A year and a half up in Alaska and I’ve finally found my way back to NWI. Two extremely busy guide seasons and almost 10,000 miles of driving and here we are. Feels good to be surrounded by friends, family, and familiar waters again. That being said, let’s talk about the current fly fishing options here.

Trail Creek Steelhead, Michigan City IN

Heavy rains and lack of fish at the moment are making trail creek an unfriendly place for fly anglers. I would suspect that once the rains subside and the water levels start to drop there will be a good amount of fish in the system. Now that the salmon are basically gone, its about to be prime time for steelhead anglers. 8mm beads under an indicator fished near the bottom will be the ticket. Also, don’t be afraid to try nymphs and even smaller leeches dead drifted. Winter is my favorite season on Trail Creek. Lots of big shouldered fish winter over each year. Let’s keep our fingers crossed for this nasty spell of weather to disappear quickly.

Dowagiac River Steelhead, Niles MI

Still a few kings and coho around. Steelhead are making their way on up slowly. Should only be getter better as the weeks go on. Recent rains have the water up again but it should drop quickly once the rains stop. 8mm-10mm beads are tough to beat if you just wanna put one in the boat. The swing game should be picking up soon as the steelhead start to find their winter lies. Coppers, blacks, blues, and purples should be utilized when swinging. Don’t go sparse on the flash. Let ‘em see it.

Other Info

As we wait for the weather and steelhead to cooperate, there are plenty of fly fishing opportunities still to have. Lake trout fishing in the creeks and harbors has been decent when the weather cooperates. Sinking lines and large flies fished near the bottom is a blast if you’ve never tried. Bass fishing and pike fishing has been good with most fish steadily feeding and eating flies. Make sure you get out and enjoy the beauty of fall before winter shows up. I have dates available and would love to get you out on the water. Tight Lines.