# Anyone ever caught one?



## chuckinduck (May 28, 2003)

While fishing the hex hatch last weekend on the Manistee above Yellow Trees I heard the ever familiar slurp of a brown taking in a hex fly. Several casts later I heard the slurp again, I set the hook but missed the fish, yet I still felt a little weight on the end of my fly. Thinking I'd casted to close to some timber, I assumed I'd hooked up on a piece of a branch and it was stuck to the fly I brought it in...........Without jeopardizing the hole, I retrieved my leader and worked my way to my hex fly to remove the presumed stick. I bought soiled myself when the stick wiggled back and forth. I then turned on my headlamp to see a 8" lamprey eel stuck through the head to my fly. Two theories......#1 The fish I heard rise turned on my fly and missed it, but as it went back down, it snagged the lamprey with my fly.
#2 The lamprey actually rose to the fly? I highly doubt #2 since their mouth is not designed to eat food, but to suck blood like a leach. Oh and for those wondering about the fishing, it was great for the most part. Had bugs 3 of 5 nights, with two spinnerfalls, and two hatchs. June 22nd-26th I just returned from fishing that same section with my fiancee for our annual camp/hex trip today. We fished thursday June 29th- July 1st and had an excellent spinnerfall on friday night. She managed to get two fish, one that was about 15" and I got 3, but none of real size. Biggest was about 14"; You can tell the hatch has been going on for a while because those same big boys that were feeding a week earlier were much more selective and not nearly as many were feeding.


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## multibeard (Mar 3, 2002)

The only ones I caught were attached to a fish.

BTW----How long til the fiancé sets the hook??


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## Shupac (Apr 17, 2005)

I've caught a few attatched to fish. I suspect your first theory is correct.


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## WILDCATWICK (Mar 11, 2002)

Never caught one that wasn't already attachted to a fish. Weird. Suprised to here one up in there. I may have say you on Friday night as I was in the same area and there were people camping just upstream from where we picked. Friday night was dandy. But as you mentioned with every day the bigger fish got more selective. That and by the time I had left on Wednesday the Hex had stopped and only the Iso's were coming out to play.

Game over on Hex's until I hit some of the river that get late season variety of Hex.


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## huntingfool43 (Mar 16, 2002)

Years ago a buddy and I were fishing the Grand in Lyons and I caught one on a Little Cleo. I was watching the fish swim along the edge of some deeper water so I tossed my spoon across and on the retrive I felt what I thought a fish and up comes an eel instead. They are ugly for sure, took him to shore and made sure he didn't attack any more fish. I am sure my line just happened to come over the back of or under a fish with the eel attached and when I felt what I thought was a strick it was the spoon making contact with the eel's midsection.


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## unregistered55 (Mar 12, 2000)

I seen a guy snag one at the tubes on the Little Man, I'm pretty sure he thought he had a salmon. It had to of been 15" biggest one I've ever seen.


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## chuckinduck (May 28, 2003)

wildcat,
That was us. We were camping at the "tree farm"......just and FYI, I kept that eel, and layed him on the fire that night back at camp. This past friday as great for bugs, just up from that campsite. My fiancee got the first two fish of the night on friday, then I buckled down and beat her.  I've got a few more monthes of the single life Multibeard. I'll be over by you on the 22nd for a shower. I'm fishing the PM, while she goes to her shower in Whitehall.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

I had a Sea Lamprey (not a River Lamprey, like you probably got) bite a spawnbag when I was fishing the East Branch of the Augres River for Steelhead, a long time ago. It had the spawnbag inside its mouth, so I have to think it bit. I killed it.


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## TA Bunker (Jan 29, 2004)

There are actually a lot of chestnut lampreys in the upper man. This spring I caught a lot of fish with attached lampreys and saw many in the river.


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## Gaffle (Sep 14, 2005)

I fished a lamprey out of a small creek in Gladwin. It was about 7 inches or so. When I pulled it out it was alive but just barely. Now how the hell does a lamprey get to a creek that is in the middle of the state? I know that the river systems are mostly connected if you look closely, but to get at this spot a lamprey would have had to swim many miles. 

I can only think that it was attached to a bird while it was a larvae. Maybe it stuck onto one of the trout that live in this creek and was able to grow large enough. Maybe someone put it there. I don't know. I was excited to see one up close, but I was amazed at where this thing was.


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## Sprytle (Jan 8, 2005)

chuckinduck said:


> wildcat,
> That was us. We were camping at the "tree farm"......just and FYI, I kept that eel, and layed him on the fire that night back at camp.




SO How do they they taste??? I hear a little like frog legs....that of course... taste like chicken!!:corkysm55:corkysm55


-Bob


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## chuckinduck (May 28, 2003)

A little slimy going down, but the beer and a macanudo will wash that taste right out of your mouth.


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## Fishndude (Feb 22, 2003)

Not all lampreys in Michigan are SEA Lampreys. There are native lampreys in MI, which are RIVER Lampreys. They typically are much smaller - like 7", and do not have to be in a trib of the Great Lakes. That is how you got one near Mount Pleasant.


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