The Rogue River in Michigan is near Grand Rapids and is a tributary of the Grand River. Anglers and guides call it two rivers, because there are two different kinds of fishing above and below the Rockford dam. Above the dam is what anglers might expect from a good trout stream. Downstream, however, and blocked by the dam on their upstream run, are the steelhead.
When and Where
Peak steelhead season on the Rogue is during March and April, although guides say determined fisherman can catch steelies all the way into May. Fall provides you with one more crack at the silverback. The best access to the lower river is at Rockford dam, 15 minutes north of Grand Rapids on Highway 131. A narrow, shallow, gravel-bottomed river, the Rogue is ideal for fly fisherman and other waders.
Subtle Tackle
The Rogue stocks 30,000 steelhead each spring, but the intense pressure on the river, due to its popularity, makes the steelies skittish. Keep your bait offering small and your line light, and fish when the light is low. Your average steelhead will weigh in between 5 and 10 pounds, so be prepared to finesse these muscular fish on that light line.
Spring Stages
There are three stages in each spawning season for steelhead. In the early stage, steelhead lay up in pools near the mouth of the river as they prepare for the upstream run. The actual spawn stage is through most of the peak season and has females preparing beds, while the bucks swirl around the periphery to see who gets the fertilization privilege. The drop-back stage is at the end of the peak season, and anglers fish them as they are headed downstream instead of upstream. Eggs, leeches and nymphs work well in the early-stage pools, as does fishing baitfish patterns. During spawning, you can throw flies around the periphery of the spawning beds to tempt the bucks. During the drop-back stage, you can try streamers, which the steelies are more apt to strike as the water warms.
Autumn Bounty
In October and November the steelies return to the rivers to eat, a lot. While not peak season, this is when a lot of Michigan sportsmen like to combine their steelhead fishing with a little bird hunting. The favored lures are streamers, though you can produce some good fish, with a lot of excitement, by fishing flies in the fall.
The M-Word
The secret weapon for Rogue River steelhead, according to some guides, is "maggots." That is what they're called, anyway. In fact, they are not fly eggs, but the larvae of wax moths, a bug that beekeepers hate because they parasitically destroy bees. Your friendly bait connection, however, will likely use the funkier term, "maggots." Wax worms actually come in different colors, and naturally glow in the dark. This makes them particularly attractive to the light averse steelhead.
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