U.P. Coaster Regs?????

[Gillslayer]

I recently read an article in Outdoor Life magazine about Coaster Brook Trout fishing. The gentelman in the article regualrly fishes Lk. Michigan tribs in the fall for coasters. I thought they came out of Superior for one, but that my question is this: He did all his fishing in the fall, particularly opening day (deer firearm) and after. Is this legal. Can you keep coasters this time of year, I thought trout season ended on Labor Day. I am looking for some clarification on the law. Boerr, if your out there, maybe you can answer this.
thanks.

[Xstream Outfitters]

As for the law, read the regs for Michgan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin and that will tell you exactly what you want to know. To my knowledge, Michigan and Minnesota stock Superior and Wisconsin stocks Lake Michigan with coasters. Even if the season closes on a particular species, as long as the river is still open to fishing, you can still catch them. However, if you see an officer and tell them you are fishing for a species that is out of season, you will get a ticket, regardless if you are releasing them. Just one of those loopholes in the law.

[THE BAIT SHOP GUY]

Did he say if he was fishing in the U.P. or below the bridge? There are no Lake Michigan tributaries that would be open for the taking of coasters in the U.P. They all close September 30th. There are a few rivers in the lower that would be open for coasters. If a stream isn't listed in the trout guide as a trout stream, then it would be open as well.

I wonder if he's been catching splake? They're a lake trout/brook trout hybrid. They go thru the motions of spawning in the fall and get all colored up like big brook trout. I've had to break the hearts of a lot of guys when they bring in what they think is a record sized brook trout and have to tell them that it's a splake.

Here are some fall run splake. This is my first attempt at posting pics on this site so bare with me if it dosen't work.http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/244212-01-2004_04_12_53PM-med.JPG www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/244212-01-2004_04_10_18PM-med.JPG www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/244212-01-2004_04_16_08PM-med.JPG

[THE BAIT SHOP GUY]

Lets try that again. I think you can see how a person can get the two confused.http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/244212-01-2004_04_10_18PM-med.JPG http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/244212-01-2004_04_16_08PM-med.JPG

[Xstream Outfitters]

I'd swear up and down those were coasters too!

The DNR 2004 trout shows that they look quite different from their pictures, but your pictures make them look very similar. I'm curious to know what are the key points to differentiating the two.

[Gillslayer]

Hey Bait Shop Guy,
I think I've seen your posts on the LBDN site also.
Did some walleye ice fishing up there a couple of years ago.
That article was citing the U.P. LK Mi tribs: Manistique, Days, Ford and Cedar.
Check out the article and let me know what you think.
REally want to get up there in the fall and go after some of these fish.
Coaster (http://www.outdoorlife.com/outdoor/destinations/article/0,19912,750287,00.html)

[pikedevil]

I've caught a few splake up here but none with the dark spawning colors like those. The markings on the sides are pretty similar to a brook trouts, the best way to tell is by looking at the tail. If it has any kind of fork to it at all, it is prolly a splake. Brook trout have square tails. Its tough to tell in photos unless they are laid down on a board or the ground.

[toto]

Those fish are just about as pretty though. Wouldn't look bad on the wall at all.

[THE BAIT SHOP GUY]

Wow! Don't they have people there that check to make sure their facts are straight? Every one of the rivers mentioned is a type 4 stream and is closed to the taking of brook trout after September 30th - assuming he's catching brookies. I'm 99% positive that the fish in the picture is a splake. The reason he's never seen a fish on a bed is because splake generally "spawn" from late September thru the first week of November. I've watched splake go thru the motions of spawning but when the "big moment" arrives, these hybrid fish don't seem to know what to do and start over again. You'll have a hard time catching a spawning splake on any artificial lure, but they are absolute suckers for spawn and spawn imitations. When they're done spawning, they drop downstream to the big lake and put the feed bag back on. Working spinners in the deep holes makes sense.

The color on splake varies from fish to fish, time of year, and water color. The pics I posted were the absolute best looking ones we have caught (and mostly released,) just to show how a person can get confused. Some are almost black, some are pale, and I've taken several that have pale yellow to orange bellies like the one in the article. If you take them out of the big lake thru the ice or in the spring, their color is pretty close to the pictures in the DNR guides. I'll post some more pics as soon as I make some room in my photo gallery.

Telling them apart from lakers and brookies is fairly easy. First off, up here we just assume it's a splake. I've been here since 1989 and we've only taken a couple lake trout while fishing for splake. Lakers have a much more forked tail and their spots are much more well defined. It's a little harder to tell them apart from brook trout. Size is usually the best sign - you hardly ever get brookies over 20 inches. Most splake you catch are well over 20 inches (at least up here they are.) Brook trout have a much more squared tail and the wormy marks on their back are much better defined.

If you want to try for splake, April thru the first week of May is the best time. That's all trolling along the shoreline after ice-out. The fish aren't as pretty, but they fight good and it's the first chance to get out in the boat. We have a world class splake fishery up here. The last two state record fish have both come out of Big Bay de Noc with the current one being 17 pounds, 7 ounces. That's just 3 pounds shy of the world record and I'm positive the next world record will come out of one of these bays.

Now that I've made it sound like this is splake Mecca, I should point out that the last two seasons their numbers have been way down. We've had this happen before where you have a couple years of poor fishing, then one or two where it's mind blowing.

Well there it is, everything you ever wanted to know about splake but were afraid to ask. I'll get working on loading those pics.

[THE BAIT SHOP GUY]

A few more pics just to show how much their color varies over the course of the year. First is a triple header my dad and I got first trip out a couple springs back. These were older fish that had spawned at least one. You can tell by the color on the fins. Younger fish that haven't spawned yet don't have any red color to the fins. Coming out of the clear water they don't have much color to the body.

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/2442a-med.JPG

Next is a fish taken in early fall that is just starting to get it's spawning color.

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/2442b-med.JPG

This is the darkest splake I've ever caught. He was also the biggest one I ever landed. 31 1/2 inches, 11 1/2 pounds.

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/2442c-med.JPG

Close-up of the same fish. I guess there is such a thing as an ugly trout. I let this big guy go. My buddy caught him the next day in the same spot. Catch and release works!

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/2442d-med.JPG

[Death_From_Above]

Wahl you make me sick!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Damn nice fish, wish I was there to outfish you. I may now be a troll, but I can still outfish you! :lol:

[THE BAIT SHOP GUY]

Hey there Johnny boy! Be careful your mouth doesn't write a check that you rod can't cash :lol: Now that I know how to post pictures here, you better watch what you say.

http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/photopost/data/533/2442g.JPG

I told you that you couldn't bite the head off that menominee. How long did it take to get that taste out of your mouth? If your not careful I'm sure I could dig up some pics from Sylvania Tract that I'm sure you wouldn't like to see the light of day :yikes: Talk to ya later bud.

[northwoodsangler]

I did some research on coasters for our TU chapter newsletter a couple yeras ago, and found that there are a few in both Lake Michigan and Huron. There was also an article I read reporting that there were still a few in some eastern Ohio tribs of Lake Erie.