Muskegon River Fishing Report – February 22, 2015

A Muskegon river Rainbow trout in full winter colors

Muskegon River

The Muskegon river near Newaygo, MI is running below average flows at this time and remains chilly !  Due to the extremely cold and at times very snowy weather that we’ve had over the past week+, the river is quiet…..

For those looking to put a boat in for some mid winter fishing, finding an open ramp is half the challenge, although tire chains can help solve that problem.

Fish still have to eat though, so those venturing out are having success with both resident Brown and Rainbow trout, as well as migratory steelhead that are wintering over in the river.  Small and slow is the general theme for such winter fishing.  For the fly fisher, small nymphs such as Caddis, Hares Ears, Pheasant Tails, Midge and Black Stones are flies to have on hand.  Fishing lighter tippet will help as well, with 6 and even 7x for trout, 4 and 5 x for steelhead.

With no real break in the cold weather being forecasted for a few weeks, we’re all in the same situation…..playing the waiting game.  Present water temperature in the 33-34 degree range.

This time of year finds many other fishing related activities filling spare time, such as A Celebration of Fly Tying, which will be held at the Knights of Columbus Hall at 5830 Clyde Park Ave in Grand Rapids from 9AM until 4PM, on February 28, 2015.  Other events include the Cabela’s fly tying series, which I was part of yesterday, which features fly tiers from across Michigan, who put on a demonstration each Saturday, at the Grandvilles, MI Cabela’s store.