Anglers fishing out of Muskegon have options. "The offshore fishing was good, but it's not practical because of fuel economy," Retherford said. Better options lie north toward Whitehall and off the mouth of Duck Lake. Retherford said the late-summer king fishing was outstanding in 40 feet of water north of Muskegon. To the south, anglers usually fish "The Gauntlet" between the nets.

While flashers and flies are a mainstay at Muskegon, Retherford said he still relies heavily on Silver Streak spoons. "Last year I'd have to say that Mixed Vegetable, Chilly Goose and a Green/Glow Frog were my best spoons," shared Retherford.

To fish aboard the Catch-A-Bunch, contact Retherford at (616) 498-2628, or online at CatchABunch.com.

LUDINGTON
"If you didn't fish Ludington until the middle of July through early September, you'd say it was one of the best years ever for chinooks," claimed veteran charter skipper George Freeman. "But if you fished at all during May and June, you'd know how tough the fishing was."

May's exceptional spring chinook action never materialized out of Ludington last year. Plus, strange weather patterns and currents never allowed the offshore breaks to form that concentrate steelhead on the surface over deep water in June.

As usual, chinook fishing was spectacular off Ludington during the late summer. Some people said that it was better than the good ol' days of the late 1970s. Catching a limit of kings was pretty easy. The port was busier than it has been in a very long time, but almost everyone was catching fish during prime time.

"I would usually run to about The Bathhouse and go north from there," Freeman claimed. This structure found just north of Ludington to several miles past Big Point Sable represents some of the best fish-holding structure in all the Great Lakes. "Usually, it was a one-way troll," Freeman quipped. Freeman said they would have a limit of kings before they got to the tribal nets north of Big Point Sable. "There were a lot of fish straight out of the harbor, too, that people didn't really target."

Most anglers were in agreement that the kings were bigger than in previous years, too. Twenty-pound chinooks were common again. There was an abundance of smaller kings, too, which bodes well for this season.

Freeman said with the frantic king action that greeted anglers most mornings, it was a big advantage having extra hands on board. "Having a good first mate, with the way the bite was, was critical," Freeman stated. Freeman said it was normal to have five or six fish on at one time, and the quicker you could get lines back down, the better.