TV Appearances: Sport Fish Michigan Videos

We've been planning this trip for two years. I'm pumped, I'm pumped, I'm pumped! Two years in the making! I'm fishing with Captain Ben Wolfe with Sport Fish Michigan and we're at the mouth of the Platte River - the world-renowned Platte River. We're fishing for coho salmon. This has been an exciting trip planned for me. I've never done anything like this. I've talked to Ben a number of times and he says, "hey - there's a lot of ways these people are catching fish." Naturally, you've got people trolling, you've got fly fishermen all over the place - like the guy in front of us, you've got bottom fishermen. You guys kind of got onto a bit that's a little bit different, and man, it's a lot more fun. That was what was exciting to me. We're going to be doing deep-water jigging. Tell us a little bit about why these fish are here as I idle by all these people. [Ben Wolfe] Sure. Well, we're coming out of the mouth of the Platte River, and this is the birthplace of the entire multi-billion dollar Great Lakes salmon industry. [Al Lindner] Look at them! [Ben Wolfe] We have salmon in the river, we have salmon out in the lake. It's just a special place to be. The Michigan DNR, back in the mid-1960s, planted coho salmon here, right on this very river. We're out here trying to enjoy the fishery that has been the result of that stocking initially. [Al Lindner] Tell us a little bit about Sport Fish Michigan and what it's all about. [Ben Wolfe] Well, Sport Fish Michigan is a network of some of the top charter Captains and Guides in the state. And we really try to concentrate on just about anything that someone wants to do, fishing-wise. We can provide it for them. Whether it's fishing in the river on fly. Whether it's fishing in the river with traditional gear. Or trolling or jigging. Bass fishing is big for us. Walleye fishing is also big for us. So really - almost anything someone wants to do, fishing-wise, we have someone around the state that is a qualified Captain or a Guide and really knows their thing, and is able to have a great time with customers. [Al Lindner] This is really a gas. [Ben Wolfe] Beautiful! [Al Lindner] This is everything I expected this to be and then a little bit more. It was a rush, bro. [Troy Lindner] You know, that looks like a lot of fun. I do a lot of fishing up in the mountains, most of the trout are about that big, they're not giants like that. [Mike Hehner] Yeah, these are magnum fish, Troy. These fish get to 30-40 pounds out there. Within the next couple weeks out on the Great Lakes system, these fish are going to be firing up. All the charters are going to be out catching the heck out of these fish all the way through the fall. [Troy Linder] That's awesome - that is awesome.

Sport Fish Michigan is a network of some of the top charter Captains and Guides in the state. We really try and concentrate on just about anything that someone wants to do fishing-wise - we can provide it for them. Whether it's fishing in the river on fly. Whether it's fishing in the river with traditional gear. Or trolling or jigging. Bass fishing is big for us. Walleye fishing is also big for us. So really, almost anything someone wants to do fishing-wise we have someone around the state that is a qualified Captain or a Guide and really knows their thing and is able to have a great time with customers.

Today, 9 & 10's Jenny Buechel takes us out onto the ice of Grand Traverse Bay. There, she shows us not just how to ice fish but the best way to catch the biggest prize. Today's "Hometown Tourist" - ice fishing off of Old Mission Peninsula. We're out on East Bay today heading out with Sport Fish Michigan. We're going to see what we can catch out here on Old Mission Peninsula. We'll see you out there. If you've never done it, driving on Grand Traverse Bay is just surreal. The wind is wild, the ice is slick, and the space feels totally infinite. Not to mention - the water is solid. Do you know what our high is today - temp-wise? I think it's 23 or 22. Perfect! Since 1994 it's the first time the bay has frozen two years in a row. For us, it's about a 2-mile ride to our shanty. Our guide today is Captain Ben Wolfe, teaching this first-timer all the ropes of ice fishing. Oh, this is so neat. This year, we're really starting to get going out here on the bay. We're really just excited to start getting into it and really see what's down there. We had a couple of 8-pounders our last trip out, so the potential is very, very good for a really nice fish. The best is yet to come. Exactly. Today... mmm hmm. On a guided tour, your shanty is prepped and ready for immediate fishing. Even the ice holes are drilled. But if you want to cover more ground... So what we'll do is we'll drill a lot of holes in different depth contours really trying to figure out if there's a certain depth that the fish like, and are they keying on it. Our targets today are lake trout, whitefish, and burbot, a freshwater cousin to cod. For bigger fish, we want a little bit of a stiffer action rod that can handle the beefy, larger species. The beefy species... yeah! Exactly. So what we're going to do is put the jig right in the hole and we're just going to let it go. When the pulling stops, we start jigging by popping the rod about a foot up and down. Jig 'til your arm falls off. That's kind of how we like to joke. People like to "get jiggy with it" - all sorts of terrible, awful jokes. But, whatever you're jigging muscle, it's all a waiting game. What happens in the shanty stays in the shanty. Yeah - unless you're on camera. I don't know how to whistle. Not well! My lips are so numb, I don't know if I could, even if I tried. (laughing) No. Maybe the fish are tone deaf! Let's hope so. We jig for hours, but to no avail. Zebra mussels - catch of the day! Fortunately, our neighbors had better luck earlier that morning. So we have a lake trout here, this is a really nice, keeper lake trout. And a really beautiful whitefish. Oh, my gosh... is he still living? Moving?! Is he still alive!?! Yeah. Big catch, or none at all, ice fishing is really all about the experience. You know, it's not a numbers game. The fact that we are out on a bay that very rarely freezes is really a treat. To be able to be out here where, normally, we're only in a boat. For 9 & 10 I'm Jenny Beuchel, your Hometown Tourist.