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Showing posts from May, 2010

Steelhead of th North Shore

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For those that have not read the article yet, here is a link to a great article written by a noted North Shore Steelhead veteran angler and author, Michael Furtman . The article appeared in the March/April issue of the Minnesota Conservation Volunteer. Steelhead of the North Shore "As North Shore streams swell with snowmelt, anglers can once again fish for supersized rainbow trout. How have these native fish of the Pacific Northwest made themselves at home in Lake Superior and its tributaries?” Click here to read the rest of the article. Picture courtesy of the MN DNR

Post Season Analysis

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Well, I shouldn't say, "Post Season" quite yet. There are fish around if you know where and when to look. I do have some intesting graphics assembled now that the DNR creel and fishing reports are done for the spring. MANY thanks to the hard-working folks at DNR fisheries, they rarely get enough public credit; usually they are just getting an earfull.... One of the most useful ways I've found of looking at all the numbers has been to use a weekly format as it does a few things: 1. It smoothes out any wild fluctuations in the numbers 2. It allows comparisons between different years along with different State's data 3. It's a bit more intuitive and easy to grasp Without boring you further with a whole bunch of mental gymnastics used to produce the charts, here's how the Lower Shore combined trap numbers looked through May 20th (Click Thumbnail for larger image): The blue/green lines are the total returns by week, the yellow is the average Knife River discha

Fishing Report 5-17-10

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The Minnesota DNR creel survey was only run on the Upper Shore this past weekend, and now is over shorewide for the year. From 5/14 through 5/16, water temperatures ranged from 45-55 on the Upper Shore, and interviewed anglers caught 1 Steelhead and 1 Brook Trout. Flows from the May 13th rain are now decreasing and streams have moderate water clarity. The forecast calls for sunny skies all week, which should push late spawning fish to move in and out of Grand Marais area streams within the next week. Angling pressure continues to be light. Totals for the Knife Trap are so far are 382 unclipped steelhead, 297 maxillary clipped steelhead, and 26 Kamloops. Totals for the French River are 89 unclipped steelhead, 8 maxillary clipped steelhead and 395 Kamloops. This is the last fishing report for the spring creel. We thank our friends at the Minnesota Dept. of Natural Resources for their hard work this spring. I was also on the shore from Friday to Sunday - not fishing. The water conditio

Fishing Report 5-14-10

The MN DNR creel survey concluded on the Lower and Middle shores on 5/9/10, and will conclude on the Upper Shore on 5/16/10. From 5/10 through 5/13, water temperatures ranged from 42-49, and interviewed anglers caught 5 Steelhead on the Upper Shore. As a result of nearly an inch of rain shorewide on Thursday the 13th, flows have increased substantially in all tributaries. The forecast calls for sunny skies both Saturday and Sunday, and angling conditions should be good. Prior to this rain, spawning fish were still being observed on upper shore rivers up to the Flute Reed. Angling pressure has remained light on the Upper Shore, so anglers should be able to select where they want to fish. Totals for the Knife Trap are so far are 373 unclipped steelhead, 293 maxillary clipped steelhead, and 25 Kamloops. Totals for the French River are 89 unclipped steelhead, 6 maxillary clipped steelhead and 395 Kamloops.

Fishing Report 5- 10-10

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From 5/7 through 5/9, water temperatures ranged from 46-54 on the Lower Shore, 43-51 on the Middle Shore, and 42-49 on the Upper Shore. From 5/7 through 5/9, interviewed anglers caught 4 Steelhead, 2 Kamloops, and 2 Coho on the Lower Shore, 7 Steelhead and 1 Brook Trout on the Middle Shore, and 4 Steelhead and 4 Brook Trout on the Upper Shore. Only the largest of streams from the Baptism to Canada continue to have good water levels with slight color, making good angling conditions. Most moderate to small tributaries are now low and clear. There is a good chance of rain from Tuesday through Friday in the Grand Marais area, which should raise water level and add color to the water. There are currently, and will be more fish to catch from the Baptism to Canada if the forecast is accurate. Totals for the Knife Trap are so far are 371 unclipped steelhead, 286 maxillary clipped steelhead, and 25 Kamloops. Totals for the French River are 89 unclipped steelhead, 6 maxillary clipped steelhead

Fishing Report - Field Staff

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Fished the middle to upper shore Wednesday (4/28) thru Saturday AM. The water conditions on many of the rivers were low and clear. Water temps ranged from 42-54. Wednesday was slow with my Dad hooking 2 fish, landing 1 on a Chartreuse Sucker Spawn and I landed one, also on the Chart. SS. Thursday and Friday were quite a different story. On many smaller rivers fish were visible and podded up but were not interested in any offerings. Paired fish on redds were left alone. Due to warmer water temps I needed to change it up a bit so I tied on a #6 Woolly Bugger and my third swing was met with a vicious strike. A mean and ugly 26” male was soon in hand. I stuck with bugs and the big brown and black buggers really produced. In those 2 days I went 15 for 22 with only 3 fish not taken on buggers. Those fish were taken on a Freight Train and a unnamed bright colored wet fly. The majority of the fish were fooled on the dead drift with rest coming via the swing. I used Type 3 and 6 sink tips in d

Fishing Report - 5-7-10

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From 5/3 through 5/6, water temperatures ranged from 49-57 on the Lower Shore, 42-51 on the Middle Shore, and 42-50 on the Upper Shore. From 5/3 through 5/6, interviewed anglers caught 1 steelhead and 2 Kamloops on the Lower Shore, 8 Steelhead, 2 Kamloops, and 2 Brook Trout on the Middle Shore, and 2 Steelhead and 2 Brook Trout on the Upper Shore. Most streams from the Baptism to the Flute Reed have good water levels with slight color, making good angling conditions. There are still lots of fish to catch in this section of the shore. Angler pressure remained light this past week, despite favorable conditions??? Anglers should continue to select natural presentations due to water clarity. We expect a cold afternoon and evening tonight with rain and snow, but predicted weekend weather will be 50 and sunny. Last call before walleye opener, go fishing. Totals for the Knife Trap are so far are 364 unclipped steelhead, 285 maxillary clipped steelhead, and 25 Kamloops. Totals for the French

Fishing Report - 5-3-10

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Go Fishing! There are still fish on the Upper Shore Rivers. From 4/30 through 5/2, water temperatures ranged from 49-50 in the morning on the Lower Shore, 45-47 on the Middle Shore, and 44-46 on the Upper Shore. In the afternoon water temperatures ranged from 53-54 on the Lower Shore, 49-51 degrees on the Middle Shore, and 49-54 degrees on the Upper Shore. From 4/30 through 5/2, interviewed anglers caught nothing on the Lower Shore, 1 Steelhead, 1 Kamloops, and 1 Brook Trout on the Middle Shore, and 6 Steelhead and 1 Brook Trout on the Upper Shore. Rain accumulation in most watersheds from the Baptism to the Flute Reed was greater than 1 inch over the past four days. Most stream water levels rose and became slightly turbid. The run is still on in this section of the shore, and there are fish to catch. Slightly higher and more turbid conditions should be good for angling. Angler pressure remained light in the Grand Marias area over the weekend, despite favorable conditions? Totals for

Fishing Report - 4-29-10

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If you are still thinking of heading up the shore for steelhead this spring - GO! By now you probably have all heard that the shore needs rain. You may have also heard that there is "no water". Well it is true that the shore could use some rain and it is true that some of the rivers are very low but that does not mean fish are not there. After speaking with some people on Friday there are still a lot of fish in the rivers considering the conditions. We have had reports of fish being caught from the Knife all the way past the Brule. The key is that you need to find the bigger water or use some stealth on the rivers with lower water. The myth that low water will not produce a quality run is just that - a myth. It's similar to telling a mother-to-be that she can't give birth because it is a blizzard outside, it simply has no effect. She may not drive as far or deliver where she wants to but she will have her baby. Same holds true with a hen Steelhead. She