- Hello, everyone, welcome to "Michigan Out of Doors," I'm Jenny Ciolek, and we've got an exciting show headed your way this week.

With ice-fishing season shaping up here in Michigan, we thought we'd get you excited and bring you a story from the Northern Lower Peninsula chasing after trout through the ice, you won't wanna miss that story, and we've got some hunting action for you this week too.

- Well, that's right, we do have a little hunting on this week's show, just a few days before the firearm gun season, I was able to get out and do a little pheasant-hunting with some friends just north of the Lansing area, you won't wanna miss that, and we're gonna have kind of an extended bragging board on this week's show, we've been getting lots of pictures from you, the viewers, so we're gonna see what you have been up to over the last several weeks.

Make sure you stay tuned, I'm Jimmy Gretzinger, and it's time for "Michigan Out of Doors."

♪ From the first spring rains to the soft summer breeze ♪ ♪ Dancing on the pine forest floor ♪ (relaxed guitar music) ♪ The autumn colors catch your eyes ♪ ♪ Here come the crystal winter skies ♪ ♪ It's Michigan, "Michigan Out of Doors" ♪ - [Jimmy] What a beautiful day in the woods.

♪ Someday our children all will see ♪ ♪ This is their finest legacy ♪ The wonder and the love of Michigan ♪ ♪ As the wind comes whispering through the trees ♪ ♪ The sweet smell of nature's in the air ♪ (relaxed guitar music) ♪ From the Great Lakes to the quiet stream ♪ ♪ Shining like a sportsman's dream ♪ ♪ It's a love of Michigan we all share ♪ (relaxed guitar music) - [Narrator] "Michigan Out of Doors" is presented by... - [Narrator] By Country Smokehouse, a sportsman's destination since 1988, featuring varieties of homemade sausage, jerky, brats, and gourmet entrees.

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(relaxed guitar music) (relaxed guitar music continues) (drill whirring) (relaxed guitar music) - Here in Montmorency County targeting brown trout and rainbow trout, we're using jaw-jackers to do this, so what these do is basically automatically set the hook on the fish, so the fish is gonna come by and see the bait, when it grabs it, it triggers that release, sets the hook on your fish automatically for you.

I find when we run tip-ups a lot, these trout will wanna dump it, they'll dump your minnow and leave the bait, so you'll get a false flag a lot, they'll end up running with it for a little bit and letting it go, so the benefit of these is when that fish gets the bait right away, it's gonna set the hook on 'em, and it's also important where you hook the fish, where you hook your bait, you're gonna wanna hook 'em right behind the head, because these trout come in and usually grab your bait head-first, so that's also important when using these.

Now, if you're fishing for pike or something, you'll wanna do a stinger rig, you'll wanna do a head hook and a tail hook, that way, when that pike comes up and grabs either the head or tail, it's gonna get hooked when this goes off.

- [Jimmy] We had quite a few anglers on the ice today and the plan was to set as many jaw-jackers as we could in hopes of catching a few trout.

The opportunity to fish for trout through the ice is a little bit unique, but there are resources available for those who want to learn more about it.

- Yeah, I got started fishing for trout when I first moved up here, I'm originally from Grand Rapids, so we didn't have a whole lot of lakes downstate that have... That give you opportunities like this, so I first moved up here and started seeing the DNR stocking database on what these lakes have and a couple other people that were fishing 'em, just had to try to figure it out.

So the DNR database has a lot of information on there, you can pretty much narrow it down to any county within the state and all the body-waters in that county that have specific species stocked into them, and you can narrow your search down, whether you're looking for strictly pike, strictly walleye, trout, even panfish, they stock panfish in a lot of these lakes too, so it's a good resource that the DNR has for anglers to use.

It's been quite a bit of a learning curve only doing panfish and pike mainly, but it's a challenge that makes it fun.

- [Jimmy] Fishing for trout on an inland lake through the ice is a lot different than fishing for some of the other species around, they are always on the move and can be a little hard to pin down.

- Typically, I target the shelves from... Anywhere from 12 to 30-to-50 foot of water, and I usually try to work off the shoreline out, and usually nice bends in the river or the creek where it comes in, like in the mouth here where it bends around, the fish typically like to run through there and get the bait, and they do it, like, you know, several times in a day, it's not just a morning bite, but... And then, like, over here, we got the... There's some nice little points that come up that the fish like to swim up to and catch the bait, and a lot of the... A lot of rainbows come off of the higher-shelf areas, and then, the browns are usually in the mid to the bottom range, so usually, we set our lines, you know, so everything can see from high to low and come in, that way, we don't really miss anything 'cause sometimes, these browns are mid-column, sometimes, they're bottom, they just don't have anywhere they like to stay in one spot, you know?

But other than that, that's pretty much it, just targeting the shelves and working your way off, the trout like to work the shallow, and then, work their way out, that seems like... Throughout the morning time.

- [Jimmy] Another thing these guys pay close attention to is where the bait fish are and what the oxygen levels are around the lake.

- Normally, the bait fish are... Their gonna be in the highest-oxygen part of the lake, so that's typically... Like, with these feeder creeks, if there's a lot of oxygen, and sometimes, it's with the shorelines, when the snow is melting off the edges of the shore, it creates a lot of oxygen which will pull a lot of the bait fish into that area, and then, of course, the big predator fish will come in, most of the time, in the wintertime, it seems like I do really good around the feeder creeks, around the... Even open water where, you know, people don't really wanna go, but that's where I do the best, yeah, most of the time, and that's where I normally see the bait, is up in, you know, around the feeder creeks in the wintertime, you can see 'em out here when it melts, you'll see 'em jumping and shooting across the top of the water, so, I mean, that's what I... If I see the bait fish, that's usually where I like to set up, you know?

Yeah, so that's just usually what we target.

(relaxed guitar music) - [Jimmy] We ended up catching a handful of trout throughout the day, but a weather system moved in in the afternoon and really slowed things down.

The next morning, our plan was to try a different lake, this time targeting rainbow trout.

(upbeat guitar music) (upbeat guitar music continues) (upbeat guitar music continues) - So we're on a different lake today in Northeast Michigan targeting rainbow trout.

It's a little bit different than yesterday, yesterday, we were fishing the bottom half of the water column for those browns, today, it's gonna be the top half of the water column.

Even if we're over 40, 50 feet of water, you're still gonna put your bait literally five-to-10 feet under the ice, the reason is these rainbow trout tend to cruise the surface just under the ice, and they eat a lot of bugs and minnows that float and get trapped up underneath the ice, it's an easy food source for them, and for some reason, they like the security of having a deep hole underneath them where they can go down to deep water really fast if they want to or need to.

So this lake has a max depth of about 90 feet, there's two lakes connected by a channel and there's streams that come into each one of them, we're kinda set up along another stream today, just for the different oxygen-level content, different water temperature, and the minnows that tend to congregate around these streams.

Make sure you check the drag, these rainbows with your bait right under the ice like that and these jaw-jackers, when they come by and hit it, and this thing releases, that fish is gonna need to run, it's two feet under the ice, it's gonna bring that fish literally right under the ice, so you wanna make sure your drag is loose with them.

- Basically, the difference between yesterday and today is we're targeting rainbows just basically two-to-six feet underneath the ice, even in the one foot of water on the shoreline, basically just hanging grubs and wigglers, basically, there's a difference between the... These fish out here are only five-to-six feet down most of the time, so they're eating the bait that's up high in the water column, typically, I don't find anything in this lake that's, you know, further down than 10 feet, but basically, we're targeting the same way as on the shelf but in... Higher in the water column.

(light clattering) Two feet down, wiggler.

- [Jeff] Two feet down?

- [Heath] Two feet down.

(indistinct) Need to come up with the other ones, that's why I just brought 'em up.

Nice bow.

- [Jeff] That is a nice bow.

- [Heath] Nice bow.

(light clattering) - [Jeff] On the bug.

- On a bug.

(light clattering) Oh, look at that thing.

- [Jeff] Oh, nice bug, nice bug, you got him?

- [Heath] Be patient with him, be patient with him.

(light clattering) - [Jeff] He's tail-wrapped.

(indistinct) He's tail-wrapped, but he's all right.

(light clattering) - [Heath] Ooh, yeah, he's a nice 20-incher.

19", 20", I think.

(indistinct) Here it comes, Jeff, Jeff.

(water splashing) (Heath exclaiming in surprise) We lost him, dude.

You got that fish.

(laughs) - [Person] That counts.

- That counts.

(laughs) - [Person] He touched it, that counts.

(person laughing) - [Jeff] Sorry, guys.

(Heath laughing) - It's been a couple good days out here in Northern Michigan, kinda slower bite today, but we managed to get some good browns yesterday, so that's nice.

You know, the scenery, you can't beat an area like this fishing on these beautiful lakes, so even with a slower bite, at least you have something to look at that's nice around you, it's nice getting family out here and friends, enjoying the outdoors, you don't see many people getting into ice fishing nowadays, so I'd encourage it to anybody that's willing to try it, get out on the ice, give it a shot, put some fish on the ice, I'm sure you'll love it.

(relaxed guitar music) - Just as I was getting ready to hit the road, the guys had another one on.

Trout-fishing is certainly not a numbers game, but it's pretty cool to watch one come through the ice.

It's easy to see why anglers like this style of fishing and it's a great example of the diversity we have here in Michigan, thanks to Jeff and the crew for inviting me up for a fun couple of days on the hard water here in Northern Michigan.

(upbeat guitar music) - [Person] Oh, he jumped right out of the water!

- [Person] Holy cow!

(upbeat guitar music) (upbeat guitar music continues) (upbeat guitar music continues) - Well, we are excited to start getting out and bringing you some new ice-fishing stories from all around the state, but before we do that, we're gonna head back to early mid-November where I was able to get out and do a little pheasant-hunting on some public ground with some friends, we had a great morning in the woods.

(faint speaking) (car door closing) (upbeat guitar music) (upbeat guitar music continues) Well, we are doing a little pheasant-hunting today, we're at the Rose Lake State Game Area, recreational area, and it's the... Not the opener, we're a couple weeks past the opener, but they plant birds here a couple times a week and I think there's about 13 of these places around the state now for... Kinda like the old put-and-take pheasants a little bit, but we got some good dogs, and we're excited to get out there and get going.

There's already some hunters out there, but hopefully, they don't have as good as dogs as we do, so... (upbeat guitar music) Man.

Little tricky to see.

(upbeat guitar music) Hunting pheasants is hard to beat, and hunting them on a morning like we had, well, it doesn't get much better than this, good friend Randy Strouse lives not too far from the Rose Lake area, and when he invited me out for a day of hunting, I jumped at the chance, now we just needed to find a bird or two.

(upbeat guitar music) (pheasants chirping) (gun firing) (upbeat guitar music) - [Randy] Did you get it?

(loud beeping) (plants rustling) - That was probably at least three birds there.

(indistinct) (plants rustling) (loud beeping) (pheasant chirping) (gun firing) - [Randy] Two shots?

What is wrong with you, man?

- I shot a little too quick on the first one, I thought, "Look at this!"

I was like, "Well, I better pay attention on the second one."

Let's go get that bird.

(indistinct) Nice bird.

- [Randy] Yep.

- And that was over a nice point, that's how it's supposed to work, I guess.

(indistinct) Hey, hold this for a second.

- [Randy] Or are you gonna get it yourself?

- Let me just take a peek at this.

I don't shoot many of these, you gotta... Look at the color on that right there.

Man, what a pretty bird.

Well, we finally found 'em kind of in some real thick cover, I mean, it'd be hard to walk through that stuff, but the dogs got in there, got a nice point, I think this one ran out from that first point and fortunately came right down through the open for me, good dog work, beautiful bird, beautiful day.

This pheasant-hunting initiative has been going for a few years now, to hunt on public ground like what we were doing today, you need a $25 pheasant license, if you're on private ground, you don't need that tag, and basically, the money from each license goes into buying roosters and releasing them on 13 locations around the state.

Today, we encountered a fair amount of other hunters, and most groups had a few birds.

There is some very nice cover here at the Rose Lake area.

Well, thought we had one there, we had a nice point in the sorghum stuff, it would've been really nice had we get a bird up in here, but they're running pretty good, you know, there's preserved birds and there's wild birds, and there's some that are somewhere in the middle, which I think is what these are, they're flying good, they're running hard, it does not feel like a preserve hunt other than there's quite a few guys around, but we've kinda gotten away from kinda the main fields, and now, we're not seeing many guys.

I don't know, pheasant-hunting is... There's just something about when those big birds go up in that big white ring and they're still good to eat, and yeah, we should probably have two or three, we got one, and then, Isaac got a couple before we got here, so there's birds here, we ran into a few guys today, they're finding a few birds, I think we're... What's today?

Early November, they started putting these in October 20, so it's been two, three weeks, and I don't know how many they put down each week, but there's birds in here, and it's a good thing we had some dogs, we'd have been hard-pressed to get any of these birds today without that, so anyways, we'll keep going, beautiful day.

(gun firing) - Whoa, how did I miss that?

(loud beeping) Well, as I always say, when something, like, happens, it's another miracle, a dead bird flying.

It just doesn't happen very often, you have a dead bird flying.

- [Person] That one surprised both of us.

- Yeah, well, it did me too, I wasn't expecting it to come out that way, but I think it's worthwhile going in, I thought I saw one feather off.

(gun firing) - [Jimmy] (laughs) How is it that we remember the misses almost more than the hits?

One thing about wing-shooting, if there is lead in the air, well, there is still hope.

I don't suppose you got that.

(Jimmy laughing) (Jimmy blowing) We just said, "Yeah, let's turn around and head back, all these birds are in the thick weeds and..." Or, "In the brush," and so, we just turned to kinda head back towards the truck... (Jimmy trilling lips) Up come one... I don't know if it came wild or not, but got 'em.

(laughs) - I think that was a good shot with Jimmy.

The new "Two-Shot Jimmy."

(upbeat guitar music) - That must've been your bird, he must've been slowed down by your shot.

We were just turning to go up this lane and he came out of this corner, went right down along the edge, I waited 'til he was at least 100 yards out there and shot him right in the eye.

(person laughing) We had a great day, for sure.

I've hunted with Randy for close to 30 years now, and a finer guide you will not find, he has had some great dogs over the years and his Jenny dog shown here, well, this was one of her last hunts.

Old guns, old dogs, old hunting buddies, they keep bringing us back right here in Michigan's out-of-doors.

(relaxed rock music) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) (relaxed rock music continues) - Thank you so much for joining us this week for "Michigan Out of Doors," make sure you stay tuned in the next couple of weeks, we'll be doing our traditional holiday specials, next week on Christmas Day, we'll look back on 2025 and do our year-in-review, month by month, looking back at all the adventures we had here on the show last year, and for New Year's Day, Jimmy, Jordan and I will pick our favorite stories from 2025, if you'd like to see where we are and what we're up to, you can always do that online.

- Well, that's right, Jenny, online is a good way to see what we're up to, michiganoutofdoorstv.com is the best place for that, also Instagram and Facebook, and if you're one of those hunters that took part in that special pheasant hunt this year, there is some legislation moving through the House and the Senate right now to see if that is something that's gonna stay or go here in the state of Michigan, if you'd like some more information on that, you can check it out online and we'll be bringing you more information as that becomes available, thanks so much for watching "Michigan Out of Doors" this week, and hopefully, we'll see you right back here next week on your PBS station.

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(upbeat guitar music) - [Narrator] By ShowSpan, producing consumer shows including the Ultimate Fishing Show Detroit January 8th through 11th at Novi Suburban Collection Showplace, the show features, fishing tackle, trips, boats, and seminars from top pros.

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(upbeat guitar music) - [Narrator] Closed captioning brought to you by Double D Ranch Foundation, a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) foundation working to make hunting and fishing accessible for those with disabilities.

(upbeat guitar music) (upbeat guitar music) (upbeat guitar music continues) (upbeat guitar music continues) ♪ When I wanna fire away ♪ A dream stays with me night and day ♪ ♪ It's the road that leads to my home state ♪ ♪ I am a Michigan man (upbeat guitar music) ♪ Changing seasons paint the scene ♪ (gentle piano music)