NOW SHIPPING! Kevin Feenstra’s New Book:  Matching Warmwater Baitfish:  

Soon after my previous book, Matching Baitfish, was written, I started working on another book.    Though similar in some ways, it is geared toward totally different gamefish and some new genres of bait fishes.   The book is called Matching Warmwater Baitfish.  Here is a summary of the book: 

Matching Warmwater Baitfish is 248 pages in length, and includes 330 images.    If you enjoyed photography in the steelhead book, you should really like this book too.   The book details the warm water predator fish, such as well know species such as smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, musky, and northern pike.   It also covers overlooked species such as bowfin, gar, freshwater drum, and others. 

After describing the predators, the book details quite a few baitfish species.   In addition to baitfish, this book also covers other common large forms of prey, such as frogs and hellgrammites.    Equipment and reading the water are also components of the book. 

One of the strengths of the book is its fly tying section.     There is a section of step by step patterns of my guide flies.   These flies are straightforward guide flies that I use day to day in my guiding.  This section is followed by a section of patterns by some of the guides and anglers that I have come to know.  I have deep respect for these people  and wanted to highlight their contributions to fly fishing for warm water fish.    These include Russ Maddin, Ed McCoy, Mike Schultz, Matt Zudweg, and several others.  

I hope that this book is something that anyone who wants to learn about baitfish in our warm water fisheries can enjoy.     If you would like to purchase Matching Warmwater Baitfish, it is now shipping,  and can be purchased here.   

Here is a taste of some of the photos in the book, just use the arrows on the side to navigate: 

Our guides spend a lot of time plying the waters for warm water species, and warm water guide trips are available through the spring, summer, and fall for smallmouth and largemouth bass and northern pike.     To learn more about our guides, click here. 

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We have several upcoming speaking events with our staff and would love to see you at these events!

January 11, 2025:   Joni Murray will be giving a presentation at the Red Cedar Fly Fishers. 

January 18, 2025:   We will have a booth at the Heartland Fly Fishing Festival in Lebanon, Indiana.     Kevin Feenstra will be giving a presentation on Smallmouth Bass fishing, Matt Zudweg is a featured tier at this event. 

January 21, 2025:    Kevin Feenstra will be giving a fly tying demonstration at Nomad Anglers in Grand Rapids, Michigan.  

February 1:   Some of our guides will be fly tying at the Bobbin the Hood event at Schultz Outfitters. 

February 4:  Matt Zudweg will be giving a fly tying demonstration at Nomad Anglers.

February 6:   Kodie Kowitz will be giving a fly tying demonstration at Nomad Anglers. 

February 8:    Kevin will be on hand at the Three Rivers Fly Fishing show near Fort Wayne, Indiana. 

February 20:   Drew Rosema will be demonstrating at Nomad Anglers. 

February 20:   Kevin will be giving a presentation at the Ohio Central Basin Steelheaders. 

March 1:   Kevin will be presenting at the North Coast Fly Fishers Expo, near Cleveland, Ohio.   

March 5:  Kevin will be demonstrating at the Northern Angler in Traverse City, Michigan. 

March 8-9:   We will have booth space and Kevin will be presenting at the Midwest Fly Fishing Expo.   Additionally, Matt Zudweg will be a featured tier at that event. 

March 12:   Kevin will be presenting at the Indianapolis Fly Casters. 

March 15:   Kevin will be presenting at the Charles Fellows TU Chapter. 

The post Winter 2025 Fly Fishing Events appeared first on FEENSTRA GUIDE SERVICE.

I hope you’ll give this fly a try at your vise and on the water this year. Enjoy! – Zuddy

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2019 is producing some big fish!

Each year is different, but this one has certainly been like none other.    We had a delayed steelhead run, followed by a high water spring.   That high water followed us well into July.   Up until earlier this month, we were at water levels that you would expect in March.        Only in recent weeks have we backed off into normal water levels.   Our cool water fish such as trout survive much better on years with high water.  Good water levels also benefit the fry of migratory fish such as salmon and steelhead.    High water is healthy for the Muskegon River as a whole; resident baitfish thrive in these water conditions.  Elevated water floods the shallow edges of the river, submerging a lot of  vegetation that would normally be out of the water.    These flooded, weedy areas provide cover for small baitfish and fry, and as a result we end up with a lot of food in the river.

High water levels have helped the baitfish in the Muskegon River thrive!

This abundance of food in turn creates some very heavy predator fish, including the smallmouth bass.  As the baitfish mature we will imitate bigger minnows, especially common shiners and gobies.  Gray and tan are great colors to imitate a broad array of these fish.   As water levels drop, the gamut of smallmouth flies works great.   This includes crayfish patterns but it also includes some of the funnest patterns–poppers that are fished on the surface.    Because of the drop offs in the Muskegon, the smallmouth are often located along the edges, bass feed along the edges and this is prime territory for explosive surface bites.    Our guides have excellent surface patterns.  One of our guides,  Matt Zudweg,  has his own line of great poppers.  He is well regarded throughout the region for his flies.    His large patterns elicit some fantastic bass over the course of a summer.  You can see a sample of his poppers below:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzEAhSPhuNV/

Because food continues to be super abundant, the smallmouth feed erratically.     Water levels are currently dropping, which will concentrate baitfish and raise the metabolism of the fish, making for prime smallmouth fishing opportunities.  As the water drops and warms, expect the rest of the summer to be very good for smallmouth.

Typically smallmouth fishing is very good well into September.    The remainder of summer is a fun, high quality time of the year to fish.   There is something really awesome about being on the river in sandals and a t-shirt.   As someone who fishes in the dead of winter, I can’t help but being struck by the stark contrasts in our fishing seasons.    The variety of warm water, cold water, and migratory fish makes the Muskegon River a great place to fish at any time.

If you are interested in smallmouth bass fishing, we have trips available throughout the remainder of the summer months.   August is prime time for numbers of fish, with some of the largest fish often caught in September.

Tight Lines!—Kevin Feenstra

Summer smallmouth bass are some of the most exciting fish to catch!

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