AuSable River - Michigan

Michigan is one of the only states in the Eastern United States that has the ultimate fly fishing experience. Many rivers have wild trout that freely grow and become colorful and healthy fish.

As many of us know, southeastern Pennsylvania is not the best place to throw a fly. So each year, on the Fourth of July,  I go to the AuSable River in Northern Michigan with my dad. My uncle has a cabin just a couple of yard from the river which is known as "The Holy Water." This section of river is deemed some of the best fishing waters in North America by the Michigan DNR. For that reason, much of the area is protected by catch-and-release only or artificial flies only restrictions.

The first day I was there, I went to the fly shop to pick out some flies. I asked the guy at the counter what flies were good for fishing during the day. He gave me a grasshopper and a parachute stonefly, which looked like a lot of different stoneflies.

I went fishing that afternoon, in the freezing cold water, and caught a brook trout in the first five minutes. I kept using that fly for three days but caught no other fish. My dad, who hadn't caught any fish during the first two days there, was determined to catch a fish the last night, the third night, we were there. He asked me if he should use a hex of a march brown. I told him to use a march brown, and sure enough, at 10 P.M. pm on the last night, he caught a 16-inch brown trout! He claimed it almost broke his line.

So, we had a great time at my uncle's cabin for the Fourth of July, and got some fishing in too. If you want great fishing, but don't want to go out west, stop by Michigan and throw a fly.

The Famed Hex Hatch

Hexagenia limbata - The Hex

It's coming soon to a stream near you!

...or not

Southeast Pennsylvania may not have a hex hatch - you may not have even heard of the hex fly.

Hex is short for Hexagenia limbata. It's a fly known for its major hatch in the midwest. It hatches late at night between June and September. The large hatches most know usually occur in late June and early May. Because the hex are so large, they almost always bring large brown trout to the surface. This makes the hex hatch a prime time to catch fish and it brings tons of fishermen to streams.

Some hatches are so large that they appear on

Radar image showing hex hatch on Mississippi River

radar. In the radar image to the right, on May 30. 2010, the hex hatch on the Mississippi River was so dense that the waves produced by radar bounced off the flies and went back to the radar.

Each year around the Fourth of July, I take a trip to the AuSable River in Northern Michigan, just after the hex hatch is over. My father used to go out at night and trick a few trout on a hex about a week afterwards. Sometimes he'd catch a few nice brown trout.

It's an amazing feeling when these giant mayflies are all in the air and landing on your arm, your rod, reel, and everything around you. So, it should be on your bucket list to go to a midwestern stream and experience the hatch for yourself.