We are off to a good start of the fall steelhead season and seeing good numbers for this early-to-mid October. The steelies, like the kings are running bigger on average than they have been in years. A reported 17 pound steelhead was caught this week near Indian Bridge. Eggs, Eggs, and Eggs are the ticket for fall steelhead until around the first of the year. Spawn and egg fly patterns will be the top producers until the fish go into a winter mode when nymphs will become an important part of their diet- Hexes, Stones, and Caddis. Plugs and Streamer Patterns will be easier to fish after the leaves are down from the trees in early November. We will continue to see more fall steelhead if we keep getting rain and once Lake Michigan near shore has a surface temperature of around 55 degrees. Steelhead will pull in and out of the lower river on rising and falling water levels to feed. The “window” for a good fall run seems to shut when the river drops below 42 degrees, normally around mid-November.
Fall steelheads in my opinion are the best fish Michigan has to offer, the water is warmer and they are actively feeding, fueling up for a long winter. Fall steelies are known for their acrobatics in the warmer water- I have witnessed one jumping 11 times. The fish that make upstream this fall from Walhalla Bridge are likely to stay for the winter until spring when they spawn when the water returns to about 42 degrees and return to the lake.
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