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HomeOutdoorsWeekly fishing report: April 6, 2022

Weekly fishing report: April 6, 2022

Photo credit: Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Northeast Lower Peninsula

Tawas: There were a couple brown trout caught in 10 to 15 feet off Husky Jerks. A few walleye were caught out in 20 to 30 feet off body baits near Alabaster and Whitestone Point. Fishing was slow all week in the Tawas River. A couple lake trout were caught off the pier while casting spoons and body baits.

East Branch Au Gres at Singing Bridge Access: The water was muddy and fishing has been slow.

Pine River: There were some perch caught off minnows in the open water inside Eagle Bay Marina.

Alpena: The main launch site was still iced up and all around the marina. The river access site on Fletcher Street was open and the dock was in. Anglers reported catching some Atlantic salmon and brown trout while using minnows.

Thunder Bay River: The river was high and muddy with two chutes open at the 9th Street Dam. Anglers targeting steelhead were drifting with artificial beads imitating fish eggs. A few were also using spawn but had no success.

Northwest Lower Peninsula

Onekama: There was still ice build-up on both piers which restricted anglers from venturing all the way out. Anglers were reporting slow activity.

Portage Lake: Ice covered about 60% of the lake with no access from the city launch. The DNR launch was free of ice and there was access.

Manistee: Anglers trolling for brown trout caught a few near the harbor and along the coastline north and south of town; a couple lake trout and coho were brought in as well. Pier anglers caught a mix of trout and salmon including a couple steelhead and whitefish, but the bite was slow at times.

Upper Peninsula

Little Bay de Noc: Perch anglers reported mixed success. Most anglers were fishing across from Kipling in depths of 40 to 45 feet of water. Some anglers were also catching perch in shallower waters near the Kipling launch and by the Days River. Anglers reported more success while using wigglers, but some perch were caught on minnows as well.

Keweenaw Bay/Huron Bay: Anglers were catching some lake trout as well as whitefish and some coho salmon in shallow waters. Most fishing pressure was concentrated around the river mouths and anglers reported that steelhead were in the rivers. On the ice, most anglers had success in waters 60 feet deep and shallower with some as far in as 8 feet. While the deep-water anglers persist, less and less pressure was being applied to those systems. Reports off the ice were starting to increase in smelt and whitefish schooling in these shallower depths as well. Most fish were caught on jigs and lures tipped with natural bait however some found success with un-baited lures. Fish seem to be moving in near rivers so anglers should try shallower depths where the fish may be staging.

South Portage Entry/ Big Traverse Bay: Water was open north of the Portage entry canal with some ports still locked by snow piles and docks. Open water fishing was possible north of the canal with proper access.

Munising Bay: Angling pressure continued to be low. A few pressure cracks showed up near the channels and close to Grand Island. Fishing success had been spotty. One day anglers were catching limits and next day they were catching nothing. Catches were comprised mainly of coho with a few splake. Majority of anglers reported zero to two coho. A few burbot with some catches of smelt were reported off Sand Point.

Hessel Bay: Anglers were having success fishing for perch in Hessel Bay. Anglers were sorting through a ton of smaller perch to get their keepers. There were two 13-inch perch caught this past week. Anglers were also recently reporting catches of splake. There were a number of smelt recently seen and caught within the bay. Smelt were caught on wax worms while targeting perch and splake were caught on live minnows.

Two Hearted River: Fishing picked up nicely over the past couple of weeks. Many anglers were seeing limits of steelhead. The area was still snow covered and roads were impassable, requiring snowmobiles to reach the river. Most of the fishing pressure was limited to the lower reaches of the river and immediate to the river mouth. Anglers were using spawn and single beads. Snowpack remains in this area of Luce County until warmer temperatures and rain comes in.

Southeast Lower Peninsula

Lake Erie/Detroit River: The walleye fishing on both the Detroit River and Lake Erie were slowly improving. Over the past week the water was muddy in Brest Bay, so anglers launching from Sterling State Park were heading out of the bay and north to find cleaner water. Anglers were having the best success while trolling Bandits or deep diving Rapalas. Anglers were also finding fish out of Bolles Harbor – they were trolling but also had success with jigging or using blade baits. Anglers were having fair success while jigging in the Detroit River, with similar reports coming from the upper, mid and lower river. Water temperatures were in the high thirties or just barely breaking forty degrees, so a slow presentation was preferred. Although fishing can be inconsistent in early spring, this can also be the best time of year to catch a trophy walleye.

St. Clair River: Anglers were starting to catch a few walleye while using jigs tipped with minnows. Both boat and shore anglers were catching several coho salmon while jigging for walleye.

Saginaw Bay: Anglers were targeting yellow perch in the Quanicassee to Sebewaing area cuts and rivers. Most perch that were caught were small in size with a few large enough to keep. Fishing had been mostly slow. Anglers were fishing around the Caseville area looking for perch with similar results. Some perch were caught, but mostly small ones to sort through. The pier in Caseville produced some lake trout with anglers using spoons and live minnows. Walleye were caught at Linwood in 9 feet of water while trolling crankbaits and at Bay City Sate Park in 15 feet while trolling crankbaits. Anglers were catching yellow perch at Finn Road while shore fishing with minnows.

Lexington: Coho salmon were showing up along the beach in 5 to 15 feet of water. Long lines with shallow diving baits like Thin Fins and Rapalas were producing fish.

Southwest Lower Peninsula

St. Joseph: Boat anglers were catching good numbers of coho. Most of the fishing pressure was south of the piers. Boat anglers were having success in 18 to 30 feet of water. Most fish were caught while trolling crankbaits. Catches were mainly coho with an occasional brown trout or king. Pier anglers were also catching a few coho. Almost all fish were caught on spawn.

South Haven: Boat anglers were targeting lake trout and having success. Anglers were catching lake trout in 60 to 70 feet of water. Boat anglers had slow action while targeting salmon. Pier anglers had slow fishing action for salmon. Angler pressure was high but very few fish were caught.

Muskegon: Pier anglers were catching a few steelhead and brown trout on spawn. Boats were finding a few lake trout while trolling the shoreline on body baits.

Grand Haven: Pier anglers were catching a few brown trout and round whitefish on spawn. The yellow perch action was very slow for boat anglers.

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.

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