NDR: lake MI salmon.....?

Geoff Schroeder

Geoff Schroeder

Member
Hey all. So I have a request for help.

So we have rented a place on the Lake MI shore, Silver Lake to be exact, for the first week and a half of August. While there, I can get access to a tin boat and salmon gear through friends of the in-laws, but I have no idea how to even begin fishing this area. My assets will be slim: like I said, a tin boat/15 hp, a couple salmon rods. No fishfinder, depth sounder, GPS, RDF, etc....

I've been told that this is a good time to troll for near shore salmon and that it's a relatively straightforward affair- but I was wondering if there are any locals/informed parties who might steer me toward a finer understanding of what's required, and how to proceed with more than just a couple of rods and hope. At this point, I know the fish hold pretty deep (50-70 ft??), are accessed best with a downrigger setup (nope, not available), and take to rigged baits well. My thinking was to tow a couple baits behind planer boards over whatever structure I can find (Lake MI charts exist, I assume) no further than .5 miles from the beach. Is this just asking to get skunked?

As always, thanks for any input.

Geoff
 
Geoff,
I have a good buddy in North Muskegon who fishesl Lke Michigan (and surrounds) a lot and manufactures some fishing equip also. His name is Jeff Bonin. Yup, he's a duck hunter and has one of our scull boats also. Here's his website but I can't get the link to "hook up" right now. Don't know if my computer is goofy right now or if Jeff's server is down.
www.rapturetrollingflies.com

If that link doesn't work..give me a shout.
Lou
 
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lou: the little spinny icon keeps spinning and spinning....So i guess we have a dead link. I'll give it a shot tomorrow and if still no luck, I'll get back in touch. and man, you are always so dang quick on the offers of help, so thank you. Again.
 
Goeff,

You can catch salmon with the rig you have, just have a very close eye on the weather. Lake Michigan is nothing to fool with. Coho and rainbows in particular are, many times, closer to the surface and can be fished with long lines, lead core, flasher/fly combos, etc. Best piece of advice after the weather is get out early, like when it's still dark and be fishing as the sky lightens. That is your best time near shore. If you happen to get ahold of a King salmon - HANG ON!! it's quite a ride. Also, make sure you have a big net and someone else in the boat to use it.
 
lou: the little spinny icon keeps spinning and spinning....So i guess we have a dead link. I'll give it a shot tomorrow and if still no luck, I'll get back in touch. and man, you are always so dang quick on the offers of help, so thank you. Again.
Click to expand...

Geoff,
I emailed Jeff Bonin and now his website appears to be back up and running.
Click on that link above.
Lou
 
Try a heavy (1-3oz) jigging spoon like a hopkins, add a bit of cut bait for scent. You can put a mark on the line for depth control. A slow troll or drift to keep the spoon / line vertical, vary the jig stroke(6" -3')till ya find out what the fish want. Warning when I tryed this at lake Oaha(SD) I never knew what would be reeled in! I don't have a down rigger, & this was the only way I thought of to keep a lure as deep as needed. Best of luck to ya.
Dennis
 
Thanks for the thinking guys. Looks like I have several options, depending on what gear I can borrow. Many thanks to all. Last questions: is it sufficient to simply get chunked bait down to depth? What about live lining and drifting?
 
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