Southeast Lower Peninsula
Lake Erie: The occasional walleye was found while trolling the state line from River Raisin past Fermi Power Plant. Increased angling effort for yellow perch found some success out in front of Fermi Power Plant and out by buoy 1 and buoy 2 while using minnows. Bass anglers did well catching largemouth bass in Brest Bay along the shore and out from River Raisin with the occasional smallmouth. Yellow perch were said to be caught in small schools anywhere from 17 to 26 feet of water. Bass were caught on artificial frog lures.
Lake St. Clair: Some perch were caught near the north channel, off Strawberry Island and near Grosse Pointe. Anglers fishing with drop-shot and artificial smallmouth lures caught numerous perch in 21 feet of water near the St. Clair Light. Walleye fishing was slow this week. The best catches came from the north end of the lake. Anglers trolling in the Doty Highway with deep divers in 30 feet of water did well and caught large fish. Orange was a hot color. Musky anglers did well while trolling from the dumping grounds to the St. Clair Light with crankbaits in 21 feet of water. The bass action was best on the north end of the lake. Anglers did well in the Sny in 6 feet of water. Fair numbers of bass were coming in from the metro beach area and between the dumping grounds and the St. Clair Light. These anglers were using crankbaits in 19 to 20 feet of water. The Detroit River was seeing a lot of bass action as well.
Harbor Beach: Anglers were catching a good mix of salmon, trout and walleye from north of the harbor to a little south using downriggers, leadcore, dipsy divers spoons and mini streaks in 110 to 140 feet of water. Smallmouth bass were caught inside the harbor casting artificial lures from boats.
Saginaw Bay: In lower Saginaw Bay, yellow perch were caught in the old shipping channel out in front of Gambils Campground in 15 feet of water. Yellow perch were also caught 3 miles east of Spoils Island. On the eastern side of the bay, walleye were caught between Quanicassee and Finn Road in 10 to 12 feet of water, the bottom of the slot in 14 to 16 feet of water, between Sunset Marina and Sebewaing in 12 to 14 feet of water and off of Oak Point.
Port Sanilac: Anglers were catching a mixed bag of steelhead, coho, Atlantic salmon and walleye. Best catches were caught straight out and north in 80 to 90 feet of water running baits 40 feet down. Anglers were trolling with mini streaks, regular spoons using leadcore, copper line, downriggers and dipsy divers.
Lexington: A mix of salmon, trout and a few walleye were caught straight out of the harbor and to the north in 90 to 110 feet while trolling with leadcore, dipsy divers, downriggers and spoons.
Grindstone: Lake trout and steelhead were caught in 120 to 140 feet of water straight out from the harbor and to the north while trolling with leadcore, downriggers and copper wire.
Port Austin: Walleye were caught west of the harbor and around the lighthouse in 20 to 30 feet while trolling with artificial lures and crawler harnesses. Artificial lures performed the best. Some smallmouth bass were caught from the breakwall and from boat anglers casting inside and around the harbor wall.
Southwest Lower Peninsula
St. Joseph: Decent numbers of perch were caught at both north and south of the piers. Fish were caught in 45 feet of water and around 30 feet of water. Salmon anglers were catching lake trout in 120 feet of water. Salmon fishing was slow. Pier fishing was slow for all species.
South Haven: There were a few perch caught south of the piers in 35 feet of water. Salmon fishing was slow. There was an occasional lake trout caught around 100 feet of water. Pier fishing was slow for all species.
Grand Haven: Salmon were caught in 50 to 120 feet down in 100 to 180 feet of water. Glow spoons, green flies and J-Plugs have all produced. Pier anglers were catching a few largemouth bass. The early morning bites were good.
Muskegon: A few salmon were caught in 55 to 120 feet down in 100 to 200 feet of water. Green flies and J-Plugs worked well. A few freshwater drum were caught from the pier while casting spoons. The morning bites were good.
Northeast Lower Peninsula
Cheboygan: Anglers were seeing an increase of Chinook activity in northeastern Lake Huron between Cheboygan and Bois Blanc Island. Anglers were catching Chinook near the Cheboygan River mouth with good results trolling at around 60 to 80 feet and 70 to 100 feet nearer Bois Blanc. Anglers were using a mix of spoons or flashers with cut bait. Fishing along the Cheboygan River below the dam saw an increase in rock and smallmouth bass being caught while using crawlers. Spoons or flashers with cut bait continued to be the primary means of catching Chinook in Lake Huron.
Ocqueoc River: Anglers were catching a few smallmouth bass during the early morning and afternoon hours using crawlers. At night, anglers were catching a few northern pike, well exceeding size requirements. Crawlers were providing anglers the best chance with smallmouth bass and bait fish for northern pike.
Rogers City: Anglers were doing well catching Chinook. Salmon were caught south between Calcite and Adams Point. Good depths to try were 60 to 100 feet of water. Anglers were running their lines throughout the water column for best results. A lot of bait fish were showing up on angler graphs. Anglers were catching lake trout, steelhead, coho, Chinooks and walleye. The mature salmon were not feeding much anymore so anglers switched to J-Plugs attractors with flies squids and cut bait. Anglers were catching fish on spoons too. Anglers were running a mix of baits for best success and running them throughout the water column. Good colors to use were greens, blues, orange and black, frosted silver, blood nose, green hulk, black and white, black and silver and glow stuff early and late. The best fishing was in the very early morning around 5 a.m. Anglers were outside of Swan Bay and straight out from the harbor and up the lake as well. A great mix of lake trout, coho, Chinook, and a few steelhead and walleye were caught. The adult Chinook were caught very early in the morning or very late at night.
Rockport: Walleye anglers did well when fishing after dark while trolling with body baits or crawler harnesses. The best depths were anywhere from 20 to 60 feet of water. Good colors to use were greys with silver, purple, greens, clown and rusty colors. Anglers targeting salmon and trout headed out to the back side of middle island to the drop off or north towards Stoneport or to the south towards Nordameer wreck. They were getting a mixed bag of lake trout, coho, steelhead, walleye and an occasional pink and Atlantic salmon. Best depths were anywhere from 65 to 130 feet of water. Anglers should run lines throughout the water column for best results. Lake trout were caught in the bottom 20 feet of water using attractors with spin-n-glows. Spoons were the bait of choice. Good colors were oranges, greens, blues, white, black and silver and glow stuff early and late.
Alpena: Anglers were seeing success with mixed bag limits mostly consisting of lake trout and a few steelhead and various species of salmon. Walleye harvest had slightly picked up with a few anglers catching bag limits. Anglers were trolling spoons and spin-n-glows in various depths, but 100 to 140 feet of water was the popular method when targeting salmon and trout. Trolling body baits or crawlers was the popular method when targeting walleye in the bay.
Houghton Lake: Anglers are catching walleye with leeches. Bluegill were caught in the southwest weed beds on red worms.
Thunder Bay River: Anglers were catching bass, pike, catfish and the very occasional walleye. Common methods used by anglers were casting stick baits, body baits, and spinners or drifting leeches and night crawlers. Anglers targeting catfish were fishing with bait just off the bottom.
Oscoda: Anglers were mostly catching lake trout, steelhead and walleye. Pier anglers were catching mostly bass with a few occasional walleye and catfish. Trolling spoons of various colors around 80 to 140 feet of water was the popular method when targeting salmon and trout. Off the pier, common methods for targeting bass, walleye and catfish were floating leeches and nightcrawlers, casting stick or body baits, and using drop-shot rigs for catfish.
Au Sable River: Anglers were seeing success with bass, pike, panfish, and some catfish. Various methods were seeing success. Most commonly was the use of casting or trolling body baits. While catfish and panfish anglers were using perch rigs tipped with night crawlers around dusk.
Tawas: Boat anglers were catching walleye, steelhead, coho, Atlantic salmon and lake trout out past buoy 2 and south towards the Alabaster area in 50 to 70 feet off spoons, body baits and crawlers. Some walleye were caught inside the bay near the weed beds off buoys 4 and 6 in 15 to 20 feet of water, mostly off crawlers and some Hot ‘N Tots. Pier anglers were catching a few smallmouth bass, rock bass and small perch off crawlers and minnows. Shore and dock anglers were catching a few bluegill, rock bass, small perch and largemouth bass off crawlers, body baits and tube jigs.
Au Gres: Boat anglers were catching a few walleye north of the bell buoy in 40 to 50 feet of water off crawlers and body baits. Perch anglers were getting good catches of 8 to 10 fish and a few 12 inch fish in front of the Pine River and near the Saganing and Pinconning bars in 10 to 15 feet off minnows. A few largemouth bass were caught in and near the weed beds along the shore of the Pine River using body baits, spinners and crawlers.
Northwest Lower Peninsula
Harbor Springs: Some anglers were catching fish around 5 Mile Point and 7 Mile Point. Recently, anglers were having success catching salmon with flasher/fly combos, meat rigs and plugs. The best chance was before dawn and after dusk.
Platte River: Anglers should use caution when attempting to launch at the mouth of the Platte River. The mouth is very shallow this year, and many boats will not be able to launch or retrieve there to fish Platte Bay this season. Anglers should walk out to the mouth and judge water depth/condition before attempting to launch their vessels.
Charlevoix: Anglers were catching lake trout with a couple Chinook and coho mixed in. Depths ranged from 85 feet down to 150 feet down over 110 to 350 feet of water. Most boats were fishing between the cement plant and North Point, but a few were also having success near 9 Mile Point. Smallmouth bass fishing in the channel in Charlevoix picked up over the last week, with quite a few keeper size fish caught. A few freshwater drum were also caught. Anglers primarily fished the bottom with real and artificial worms and leeches.
Petoskey: A coho and one small Chinook were caught near bottom over 120 to 150 feet of water between Bay Harbor and the Breakwall. A few Chinook were caught near the Breakwall. Anglers fishing the mouth of the Bear River caught a few small panfish and rock bass, mainly on worms.
Upper Peninsula
Ontonagon: Lake trout anglers were getting two to three fish per person on average, but some boats were getting none. A few surprise brown trout and pink salmon were caught as well. Anglers fished out to 150 feet of water with mixed results.
Keweenaw Bay: On days when temperatures were cooler, anglers were able to catch lake trout, Chinook, coho, rainbow trout and the occasional splake. Most fish were caught trolling in water that was 80 to 150 feet deep. Fish were found deep in the water column as well as high up in the water column. Most fish were caught on artificial bait however, some were caught using live bait as well. Fish seem to like the morning for feeding so try fishing before noon.
Union Bay: Anglers did well catching lake trout when they found the right depth. A few 10 to 15 pound lake trout were found with the majority coming in between three and five pounds.
Munising Bay: Anglers caught lake trout towards White Rocks and Wood Island Reef in 150 to 180 feet while using spoons and flies tipped with cut bait. There were a few catches of splake and coho.
Grand Marais: Most anglers were targeting lake trout with limits reported near AuSable and Five Mile Reef. Most fish were averaging around three to four pounds. A few scattered coho were also caught.
Black River Harbor: Anglers were having a difficult time finding lake trout but when they did the bite was good. Most fish that came in were three to five pounds, similar to the other ports. Anglers were using spoons and down riggers across the area.
Big Traverse Bay/ South Portage Entry: A few coho and lake trout were caught while trolling in deeper water. Fish were caught on artificial bait and boats were trolling around 3 mph. Most fish were caught during the mornings. Try trolling high in the water column in medium deep water for salmon.
Marquette: Decent limits of lake trout were brought in. The White Rock area and up towards Granite were producing lake trout. There were a few reports of steelhead being caught. Anglers were also catching a few coho.
Au Train: A few lake trout were caught in the Au Train flats.
Little Bay de Noc: Walleye anglers were having fair to good catches, with some catching some very respectable fish. Anglers were focusing efforts around Minneapolis Shoals in relatively shallow water and north of Gladstone. Perch fishing was slow. Anglers should try trolling crawler harnesses with bottom bouncers.
Big Bay de Noc: Anglers that ported out of Garden caught pike and smallmouth bass. Smallmouth bass anglers fishing out of Nahma and Ogontz had success, but action was slower than previous weeks. Anglers should try using natural-colored beads that resemble gobies.
St. Ignace/Les Cheneaux: Anglers were starting to catch a few Chinook salmon and lake trout in the St. Ignace area. Fishing in both rivers has slowed down. In the Les Cheneaux area, anglers were starting to catch a few salmon. Anglers were also catching perch off the pier in Hessel.
This report is intended to give you an idea of what is going on around the state. Updates come from Fisheries staff and conservation officers. With more than 11,000 inland lakes, the Great Lakes and thousands of miles of rivers and streams, not all locations can be listed. However, it is safe to say if a species is being caught in some waters in the area, they are likely being caught in all waters in that section of the state that have that species.
