Southeast Lower

Peninsula

Detroit River: Fishing was slow. Anglers caught walleye while trolling in 45 feet of water near the Rouge River. Anglers should look for walleye action to pick up as temperatures cool.

Saginaw Bay: Walleye were caught near buoy 1 and 2 in 25 feet of water on flicker shads and two miles west of the Sparkplug while trolling with crawlers. Walleye were also caught two miles east of the Sparkplug while trolling with crawlers and in 6 to 8 feet of water while trolling with crawlers out in front of Finn Road. Some yellow perch were caught in the Old Shipping channel and at sailboat buoy H and A. On the east side of the bay, walleye were starting to scatter and head out into deeper water. Anglers near the inner bay were doing best over the bar in 20 to 24 feet of water, or east of the shipping channel in 25 to 30 feet of water. A few walleye were caught in 10 to 12 feet, and also out in the slot in 16 to 18 feet of water. Those fishing around the Caseville area should be able to find walleye off the Charity Islands and around Oak Point. Crawler harnesses, body baits and spoons all caught fish.

Quanicassee: Anglers reported slow walleye fishing with one to three walleye per boat taken while trolling night crawler harnesses on Callahan Reef in 10 to 12 feet of water.

Harbor Beach: Anglers reported good walleye fishing with some limits taken and an occasional coho mixed in. Anglers were doing the best fishing straight out in 65 to 80 feet of water while running spoons.

Lexington: Perch were caught in 14 to 18 feet of water at various weed beds to the south and a few miles to the north along the shoreline while anchoring and using light line with minnows. Some walleye were caught in the evening while trolling with crawler harnesses in 30 to 40 feet.

Port Sanilac: Perch fishing was slow, but anglers were still getting some nice size fish in 18 to 25 feet while still fishing with minnows. A mix bag of lake trout, steelhead, cohos and walleye were caught in 80 to 120 feet of water while trolling with lead core, some using Dodgers and squid to the northeast and south towards the Regina shipwreck. Lake trout and a few cohos and steelhead were taken in 90 to 100 feet while trolling with lead core and spoons. Walleye were caught in 30 to 40 feet while trolling with crawler harnesses and artificial lures.

Grindstone: Walleye were caught straight out from the harbor in 25 to 35 feet while using both artificial lures and crawler harnesses.

Port Austin: Walleye were scattered in different areas sometimes out by the lighthouse or to the west towards Caseville. Anglers were mostly trolling with crawler harnesses in 30 to 40 feet of water.

Southwest Lower

Peninsula

Muskegon: The salmon action started to pick up over the past week. Boat anglers were finding salmon 65 to 130 feet down in 140 to 250 feet of water. A mix of glow spoons, meat rigs, and green or white flies all worked well. The bite was good during low light conditions. The pier action was slow for freshwater drum.

Grand Haven: Boat anglers found the salmon action to be fair in 120 to 220 feet of water. The best bite was 65 to 140 down on green flies and meat rigs. During low light conditions glow spoons worked well. Pier anglers found the freshwater drum action to be slow.

St. Joseph: Perch fishing was inconsistent. Anglers did well fishing in 35 to 40 feet of water. Most of the fish were caught south of the piers. The same situation was occurring north of the piers as well. Salmon fishing was good. The best water was deep water early in the week and towards the end of the week the fish moved in quite a bit. Both were well beyond 100 feet of water. Anglers were catching quite a few Chinook and steelhead. There were also some lake trout caught as well. Meat rigs and spoons were catching most of these fish. Pier anglers had very slow fishing for steelhead. Anglers fishing the river were catching catfish on nightcrawlers and cut bait.

South Haven: Salmon fishing was on the slow side but there were a few fish caught. The best water was around 100 feet of water. There was a mixed bag of lake trout and Chinook salmon caught. Most of the fish were caught on spoons. Pier fishing was very slow for steelhead and other species as well. Perch fishing was also very slow. Boats were fishing both north and south of the piers from 40 to 70 feet of water.

Northeast Lower

Peninsula

Tawas: Anglers reported that the walleye fishing was very good with some limits caught down near the north side of the Charity Island in 15 to 25 feet, south of the “crib” in 60 feet and east of buoy #2 in 60 to 70 feet. Flicker shad, crawlers and spoons all caught fish. There were a few steelhead, brown trout and coho salmon caught out in 60 to 70 feet off spoons out past buoy #2. On the pier at the State Harbor, there were some largemouth and smallmouth bass and rock bass caught while casting spinners, plastics and crawlers. At Gateway Park on the Tawas River, there were a few largemouth and smallmouth bass, and pumpkin seed fish caught while casting plastics, spinners and still fishing with crawlers.

Alpena: The lake trout fishing was steady near Thunder Bay Island and the at the humps. Best depths were in 80 to 140 feet of water and fishing near bottom. Anglers were using Dodgers, Spin-N-Glos and Spin-N-Glo flies. Anglers were also running lines high and picking up a few coho salmon and an occasional pink salmon and walleye on spoons. A few steelhead were also caught.

Thunder Bay Bay: Walleye anglers were starting to pick up a few walleye, but its hit or miss. Anglers were trolling crankbaits or night crawler harnesses for best results. The best depths were in 15 to 35 feet of water. Good places to try were Sulphur Island, Scarecrow Island, along North Shore or North Point. A lot of walleye were caught in the main basin.

Thunder Bay River: Anglers were catching smallmouth bass, rock bass and freshwater drum while using live bait.

Au Gres: Walleye fishing was very good with lots of limits caught in 15 to 20 feet near the bell buoy in 12 to 18 feet, down near the shipwreck in 25 to 30 feet, and near the Saganing and Pinconning bars in 10 to 15 feet. Both crawlers and flicker shads were catching fish. There were some good reports of largemouth and smallmouth bass caught along the weed beds and near structure while casting plastics, spinners and body baits.

Rogers City: The best chance for salmon was very early in the morning or very late in the evening. The best depths were in 65 to 120 feet of water. Anglers were running lines throughout the water column. Best baits were spoons, dodgers with flies or squids, j-plugs, or flasher and cut-bait rigs. Anglers should try glow stuff early and late. Black, greens, blues, oranges and silvers up high were doing well. Look for lake trout in deep water structures and look for cold water near the bottom. Dodgers with Spin-N-Glos or cowbells with Spin-N-Glos did well for lake trout. A few walleye were starting to show up in catches. A few anglers were using crank baits and nightcrawler harnesses. The best depths were in 15 to 25 feet of water or 35 to 60 feet and fish them suspended.

Cheboygan River: The walleye fishing was slow. Smallmouth continued to be the primary fish to target for both shore and boat anglers. Anglers were catching channel catfish and pike were commonly caught off the pier.

Northwest Lower

Peninsula

Frankfort: Anglers were starting to see better numbers of Chinook salmon. Trolling the bank in 120 to 180 feet of water and setting lures 70 to 90 down was working well. Several 25+ pound Chinook were landed on flies, meat rigs, and spoons, with green being a more popular color. Anglers at Platte Bay were reporting very good numbers of lake trout by jigging or bouncing the bottom with cow bells.

Onekama: Anglers trolling out front, through the barrel and off the golf course, were reporting moderate numbers of Chinook with a higher average of smaller ones. Lake trout were also being reported in the same areas.

Portage Lake: Water temperatures were on the rise, so the catches were being reported on the drops or in 18 to 21 feet of water. Catches of perch were reported in the northwest corner near the stub pier.

Upper Peninsula

Little Bay de Noc: Walleye anglers reported slow fishing with some anglers targeting Black Bottom and the Narrows. Perch anglers were having good success around Butlers Island. Anglers targeting smallmouth were catching fish throughout the bay while casting soft plastics. Northern pike were caught near the water treatment plant.

Manistique: Salmon anglers reported fair to good fishing. Anglers were targeting areas near the red can and Pointe aux Barques. Flasher flies and spoons were both catching fish. Walleye anglers were having some success in the river.

Les Cheneaux/Detour: In the Les Cheneaux area, anglers were trying for perch off the pier, however having little luck. They were catching some pike early in the mornings. Anglers also reported some splake showing up in the area. A few walleye were caught within snows channel while trolling with crawler harnesses. In the Detour area, anglers were going out and catching Atlantic salmon, lake trout, Chinook salmon and coho salmon near the lighthouse while trolling with spoons. A few pink salmon were caught as well. Some anglers were going up to Drummond to catch walleye.

Marquette: Anglers fishing in the Marquette area reported catches of lake trout. The best areas for lake trout were around Shot Point and near White Rocks. For Shot Point, try trolling in 50 to 70 feet of water while using multi-color spoons or flickers. For fishing around White Rocks, try trolling in 150+ feet of water while using colorful spoon combinations. Anglers jigging with cut-baits were also successful in deep water near white rocks.

Carp & Pine rivers: Walleye fishing was up and down in both rivers on a given day, but the Pine River seemed to be producing more fish. There were more perch located at the Pine River, especially near the mouth and there were more pike at the Carp River, especially downstream of the fishing dock.

Munising: A few boats were targeting splake/salmon and reported very slow fishing. Boat anglers also reported good catches of lake trout towards Wood Island.

Grand Marais: Very low fishing pressure with only a few anglers making casts off the pier with no results. A few of the charters and one local boat did report some nice limits of lake trout mainly fishing west towards the Hurricane and AuSable area.

Keweenaw Bay/ Huron Bay: Anglers were catching a fair number of lake trout while fishing in the deeper waters of Keweenaw Bay and Huron Bay. Some anglers were also fishing successfully for smallmouth bass and northern pike in the near shore waters of both bays. Anglers anticipate coho moving into the bay in the coming weeks.

Traverse Bays/ South Portage Entry Canal: Anglers were fishing for lake trout and salmon. The lake trout fishing was successful, and anglers had high hopes for the upcoming coho and salmon fishing. Some anglers reported large catches of northern pike and bass. Lake trout fishing was divided between jigging and trolling which were equally successful. While trolling, most anglers were using medium sized spoons of varying colors. While jigging, anglers were mostly using cut suckers as bait.

Au Train: Anglers fishing the Au Train area had success catching lake trout. Lake trout was the only species reported from anglers fishing out of the Brownstone Boat Launch. The best area to fish was around Au Train Island while fishing the flats or fishing deeper water. Try finding water depths of 100 to 170 feet for best success. Anglers trolling spoons or jigging cut-baits in deep water reported the best success with catching lake trout.

Upper St. Mary’s: Anglers above the Soo Locks were targeting rainbow trout and whitefish with limited success. Anglers reported good mayfly hatches. Anglers have been using crawler setups deep or fly setups floating on the surface of the water. Near Waishkey Bay, anglers had very good success fishing for Chinook and coho salmon. Fishing in 120 feet of water, around 60 feet deep with spoons produced the best results.

Whitefish Bay: Salmon fishing in Whitefish Bay remained slow but consistently produced. Mainly coho salmon were caught but a few scattered Chinook were also caught. Fishing in 100 feet of water at around 40 feet deep produced the best results. Lower Tahquamenon River produced slow limits of pike and the occasional perch.

Fishing Tip: Help prevent the introduction and spread of invasive species

Anglers and boaters can do their part to help make sure Michigan’s rivers, lakes and streams are protected against invasive species by following these some simple steps:

CLEAN boats, trailers and equipment.

DRAIN live wells, bilges and all water.

DRY boats and equipment.

DISPOSE of unwanted bait in the trash.

Want to learn more about how you can help? Visit Michigan.gov/Invasives.