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Hey Tmik34,
How big do atlantics get? I had always heard they wouldn't do well in Lake Michigan and didn't get as big.

10 to 25+ in great lakes based on age and food availability. Over 30 in the open ocean. They are doing well in lake huron so wouldnt see why they wouldnt do well in lake m. From what i read, the main reason for only stocking 250k in lake huron is hatchery space and still testing new ways to raise them. Apparently they are harder to raise and have to be hatchery for 18 months like steelhead.

Luckly the mdnr has Lssu to help them along since they have been stocking the st marie for 40 plus yrs.

Everyone knows a steelhead is a rainbow trout that instinctively migrated from a stream to live in the ocean and then return to the stream to spawn. From what I've heard the DNA in both a rainbow and steelhead is identical.

That being the case, it's almost the same with brown trout and Atlantic salmon. There is a tiny bit of differentiation in the DNA of browns and Atlantics but they are way closer to being one species than say a coho and a king salmon.

In southern Europe where native browns and Atlantic salmon both occur naturally, trout/salmon hybrids are very frequent.

The point is, if these two species are that closely related, my guess is they would fare about equally in Lake Michigan or the other Great Lakes. Few areas have ever become "stand-out" locations for brown trout fishing, especailly on a full season basis. IE, you can go to Gary Light and probably catch a brown trout there any time during the winter, but you can't go there and catch one at all the rest of the year.

I dont' know what would happen if suddenly the DNRs started stocking hundreds of thousands or millions of browns like they do salmon. It's bound to make a difference but would they replace salmon and make a bountiful fishery through much of the year? I doubt it.

Plus, it would be expensive. Kings require being in hatchery for six months. cohos for a year. I believe browns take even longer and the longer the time in the hatchery, the greater the cost.

My guess, Atlantics would grow similarly to browns. Most will be caught as 2 to 4 pounders, a few up to 10 pounds and the occasional fish to 20+.

Ive read that they are nomadic like kings and steelhead and unlike a lot of brown trout populations. If they were to stock a good amount then various ports then it would enhance the offshore fishery. If you only stock a little then alot will be caught young and very few would make it to bigger sizes. You would have to stock enough to insure enough make it to adult hood to create a fishery.

Fishing for them is similar to steelhead tactics, they can be found in warmer water than pacific salmon and like steelhead, run high lines with orange in it. Alot of this info comes from various sites who fish lake h for them.