Mandy and I traveled to Michigan last summer in order to catch some monster carp. Evan Muskopf from FeatherCraft in St. Louis hosts some trips each summer up to Beaver Island in the middle of Lake Michigan. I saw some of the pictures from the trips in 2013 and decided that this would be our big summer trip this year. Let me tell you, it was worth it.
Beaver Island is accessible by ferry boat or plane. Both leave from Charlevoix, Michigan. On Beaver Island, there are a few small restaurants with great food and a grocery store that has all of the necessities. From the minute you step on the island, everyone makes you feel like you grew up there.
Evan and the guides (Kevin, Steve, and Austin) from Indigo Guide Service were first class. Their boats were perfect for the area, their gear was top notch, and they knew where the fish were. Our trip was scheduled for 2 1/2 days of guided fishing, although weather cut out one day of fishing. Still, we managed to land some nice fish!
Oh, and the smallmouth are the trash fish up there. You do what you can to keep them off your line. A 20+ pound carp is the targeted fish and sometimes a pesky 4 pound smallmouth will steal your fly. Here is some additional info on the hosted trips from last year. Carptrip!
There is an upcoming full length fly fishing film that will be released in 2015. It was filmed by Austin Green with the help of the Indigo Guide Service. Austin is a top notch photographer and I cannot wait to see the film. Here is the teaser.
Make sure you check out Austin’s work at www.austingreenphotography.com.
Copyright 2014. Austin Green Weinstein. All Rights Reserved.