The Casting Hook-up

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So, you want to try your hand at fishingfly fishing to be exact. But, do you know the aspects of fly fishing? Can you read the water, or can you determine Northeast Michigans fish habitant? If youll struggling to answer these questions, youll want to sign up for lessons with Tony Dunaske at the Hidden River Golf & Casting Club.



The picturesque course has unique features including stands of pine and hardwoods, elevation changes, and the Maple River winding through the site. The property, a certified member of the Turfgrass Environmental Stewardship Program, also has a restaurantand, yes, a fly fishing school.

Tony has been fly fishing since he was a boy growing up in Gaylord. A professional photographer and professor by trade, hes been offering fly fishing lessons since Hidden River Golf & Casting Club opened in 1997.

A lesson with Tony includes the basics of casting practiced on a pond near the 18th hole of this unusual operation, followed by time on the Maple River in front of the Hidden River property.

With a few lessons with Tony, youll quickly learn that the motion of fly fishing is unique, but the mechanics are easily graspedas long as you let the equipment do the work.

Check below for Other Michigan Fly Fishing Lessons, Destinations & Tours

The fabled Au Sable River watershed, with nearly 180 miles of blue-ribbon trout water, is Michigan's most renowned trout fishing destination. Meandering through gently contoured woods, the river offers a myriad of fishing conditions to challenge even the most skilled angler. You can expect to strike small to medium-sized rainbows, browns, and brookies, with the chance of tying into a football-sized brown. The area is blessed with "Holy Waters" that makes the fly-fishing heavenly!

Burton's Landing on the Au Sable is the demarcation of what Michiganders refer to as the Holy Waters, regulated by year-round fly-fishing only and catch-and-release.