Lake Huron: Looking good for huge brown trout

[ausable_steelhead]

Well I got my Master Angler patch today. It looks like my brown is gonna end up #2 in the state for 2006. The really cool thing is 3 of the top 5 browns for 06' are from Lake Huron, here's the top 5:

1.)28.22lbs-Lk Huron

2.)27.82lbs-Lk Huron

3.)26.79lbs-Higgins Lk

4.)25.71lbs-Lk Huron

5.)24.41lbs-Lk Michigan

Here's all the Lk Huron brown trout entries for 2006:

1.) 28.22lbs
2.) 27.82lbs
3.) 25.71lbs
4.) 23.50lbs
5.) 20.06lbs
6.) 19.36lbs
7.) 19.33lbs
8.) 18.75lbs
9.) 17.50lbs
10.)16.56lbs
11.)16.12lbs

There were 21 total browns entered this year and Lk Huron had 11 of them, that's pretty impressive. So, while there isn't alot of salmon and almost no big ones, there's alot of huge browns out there.

[walleyeman2006]

got another one right at 20lbs today,,,,was a ball pulling that fish through the ice

[salmon_slayer06]

One of our last few trips that we made out of Sanilac this summer, we had a couple browns on that probably were in the mid teens at least. We were out just in front of the harbor in about 100 FOW and we had a 10 color leadcore go off. I grabbed the rod and the line was slowly coming off the spool. I continued to hold the rod straight up and put some tension on the fish. I reeled the line trying to gain some and never could quite and I never did see the leadcore, I was in backing. I couldn't get any line in, so I tried pumping to gain and the rod was just doubled over and I still was getting line taken off. I tightened the drag to gain more line and never gained anything. At this point the fish wasn't moving and I couldn't do anyhing to move the fish. I just loosened the drag a little bit and decided we should pull lines and try to gain some on this thing. Being it was windy and the waves were building to about 4 feet, my buddy couldn't leave the wheel. So I just stood there wondering what the hell this was. I said slow the boat down to a crawl and I'll see if I can gain. I started to and I pumped and reeled. I still was far from reeling in any core and the rod went limp. ***!!! Gone. I said oh well and continued to reel in the line. It spit the hook. It was on a pink alewife, our #1 spoon for Huron in 06. I had it on all rods that day. As I was getting ready to put the rod back out, BANG!!!, the downrigger goes off. With my buddy still on the wheel, I grabbed the rigger rod and found that this fish wasn't a laker and surley wasn't a salmon. I wanted to know what this fish was so I kinda forced him in by pumping and reeling... He came up quick to the top and I seen him for a second and was gone. This fish spit the hook again. Son of a bitch.. This time I wanted to kill somebody. 2 fish on, both gone. So I hurried up and reset all lines. The wind was a picking up, waves were about 5 feet and my buddy was getting all worried about the lines tangleing . I got on the wheel and went back over the spots we had the fish on. I got in a good troll, and the same rigger goes off again. Another big fish and this time my buddy grabbed it and he just played the fish out and took his time. I encouraged him not to loose it and we both were getting anxious to see what the hell these fish were! He battled the fish and we both commented on how these were not fighting like a typical laker or salmon. It was alot of weight, and just a bull dogging like fight. Once again, the fish was gone. I couldn't understand why these fish were coming off. We set lines once more and continued to work the area. I told my buddy that I thought these fish must have been browns, because pretty much every laker we had on was no bigger than 8 pounds, maybe a 10 pounder but thats pretty big for these parts. I knew it wasn't a salmon, they just didn't fight like one. The first fish I guess was probably 20 pounds, the rigger fish maybe 13 and the 3rd was a ?. I don't know what they were, and I still wonder to this day. Could they have been a school of big browns? Possibly master angler fish? Who knows. But it gave me hope to find these fish again in 07.

[motcityman]

well done!!!!! it is good to hear of nice fish of that size .... Awesome job....

[ahasiec]

very nicely done, I guess it we cannot target silver yet then this is great news, cannot wait to get out there and give her a try in the early spring..bring on the soft water

[ausable_steelhead]

Thanks guys. Hell yeah there's something to fish for out there! The 25lb fish was caught this spring, and my buddy nailed a huge male in April off the beach that weighed in the low 20's(which he didn't turn in). I also caught a big one last November, est. 18-20lb fish, a spawned-out male. I've hit 4 browns over 14lbs in the last three years and a number of 11-14lb fish(these are actually quite common), they're out there. Most of the big ones get caught trolling, I hit mine in a trib on 5lb, that made it all the more sweeter!

[The Terminator]

Awesome, Since salmon or so rare now in lower Lake Huron, I've been thinking of focusing just on steelheads and Browns...the question is, do you use the same techniques for Browns as you do for Kings, or is there something I missing ? Sad to say, I've never caught a Brown, put have boxed dozens of Kings.
I known that in the spring you can get'm using planar boards and shallow running cranks in tight to the shore, but I'm looking for big Browns throughout the summer out of Sanilac or Lexington.

Thanks for any input,

The Terminator

[salmon_slayer06]

We caught browns in the spring in the 12 pound range on mag spoons behind dipsys in 15-22 FOW. We ran the dipsys just out far enough so we couldn't quite see the baits, which was around 12-18 feet back. ALL OF OUR Silvers and browns last spring came on Magnum Green Dolphin silver streaks. Once summer came, the fish wanted the standard pink alewife SS. There were reports of guys catching big browns all summer out of Sanilac, but for how long we fished that port last summer, I never seen a one. Later in the summer we have caught them just south of the harbor by some humps which were around 68-72 FOW. If you can troll right now in tight and have a East wind, you should catch some browns.

[Termie33]

Ive been saying for years that there is more browns in huron then most people think. While we do run in to them "salmon" and laker fishing i firmly believe the vast majority of them inhabit much different waters then salmon and lakers do during the summer, so this fishery gets over looked. I wanted to try targeting them this past summer, but i worked way too much, and the little free time i had was spent limiting out on walleye. Over the years we have caught quite a few in the high teens.

The alewive population is obvisouly down in huron...but from what ive seen, the bottom of the water column, and the near shore areas are alive with different bait fish such as gobies and shiners and whatever else.

I had a charter boat captain tell me a "sure fire" way to catch them...I dont have a temp probe, so i forgot the ideal temp...but he said find a place where that temp(lets say 55 degrees) meets the bottom, and youll find browns. Like i said, i dont have a temp probe, so i never had the chance to test this.

Congrats on the nice fish btw...

[Oldgrandman]

Yeah I always wanted to fish Alpena. This is just another reason to get on it!
A guy I work with fishes up there a few times every year focusing mainly on eyes at night and they usually pick up some decent browns too. So I would guess walleye tactics are a good bet like in the dark with crank/stick baits.

[ausable_steelhead]

I'm not a troller, but Termie is right on. Browns live in much different water than salmon and definanetly lakers. I think browns are much shallower than where everybody goes. I also bet they suspend sometimes and I heard large browns like colder water, 44-46 degrees, not 100% sure on that though. I also think that structure is more important with browns than other salmonoids.

[Trout Scout]

Haven't done any seminars in the Thumb area in a few years so most of the new guys don't know where or how to start. Most of you were introduced in the Salmon and Lake Trout age. I guess you could say that anything you would want to discuss about Brown Trout I would galdly respond. I have fish Brown Trout on Lake Huron for 35 or my 40 years on the Lake. Lake Huron had a great year size wise just not quantity this year. Of the ones reported probably just as many caught or more. That one from Festival was a Pig and largest ever recorded in Lake Huron. Capt Ed

[ausable_steelhead]

I guess that means the one I landed is the second-largest ever recorded in Lake Huron, that's cool. I'm getting into browns more, that's for sure. This was my first time sending in a MA fish, but I've got 3 more that would've made it the last three years.

[No Mas]

I caught my first brown this past spring and I am looking forward to doing it again this spring. What ports would you guys recommend? I fished Tawas Bay because it was pretty hassle free and fishing out of a 14ft'er made it simple.

Thanks,

Tom