the fish are found outside in the clearer water. On Friday the fish were found in 40 to 80 foot of water and then on Sunday they were in 60 to 90 foot of water. Today most of the fish came from 90 to 180 foot of water with 120 foot being the best. The deeper the water the lower we are fishing. In the 40 to 80 foot range we were fishing from the surface to 40 foot down with stickbaits on the surface and then orange crush and orange and green Stingray lures behind 75 foot, 150 ft. and green and blue Killer Stingrays behind 200 ft. of copper. In the 60 to 90 foot depth the best method was 300 copper with Singrays behind and ProTroll Flashers and Rapture trolling flies. Out side of 100 foot the downriggers went as deep as 90 foot down with 300 copper and wire slide divers with the flashers and flies. Many of the salmon are running in the mid teens and a couple were pushing 20 pounds. More good news is that limit perch catches have been reported from Saugatuck to Port Sheldon. Limit catches were reported in 60 to 65 foot of water from Port Sheldon north to the Bil Mar Resturant. Today there were a couple of limit catches in 40 foot of water just south of the Saugatuck pier. Another good report is the walleye fishing in the Kalamazoo river. Walleye are being caught by drifting down from the Blue Star bridge into Kalamazoo Lake while jigging off the bottom with jigging spoons or night crawler harness. The only negative report is the Steelhead fishing in the river. With the muddy and high water in the Kalamazoo River the fishing has been very slow, however as the water receeds, the fishing should improve. For more information or for reservations for a charter, email me at [email protected].

The walleye season opened this past weekend however the weather did not cooperate. Winds of 30 mph and rain on Saturday forced walleye fisherman into protected areas of the river and then by Sunday the Kalamazoo River was muddy due to the 2 in of rain and had risen 12 in. There were a few walleye caught on Saturday but I did not hear of any caught on Sunday. The report on Lake Michigan is improving with the water beginning to warm and a few bait fish starting to show up. The wind has slowed fishing action, however when the weather cooperates, there have been good catches of Lake Trout and a few salmon reported. The temperature ranges from 44 to 49 degrees in 40 to 90 foot of water. Fish the top 35 foot of water in this depth. Full core and half core of lead core line with Stingers and Stingray lures and flat lines with green and red/gold thin fins produced well. Also Slide divers with ProTrol blue bubble and mountain dew flashers and Rapture Blue Hypnotist and Sour Apple flies produced well. With the warming of the water and the appearance of the bait, hour fishing should improve and the salmon should follow the bait in. For information or if you would like to book a charter, email me at [email protected].

April 21, 2009 Water temperature on Lake Michigan out of Saugatuck is 39 degrees so fishing continues to be slow for salmon, brown trout and steelhead, however the lake trout catch is very good. The problem is that lake trout season does not open until May 1, so it is catch and release. Some good news is that this past weekend, the perch fishing off the Holland pier and between the piers produced some limit catches. I would expect that even if the lake water temperature decreases with the present strong north west wind, the perch fishing should continue in the warmer river water. Steelhead fishing on the Grand and Kalamazoo Rivers improved last week as the water levels declined and the clarity improved. Best method was spawn that was drifted through the spawning beds. There have also been some reports of some Brown Trout being caught on the Kalamazoo River by using spawn. The bad news is that with the rain Sunday and Monday, the river is on the rise (1 1/2 foot Sunday night) and will probably temporally slow the catch. If you need information or want to book a fishing charter, email me at [email protected].

April 16, 2009 Fishing Report High water on the river and cold water on the lake has kept the fishing slow at this point. The steelhead are on the beds in the Kalamazoo River and in the St. Joe River, however the water is still high (but receding) which makes the fishing tough. The most productive method is back rolling spawn along the bottom into the bedding area. On the lake, the water is still 38 degrees and with the NE, E and SE winds will not warm up very fast. Most of creel consists of Lake Trout (which, with the season closed, need to be returned). There are an occasional chinook and brown trout showing up, however not very many at this point in time. The good news is that the coho that are being caught in the warmer southern basin are running 4 to 6 pounds instead of the 2 to 4 pounds that they ordinarily weigh. This should mean that when the coho migrate up to us in the next couple of weeks, they should be a good size. Hopefully, the chinook will also show this increase in size. If you need more information or would like to reserve a fishing date, email me at [email protected] or call me at 888-253-8372 toll free.

11/12/2008 There has been very little big lake fishing with cold weather and high winds, however the steelhead river fishing is beginning to turn on. Capt. Tony Walte reports that the fishing in the St. Joe was still a little on the slow side but should pick up soon. The Kalamazoo River, however has been producing good catches of steelhead. Back trolling body baits into the holes and bouncing spawn both have been very productive. Capt. Walte has been taking from 3 to 7 fish per trip and he thinks that with some shots of warm weather and rain, the run should pick up. Most of the leaves are off the trees so the river has cleared up and more lines can be run without fouling them up. If you are interested in this type of fishing contact me and I can set up a trip with Capt. Walte on either the Kalamazoo or the St. Joe. For more information email me at [email protected].

10/20/2008 It has been 3 weeks since the last fishing report and in that time the boat has been pulled out of the water for the season and the status of the fishing has changed very little. The "fall run" has really never materialized in the Kalamazoo River and the reports from the Grand and St. Joe are similar. There are still some fairly good fishing in the 130 to 140 foot of water and also out in 180 to 200 foot. The Lake Trout season is now closed, however there are some 3 and 2 year old salmon in the 140 foot depth and steelhead and salmon out in the 200 foot depth. Boats fishing the 140 FOW are using flashers and flies 50 to 80 foot down and stingray and stinger lures on 300, 200 and 100 foot of copper (or equivalent lead core). Off shore in the 200 FOW the steelhead are being caught on stingray and stinger lures on divers and 100 and 200 foot of copper. The report of fishing in the river is not very good at this time. Tony Walte of Frostbite Charters reports that the Chinook fishing in the Kalamazoo and St. Joe river is very slow with 1 - 3 fish being caught per trip. The steelhead have not shown up in any numbers as of this past weekend and the fishing at the Allegan dam has been slow the last couple of weeks. Report are that the chinook returns at the weirs on the Platte and Manistee rivers was also very light. What has happened to the run? I do not know, however a few years ago we had warm water in the lake and the run did not materialize until the end of Oct. or the first part of Nov. We will have to see if this is the trend this year. Check back and I will update the report as soon as I get any new reports. You can contact me at [email protected].

Sept. 21, 2008 Another week of warm water and deep water fishing. The fishing was very good, with catches of 8 to 18 fish per trip. The creel consisted of about half lake trout and half salmon. There are a few salmon in front the piers and a few already in the river, however the warm water has drastically slowed the run. There are still many 4 year old salmon out in 70 to 150 foot of water that are ready to run however they need some cold water to get a mass run. This past week we fished in 100 to 150 foot of water and 80 to 140 foot down. The best method was the downriggers at 100, 120 and 135 foot down with 11 in Hot Chip flashers (white/glow, silver, and green/blue glow) with Rapture trolling flies (green dude, green hypnotist, and wild fern) pulled behind. On the wire divers (240 foot and 160 foot of line out) we pulled the 8 in Echip flashers with the Rapture trolling flies ( same combination as above). 300 and 400 foot of copper with Nature Born Killer and Glow Frog Stingray lures produced on some steelhead and salmon. Three fourth of the fish came on the downriggers and the divers. With the end of Lake Trout season on the 30th of September, we will have to either fish the warm water in front the piers or fish the depth that these salmon are in that have a minimum of lake trout. If you can find the depth that hold the bait (probably 60 to 80 foot of water), there should be salmon just outside of this. You can catch the salmon at the 100 to 140 foot depth, however the lake trout you catch at that depth may not survive being returned to the lake. With the season winding down, I will post the fishing report every 2 or 3 weeks rather than every week. So check back in a couple of weeks and see if the water cooled down and the salmon moved in. For information or charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

Sept. 21, 2008 Warm water and dredging moved the fishing out to deeper water for a second week. This past week we fished from 90 to 180 foot of water and some boats fished as far out as 240 foot of water. The catch consisted of 2, 3 and 4 year old chinook salmon, lake trout, some coho and an occasional steelhead. Boats that fished the 200 to 240 foot depth found a few steelhead in the upper water column. We fished deep for the fish--80 to 140 foot down. The best method was 11 inch echip flashers (white/glow, green/glow and silver) with Rapture wild fern and green dude flies pulled on the downriggers at 100 to 140 foot. For the first time in a month we started consistently catching fish on Stingray spoons (glow frog and natural born killer) on 300 and 400 foot of copper. Our season is winding down, however there are a lot of 4 year old salmon is the deeper water that are waiting for colder water. This could be one of those years when the fish will "stagger" is a little at a time for a couple of months unless we get and keep some cold water. For information and charter reservations--email me at [email protected].

9/14/2008 Warm water forced us to fish in deep water and fish deep in the water column. The fishing was fairly good with some 4 year old Chinook salmon, coho salmon, some very good sized lake trout and an occasional steelhead. Even though the dredging continued in front the piers, the warm water limited the number of salmon that are there. One could fish in front, and catch a few 4 year olds, however the number is limited. There are a few salmon being caught at the Allegan dam and a few are being caught trolling in the river or by back trolling through the holes up river, however there are not a lot of salmon in the river yet. The 4 year old salmon that we caught out in 140 foot of water where dark and ready to run. This past week we fished 100 to 160 foot of water and we fished 70 to 130 foot down. The best method was 11 in. Pro Chip and Hot Chip flashers (Chartreuse/glow, silver, white/glow) with Rapture flies (green dude, green mirage, and wild fern) pulled on the downriggers at 100 to 130 foot. The wire divers produced with the same color 8 in flashers with the rapture flies pulled at 140 to 240 foot back. There were some fish taken on 300 and 400 foot of copper with flashers and flies pulled behind them. I think that the salmon will continue to "stagger in" a little at a time, unless we get and keep some cold water at the piers. If we get the cold water, they will move in and up the river quickly, however we have seen only a small percentage of out 40,000 salmon that where planted 3 years ago. For information and charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

This past week, the lake turned over and cold water moved in and the bait and salmon followed. Along with the salmon and the beginning of the run, the government decided it was time to dredge the harbor and on Saturday, they floated out the pipes to 20 foot of water and began to dredge. Sunday, they did not dredge however the pipes are still floating out and to the south--so much for fishing out in front the piers and we will have to move back off shore. The fishing was very good Thurs., Friday and the first part of Saturday with 4 year old Chinook salmon and some adult Coho salmon producing limit catches. In front the piers, the best methods included Stingray lures and Nitro lures on 3 color lead core 3 color lead core with Silver Horde plugs (silver/green, silver, wonderbread) downriggers with plugs and Nitro lures E Chip flashers (white/glow and silver) and Rapture flies (mirage and green hypnotist) on divers Once back off shore, we should be back to flashers and flies and plugs on copper. I do not know how long the dredging will take place or how long the pipes will be floating off to the south. With all summer to dredge the harbor, why they decided to start it on a weekend during the run is beyond my comprehension. Check back and see what happens next week. For information and/or charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

The only consistent thing about fishing this week was inconsistentcy. One day we caught fish in 20 foot of water and the next day we had to move out to 90 foot then a couple of days in 130 foot, next to 180 foot and then 220 foot followed by a day back in front the piers. The warm water moved in and the fish are scattered form the piers to 240 foot of water with boats catching a few fish in any and all of the depths each day. The catch consisted of chinook (up to 18 pounds) , lake trout (up to 22 pounds), steelhead (up to 15 pounds) and a few coho. There were a couple of days in which we took 12 and 14 lake trout and consider the fact that a couple of years ago we did not catch 20 lake trout all year. Good news for the perch fisherman. The last 4 days produced limit catches of perch in 14 to 30 foot of water south and north of the Saugatuck piers. The best fishing methods changed form day to day with Silver Horde plugs and Stingray spoons working well around the piers. As we moved off shore, the Pro Chip and Hot Chip flashers (green glow, white glow, silver) and Rapture flies (green dude, green hypnotist, last supper) produced very well behind divers, downriggers and 300 foot of copper. One day the green flashers produced and the next day it was silver and then the next day was all white glow. The salmon are ready to run the river and are waiting for cold water. Some can be found and caught in front the piers every day regardless of the water temperature, however there are not large numbers staging there at this time. Check back and find out what happens when the water cools. For information and charter reservations email me at [email protected].

Fishing is about as good as it can get out of the port of Saugatuck. We ran 9 trips this past week and limited out on every one of the trips -- some within 3 hours. The fish (chinook and coho salmon, lake trout, steelhead and coho) were caught from 100 out to 200 foot of water and from 50 to 140 foot down. There was a mixed bag with 2, 3 and 4 year old chinook salmon, some 3 year old coho, steelhead up to 12 pounds and lake trout over 20 pounds. There are also some steelhead being caught on the south Saugatuck pier fishing with spawn and little cleos. Walleye and small mouth bass are also being caught by drifting between the piers and bouncing bottom. Flashers and flies continue to be the best method in the deep water. 8 inch and 11 inch Pro and Hot Chip flashers (silver, silver/green, green/glow, white/glow with silver being the best) with Rapture last supper, green no-see-um and green dude flies produced very well on downriggers, side divers and 300 foot copper. The Silver Horde plugs (green black ladder back, green/silver and silver green and blue back) are also producing on 300 and 200 foot of copper and on the downriggers down 100 foot or more. The lake had been very stable this last week with very little temperature change, however today we had to cut the charter to a half day because of rough water and wind from the north west. We will have to see what the water temperature does, since if the lake turns over the salmon will move in and begin the run. Check back and see what this next week brings.

This week was a week of opposites. Monday and Tuesday we had cold water and the fish moved into 15 to 25 foot of water and we had limit catches of chinook, coho and steelhead. Wednesday, the water warmed and the fish moved and fishing was tough with catches of 4 to 8 fish per boat. Thursday we found the fish in 130 to 150 foot of water and then Friday, Saturday and Sunday we had limit catches of 18 to 28 fish in 120 to 200 foot of water. Fishing could not get much better than we had out in the deep water. These catches consisted of chinook, coho and lake trout with an occasional steelhead. Monday through Thursday produced limit catches of perch in 15 to 20 foot of water and then as the water warmed, the perch moved out to 40 and 50 foot. In front the piers, in the shallow water, the fish hit primarily j-plugs and silver horde plugs (silver, silver orange, green glow). The plugs were run on downriggers, 3 color lead core and slide divers. In the deep, water the best method was, once again, flashers and flies and plugs on the copper line. The best combination was silver. moutain dew and white glow echip and other flashers with Rapture last supper and green noseeum flies. The flashers and flies were run on downriggers, divers and 300 copper. Fishing at this time is good and as long as we keep the bait out in the deep water, we should hold our salmon. If the water turns over and cools off, we should get another surge of salmon to the piers. Check back next week and see what happens. For information and charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

Another good week of fishing--at least the first part of the week was good and then the wind came. Friday, Saturday and Sunday produced winds of 30 knots and waves of 3 to 7 foot water spouts and a current that made it very difficult to troll. Once again the catches ranged from 8 to 16 fish per trip with a mixed bag of lake trout, steelhead, coho and chinook salmon. The chinook salmon consisted of 2, 3 and 4 year old fish with the largest this week pushing 17 pounds. We also ran a perch charter this week and after 2 hours of looking for the perch and catching nothing but golbies, we found the fish caught 60 nice perch (a couple went 12 to 14 inches) in 1 1/2 hours in 46 foot of water. The best methods continue to be flashers and flies on the divers and then plugs and Stingray lures on the copper lines. The best flasher was the white/glow echip and silver echip with green dude, green hypnotist and green noseeum and white pine Rapture flies. We caught fish on 100, 200, 300 and 400 foot of copper with magnum Stinger mixed veggie and with Stingray mixed veggie and glow sicle. We also caught some fish on silver green and easter egg Silver Horde plugs pulled behind the 100 and 200 foot copper line. With all the north wind and north current, the water temperature is now (as of Sunday) down in the high 50 degrees. We will look in the shallow water tomorrow to see if the fish and bait have moved in front the piers. Check back and see what happens this week. For information and charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

Another good week of salmon fishing. The fishing was not fast and furious, however it was fairly consistent with chinook salmon and lake trout being taken in 100 to 140 foot of water. By Sunday, the water had cooled and some salmon were caught in 60 to 40 foot of water. Catches ranged from 7 to 15 fish, depending on how many hits you missed. The fish ranged in weight from 7 to 18 pounds with the salmon averaging about 10 pounds. The perch fishing was very good early in the week in 30 to 35 foot of water and then as the week progressed the perch moved out to 45 and then 50 to 65 foot. By the weekend the perch bite had slowed with most boats in 40 foot but scattered from Holland to Saugatuck. The best method during the week continues to be flashers and flies on divers, copper and downriggers. Wire divers, 300 and 200 foot of copper and the downrigger at 100 foot produced with silver, white/glow, glow/green echip flashers and the Rapture green dude and wild fern flies continued to dominate. We also took some salmon on 200 foot copper with mixed veggie Stingray and Silver Horde plugs (green glow and white glow). Check back and find out where the salmon are congregating. For information and charter reservations email me at [email protected].

This past week was a very good week of fishing with catches of 8 to 15 fish per trip consisting of chinook salmon up to 20 pounds and lake trout up to 16 pounds. The fish were caught in 90 to 120 foot of water throughout the week and then some very nice salmon were caught in 50 to 60 foot of water. Sunday the salmon were caught all the way to 200 foot, however the best area was still the 100 foot depth. More good news for Saugatuck fisherman was that this week produced some limit catches of jumbo perch in 60 to 70 foot of water and then this weekend in 40 to 45 foot of water. When we fished in the 60 foot of water, Silver Horde plugs (green/black glow ladder back, pearl glow, and silver green) produced very well on 100 and 200 foot of copper and on the downriggers 20 to 45 foot down. In addition the Stingray (green glow/green side, and mixed veggie) produced well on the copper. When we fished the 100 to 180 foot range it was all flashers and flies fished from 60 to 80 foot down on downriggers, divers and copper. The best combinations were echip flashers (MBK, silver green edge, white glow, coyote, silver and green glow) with Rapture flies behind (wild fern, green dude, last supper and speed weed). What we have found is that the larger 4 year old salmon are on the inside shallower water and as you move out to deeper water you get more of a mixed bag of 2, 3 and 4 year old chinook salmon with a few steelhead and lake trout and an occasional coho. Check back next week and see what is changing in the fishing out of Saugatuck. If you need information or want to book a fishing trip, email me a [email protected].

July 20, 2008 Chinook salmon fishing has been very good this past week with catches of 8 to 15 fish per trip. The fish are in 90 to 120 foot of water and are 50 to 90 foot down. There is a large amount of bait in 85 foot and the salmon appear to be just outside of the bait. Twice during the week, we caught chinook salmon that exceeded 20 pounds and many weighed in from 14 to 18 pounds. In addition to the salmon, some very good perch catches were being reported in 60 to 70 foot of water just south of the Saugatuck piers. The best method this week has been flashers and flies on the wire divers and on the downriggers. The best flashers were Hot Chip and Pro Chip mountain dew, all silver, green glow and blue bubble. The flies we are pulling are the Rapture blue noseeum, last supper, green dude and wild fern. The copper line (300 and 400 foot) produced with Stingray wonderbread, gator and NBK. We are also using the Stinger 4 oz. dive bomb on the 300 copper to get us down to where the 400 or 450 copper would run. This allows us to run the lures at depths of 70 foot with only 300 foot of copper line. About 100 foot of copper is let out and then the dive bomb is attached and then the rest of the copper is let out. I figure that the 4 oz dive bomb will increase the depth by about 1/3 so if 300 foot of copper runs at 50 to 60 foot, the dive bomb will put it close to 75 foot down. The chinook salmon seem to have set up in the 100 foot depth and should stay here if the bait remains in that depth. Check back and see what next week produces. For information or charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

This past week was one of wind and rough water. We lost 3 tips due to rough water during the week, however when we could get out, the fishing was decent with some nice lake trout and 4 year old chinook salmon taken. The salmon and trout were caught in 80 to 120 foot of water early in the week and then moved out to the 160 to 180 foot depth. The other good report is that this was the first week that very good numbers of perch were caught out of the Port of Saugatuck and the perch were very good size. Some of the boats caught up to 250 perch in 2 days of fishing. The perch are being caught in 35 foot of water north of the piers and in 40 foot of water between the “ball†and the Douglas point. At this time of the year, the best method was flashers and flies on slide divers, down riggers and on copper line. We have been running Pro and Hot Chip flashers (silver, green/glow, blue bubble, glow mountain dew) with Rapture Trolling flies (oceana, last supper, green hypnotist, wild fern, green dude) and have had very good success. The Stingray mixed veggie and NBK also produced some fish on the high diver and on the 300 foot copper. The boats that fished for perch had good luck drifting (when the wind was calm) with minnows and shrimp on the bottom. If the wind was blowing too hard, the boats had to anchor in order to keep the bait on the bottom. There are some 4 year old salmon that are running close to 20 pounds already and this should lead to some very nice fish by August. Check back next week and find out what is happening out of the Port of Saugatuck. For information, feel free to contact me at [email protected].

This past week has produced some very consistent fishing with chinook salmon weighing in at 17 pounds being caught. Most of the catch occurred in 85 to 130 foot of water, however there appears to be another batch of salmon in the 190 to 225 foot depth. The main problem with fishing the shallower water was the large concentration of supine water flea that coated your your lines and had to removed every 15 to 20 minutes. If they were not removed your monofiliment looked like a 1 inch line dragging through the water, which is definitely a determent to catching fish. As you moved to deeper water, the water flea problem decreased but did not end. The best method toward the end of the week was flashers and flies. Slide divers run at 200 and 100 foot of wire with Hot Chip flashers (green/glow and mountain dew) and the Rapture Wild Fern and Last Supper fly produced very well. We also caught a few salmon on Stingray Mixed Veggie and Fruit Cocktail on the downrigger at 55 and 65 foot, however the best was the tin can flasher and wild fern fly on the "shoot" down 70 to 100 foot. Early in the week we took many salmon on 200 and 300 foot of copper with the Natural Born Killer and Green Wiggle producing very well, however latter in the week the copper produced very few fish. The further south we fished the better the results this past week, so maybe the fish are beginning to move to the north and if that is true the fishing should continue to improve. Check back next week and see what is happening out of Saugatuck. For information or charter reservations, email me at [email protected].

June 30, 2008 Fishing this past week was inconsistent with a catch one day of 12 fish to 3 or 4 the next. We are fishing anywhere from 60 to 130 foot of water and the Chinook salmon caught, are weighing in 10 to 17 pounds. There are also a number of Lake Trout being caught along with a few Steelhead. The best method continues to be copper line (100, 200 and 400 foot) with Natural Born Killer and Green Dolphin Stingray lures. Slide Divers set at 140 foot with braid and 120 foot of wire did produce some nice salmon with Green Glow And Blue Bubble Hot Chip flashers with Rapture Last Supper and Oceana flies. Downriggers were not very productive however we did take some lake trout by bouncing bottom with different flashers and flies. The fish are setting up in the 100 foot of water range and as long as the bait stays, the fish should stay. Check back next week and see what is happening out of Saugatuck. For updates email me at [email protected].

June 22 Fishing Report We fished every day this past week with good action and results, producing chinook salmon, coho salmon, steelhead and lake trout. We expect the fish to set up in the 100 to 120 foot range, and everyday we set up in 90 foot and work out to 200 foot. Until the end of the week, the only consistent fishing was in the 170 to 190 foot range. The last couple of days produced some very nice salmon and lake trout in the expected 120 foot area. We caught salmon that pushed 16 pounds and the lake trout average about 8 pounds. The best method continues to be 100 foot, 200 foot and to some extent 300 foot of copper with small stingers (Orange Corey, Craig’s Christmas) and Stingray (Natural Born Killer, Green Dolphin). The Slide Divers produced with 140 foot of braid and 100 foot of wire with Mountain Dew Pro Chip and Blue Bubble Pro Chip flashers and the Rampage Blue Hypnotist and Green Hypnotist flies. Downriggers where not very productive, however the best lures where the Dolphin Stingray lures (when they produced). There were days early in the week when 3 color lead core produced some nice steelhead with any lure that had orange on it. We noticed that the down temperature is beginning to warm up, which should mean that we will see some thermal stratification begin to occur in 7 to 10 days is be do not get an extended blow. Check back to see if the salmon continue to stack in the 100 foot range. For information or charter reservations email [email protected].

Fishing last week went from catches of 16 to 20 fish per trip to 4 to 6 fish per trip. During the week we fished a temperature break that was formed in 100 foot of water that moved out to 150 foot by Friday. When we went out Saturday, the break was gone and the water temperature varied very little and the fish where scattered from 120 foot to 220 foot and from 20 foot down to 180 foot down. The only consistent method during the week was 100 and 200 foot of copper with Craig Christmas and the Orange Corey Stinger one day and Stingray the next. We talked to people who had downriggers going with Stingray wonderbread and the green dolphin, however we found very little that produced consistently on the downriggers. We ran the slide divers at 140 feet on the high diver and 100 to 200 foot out with small stingers, however no specific color combination produced well day after day. I hope that we are going to end the June doldrums that hit us each year for 7 to 10 days. We always dread seeing the cotton from the cottonwoods flying, since this is when the slow down usually occurs. Check back next week as see if the June fishing turns around. For information or charter reservations email me at [email protected].