# Wixom outing 4/4/04



## Steve (Jan 15, 2000)

Well first let me say thank you very much Chris for organizing this. I wish I could have gotten there earlier but had prior commitments.

It was great to see everyone out there,... Chris, Sarah, John & John, Ralf, Marty, Marc, Pat, .... I had a great time shooting the bull with you.

It was a great kick off to get the rust off my equipment. I didn't have all my stuff together and forgot my line clippers so I has forced to clip with my teeth and fingers. I also only had 3x tippets in my vest and it turns out I needed them!

Check out these two big pigs that started out my night:


















I was using my 5 weight and wished I had my 9 weight on these two. Would have helped with the wind too 

Capped my night off with this nicely colored and more conventionally sized stocker:









Caught one of the big ones stripping a Betty McNault , while the other two came on a bead head green caddis.


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## YPSIFLY (Feb 13, 2001)

That was a lot of fun, glad I finally got to meet you Steve. Looks like you got into some nice 'bows.

It was cool seeing everyone else who came:
Knockoff
Kingfisher
Chromium,Tangleknot and the boys
Shoeman
Gunrod
Marty
Brian S
Bolodunn

The fishing was good in the morning, despite having to de-ice the guides and cast into some tough winds. But man, there is some BIG fish in there this year. I got a lot of fish on sucker spawn tied with orange and oregon cheese yarn. A tiny splitshot about 8-10" above the fly helped get it down quickly, this rig took more 'bows, with streamers taking most of my browns.

I even had a fish rise to a #14 elk hair caddis in the morning.

Thanks guys
-Chris


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## kingfisher2 (Mar 22, 2001)

Getting an early start on the home chores allowed me to get over and visit for awhile, well until the park ranger gave last call at least. 

Upon arrival, I could hear Knockoff either cursing the fish or talking to his fly...or maybe he was teaching the youngins across the water from him...I don't know, but when I reached the pool he was fishing...wow....filled with large fish, I mean really large. I bet a brown had to go 8-10 pounds, with a couple rainbows in the mid 20's.....inches that is...

I can not believe the number of times I've told the younger ones to watch the back swing of a casting fisherman...I didn't and got hooked...I had a green fly perfectly placed on the inside part of my lower lip....barb and all....It took a rip to remove, leaving me with a small hole....ouch!

I then ventured through the woods, no - not to grandmothers house, to the voices I knew would eventually ring....Shoemans laugh...and it did. I found Gunrod, Marty, Chris, Chromium and Ralf in their always jovial mood, laughing. Great seeing you Marty...it's been too long...

Eventually, we made it to camp and the real fun began...Tangleknot and the boys.....man John, they beat me up more than you do...It was great seeing you Sara, I forgot the floaties I got for you.....will send them UPS.....lol Your boys are great! John, THANKS for the ROD. I know the true reason you handed it over....you wanted it to catch at least a couple fish before you handed it down to the youngins...I will accomplish that for you....

It was great seeing you Steve and great pics! Bolodunn, sorry I missed you and the youngin.....

Thanks GROUP!

Marc


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## Brian S (Apr 5, 2002)

I got to the parking lot at 7 AM. There was a specific hole that I wanted to hit so I made sure I was there early.

It started out cold and slow. I was probably fishing for a half hour before the first hit. Then it was fairly consistant for the next 3 or 4 hours. Largest fish was a 20" brown. The average brown was around 16 " and a few smaller 13" rainbows were mixed in. Most of the hits came on a white bead headed wolly bugger. A faster retrieve seemed to get them to bite.

Had a chance to see the Knockoff fishing show. He was definately having a good time. 

Around 1300 I went home to get out of my leaky waders. I was planning on going back and hanging out (I'm only two miles from Proud Lake) but after a hot shower and a cold beer, I ended up taking a nap in the rockin chair.


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## gunrod (Jan 16, 2001)

I've only been in for an hour or so but the fishing was slightly better today - a few less people and a lot less wind. I'll get some pics and a report up shortly.


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## stelmon (Sep 21, 2000)

Holy crap those are pigs. I sorta wished I would have stay and fish. Aleeycat had asked me to go but I wanted mroe steel. Oh well..can't wait to hit in may.


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## trouttime (Mar 30, 2004)

Those are some Great looking fish!! I need to get out there and do that myself soon. Thanks for the pics. and post


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## knockoff64 (Oct 14, 2001)

It was a pleasure to see everyone again!

Chris, Thanks for the ride home and all. It was nice to talk with you for a while. let's see if we can meet up there again.

Brian, sorry a wave was gonna have to do, I wasn't stoppin' while they were slamming my wets! 

I think Bolodunn and his son were the only new faces I saw Sunday, but it was nice catching up to a few people I hadn't seen in a while, especially Steve. The smile on his face as he showed us the pics of his Trout was infectious.

For me, Saturday was a day of learning. After being skunked at a familiar spot thursday I watched a couple folks who were getting bit often from a hole that held a lot of fish. I refined my presentation to the point where I managed 4 nice fish just before dark and the bite ended for the day.

Sunday, I had their number! I arrived about 1pm with enough room to present a wet on the swing to holding fish and was greeted by a hit on every cast for the first hour. I even managed to hook the "Carp" Kingfisher2 described for the second time in 2 days only to have him shred my 3lb tippet for the second time in 2 days. A strange part of it all was during the lulls in action when noone else was catching fish (most everyone caught fish there Sunday) I continued to get "hits" only to find the fish hooked everywhere but the mouth. I think I had them pretty aggrivated.

My rig consisted of a 5wt with a floating line, 6ft leader (2' 6lb, 2' 4lb, 2' 3lb) with a BB split above the last section and green, yellow and orange soft hackle wets. I presented from about 10' directly above the fish, short casts across stream with a quick upstream mend kept the flyline above the leader. A taught line drift down and a jiggle on the swing BAM!


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## bolodunn (Jan 30, 2004)

dang i was posting on the wrong one.

sorry i didn't get to stay very long & shoot the bull with ya. we did stay for about an hour & a half. the boy wasn't gonna fish but good thing he did.

first trout ever!!!!!!!!!











kingfish, i had no idea you were going. after sat night i didn't even wake up till 11:00am. lol... hopefully we can hook up with polarbear sometime soon! 

ps. the boy has been buggin me to take him back.


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## gunrod (Jan 16, 2001)

I decided to arrive late in hopes that most of the crowds would leave prior to my arrival. I was wrong. I arrived in the lot to see Brian S. and Knockoff slappin' the water with Knockoff doing pretty well in this hole. I met Ypsifly there and we commenced to fling some feathers at the fish right off the lot but John seemed to have them trained to his rig.

We headed upstream towards a hole I knew when we stopped at another spot to see some big 'bows hanging out. We stayed there for a while so Chris could get some chases at his streamers and land this fella:










I landed a brown a little smaller than his but didn't take a pic. I lost one or two more before a bellow from the woods was heard. Up comes Shoeman, Chromium, Rookie and Ralf's lovely wife on a nature walk. Shortly there after Knockoff and Kingfisher joined us in an impromptu meeting where plans were made for a BBQ at the campground. With the wind howling the way it was casting my new 2wt was nearly impossible so we packed it in.

Steve ended up meeting up with us as well as Tangledknot (and crew). After burgers, dogs and some awesome cheese taters everyone moved to the fire for lies, revelry and more lies  until the DNR officer finally broke it up for the night (Note: It's not an MS.com outing unless some sort of law enforcement arrives  ). It was time to say good bye to some while Marty and I moved to Ralf's trailer to spend the night. We decided to stay up to watch the news in hopes of catching a weather forecast for morning but apparently someone spiked the punch:










Morning brought frigid temperatures and we decided to hold off until after 9am to fish. We fished a hole that held quite a few fish but after the nights temps they were a little sluggish. Ralf and Marty managed to hook a few but we decided to warm ourselves by taking a walk to check some other holes.

We located a fella fishing from the other side of the river who was willing to share his spot that held quite a few fish. These fish required you to change flies after each fish. Once a fish took your offering it seemed to educate the others to that fly. Ralf and the fella across the river commenced to put on a clinic as they seemed to change flies - and land fish - faster than Marty and I. I hooked a couple while Marty had quite a few short strikes at his bugs but was having difficulty hooking up.

I got to a point where I insisted hooking up with these fish with a dry fly. I tried a BWO, Adams and a Elk Hair for an hour with a few looks but no serious takers. I figured that these trout had seen a common house fly during their time in the holding pens so I switched to the Erie King which imitates just such a bug. On the third drift I almost fell in the river from the excitement of a nice 'bow coming up to gulp my bug. On my new 2wt this fine trout felt like a steelhead as he danced around the river. This photo serves as a reminder of things to come in the upcoming season.










The guy across the river finally gave up his secret and Marty tied on a purple woolly bugger. It wasn't but a few casts later and Marty ties into a rainbow that would have rivaled any wild trout. We all knew Marty hooked this fish when he started dancing along the top of the water once, but twice. Marty might have been sand baggin' some early on but he ended up with the fish, and aerial show of the day. 










The fish was still pretty fiesty on the banks making it difficult for Marty to hold it well enough for a photo that would truly do it justice so this will have to do.










Alright, I'm done already other than to say thanks for the night in the rig Ralf and thanks to all for the fine food and company. These trout are a great primer to the upcoming season and I see nothing but good things to come.


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## tangleknot (Oct 8, 2001)

What a weekend to start out the season of family camping! It was chilly outside but we made to most of it and had a wonderful time. The wind was blowing and the snow was flying. 

I fished early Sunday morning with Ralf. We hiked out to a great stretch of water and caught a few and Ralf was on fire. Wow, was it cold. My rod kept icing up. I was geeked(a little too geeked and lost a few as a result) to get out and start the season. The wind whipped through there like a wind tunnel. We moved on to other areas but none were as productive as our first stop (however, they were a little more sheltered from the wind.) The majority of people seemed to be having some success whether they used wets, streamers, etc. Brian S, I had tied up a bunch of white wollies but forgot them back at camp!! 

We headed back to camp where we all enjoyed a wonderful breakfast and relaxed. Thanks to the wind, I had a major case of sock minkey face. As the afternoon winded down, members started gathering for a barbeque at camp. Thanks for all the food and supplies, Ypsi. Nothing like having our own professional camp chef! It was great to see everyone again and share a ton of laughs and stories. The boys had a great time and Marc, you're going to be in trouble in a few years when it comes to a serious game of football, lol.  

Gunrod's creativity with feathers is unsurpassed. Although I got a tour of his impressive fly box, this is not what I am referring to, lol! He demonstrated many other uses such as the hackle mullet, the hackle toupe, the Austin Powers hackle chest hair, etc. That was too funny!

I headed in to tuck the kids in bed but never did return as planned. I was too tired and called it a day but could hear the cackles around the campfire. That didn't stop me from sleeping since that is nothing compared to chromium's snoring.

Steve, those pics looked fantastic on the camera but look even better in your post!


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## Shoeman (Aug 26, 2000)

Creativity with hackles...LOL

Many discount the "Stocker Fest", but I'll tell you it beats a 4 hour drive home. 
Sure the fish are hungry, but they live in tight quarters and casting sometimes requires plenty of skill to avoid the shoreline brush and trees. They do get quite educated and like Pat mentioned they will only turn on a fly for a few drifts. 
I had the pleasure to fish with Sippy first thing Sunday morning. Talk about cold. NW winds at 20-25mph that cut right through you. Add an outside temp in the high 20's and you need to be quite the trooper to stick it out. The hot fly for that day was a light Cahill tied wet. Most of the fish came in the swing. I'm sure glad I opted for the 5wt. Not so much for the fish, but it was necessary for punching the line through the wind. By 11 we called it day. We took about a dozen and one was a very respectable brown.

Sunday evening was spent chowing on burgers, dogs and sausage prepared by our "on site Chef" Ypsi. Thanks Bud!

After dinner with the help of some tongue oil, the stories came to life. We had to take the party indoors, do to the cold and wind. It ended up dropping into the low 20's and may have hit the teens overnight. 

Monday morning we were greeted by bright sunshine. We took our time and did a few chores waiting for the heat of the day. For the first hour it seemed that the fish had lockjaw. The drop in water temp must have shut them down. Even the guy stripping streamers had a hard time with them. (short hits)

By noon they finally woke up. By that time I already went through a dozen different patterns. My best flies ended up being a 14 green caddis beadhead with a flesh colored 1" San Juan dropper. Trout are fools for worms...LOL
After catching our fill, it was time to experiment. Pat opted for some dries, I started playing with my foam beetle. For a while they seemed interested, but not willing to suck it down. A few rodtip twitches was too much for one them. He slurped it and the fight was on. Then it was time to go small. I went with that size 16 mink and got a couple on it. 

I would have to say that the highlight of the weekend was Marty's fish. Sure was good to see you. I sure hope that in the future you can join us more often.

The visit from Steve was also a pleasure. It's not too often we get to see him. Glad you stopped.


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## tangleknot (Oct 8, 2001)

> _Originally posted by Shoeman _
> * We took about a dozen and one was a very respectable brown.
> 
> *


Shoeman took about a dozen with the exception of one, lol. I fought several more but had "line slack control issues" and couldn't land them. I guess it's good to get it out of my system early. 

You had talked about trying a San Juan, glad it worked. I had fun experimenting with a fly I made up that takes on many different characteristics in the water. I had a few hits on it and with some fine tuning, it might work.


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## kingfisher2 (Mar 22, 2001)

Come on Sara, I know you're holding back.......How many times did you fall in the water?


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## tangleknot (Oct 8, 2001)

I can honestly say(and I have a witness) that I did not end up in the drink once this time but I had my wading belt wrapped pretty tight just in case. It was close a couple of times with the muck. 

At one point I was trying to get up on the bank and my bootfoot was suctioned in the muck. I gave it a good heave and ended up with my foot where my knee should have been. With some very careful balancing and with the help of a very supportive cattail, I was able to weasle my foot back into the liner and avoid a faceful. If I would have been wearing stocking foots, my boot would have been gone!!

I'll still look forward to some floaties!


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## gunrod (Jan 16, 2001)

> He demonstrated many other uses such as the hackle mullet, the hackle toupe, the Austin Powers hackle chest hair, etc. That was too funny!


Don't forget the Colonel Sanders/KFC hackle. That may come in handy next weekend in the South.  BTW, take lots of photos and have a safe trip.


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## tangleknot (Oct 8, 2001)

How could I forget the colonel Sanders and the Merkin(sp?)! Hysterical! 

I will be sure to take some pics this weekend.


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