March 28, 2024

A Lake Runs Through It

Up North fisheries scale to new heights
July 16, 2015
 

Ever wonder where your planked whitefish or smoked fish dip comes from, or who caught it in the wild for you? We did too! We sat down with two local fisheries to learn how it all works.

CARLSON'S FISHERY

205 River St, Leland, 231-256-9801, carlsonsfish.com

Even though he’s fifth generation, it wasn’t a sure thing that Nels Carlson would go into the family business.

"There was"¦ some question," Carlson chuckled. "I went to college at the School of Natural Resources at U of M. Then, I worked for another fish company and I worked for Whole Foods for a while, but when the opportunity opened up to buy this place in 2012, I had to take it. Thing was, I didn't know if I’d even have the opportunity because other family members were in the running for it."

Teaming up with lifelong friend Joe Campo, now the fishery's co-owner, three years ago Carlson started moving the company into the modern age, although the fishery has been in business since the turn of the last century, when the family emigrated from Norway.

"In years past, the business would’ve just been handed down," Campo explained, "but with the way things are today, it's more complicated."

Carlson’s family owned the land and he sold it to a nonprofit organization, The Fish town Preservation Society.

"With the land, we also sold them two boats and two fishing licenses," Carlson said. "Our boats are now manned by a crew from the Society and we lease the building itself back from them."

Carlson’s used to fish for four different species, but the numbers of perch and walleye have been decimated by invasive species like zebra and quagga mussels, so "not so much anymore," Carlson said regretfully.

Today’s focus is on whitefish and lake trout, two of the most popular fish in northern Michigan.

Carlson’s uses non-Indian state licenses to catch whitefish. This limits them to trap nets, contraptions that keep the fish alive and underwater until they can be retrieved. Carlson’s relies heavily on Native American fishermen to bring in the trout.

"We can’t commercially fish trout, just whitefish," he confirmed, "but the Native Americans can use both trap and gill nets and can commercially fish both kinds of fish, within the regulations decided by the DNR and the Grand Traverse Band of Odawa and Chippewa Indians."

Perhaps surprisingly, fishing is a yearround activity, and the crews are out there catching dinner before you've even started thinking about breakfast.

"We’re out there as long as there’s not too much ice," Carlson said. "The only time we're not allowed to is a few weeks in November when the whitefish spawn."

The boats themselves embark at all different hours.

"A fishing family in Muskegon that we work with goes out right at first sunlight," Campo said. "Our local guys tend to start mid-morning, but it depends on the conditions. With trap nets, you can leave them out because the fish are alive and okay. With gill nets, they set them and then need to go back and get them right the next day, so you really have to watch the weather."

The fishery’s own whitefish boat goes out once a week, but that doesn't mean everyone just sits idle during the other six days.

"If no one’s fishing directly, there’s still plenty to do," Carlson said. "You have to set the traps, make repairs, clean off any slime or algae bloom"¦" "Fishing’s the easy part!" Campo joked. Once the fish is brought in, round two of the work begins.

"For fish that will become fillets, we weigh them, machine-scale them, hand-fillet them, wash them, pack them in boxes with ice, and they’re out the door," Carlson said.

"When we get six guys working at the tables, we can do 1,000 pounds of fish per hour," Campo added.

What's done with the rest of the fish depends on the time of year. In addition to the fresh fish, Carlson’s also smokes whitefish and lake trout, makes pâté and smoked fish sausage, and adds farmed salmon on occasion to make some of their other fish products.

"We basically decide as we go, based on what we need," Campo explained. "We can also handle fish from the charter boats, so if tourists go out fishing, they can bring their catch to us and we can process it for them."

A business that’s so dependent on the weather and the whims of often fickle diners isn't for everyone, but both Carlson and Campo readily agree that, for them, this is the place.

"I really like that my work environment is Leland harbor," Campo said. "I've lived all over the country, but when Nels called me to work with him here it was a no-brainer. It’s incredibly gorgeous and you get to work with all your buddies."

"This was always something I’d hoped to be able to do," Carlson said. "To directly create a product from start to finish, from a resource of nature, that people consume, that's very cool to me. And it's just fun to work here."

BIG STONE BAY FISHERY 

10975 US-23, Mackinaw City, 231-436-4144

Dustin VanOrman took on new skills – and quickly – when his stepfather Cameron McMurry pressed him into service in the family business several years ago.

"I’d never even been on a boat before," VanOrman laughed, "but now I captain one of our fishing boats."

Thirty-three years in business have made Big Stone Bay one of the largest wholesalers of whitefish in the Mackinac region.

"We bring in commercial fishermen out of Munising and Pinconning for the whitefish, plus Native American fisherman Tony LeBlanc out of Brimley," VanOrman said.

The unique thing about Big Stone Bay is that they themselves have a fishing license traditionally only granted to Native Americans: a gill net license.

"We can only use it for chub and we can only use it in 240 feet of water or deeper," VanOrman said. "There are actually only five non-Native American gill net licenses available in this region and we have one of them."

Where Big Stone Bay goes to fish is partly based on the weather and partly on the limitations of their license; they have to take their boat down to Frankfort to actually fish, and they are required to stay within a certain grid and away from tourist boats.

"On a good weather day, whether it’s us or the whitefish boats, the boats go out early in the morning. It’s colder then, which helps keep the fish cool," VanOrman explained. "If it’s blowing, we go later. Some of the guys that work with us from the U.P. try to lift their nets right at daybreak, so some of them get moving as early as 3am."

Once the fish are brought to the dock, they’re kept chilled and made ready for transport.

"We put them in what we in the industry call a slushy tote, which is basically the fish packed in slushy ice," VanOrman said. "For whitefish, about 800 pounds of fresh fish are packed after a catch comes in. Then it's put on a truck and brought here [to Mackinaw City]. We start processing it into fillets the next morning, which takes from about 8am to 2pm."

Big Stone Bay can sell 3,000 whitefish fillets in one day, providing product to restaurants from Mackinaw all the way down to Frankfort, "so we have to be ready," VanOrman said.

Ready, willing, and able to fish – in this career unique to shoreline communities, those are the basic qualifications, and that's how these guys like it.

"I like my job because nobody can take it away from me; they don’t teach commercial fishing much any more," VanOrman said. "And I also like that my phone doesn't ring on the boat. We ship wholesale across the U.S., so it's ringing constantly, all day long here, with fish inquiries and fish orders, but the boat is how I get away."

FISH FINDER!

Here are a few more great local fisheries for you to discover:

BELL’S FISHERY

229 S Huron Ave, Mackinaw City, 231- 426-7821

Operated by the local Odawa tribe, here you can buy fresh or smoked fish to go, or sit and enjoy a basket of fresh fish with fries and slaw. BUY: fresh and smoked whitefish and trout, peppered fish sausage, fish n’ chips

JOHN CROSS FISHERIES

209 Belvedere Ave, Charlevoix, 231-547-2532

Tucked at the end of an alley next to the lake, this is where the locals go for fish, so get there early for the day’s fresh catch. BUY: fresh whitefish, 3-fish dips, pâtés, smoked fish salad

MACKINAC STRAITS FISH COMPANY

109 W Elliott St, St. Ignace, 906-643-7535

Indigenous wood (primarily sugar maple) is used in this company’s smokehouse, giving their fish a distinctive and unique flavor. BUY: smoked salmon fillets, Whitecaps Dip with whitefish, cream cheese and seasonings

WALTER’S FISHERIES

4728 W 6th St, Ludington, 231-845-1510

Walter’s three-generations-strong Old World method of hickory-smoking fish is blended with modern technology for consistency and flavor. BUY: smoked fish, fresh-frozen king salmon and Lake Superior herring

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