If given the choice of a 10lb chrome Salmon or a 20+lb fish that has turned, I’ll take the 10lb chrome fish every time. This is the ideal condition and coloration of the Salmon everyone is targeting:
Fishing on the Platte River went better than we could have hoped with the clear water and perfect weather. Although we had the north side of the river inlet to ourselves on Thursday, many fishermen noticed our success. We returned early Friday morning to find six people converging on our spot from the evening before. It’s not surprising and most fishermen, including myself, are inclined to take the same tactic. With the weekend approaching, we knew combat fishing was inevitable. We decided to appreciate the time we had on the river and head south back to the Manistee for more free camping and less people. The campsites on the Manistee were extremely large with trees separating the sites making it pleasantly difficult spot your neighbors. We enjoyed grilled pork tacos with homemade salsa for the evening’s dinner. I don’t brag often, but if you enjoy camping and Mexican food, I’ve got you covered. We only had a few hours the following morning to fish, pack up and head back to Cleveland.
The only way to target bright fish is either in the ocean, or in this case, a Great Lake, or the river mouth. No one targets older fish, and it’s just the luck of the draw when they enter the river system and where they decide to spawn.
Either way you have to take the good with the bad. And in this case, the ugly. It was a great fight and, although not ideal, a good end to the camping adventure.
