# kalamazoo river....how bad is it



## WMIBOWHUNTER (Jan 18, 2012)

Just how bad is the fishing let alone just touching the water in the Kazoo River.

What's the overall impression of the Kazoo River........it seems to me that it sucks......it's a joke....never will be clean...etc.


----------



## skip tumalu (Oct 1, 2011)

I love the kzoo, lived on it for years. The fishing is great, huge smallies, pike in the bayous along with crappie and gills, Walleye and a great salmon and steelie run. Definitely not the prettiest river or most scenic but its close to home. 

Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## tannhd (Dec 3, 2010)

A lot of people eat salmon and steel from the kzoo, which I think would be fine in moderation as would any great lakes fish. 

Warm water species and residents are different. Personally, I wouldn't eat anything that lives year round in there. 

The DNR has a posting about consumption levels that you should look into. 

I would actually love the kzoo if they just got rid of that damn allegan dam.


----------



## thousandcasts (Jan 22, 2002)

The K-zoo is a fun river...you can catch anything there. Same thing with the Grand. Man has given those rivers a bad rep, but while they might have some issues, they have great fisheries for several different species. 

My dad and I used to canoe the headwaters near Mosherville all the time when I was a kid--same thing with the upper St. Joe.


----------



## EdB (Feb 28, 2002)

> My dad and I used to canoe the headwaters near Mosherville all the time when I was a kid--same thing with the upper St. Joe.


Used to fish stream trout just a bit farther upstream from there many years ago when I was young. That stretch used to get a regular plant and the DNR documented natural reproduction there too. One of just a couple places to catch trout in Jackson county. Haven't fished that stretch in over 25 yrs but back in the day, we had a lot of fun there.


----------



## skip tumalu (Oct 1, 2011)

I'll eat a steelie or two out of the kzoo if they are fresh looking, I cannot bring myself to eat other species out of there due to its history of contaminants. I've never fished up river from the Allegan dam, just between it and lake Michigan. I agree, tear that dam down!

Outdoor Hub mobile, the outdoor information engine


----------



## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

Yes, the river is a mess, the water is caustic and will strip the flesh off your skin after your boat sinks from the hull being eroded. The fish all have tumors and three eyes.

You should avoid the river and leave it to those of us who won't mind when our kids are born with hooves.


----------



## rieverr (Dec 7, 2010)

U dont have to grease ur pan from the K-zoo with the Millions of gallons of oil that was dumped in it.. And i still eat steel from there.


----------



## cireofmi (Feb 13, 2001)

I miss fishing the Grand River. I am not used to fishing a river that only gets trout and salmon from what I can tell.


----------



## limpinglogan (Sep 23, 2009)

An old timer that works for me has been fishing steelhead forever and he swears that he can get more fish out of the K-zoo then any other river... and he has fished them all.

Idk his secret but he has fished every river on the West side and he talks about 10-20+ fish days on the K-zoo as what he expects when he goes out. (he told me one time that he likes to fish a pink jig with a spawn bag on it under a bobber.)

He has told me a lot of stories about rivers, streams, specific holes and runs all over the west side and he hasn't given me one reason to not believe him yet.


----------



## tannhd (Dec 3, 2010)

limpinglogan said:


> An old timer that works for me has been fishing steelhead forever and he swears that he can get more fish out of the K-zoo then any other river... and he has fished them all.
> 
> Idk his secret but he has fished every river on the West side and he talks about 10-20+ fish days on the K-zoo as what he expects when he goes out. (he told me one time that he likes to fish a pink jig with a spawn bag on it under a bobber.)
> 
> He has told me a lot of stories about rivers, streams, specific holes and runs all over the west side and he hasn't given me one reason to not believe him yet.


The traffic jam of a ladderless dam will help the odds of catching fish any day. Terrible tragedy that the Allegan dam is. :sad:


----------



## Jay Wesley (Mar 2, 2009)

Starts as a trout stream in the headwaters. Turns into a world class smallmouth bass stream in the mid-section. Has a great walleye, channel catfish, and flathead catfish in the lower as well as salmon and steelhead. Not sure why people think it is so bad. 

If you are worried, don't eat the resident fish. I have no problem eatting the steelhead. 

It really is a gem that is under utilized. Basically a catch and release fishery in the mid-section. 

Hopefully, this summer we will be back in some of the areas that were closed during oil clean up. Our assessments show that the smallmouth are still there.


----------



## tannhd (Dec 3, 2010)

Jay Wesley said:


> . Not sure why people think it is so bad.


cough cough papermills, recent oil spill, DNR warning signs at every access point. 

But the fishing is good for sure.


----------



## EdB (Feb 28, 2002)

Thanks Jay. It will be real interesting to see the effects of the oil spill over the next few years and see what it takes for the river to return to pre-spill conditions. My guess is that after the extensive clean up effort and some years of mother nature doing her part to heal the river, the oil spill will not be the long term environmental diasater the media made it out to be. Please keep us posted on it.


----------



## roo (Mar 30, 2011)

I live close by now. Grew up fishing there. Have gotten a few nice pike out of there . Would like to get into the trout section someday just haven't been able to yet. Hoping I can Thas year. 

_OutdoorHub Mobile, the information engine of the outdoors_


----------



## kzoofisher (Mar 6, 2011)

EdB said:


> Thanks Jay. It will be real interesting to see the effects of the oil spill over the next few years and see what it takes for the river to return to pre-spill conditions. My guess is that after the extensive clean up effort and some years of mother nature doing her part to heal the river, the oil spill will not be the long term environmental diasater the media made it out to be. Please keep us posted on it.


How many years of no human contact followed by natural recovery qualifies as short term? I'm pretty sure the campgrounds and canoe/kayak liveries along that stretch have suffered long term.


----------



## Jay Wesley (Mar 2, 2009)

It is not an issue of no contact. The issue is that there have been 500 people, 200 air boats, and lots of heavy equipment up and down the river doing clean up. For safety reasons, that stretch was closed. 

Fortunately or unfortunately, the campgrounds have been bought out be Enbridge because the river has been closed. 

Hopefully, we will be back in there soon.


----------



## Robert Holmes (Oct 13, 2008)

I am more than happy that I catch the fish that I eat out of crystal clear waters. Northern Michigan steelhead..mmmmmm


----------



## Far Beyond Driven (Jan 23, 2006)

"The traffic jam of a ladderless dam will help the odds of catching fish any day."

I've hooked (can't help when the crew loses them) a steelhead on every trip going back 4 years on the K-zoo and all but one of those fish was 5 miles plus from the dam. Last time I checked there's 30 odd miles of river between there and the lake, and lots of it doesn't see a boat even on a 50 degree Saturday.


----------



## tannhd (Dec 3, 2010)

Far Beyond Driven said:


> "The traffic jam of a ladderless dam will help the odds of catching fish any day."
> 
> I've hooked (can't help when the crew loses them) a steelhead on every trip going back 4 years on the K-zoo and all but one of those fish was 5 miles plus from the dam. Last time I checked there's 30 odd miles of river between there and the lake, and lots of it doesn't see a boat even on a 50 degree Saturday.


I understand what you are saying. That's fine, but the dam is a piece of s**t, and it is a traffic jam for those fish wanting to find spawning waters.


----------

