Holland vs Muskegon

[Sea D]

I moved my boat from Holland to Muskegon this year.

Any thoughts on what to expect with the change and the new water?

Thank you

[SeaCatMich]

• Muskegon gets deeper a little faster than Holland
  
• Muskegon has a much better Aug & Sept King fishery as the river has a substantial run of spawning fish
  
• Muskegon has a better spring & fall Steelhead fishery
  
• Muskegon has had commercial nets the last few years, Holland doesn't
  
• Less no-wake zone on Muskegon Lake

[Sea D]

Thank you for taking the time to replay. I find it very helpful and it sounds good. I was hoping to find "better water"

My only concern is commercial nets. Any tips on these would be appreciated.

[SeaCatMich]

I trailer from the Lansing area and fish both ports. Muskegon left a bad taste in my fishing at the end of August last year. Got into the nets after dodging them on 5 previous trips the last couple of years. Lost a couple downrigger weights including a X4 probe, a wire diver, and a copper setup up. It was mid afternoon and I was working on an electrical problem on the boat and the other guys onboard were dozing off. One of them finally pointed at a net buoy/flag off the port stern and asked "what's that?". *%^@#& I'm really hoping they are gone this year, but not holding my breath. They are marked better than ones in Whitehall, Ludington & Manistee but still a pain.

Last year for me, Muskegon was better fishing. In 2012 Holland was better.

If you go out a ways off Muskegon you can get to some nice structure that will hold fish -- especially in mid summer. Holland is pretty much a steady slope all the way out and leaves temps and currents as the "structure".

Since I trailer, the DNR launch and fish cleaning in Holland is much better than Muskegon. The only "public" fish cleaning in Muskegon I know of is Fisherman's Landing which is at the far east end of Muskegon Lake and a long run to the breakwalls. All of the launches in Muskegon that I can launch my boat at are city owned so it costs extra to launch too -- Holland is "free" since I have my DNR passport on the license plate.

[captjansen]

I chartered for 7 years out of Holland before making my "home" port Muskegon the last 12 years. I second everything already said and would add that the laker fishing is not as good out of Muskegon as Holland, the entire year. As for the nets, guys do a pretty good job of sharing coordinates online to help you keep up with them. You can usually count on a few sets south of the channel and a few north as well. My advice is to start in the dark where you KNOW there are no nets and not to troll north or south, and have someone watch diligently if you are fishing anywhere from about 70 to 170 fow when its light. This doesn't mean that you still might not run into trouble. One set was moved in August last year. We went out where we were sure there were no nets only to run into them, luckily we got everything up in time. If you do run into them, start with bringing your deepest sets in first because your higher stuff may ride over them. Also, it's been my impression that the guys in Holland share more info on these forums than the guys in Muskegon, although there are a few guys like sniffer and mainiac who share frequently. Finally, I wouldn't say there's much of a difference in the baits I run in both ports for silver fish.

[Nailer]

I have always found fish North of Muskegon. The nets out there are easy to fish around.

[Sea D]

I really am impressed with you guys and the willingness to help me out. This will only be my second full season and I'm looking forward to it.

I looked online for some images of how these nets are marked. I am assuming I am looking for two markers "relatively" close to each other and stay out of the between portion.

I am wondering how long these nets normally are?

My next question would be that my licensing fees go for stocking programs that then commercial fishing harvests for profit? How is that right? Guess that's another forum though

[SeaCatMich]

I really am impressed with you guys and the willingness to help me out. This will only be my second full season and I'm looking forward to it.

I looked online for some images of how these nets are marked. I am assuming I am looking for two markers "relatively" close to each other and stay out of the between portion.

I am wondering how long these nets normally are?

My next question would be that my licensing fees go for stocking programs that then commercial fishing harvests for profit? How is that right? Guess that's another forum though

The nets are for Whitefish not salmon/trout although there is some incidental catch.

[SeaCatMich]

Although you might not be ready to fish tournaments just yet, the MSCST is a Muskegon area fun contest series that you might want to look into. Good group of guys that I'm sure would help you get familiar with the port and fishery.

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/MSCST/155723504479308

Web Site: http://www.mscst.com/

Muskegon does not have a local chapter of the Michigan Steelheaders, but Grand Haven and Grand Rapids do. You can learn a lot going to these meetings and start building a network of people to talk to. Half of being successful out there is knowing where to be and a good network of fishing contacts can shorten that learning time.

[fishsniffer]

Although you might not be ready to fish tournaments just yet, the MSCST is a Muskegon area fun contest series that you might want to look into. Good group of guys that I'm sure would help you get familiar with the port and fishery.

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/MSCST/155723504479308

Web Site: http://www.mscst.com/

Muskegon does not have a local chapter of the Michigan Steelheaders, but Grand Haven and Grand Rapids do. You can learn a lot going to these meetings and start building a network of people to talk to. Half of being successful out there is knowing where to be and a good network of fishing contacts can shorten that learning time.

Thank you sir

[Nailer]

The nets are long, and wide. They are on the bottom, but have lines coming up to the markers. It wont take you long to get used to them.

When I fish Muskegon, I go north till I get past the first one, then fish between them, or I stay inside them, and fish North toward Whitehall.

[Sea D]

What channel do fisherman use in muskegon? Tried 68 but no luck.

[SeaCatMich]

What channel do fisherman use in muskegon? Tried 68 but no luck.

Pretty early in the season so probably not too much radio traffic yet. Overall the radio traffic has gone down in my observation the past 10 years. Many have gone to cell phones to talk to their fishing buddies instead. Can't say that I miss all of the noise out there though -- especially the guy that tell the same story every 15 minutes all day long about a fish they caught at 6 am.

Did you send out a "first trip of the year... anyone out fishing... how about a report" broadcast? I know that I often will respond to those. I usually have the radio on scan covering many of the more common channels.