TR-Fishigan Opening Day

I had gone up to Grayling Michigan to recharge batteries and see some old
friends that congregate there for the season opener. I drove through rain
and endurred a chilly night Friday after attending a gathering and awoke to
a wonderful bright and cool Saturday am. The kind of day golfers like and
fishermen hate. Between driving around looking for open water and the
conditions, there was not much happening astream. Being the season opening
weekend, there was much happening off stream.

After giving up on the Ausable I drove over to some favorite Manistee haunts
but they too were fairly crowded and wading upstream a ways didn;t really
help. I had pretty much decided to chuck it and go get an adult beverage
when I drove past the river on M-72 and the parking lot was empty! I broke
out the 8' 4wt attached a Hardy and decided to walk down to the water before
putting on waders. I wasn't using my vest, just a box of hendrickson's, some
streamers and a lanyard with tools and tippet around my neck and a dead
camera in the pocket with the fly vest (no smokes).

I couldn't believe my luck, there were sporadic hendrickson's coming off and
a few good fish doing a feeding rise and many others doing the emerger type
rises. I decided to go aheand and string up the rod there and then hurry
back to the car for waders and a box of wet flies to trail off the dry
flies. As I was about to do that, three sports, properly attired came down
the path and proceeded to enter the water in front of me. They did not reply
to my greeting but one angler, forgetting how sound carries astream, made
some comment about my attire and something to the effect that I probably
stole the rod. This kind of PO'd me, especially when one stood right in
front of me and started casting to two rises.

It was obvious the two rises were dinks and they were rising like fish
keying on rising emergers often do, coming completely out of the water. But
a foot or so behind them was another fish working periodically that I had
been spying before they appeared. I watched the fish rise again but the
angler and his buddies did not do a thing to try to catch the fish. Waders
or not, Dammit, I was there first, I walked in beside him, went upstream 10
feet or so, and then cast back downsream, which made the other anglers
stop, I dropped that fly about 25' from me and two feet upstream of my
target. One quick mend over the dinks and a 14" brown took my fly ever so
gently. I landed the fish and told the guy "his dinks would start again
shortly - and they did - and that he should tie on an emerger or soft hackle
if he wanted to catch them.

Let me tell you, the Manistee in April is cold and wading wet is not advised
but I was in and it felt like there was some Karma working that I did not
want to ruin. I waded downstreeam a few hundred yards, casting only to
rises. The first seven or eight fish I cast to all attacked the fly before I
missed on the next three strikes paying more attention to my cold and
numbing toes than I was the drifts. Walking back upstream as things started
to peter out, I passed my *buddies* and smiled, asked how they did (one fish
for the group).

Getting close to the takeout, I got out, took a seat on the grass and tried
to get some sun on my feet which was working when the water surface started
coming alive again.. I got back in and caught three more fish in the 8" to
12" range when another three anglers appeared. This time two very nice and
attrative ladies and a man. The first thing that popped into my mind was an
old Emerson, Lake,and Palmer song. We were exchanging pleasantries when I
noticed a nice rise out of the corner of my eyes. I excused my self, waded
out and up about 15' and let loose a 35' cast and a drift I make a lot only
in my dreams, the fish took softly and when I lifted the rod all hell broke
loose and the hardy began to sing it's song. But the soft action rod was up
to the challenge and not wanting to chase the fish I palmed the reel such
that fish could not run out more line, I was using 4x tippet and the rod
bent to the butt but the tippet held and the fish was on the reel. I was
rewarded with a football thick 16+" Mannistee Brown.

It's too bad my camera battery insertion technique was not as good as my
fishing skills that day as the blonde angler with the nice "accessories" and
the Winston rods was going to take my picture, alas. no hero shot.

Later that night I joined some friends at a party and there were two
attractive anglers and third genttleman talking about the fool wading wet in
the Manistee who caught a nice brown. Alas they did not call him a handome
fool . I just smiled when I heard them tell the story to my friends. .

I hear ya Wayne had the same thing happen to me on fishing creek
saturday.......A guy walks up to the stream with his woman and starts
throwing lures and bait right where I am fishing......I walk back up
to where Tom was fishing told him then walked to where he parked his
truck and took 2 nice fish from the pool there.........Walked back to
where Tom was and the rube was baiting his hook with red worms fishing
creek is a trophy trout water no live bait so i politely told him he
said he didn't know I said you need to read the signs and told him to
put on a yellow rooster tail and see what happened......From the looks
of him and his hugger I think it was one of the few times he had been
fishing so I don't think he knew any better.......I walked back up to
the pool beside his truck and hooked another fish turned around there
they were mouths open checking out the 12 inch brown I said to him you
gotta get on the fly kid.............................

"Wayne Knight" sed:

[snip] They did not reply to my greeting but one angler,
forgetting how sound carries astream, made some comment about my
attire and something to the effect that I probably stole the rod. This
kind of PO'd me, especially when one stood right in front of me and
started casting to two rises.

[snip] One quick mend over the dinks and a 14" brown took my fly ever
so gently. I landed the fish and told the guy "his dinks would start
again shortly - and they did - and that he should tie on an emerger
or soft hackle if he wanted to catch them.

Is there a better revenge ...

--
BG - I gotta get out there!

"Wayne Knight" wrote in message
. ..
I had gone up to Grayling Michigan to recharge batteries and see some old
friends that congregate there for the season opener. I drove through rain
and endurred a chilly night Friday after attending a gathering and awoke
to a wonderful bright and cool Saturday am. The kind of day golfers like
and fishermen hate. Between driving around looking for open water and the
conditions, there was not much happening astream. Being the season opening
weekend, there was much happening off stream.

After giving up on the Ausable I drove over to some favorite Manistee
haunts but they too were fairly crowded and wading upstream a ways didn;t
really help. I had pretty much decided to chuck it and go get an adult
beverage when I drove past the river on M-72 and the parking lot was
empty! I broke out the 8' 4wt attached a Hardy and decided to walk down to
the water before putting on waders. I wasn't using my vest, just a box of
hendrickson's, some streamers and a lanyard with tools and tippet around
my neck and a dead camera in the pocket with the fly vest (no smokes).

I couldn't believe my luck, there were sporadic hendrickson's coming off
and a few good fish doing a feeding rise and many others doing the emerger
type rises. I decided to go aheand and string up the rod there and then
hurry back to the car for waders and a box of wet flies to trail off the
dry flies. As I was about to do that, three sports, properly attired came
down the path and proceeded to enter the water in front of me. They did
not reply to my greeting but one angler, forgetting how sound carries
astream, made some comment about my attire and something to the effect
that I probably stole the rod. This kind of PO'd me, especially when one
stood right in front of me and started casting to two rises.

It was obvious the two rises were dinks and they were rising like fish
keying on rising emergers often do, coming completely out of the water.
But a foot or so behind them was another fish working periodically that I
had been spying before they appeared. I watched the fish rise again but
the angler and his buddies did not do a thing to try to catch the fish.
Waders or not, Dammit, I was there first, I walked in beside him, went
upstream 10 feet or so, and then cast back downsream, which made the
other anglers stop, I dropped that fly about 25' from me and two feet
upstream of my target. One quick mend over the dinks and a 14" brown took
my fly ever so gently. I landed the fish and told the guy "his dinks would
start again shortly - and they did - and that he should tie on an emerger
or soft hackle if he wanted to catch them.

Let me tell you, the Manistee in April is cold and wading wet is not
advised but I was in and it felt like there was some Karma working that I
did not want to ruin. I waded downstreeam a few hundred yards, casting
only to rises. The first seven or eight fish I cast to all attacked the
fly before I missed on the next three strikes paying more attention to my
cold and numbing toes than I was the drifts. Walking back upstream as
things started to peter out, I passed my *buddies* and smiled, asked how
they did (one fish for the group).

Getting close to the takeout, I got out, took a seat on the grass and
tried to get some sun on my feet which was working when the water surface
started coming alive again.. I got back in and caught three more fish in
the 8" to 12" range when another three anglers appeared. This time two
very nice and attrative ladies and a man. The first thing that popped into
my mind was an old Emerson, Lake,and Palmer song. We were exchanging
pleasantries when I noticed a nice rise out of the corner of my eyes. I
excused my self, waded out and up about 15' and let loose a 35' cast and a
drift I make a lot only in my dreams, the fish took softly and when I
lifted the rod all hell broke loose and the hardy began to sing it's song.
But the soft action rod was up to the challenge and not wanting to chase
the fish I palmed the reel such that fish could not run out more line, I
was using 4x tippet and the rod bent to the butt but the tippet held and
the fish was on the reel. I was rewarded with a football thick 16+"
Mannistee Brown.

It's too bad my camera battery insertion technique was not as good as my
fishing skills that day as the blonde angler with the nice "accessories"
and the Winston rods was going to take my picture, alas. no hero shot.

Later that night I joined some friends at a party and there were two
attractive anglers and third genttleman talking about the fool wading wet
in the Manistee who caught a nice brown. Alas they did not call him a
handome fool . I just smiled when I heard them tell the story to my
friends. .




By Gar..if I'd a been there with ya matey

I'd a cut their eyes out....and then I'd a cut their gizzards..and
then....I'd a hurt 'em, not nice like before...

Way cool dude....


john

"Wayne Knight" wrote in message
. ..

I just smiled...

And so did we.

Thanks, Wayne.

Wolfgang

"Wayne Knight" wrote ...

[...]

I was
rewarded with a football thick 16+" Mannistee Brown.



And we, in turn, are rewarded with a great read. Thanks for that.

I'll be up on either the PM or the Manistee (CCC bridge area, probably) in a
couple weeks. Hennies tied. Any other suggestions?

Dan

On Mon, 30 Apr 2007 23:12:27 -0400, "Wayne Knight"
wrote:

I had gone up to Grayling Michigan to recharge batteries and see some old
friends that congregate there for the season opener. I drove through rain
and endurred a chilly night Friday after attending a gathering and awoke to
a wonderful bright and cool Saturday am. The kind of day golfers like and
fishermen hate. Between driving around looking for open water and the
conditions, there was not much happening astream. Being the season opening
weekend, there was much happening off stream.
.....

Later that night I joined some friends at a party and there were two
attractive anglers and third genttleman talking about the fool wading wet in
the Manistee who caught a nice brown. Alas they did not call him a handome
fool . I just smiled when I heard them tell the story to my friends. .



Very enjoyable. It sounds as if it was an amusing weekend.


g.c.

"Daniel-San" (Rot13) wrote in message
. net...

I'll be up on either the PM or the Manistee (CCC bridge area, probably) in
a couple weeks. Hennies tied. Any other suggestions?


Black Elk Hair Caddis, Borcher's Parachute, Sulfur's, and a Robert's Yellow
Drake.

"Wolfgang" wrote in message
...


And so did we.


We gonna be smiling in the Smoky's soon?

"Wolfgang" wrote in message
...

Yep. Some of the details concerning who is going to meet whom exactly
where and when still need to be tweaked, but I am out'a here on the
evening of the 16th.

I'll be on the TN side from the evening of the 16th to the morning of the
20th.