Recommended charter boats?

[pearso21]

Hi, everybody. I'm looking into chartering a boat for our anniversary at the end of April. So far, most places look like their season starts in May. Can anyone tell me if the fishing is good in April? I'm currently looking at a place in SW Michigan that says they fish the St. Joseph River for steelhead and brown trout in April. Any suggestions? Thanks a lot!

[fish patroll]

check out the sponsers of this site, some great choices there.

[Whit1]

Coldwater Charters
http://www.coldwatercharters.com/ (http://www.coldwatercharters.com/)
Coldwater Charters/Mike


FishPatroll
http://www.fishpatroll.com/

Both are MS sponsors and can handle your needs with ease and professional integrity.

[fish patroll]

thanks Whit.

[King Crawler]

I have used Coldwater Charters and Mike is a great guy.

[Still Wait'n]

Headhunter Charters. Capt. Tim Schaffer (269) 921-6997

[Dave Ash]

Best Chance, in Saugatuck

They are the best out on the lake as well as really cool guys!!

[DonP]

Well...

Each year is different as far as to WHEN the fish are going to be WHERE. That being said... this year is seeming to be shaping up as a "late" season because of the massive amounts of ice out on lake michigan and the colder water temperatures that this will cause. Earlier in the winter when it was mild... if it were to stay that way... it was shaping up to be a "early" season. But unfortunately it did not stay that way!! :rant: :sad:

Hi, everybody. I'm looking into chartering a boat for our anniversary at the end of April....... I'm currently looking at a place in SW Michigan that says they fish the St. Joseph River for steelhead and brown trout in April.

So you want the St. Joe River in late April. If it is the St. Joe River that you have your heart set on... some of the mentioned charters will be "out of the picture" so to speak as they do not charter on the river there. That is one think you will have to take into consideration. If you do not mind going out on Lake Michigan out of St. Joe (or another location)... that would open you up to alot more choices. When you narrow your location down... and type of fishing (river vs. lake)... it will narrow your choices down to those charter captains that fish that port... and do that type of fishing. Not all captains do both river and big lake fishing... but there are a number of them that do.

Right now this year is definitely shaping up to be a "later" season with all the ice, snow, and colder temps. But as you know.... in Michigan... that can change in a heartbeat!! :lol: There are some seasons that have a milder winter where the steelhead fishing in late April on the St. Joe river is "winding down" so to speak. The big lake fishing in St. Joe around the end of April should be pretty decent.... regardless if it is a early or late season. (Notice I put "should" in bold type as every now and then there comes a year where the fishing just don't follow the patterns of the past years!)

There are some good suggestions are far as charters go that are our site sponsors. But for me personally, if I wanted the choice to fish either the St. Joe river or the big lake out of the port of St. Joe.... I would choose Captain Russ Clark from Sea Hawk charters as he does both... and he is one of the best there in St. Joe.

Good Luck in your choice... and let us know how you do!!

Oh... by the way.... :Welcome: to M-S.com!!

[Still Wait'n]

Headhunter does both as well. If you give him a call he will give you some good info. :)

[halfcore]

Best Chance, in Saugatuck

They are the best out on the lake as well as really cool guys!!

clearly you must be thinking of somebody else....

[pearso21]

Thanks, everybody, for the great suggestions! This is a harder decision than I expected- I never knew there were so many charter companies out there! I'm looking over the websites and will probably be contacting one or two of those suggested.

DonP- My heart isn't really set on St. Joe. I really wanted to go to the U.P., but decided it might be too cold up there that time of the year. And, I wanted walleye fishing, but apparently that's not walleye season. Most of the places I found in northern Michigan didn't start until May, anyway, which is how I ended up looking in southern Michigan. I'm open to either Lake or river, but I don't want to only get salmon if we go out on Lake Michigan. Catching a big salmon would probably be pretty awesome, but nobody in our family really likes the taste. Although Salmonhead Charters had some pretty tasty-looking recipes on their site.:)

I'm a complete novice at this, but my husband loves to fish so I wanted to surprise him. He's never been "big-game" fishing, only for the small stuff in local ponds and lakes. His favorite is pike. I usually only get pan fish because that's all I can ever catch. If you have suggestions for other areas later in the season, I'd love to hear them. If our first trip is good, I'll probably look into another one later this summer.

[Jason Adam]

I'm open to either Lake or river, but I don't want to only get salmon if we go out on Lake Michigan. Catching a big salmon would probably be pretty awesome, but nobody in our family really likes the taste.

I'm not trying to sell you a charter, but I'll tell you rarely are you going to find a great salmon trip where you are going to catch species other than salmonoids(Chinook, coho, steelhead, brown trout, lake trout, etc..). That said, take the salmon charter. Go out there and reel in huge powerful fish until your arms get sore, and have the greatest fishing experiance of your life. There are always people willing to take some salmon fillets(I give away 1000's of lbs a summer, I know). Dont take a charter to fill the freezer, take a charter to go out and have a awsome time. Base your time of year on the charter captians suggestions for that port. Walleye fishing is all good too, and I definitally like to eat the walleye more, but I can buy great walleye fillets at my gas station cheaper than I can catch them. The thrill of fighting a huge king on open water is hard to explain...

[fish-on]

yes i would strongly recommend sea hawk.russ(rusty) clark is one of the best out of your port, river or lake.;)

[FLAT RATE]

I can vouce for SalmonHead Charters , Paul knows how to catch fish and you will have a great time on a great boat.

[STEINFISHSKI]

clearly you must be thinking of somebody else....

halfcore, you must be able to back up your jab at the top ranked Pro Tournament boat out there on Lake Michigan. Without question Dave and Bill are the best of the best right now. I have been to their presentations and talked briefly with them and they are nice guys too. Maybe you don't think they are cool? I hope to run a trip with Best Chance this year myself to learn some things.

[halfcore]

halfcore, you must be able to back up your jab at the top ranked Pro Tournament boat out there on Lake Michigan. Without question Dave and Bill are the best of the best right now. I have been to their presentations and talked briefly with them and they are nice guys too. Maybe you don't think they are cool? I hope to run a trip with Best Chance this year myself to learn some things.

no doubt...the best of the best, just ask them, they will tell you :)

I know them well....and it was not a jab. I do recommend that you fish with them, you will learn alot!

[STEINFISHSKI]

I admit I don't know them personally, but I do respect and admire their work. They put seminars on for other tournament fishermen, and share plenty of information which makes them ok in my book. They have a hell of a thing going right now and are top predator out there for now.