Bly Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 A long time friend from Michigan and I have been trying to put together a fishing weekend for the past few years but as often happens, one thing or another has gotten in the way. About a month ago we realized that we could plan something for this weekend, although it was not the best time of year to plan a fishing trip, we set the date with an understanding that no matter what the weather and/or water conditions, the theme of the weekend would be friends and fishing. As the weekend approached I was closely watching the forecasts, trib levels, and water clarity while gathering information from friends on the local tribs and piers in preparation of choosing just the right place to fish. As the weekend approached, another thing happened; the Cobourg Fish Lift was announced. I have participated in this event in the past; hard work, a great time and very rewarding. Knowing my friend, I was fairly sure this would be of interest….I sent an email to Michigan, “…bring chest waders.” Friday night over dinner with my daughter and her boyfriend at a local pub, a plan was made. We would attend the Lift and fish afterwards. My friend Mike. The Cobourg Trout Lift. The “push” <embed width="600" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf"'>http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf" flashvars="file=http%3A%2F%2Fvid211.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fbb179%2Fblyght%2FM4H01769.mp4"> The trout...(a few seconds are out of focus, the camera man was a little excited ) <embed width="600" height="361" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullscreen="true" allowNetworking="all" wmode="transparent" src="http://static.photobucket.com/player.swf" flashvars="file=http%3A%2F%2Fvid211.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fbb179%2Fblyght%2FM4H01772.mp4"> Victor and Mike view from the top Ron and Jeremiah working hard.. MJL and Frozen Fire Mr. Brown and the MNR crew Victor, Frozen Fire, MJL and a few others Mike and I have been friends for over 20 years; we have shared many fish stories and a lot of fish porn. Every year I look forward to pictures from Lake Ensagi, Lake Michigan and Erie, the Pere Marquette and the real tease, the Manistee, “one of the best trout fisheries east of the Rockies.” I regularly lower my head in shame that I never fished it when I lived in MI. The challenge for me this weekend was where to take Mike to fish, there are many tributaries to fish in the area but compared to the Manistee? Nooo pressure LOL A few fellow anglers at the Lift shared with me how the “local” morning bite had been (thanks again guys) and combined with the knowledge of just how much pressure most of the tribs were getting Saturday morning, I was fairly certain that it was going to be tough to tease a steelhead or two into biting by the time we were finished with the lift. Mike was having a great time at the lift, his first ever and was impressed with the size of the steelhead he was seeing. Pressure increased. After much consideration, I finally came up with a plan. I can’t compete with the Manistee, there is no way I can guarantee a fish, let alone a “great” fish but I could provide another first…..float fishing at night for steel We spent the afternoon patronizing the local tackle shop and prepping for the evening. Mike had brought along a new fly rod (usual weapon of choice) so we decided to start a little before sundown. I decided to take him to Oshawa, not because I thought it would be the most likely to produce but if you are going to introduce someone to “unique urban fishing”, that is definitely the trib A few flashes but no takers. The sun set, modified my set up for night and handed it over to Mike while I rigged up his yet to be used float rod. With both rods rigged and ready to go, I spent a few minutes providing a crash course on float fishing and night drifting. We spent the next few hours working on technique, discussing shot patterns etc., and sharing fishing strategies/stories. A word of advice when fishing with a friend that you have not seen in awhile and you are introducing to a new style of fishing…..Pay attention to your own float! Confession made, I have no night pics of pretty fish to share but Mike's interest has been piqued and he took home "the rig" as a guide for another day. Although no fish were landed, a good time was had, memories made and a great reminder that fishing it isn’t always about the fish… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joey Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Awesome Carole. Looks like you two had a spectacular weekend, catching up, helping the fish lift and getting a little fishing in there too Way to go girl!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercman Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Sometimes no fish is better than all the fish in the world You can catch fish anytime, but quality time spent with a best friend is a hard to beat anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhickey Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 sounds like an awesum weekend. nice report. some of my best fishing weekends didnt realy involve mutch fishing either. good friends and good times. nothing like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twocoda Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 great write up! fishing is the catalyst that keeps us all together.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roy Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Good stuff Carole. Very glad that you and your friend had a great time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
irishfield Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 The smile says it all !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jiaodong1983 Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SlowPoke Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Sucks to be you! I got to pick up the van from the shop Saturday morning only to go back into the shop today on a tow truck for a new problem. Jealous? I'm glad you guys were able to finally hook up! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bly Posted April 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Sucks to be you! I got to pick up the van from the shop Saturday morning only to go back into the shop today on a tow truck for a new problem. Jealous? I'm glad you guys were able to finally hook up! Ummm yes, I am very very jealous.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beckycprw Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Awesome job Carole!!! Looks like you and Mike had a blast, I'm glad you were finally able to connect with him. You certainly deserve the much needed break.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victor Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 It's nice seeing you again Carole! Weather was great! Definitely not always about the catching, well it would be nice if I could catch a few though haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frozen-fire Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Nice to finally meet you Carole! It was definitely a fun and cool experience. Some of the biggest steelhead I've ever seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bly Posted April 4, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 It's nice seeing you again Carole! Weather was great! Definitely not always about the catching, well it would be nice if I could catch a few though haha Nice to finally meet you Carole! It was definitely a fun and cool experience. Some of the biggest steelhead I've ever seen. Was great seeing you both there as well! Victor, the season is just getting going, you will get into them. Frozen-fire, great to finally meet you as well. See you in the water sometime Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leecher Posted April 4, 2011 Report Share Posted April 4, 2011 Great story, pics, videos and report Carole That's what friendship is all about..... sharing the passion along the water and having a good time Catching fish is bonus Just doesn't get any better than that Leechman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
limeyangler Posted April 5, 2011 Report Share Posted April 5, 2011 What a great way to spend a day! Loved the story....funny how we pile pressure on ourselves when truth be told the results are largely out of our control...i do it all the time...lol. once again..great story and report carole. Nice you met up with MJL and FF too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricoboxing Posted April 6, 2011 Report Share Posted April 6, 2011 nice report. the shwa is always a good place for some unique urban fishing. shopping carts make good structure! lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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