News from the ausable

[Erik]

Made the trip up this past weekend. Everything co-operated except for the fish.
Friends often ask me "Erik, why do you keep going back to the ausable"? I don't know what to tell them. It's hard to describe. All I know is whenever I'm up there fishing at one of my favorite spots, even if I'm not catching any fish at the moment, I can still feel the bites from the ones that I've caught from there in the past. I know that probably sounds a little weird. If you've never experianced the feeling that I'm talking about then you'll probably think I'm nuts. But there are certain places I go that while I'm there fishing I can close my eyes and feel every fish I've ever caught from that spot. And the ausable river gives me that feeling more than any other river that I fish.
At any rate the high light of my trip was sunday morning. The weather was awesome with fog rising from the river.
This was the view looking up river from my favorite boat fishing spot.
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/551/ausablemorning1S.jpg
One of the spots I like to fish I was having a hard time getting a drift through. Can't tell you how many times I had to retie before I finally pulled this mess from the river.
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/539/snagginggarbage1S.jpg
Nice eh?
There were 5 weighted hooks, a lead hot dog, and some kind of nut and treble hook rig in that mess. Can you imagine if some one were to go diving or snorkling and get caught on one of these? Or how would you like to step on one of these with your nice new $200.00 pair of waders?
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/539/weightedhook1S.jpg
On my way home I stopped at a super secret spot ;) and checked out the drift. The moon was coming up and it looked pretty cool. You can kinda see it in my picture. Although the picture doesn't do it justice. You couldn't tell where the water ended and the sky began.
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/551/ebotag2S.jpg
And yes she was flowing pretty good which is a good thing :)

In the end I got skunked...heavy sigh....it happens....
But I could still feel the ones I've caught there in the past. Some of them looked like this.
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/530/backwhen1S.jpg

I got a hunch I'll be back there again one of these days and maybe I'll even catch some fish.
Hope everyone else had a great weekend!

[Whit1]

Thanks for the report and the photos Erik. That third photo shows a "Silver Spider" of years gone by. It took a lot of fly dope to float that chunky "fly"......:lol:

You're right though on the tangled mess that snaggers leave behind.......for years.......and what it would do to a $200 pair of waders or my $300+ pair of Simms.

Many years ago I was wading the center run in the Grand River below Sixth St. Dam in November, fishing for steelheads. I was about 200 yds. upstream of the I-196 overpass when I stepped on one of those silver spiders. The hook went through the bottom of my boot, the point just touching my foot. I didn't dare step down for fear of jamming the hook deep into my foot. My Dad was nearby and I called to him to come over and help me out. The river was low (thus I was out in the middle) and with his support I could lift my leg up out of the water (well over knee deep) and he removed the hook from the bottom of my boot.

Without help I would have been in a hell of a fix.:yikes:

[dinoday]

I know what you mean Erik.
I went back to the Au Sable last spring for the first time in years with my son. It wasn't as great fishing as I remembered,but I still really enjoy fishing there.
Glad you pulled some of that junk from the river.About 10 years ago I waded out below the waterfall atTippy Dam in the summer and pulled out about 100 pounds of that junk:yikes: it must have had 2 dozen flies stuck in it and yards of line, someday that crap will only be a memory.

I like the first pic, that spot looks very familiar:)

[ausable_steelhead]

Nice post Erik, I know the exact feeling. When you've been a long-time Au Sable vet, you just can't pry yourself away from her. I've hit the Manistee the last few trips, and though I've hit fish everytime, I'm having Au Sable withdraws, I was just thinking about that today:D ! I'm hitting the Big M on Monday, then it's back to my favorite river hands down. She might not fish like she used to, but she's still beautiful and has a magic all her own, nice post man. Hey, by the way, were the piers under water yet:D ! I know the launch at Rea rd. is! As for the snagging rigs, I know one of the old-timers at Foote collects them every fall and turns them into pencils leads.

[Fishndude]

I have been melting down sinkers I find and making them into pencil leads for years. I thought I had pulled most of the grappling hooks out of the river.
Just upstream from the RR Trestle used to be a BIG producer of weighted giant trebles. I sometimes landed 10 or more in a day:lol:

[Erik]

I like the first pic, that spot looks very familiar

No kiddin? I didn't think anyone would be able to recognize that spot from that view. Now if I showed the down river side I garantee some people would recognize that spot.

Ausable steelhead,
the ausable rose 2.5 ft after I left. And it was high while I was there.


BTW...that last pic was taken in 1992. I found the negatives while cleaning out my tool box at work. Seems like only yesterday.

[ausable_steelhead]

Yeah, I heard 92' was a great spring run:D ! Yeah she's still quite high(alittle over 2400cfs), but she is dropping, and the water warmed to 35 degrees today. I know of a couple spots there I'd be fishing right now;) ! Fresh spawn and high-water chromers:D !

[jimbobway]

What kind of boat do you use on the Big A ,can you put in at the mouth and run up or Rea Road ? Nice pics and clean up job.

[MarshEO1973]

Your super secret spot looks like I grew up down the road from it ;) ;) Move up stream a mile or two, thats where the real secret spot is.:cool:

[GONE FISHIN(LARRY)]

What kind of boat do you use on the Big A ,can you put in at the mouth and run up or Rea Road ? Nice pics and clean up job.


It's a long run from the mouth to rea rd ,there is a launch up at Rea rd . Also one about halfway up at whirlpool ,one at where River Road crosses the River , and one by the kiddie park witch closed to low water but you can still get small boats in there pretty easy . Jim for years I used a 16ft v hull on the river , in this era of low water I might not now be able cover as much water as I once did . Most guys run 12/14 v hulls on the Au Sable ,some guys fishing in flat bottoms go even bigger I've seen as big 18ft.

Thanks again for all the meat .

LARRY

[SteelYarn]

Hey nice post Erik, its always nice to be on the water no matter what, and our memories help carry us through our skunks ...;)

[bigwak]

No matter what size boat you chose to take on the AuSable (other than the drifters), make sure that you are very careful. There are many, many obstacles to miss and any one of them can take out your sheer pin. That river will bite you if you don't know where to go or aren't careful.