We laughed until we cried – and that wasn’t because the fishing was so absolutely slow, or because there were too few fish compared to the sheer number of fisherman, but because we were having a great time.  You put three guys in one vehicle, or in one cabin, and that’s what you get – fun.  Especially when those three guys are related and get along way too well sometimes; I literally laughed until it hurt.

I packed up Friday night with visions of steelhead trips past in my head.  I think we all tend to rely on positive fishing and hunting memories when we’re trying to envision how our future trip is going to go, and as I organized all my gear I thought about the steelhead trip when Jeff and I landed 15 fish in around 7 hours, after hooking into 35 of them; it was a day of steelhead fishing that I’ll never forget.

But, as with all good things, sometimes they come to an end.

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Very soon we’ll be heading up to the Pere Marquette river, and trying to land – I’d settle for merely hooking into – a few steelhead.  Jeff, Ron (our cousin) and myself will be making a two-day trip, and to say I’m looking forward to it would be an understatement.

Based on past trips, I’d like to outline a few scenarios/situations/events/mishaps/moments of laughter, etc., which might transpire during the trip.

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My work has been slightly crazy lately, and, at times, it’s felt like I was drowning in it.  And, considering the time of the year that it is, and considering how work has been, I haven’t had much time to think about anything outdoor-related.  In fact, when I close my eyes all I can see is a computer screen; I stare at one all day at work, and lately it has been ingrained into my retinas.

But as I headed home from work the other night, I drove over a bridge that I cross every night – a bridge that crosses the Grand River.  And as I crossed the bridge, the setting sun was casting its modest glow across the slow, flowing water; every ripple was visible within the sun’s ray, and it seemed as though a huge spotlight was being held over the river itself.  It was at that very moment when I forgot about work, and started thinking about steelhead.

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Just recently, Jeff, because of his very nice friend, Steve – who won the spring video viewer challenge held by Michigan Out-of-Doors TV – got to participate in a chartered fishing excursion out on Lake Michigan.

Everyone had a great time, and, of course, Jeff landed the biggest fish of the day.  And because he didn’t want to stop there, he also managed a double – landing two fish on one rod.

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Last week, when I strolled on over to www.fishbaldwin.com to check the steelhead fishing report, Steve, one of the co-owners of Baldwin Bait and Tackle, had posted a pretty favorable report and said the fishing remained “either off the hook fantastic, or simply very tough”.

In my mind, and probably because I knew that I would only make it up to the Pere Marquette River once this year, I focused on the positive of that statement – the “off the hook fantastic” part, and blocked out the “simply very tough” portion – and, as it turned out, the fishing over the weekend definitely turned out to be “very tough”.

Bummer.

We arrived on the river very early, and were lucky enough to have the spot we wanted all to ourselves.  Now, that normally means one of two things:  the fishing is fantastic and we’ve been very lucky to be the first ones there, or the fishing is horrible and that is why the parking lot is empty.  This trip, both of those things turned out to be true.

A few of us started to try their luck immediately – regardless of the pitch-black conditions on the river – while two more of us relaxed on the bank and waited for daylight.  I was one of those who waited for more light, because I hate fishing in the dark, but I hit the river immediately once the first signs of dawn came.

But the fish never showed.

Well, I guess they did for Matt.  He managed to land a nice little Jack right at first light, but the low, clear water and sunny skies made for some tough fishing.  We fished for a few hours, and then decided to eat some lunch, check into our room at the lodge, and take a nap before trying our luck in the late afternoon/evening.

I awoke with anticipation.  The skies were overcast – perfect conditions for steelies – and the air was filled with excitement…..until we arrived at the river.  Our tranquil non-inhabited spot from the morning was now blustering with activity.  Apparently every guide in the area had heard that this section of the river did, in fact, have fish – and they were taking full advantage of it.  Catching a fish was tough, and finding fish was even harder, so by the afternoon word had traveled fast that this section of river did have some fish.  If you’re a guide on the river, and it’s the end of the day and your client hasn’t caught a fish yet, you have to go where the fish are.  Unfortunately, that didn’t leave any place for us to fish.

And, with that, went our fishing trip.

We chalked the trip up to experience, ate some ice cream from Dairy Queen to make ourselves feel a little better, and headed into town to find some dinner.  We enjoyed some tranquil time on the river; watched a mink meander along the bank; ate plenty of food; played cards; watched some of the NCAA tournament; and had a great time hanging out with the “boys”.

I guess it wasn’t all for naught.

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