Pere Marquette 6/6

Many northern Michigan trout streams strongly resemble each other, with banks lined chiefly by spruce, pine, cedar, and tamarack. The Pere Marquette, lying toward the southern end of the north, is an exception, with oak and basswood mixed liberally among the evergreens. These hardwoods add a lushness to the PM lacking on other streams. And last monday the river was as lush as it's going to get. When I was there about three weeks ago, leaves were still unfolding, the grass along the river wouldn't have been high enough to mow if it was in my yard. Now, the foliage is on full display and the grass is growing tall--the woods seem not just green but illuminated in green. From here it's all downhill--leaves will become bug-chewed and a few will whither long before autumn; the grass will sag under its late summer weight and begin to dry out. But on Monday the woods were supple and vivid, and I was especially grateful to be among them.

I reflect on the trees since I don't have too much to say about the fishing. In the afternoon I caught a 12" brown on a nymph and a 15" rainbow on a large stonefly. Near sunset the gray drakes came out en masse, but disappeared before 10 PM without falling. Back at the car I saw the temperature was still near 80, and it stayed there during my long drive home. As hot as it was, I wouldn't be surprised if the bugs delayed their mating dance/death spiral until dawn. But waiting them out was not an option that night. Maybe they were spreading over the river once again when I climbed into my bed around 4.