Lots to do here in July! Trout, smallmouth bass, and summer run steelhead to name a few. With most of the major hatches being over for the year, the next thing on a fly anglers mind is terrestrial’s – grasshopper, ants, beetles, etc. Fishing grasshopper and ant patterns can be some of the most fun that a trout angler can have. What’s not to like about casting your pattern to the bank and skittering it back waiting for the explosive bite from a willing trout. This can be done on the Big Manistee out of a boat or also wading the bank. Water levels are typically down in July so it opens up more wading access in the area.
If it is smaller rivers you prefer, the Little Manistee, Bear Creek, and Pere Marquette all have lots of wading access to make a day twitching and skittering hopper patterns. For the hear junkies the spinners and Rapala’s are still in play. Casting Rapala’s at the banks and fishing them back like a hurt minnow with a slow retrieve or swinging spinners under log jams is also a productive way to spend the day. The smallmouth fishing is in full force on all river systems in the area. Unlike the trout that sometimes don’t bite real well in the warmer water temperatures of the summer, the smallmouth is eager and willing. Whether you are a fly angler or spin fisherman, it is always fun spending a day fishing these fish. Subsurface or waiting for the explosive bite on the surface. It all gets the blood pumping and you don’t have to rush out at first light to try to beat the heat. Because with smallmouth, sometimes the hotter the better!
The summer run steelhead fishing is also on the menu. These fish typically bite much better in low light times of the day. So sleeping in is not an option. An hour before daylight and for a couple hours after in the mornings and just the opposite in the evenings is the best times. Above and below the coffer at Tippy Dam is where you will find the majority of them on the Big Manistee along with a few areas of the river with cold springs entering the system. Centerpins and spinning gear with floats using spawn or shrimp and bottom bouncing with fly or spinning gear with flies are all good options. So if you’re looking for something to pass the time until fall, come on and enjoy some of the over-looked fishing of the summer.
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