Bob Brunner, Legendary Muskie Guide of Lake St. Clair with big fish.

Legendary is an honorary distinction bestowed only on a few fishing guides each year. It is an acknowledgement that a person has attained legendary status: a man who has made a visible impact on fishing over a period of many decades.

Bob Brunner of Utica, Michigan, was awarded this distinctive honor several years ago by the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame in Hayward, Wisconsin, when he was inducted into the Hall as a Legendary Guide. Competition among people who lobby for their nominees can be intense, and those who are granted this high status by the Hall's voting committee are richly deserving of such an honor.

Brunner has been a muskie fishing guide on Lake St. Clair for many years. And he does his fishing in a most uncommon way on that great body of water near Detroit: he chooses to cast rather than troll for muskies, unlike 99.9 percent of the other muskie anglers on that fish-rich body of water between Lake Huron and Lake Erie.

He kids and jokes with people, but anglers are advised to pay attention and learn.

"I've fished Lake St. Clair since 1929 and caught my first muskie in 1931 when I was six years old," Brunner told me. "Dad and I fished the lake every Sunday for many years, but now at the tender age of about 90. I still have people asking me to teach them how to cast for muskies. I rarely troll for them because I feel I can get my clients into much bigger fish by working the weed beds where trolling is very difficult to do in an effective manner."

Lake St. Clair is, beyond any doubt, the best muskellunge lake in North America. There are more muskies per water surface area here than anywhere in muskie country. This is why Brunner chooses to guide on this shallow lake. The chances of catching one of the big girls is better on Lake St. Clair than on any other lake that holds these game fish.

The largest muskies of all – the big girls – are always females. Male muskies do not grow as large as the female, and big girls is what he fishes for.

"I have never run an ad and I'm still booked most of the season," Brunner said. "People come from all over to fish with me because they know I work hard to put them on big fish. If a person is willing to travel 50 or 2,000 miles to fish with me, it's my job to put them on a big fish so they will hopefully catch the muskellunge of a lifetime.";

He loves to fish for most game fish species but muskies are the love of his life. That is one reason he has written numerous books about how and where to catch Great Lakes muskellunge. Brunner has developed a strong cult following among muskie anglers, and his methods differ greatly from those guides who troll.

Make no mistake about itL Brunner wants people to fish. That means fishing hard.

"I want people to be able to catch these great fish and enjoy life as much as I have," he said. "My books are not all about muskie fishing but some of them are focused just on these great fish while some cover other species as well. I believe my book "Casting: The Feast Or Famine Of Fishing" is my best work. It explains where to fish, which lures and methods to use and where to use them."

Sadly, most of his books are long out of print and are very collectible. I have a few duplicate copies, if anyone is looking for a copy. I don't duplicates of all of his books but do have several of the highly sought-after titles. Contact me via email at Dave Richey.

Brunner says his best times on the water are those spent teaching kids how to fish. He enjoys kids on his boat, but as long as he can put someone into fish, he's in his glory.

His first business card said "On-water lessons available at reasonable rates." His first two clients were a father and son for the boy's 14th birthday. After they spent a few hours casting around several Anchor Bay areas, the kid hooked and landed his first muskie. It was a fat 40-incher caught on a spoon and the boy was hooked for life.

"I knew then that I had to get more children and their parents out to try for this great game fish," he said. "So here I am, many years later, and still trying to get kids and people involved in this sport. I have been releasing muskies since the early 1970s.

"When I teach someone how to catch fish I feel I'm doing what the Big Guy wanted me to do. The look on a kid's face while he tries to reel a 48-inch muskie to the boat is something that words can't describe. It makes me feel warm and fuzzy to see a child so happy because he caught a fish where I said one would be. I feel blessed to have helped so many kids land their first muskellunge."

Brunner feels that muskie fishing has exploded over the past 15 years and it is hard to keep up with the many changes. He feels saddest that now his life's journey is nearing its end he won't be able to fish the many other great muskie hotspots that he has fished over the years.

He has guided many great fishermen over the years. He's the real deal.

"I have met some really great people in my life and some have taught me some very valuable lessons," he said. "Two are the Richey brothers -- Dave and George. We lost George nearly eight years ago to cancer, and he was a great person and a skilled fisherman.

"George fished with me once a year for over 10 years. He taught me that we are all the same, and he was great company on the boat. He was one of the very few anglers that could beat me casting for the big girls."

There is no doubt about it: Bob Brunner was well qualified for induction into the Hall of Fame as a legendary muskie fishing guide. He rightfully deserves this recognition, and I look forward to fishing with him this fall for one of his "Big Girls."

We keep trying to make our mutual schedules fit. It's hard with two busy people.

I hope we can make our schedules fit. He is a special person in my life of muskie fishing. The fish in the photo above is of Brunner's biggest muskie, one that weighed about 50 pounds.

It's obvious that there are more small muskies than big ones, but the one thing about muskie fishing is it is addictive. Catch one big fish, and doing so may turn an angler into a die-hard fisherman that lives for the next vicious strike from one of Brunner's "Big Girls."; It's a risk than many anglers are prepared to take when fishing with this Legendary Muskie Guide.

For more information - Contact:

Bob Brunner
2435 Dawes
Shelby Township, MI 48317

• Phone (586) 254-9209
• email: MuskieBobBarb

 

The fish were still there. If anything, more steelhead had moved in. "Somebody has to do it," he said, wading in. "Might just as well be us."

The fish were like young baseball players: they often went for our first pitch. Kerby hooked up, and 10 seconds later I was into a bulldozing steelhead that ran at me, jumped clear of the water, and doused me with cold water from three feet away. It took 15 minutes to wear him down.

My philosophy is to beat 'em up. I seldom keep spring fish, and want them to spawn, so a long battle saps their strength, builds up lactic acid and they may die later. If they jump, I pull them off balance. If they dog it, I get below and make them fight the rod and current.

If they run at an angle I pull from the opposite side. It breaks their spirit, and I can usually land fish within five minutes. They recover faster than those landed after a prolonged struggle the current and rod pressure.

The sleet quit but the temperature dropped. Kerby tripped while chasing our 91st steelie, got soaked and once he landed it, he quit. The number '100' never came up but we both knew what the day's goal would be.

The 92nd steelhead was my smallest, and it took my fly so deep in its gills it would die even if released. It was stringered. Paul was soaking up car heat, and the wind began blowing upstream as it steadily grew colder.

The next six fish came easy, and were released. I was chilled through and shaking like an aspen leaf in a strong breeze, but would catch two more fish if it took all day. No. 99 grabbed a No. 6 Platte River Pink as it scratched along bottom. I saluted it with a snappy hook-set, and released it three minutes later.

The eternal fisherman question: Stick with the 'old reliable', or switch to a new fly?

New fly or old for Number 100? It was an easy choice; I'd use the same fly because my fingers were too numb to knot on a new one. My line flicked back over my shoulder and shot forward as I drove the fly above the school of fish that seemed to be growing larger as the minutes ticked by.

One cast, another and a third but no takers. Keep trying, give up or try a new fly? The body shaking was almost uncontrollable as another cast shot upstream, and stripped slowly with my left hand that had been wet all day. The fly ended its drift, and the line twitched and I set the hook.

This fish hit the air like an acrobat, tipped nose down, and sliced into the river like a high-board diver. The rod was up, throbbing from the run, and I stumbled downstream on leaden legs into the strong wind, trying to keep up. The fish slowed at the next small hole until I caught up, put more pressure on him, and he jumped again. This one, a chrome bullet of 12 pounds, leaped again before ripping off on a short run.

I caught up and sensed the fight was over. I was beat as it tried to tug the line under a bush, and I pulled it back and it rolled over in submission. I eased the rod back, and used my pliers to twist the hook free.

It was done. Two angers had caught 100 steelheads in one day. It was so cold, and I was shaking so hard, that it was all I could do to untie the small keeper fish and walk to the car. I opened the trunk, laid the fish on my raincoat, put my fly rod away and looked up to see the local conservation officer pull up.

"How's fishing?" he asked as he looked into my trunk. "Can I see your license? Cold, huh?"

I nodded, too beat to talk. I fumbled out my license, showed it, and he nodded. "Cold," he said, "it looks like the fishing wasn't very good."

"No," I said, the cold and weariness showing, "it wasn' good..."

He was walking back to his car and didn' hear the rest of the sentence because it was lost on the keening wind "...it was absolutely wonderful. It was the best steelheading day of my life."

STEELHEAD INFO SHEET

What: Steelhead fishing.

Where: The Platte River near Honor, Michigan. This stream flows into Lake Michigan's Platte Bay north of Frankfort.

When: The best spring steelhead normally occurs in late March of early April and continues for two or three weeks in the river downstream from Platte Lake. Anglers can find some fish in the upper river (it opens April 1) into early May. The best fall action is in October and November, and it peaks with the Nov. 15 firearm deer season opener.

Equipment: Anglers must match equipment to the area being fished. Some spots are wide open to allow for traditional fly-fishing with a floating fly line or a sinking-tip line. Other areas are so tight that flies may be used but splitshot is needed to take them to bottom. Fly rods and reels with fly lines must have at least 100 yards of 20-pound-test braided Dacron backing.

Approach: Polarized sunglasses are needed to cut surface glare to spot fish in holes or on spawning redds. Whenever possible, walk the banks to locate fish. Once fish are found, the trick is to get close enough to cast a fly with accuracy. Start downstream from the fish and move up one slow step at a time. Watch, and if they begin darting back and forth it means they are spooked. Stop, and if necessary, stand motionless for 10 minutes until they relax before moving closer. Move too fast and all fish will leave.

Flies: No. 4 or 6 unweighted or weighted flies are used. Two fly types exist. They are attractor or imitator patterns. Attractor flies are tied in bright colors like orange or yellow while imitator flies look like dark Hexagenia limbata mayfly nymphs. Some of my Great Lakes Steelhead Flies limited edition hardcover books are still available, in an edition of 900 numbered and signed copies and in mint condition, are still available from me at:

Scoop's Fishing & Hunting Books
PO Box 192
Grawn, MI 49637

Personal or business checks will be accepted, and a book will be sent once the check clears. The cost for a Mint copy is $60, postpaid

This book is the first ever published about Great Lakes steelhead fly patterns. The book, published in 1979, is long out of print, and difficult to locate.

Casting: Pick out one fish. The best choice when fish are on spawning redds is to fish only for male steelhead. Why? If the angler hooks a female, and it is landed or lost, the attraction for males is gone. Fish only for bucks, and quick repetitious casting to the same spot is needed to tease spring fish into striking. Don' expect hard strikes: spring steelheads pick up the fly and drop it.

Often, all the angler sees (in clear water) is a head movement as the fish picks up the fly and drops it. A fly line twitch indicates a strike, and some anglers use a brightly colored strike indicator to alert them to a take. Very few spring steelhead strikes on flies will be felt.

Catch and release: I've eaten some spring steelies and find them strong. One exception is with a two- to four-pound male. They can be tasty, but most of my fish are released gently without taking them from the water. These tips from a longtime fishing guide can help dispel rumors of the steelhead mystique. They will hit but an angler must fish hard, keep the fly near bottom, and recognize the strike when it comes.

Perch, smelt & walleye fishing can be good in various locations.

The best description of an ice fishermen is so old it should have long grey whiskers. It states that an ice fisherman is a jerk on one end of the line waiting for a jerk on the other end.

Chuckle, chuckle.  Yuk. Yuk.

If so, count me as one of the half-frozen brethren. I admit to enjoying the sport, and each year look forward to taking to the ice in search of tasty fish. However, we are now closing in on the end of frozen-water fishing sport even though another two weeks of fun may still be had.

Folks might wonder why anyone with a normal intelligence quotient would sit on the cold ice in bone-chilling Arctic winds and swirling snow while facing possible frostbite. Is it necessary?

The answer is yes and no. One can choose to sit out in the cold or use one of the new fold-up portable shanties on the market, light a Coleman catalytic heater , and fish in shirt-sleeves. We do have a choice.

Good ice fishing in northern counties

For me, sitting on a frozen lake breathing fresh air is far more relaxing than sitting in front of a television, watching sleep robbers on the tube, eating buttered and salted popcorn and getting fat.

Ice fishing is fun. It can offer wholesome outdoor entertainment for the entire family, and each year more people discover the rejuvenating aspects of fresh air, outdoor exercise and great winter sport.

There is a camaraderie to this sport. Forget your ice strainer, and a neighbor will loan you theirs. Run out of bait, and another angler will step forward and offer enough to get through the day.

If it’s a bitter cold or windy day, sitting out on the ice is a nasty experience. A Clam ice-fishing shanty is a life saver.

Sharing is a human quality, encountered often on the ice. A friend who recently achieved senior status and earned the right to buy a cheaper license, learned about sharing while walking onto the Tawas Bay ice.

A vehicle leaving the ice stopped as he walked across the frozen wasteland. His new friends invited him into their car, drove him the half-mile back to their shanty, unlocked the coop and left him with a warm, fuzzy feeling. The had helped a perfect stranger without expecting anything but a "thank you" in return.

These last two weeks of safe ice remind me of past winter fishing trips. It's easy to remember the days when fish bit well, but often it's the little things that mean more to winter anglers. Here are several examples of mine.

Cautious approach

Years ago, when lake trout were first making news in this state, three of us fished the west arm of Grand Traverse Bay. We hiked offshore from M-22, and drilled six holes through the ice.

The first two holes went through 12 inches of clear blue ice. The next two holes, moving farther out over deeper water, went through 10 inches of ice. The fifth hole went into eight inches, and the last hole, just 20 yards away, zipped through just one inch of rubbery ice.

We were lucky that day. Grand Traverse Bay has strong undercurrents, and one inch of ice is like walking on cellophane. We withdrew from that hole in an exaggerated spread-eagled duck-walk with our hearts pounding. We drilled the last hole through eight inches of ice over 120 feet of water, and began catching lakers of sweetened jigs and tip-ups.

The water was so clear the creamy spotted lakers rose from the depths with a luminous glow as they twisted and turned below our feet. Those fish fought like caged tigers, and my memory of them and the quality eating they provided, remain with me today.

Frostbite

Another time while participating in a Michigan Outdoor Writers Association winter meeting at Sault Ste. Marie, we jigged for walleyes on nearby Munuscong Bay in bitter cold temperatures driven by a strong north wind. Several walleyes to 20 inches were caught, Swedish Pimples and it wasn't until our return to shore that someone asked about those "funny-looking" white patches on my cheek, ears and nose.

Anyone who has stared in awe at the famous Richey schnozz, and how my ears stick out like a taxi cab going down the street with both doors open, can understand why they were frostbitten.

My nose, like Pinocchio's, sticks out so far it suffered hours of subzero cold. It didn't take much for my ears to attract the cold either. The fierce pain experienced during the thawing-out process was remembered long after the walleye fishing had been forgotten.

Take kids fishing

Years ago when my four kids ranged in age from four to eight years, they often accompanied me to North Lake near Millington. The lake was filled with bluegills and sunfish, and the winter fish were always hungry.

It was a time when the Old Man could teach them how to fish, and we often spent several weekends each winter in pursuit of fine catches. Once they tired of jigging a tiny teardrop jig baited with a wax worm, they could skate, go sledding or build snowmen.

Once the physical exertion ended, and they settled down to fish, many 'gills would dot the nearby ice. They helped me clean the catch at day's end, and never were far away when it was time to tuck into platters of pan-fried fish.

Pike action

Some fine winter memories were born on Manistee Lake at Manistee when it delivered jumbo pike through the ice. One day, with temperatures in the low 30s and 12 inches of ice underfoot, me and two other fishermen were fishing with sucker-baited tip-ups off the Manistee River mouth near East Lake. It proved to be a day we would long remember.

The pike, some silver and fresh from Lake Michigan, were in a feeding frenzy. Red tip-up flags were popping in the air at almost every tip-up site, indicating fish, and we spend long hours battling pike to 18 pounds.

The fish would make long hard runs, and the braided Dacron line would sizzle through our fingers. Each and every pike would fight until it could battle no longer, and many took 15 minutes of back-and-forth scrapping before the fish could be landed.

There is something savage about a big pike, and when it is time to lead a trophy fish to the ice hole, an angler must take his time and do it right. The long slender snout should be positioned just under the ice hole, and a three-pronged gaff would be lowered under its chin.

Once gaff and fish were properly positioned, the gaff was brought up and sunk into the pike's lower jaw, and it would come splashing out.

Each fish, long and glistening and tooth-studded, was a victory. Those trophy pike were among the hardest fighting fish to land that has been my pleasure to hook through the ice.

Walleye flurry

Once, several years ago, the late Al Lesh of Warren, several others and I made a snowmobile trip across Lake St. Clair to a point about a half-mile off Ontario's Thames River mouth.

The first two spots were unproductive, but the third location was charmed. I lowered a Swedish Pimple sweetened with a shiner minnow within inches of bottom, jigged it twice and set the hook into a walleye.

We fought a rugged battle, that walleye and me, and eventually it came up through the ice hole and was landed. Moments later, another walleye met the same fate, and soon everyone in our party was hooking the tasty fish.

Six anglers limited out that day. Walleyes to eight pounds were landed in what ranks as one of the most exciting flurries of activity I have experienced on the ice.

And people wonder why we dunk bait or lures through an ice hole? They shouldn't; anyone who has ever tasted winter success will always look forward to the next ice-fishing trip with anticipation and excitement. Good bets this week should be Big Glen (at the narrows) and Higgins lakes.

Anyone looking for daily updated fishing reports north of US-10  should contact Curly Buchner .

Big pike are found in all 20 of these lakes. Fish near submerged weedbeds.

The outdoors is much more than just fishing and hunting. There is a vast store of knowledge about various aspects that I know too little about, and I take pride in my knowledge.

For instance: one glaring error in my outdoor education is my knowledge of bushes and trees. Sure, I know what beech, birch, maple and oak trees and their leaves look like, but throw an oddball tree my way and ask me to identify it, I'm as lost as last year's Easter egg.

I started thinking today about a question one of my kids asked 30 years ago. David asked: "Dad, have you fished every lake and stream in the state?"

A probing question from my oldest son.

The answer then and still is "no." I've fished a good number of them over my half-century of prowling this state, but there are many I haven't fished and may never try. Time is against me or most people who would try to accomplish such a daunting feat.

That thought brought me to today's topic. Someone emailed me this morning, and asked if I knew the largest inland lakes in the state. By sheer good fortune, I knew the five top lakes in terms of size, and could even name them in order; Houghton, Torch, Charlevoix, Burt and Mullett lakes. Beyond those five, I was lost and began doing some intense research.

An obscure DNR booklet named Michigan's 20 Largest Inland Lakes was found tucked away in a file cabinet, and the topic proved fascinating. Fifteen of the largest lakes are in the Lower Peninsula and five are found in the Upper Peninsula.

What follows is that list, ranging from No. 1 to No. 20, the county or counties where they are found, the size in acres, and the miles of shoreline (which includes islands) around it.

1. Houghton Lake is in Roscommon County. It has 20,044 acres and has 30.0 miles of shoreline.
2. Torch Lake is located in Antrim and Kalkaska counties, and has 18,770 acres. There are 40.8 miles of shoreline.

Some lakes have more shoreline miles because of points and other land features.

3. Lake Charlevoix is in Charlevoix County. It has 17,260 acres, and the shoreline covers 56.0 miles.
Burt Lake is in Cheboygan County. It covers 18, 120 acres, and the shoreline measures 30.1 miles.
5. Mullett Lake also is in Cheboygan County. It has 16,630 acres, and the shoreline measures 31.6 miles.
6. Gogebic Lake, the Upper Peninsula's largest inland lake, is found in Gogebic and Ontonagon counties. It covers 13,380 acres, and has 34.4 miles of shoreline.

7. Big Manistique Lake, rests in Luce and Mackinac counties, and it is tied for 7th place with 10, 130 acres. It has 26.5 miles of Upper Peninsula shoreline.

8. Black Lake in Cheboygan and Presque Isle counties, also has 10, 130 acres. It has 18.7 miles of shoreline.
9. Crystal Lake in Benzie County is one of the state's most beautiful lakes. It has 9,711 acres and 20.8 miles of shoreline.
10. Portage Lake in Houghton County was one of the last strongholds for sauger in this state. Fisheries biologists feel the sauger have disappeared. The lake has 9, 640 acres with 55.9 miles of shoreline.

11. Higgins Lake in Crawford and Roscommon counties has 9,000 acres. It has 21 miles of shoreline.
12. Fletcher Floodwaters is located in Alpena and Montmorency counties. It has 8,970 acres with 24.7 shoreline miles.
13. Hubbard Lake is located in Alcona County. It has 8,850 acres and 19.3 miles of frontage on the lake.

I’ve fish all 20 of Michigan’s largest lakes. It’s always fun learning a new lake.

14. North and South Lakes Leelanau in Leelanau County covers 8,320 acres. It has 40.2 miles of shoreline.
15. Indian Lake is found in Schoolcraft County. It has an even 8,000 acres with 16.7 miles of shoreline.
16. Elk Lake in Antrim and Grand Traverse counties has 7,730 surface acres. It measures 25.8 miles around the lake.
17. Michigamme Reservoir is located in Iron County. It features 7,200 acres but has 78.0 miles of shoreline.
18. Glen Lake in Leelanau County includes the east and west basins, and covers 6,285 surface acres. It only has 17.0 miles of shoreline.

19. Grand Lake in Presque Isle County. It covers 6,660 acres with 35.5 miles of shoreline.
20. Long Lake in Alpena and Presque Isle counties has 5,652 acres. It has 25.3 miles of shoreline.

Keep this list handy, and it can settle any type of bar bet or resolve discussions with other anglers.

Rivermouth fishing can produce winter steelhead like this one.

Anglers can always go fishing right now. No ice but the Great Lakes & some rivers are open.

There’s always the opportunity of steelhead in streams open to year ‘round fishing.

Duffy favors solitary fishing at this time of year.

Don’t be surprised by the possibility of some snow on Monday.