Ice is building on the inland lakes, but most did not have safe ice yet. Snow this week will not help, as it will insulate the ice and slow the freezing process. Anglers might be able to fish the small shallow lakes by the weekend, but remember, first ice is dangerous ice and extreme caution needs to be used.  

Southeast Lower Peninsula

Lake St. Clair: All of the canals have skim ice.  Many of the bays have thin ice or slush and are just beginning to lock in.  Strong winds have kept any unprotected areas from freezing.  Snow in the forecast will not lead to favorable conditions for making good ice but the cold nights will help and there could be fishable ice in the marinas or canals by the weekend but as of this report, there was no safe ice yet.    

Lexington and Port Sanilac: Atlantic salmon could be found at both ports. Most were shore anglers jigging a small marabou jig. 

Saginaw Bay: Ice is forming on the more sheltered shorelines of the inner Bay but was not yet thick enough for ice fishing. Ice has also covered most of the smaller area rivers including the Pine, Pinconning, Kawkawlin, Quanicassee and Sebewaing, but again not thick enough for ice fishing.  

Saginaw River: Was wide open. Walleye anglers were still taking some fish, but frigid temperatures are keeping the boat anglers home.

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Southwest Lower Peninsula

There is no ice fishing in this area yet. Flows in the major rivers are back down to normal. With the recent cold weather, water temperatures in the rivers have dropped to the mid 30s, which will slow if not stop the upstream movement of steelhead.   

St. Joseph River: With water temperatures in the mid 30’s, upstream movement of steelhead through the fish ladders was essentially zero. 

Grand Haven: The whitefish activity has slowed as the run is just about over. Anglers were starting to catch a good number of perch in Lake Michigan.   

Muskegon Lake: Anglers were taking walleye and perch.    

Muskegon River: Water levels are good. Steelhead can still be found especially in the lower stretches. 

White River: Was producing the occasional steelhead up near the Hesperia Dam.

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Northeast Lower Peninsula

Alpena: Those spearing whitefish reported slow catch rates. 

Thunder Bay River: Had very good Atlantic salmon fishing in the lower river. The best fishing was in the slower water below the 9th Street Bridge. Try the fishing platform near LaMarre Park. 

Au Sable River: Has steelhead and some Atlantic salmon in the lower river. 

Houghton Lake: Ice is forming however the thickness is not consistent and there were still some areas with open water. A couple anglers were venturing out and fishing in shallow waters only in the East Bay but extreme caution needs to be used.      

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Northwest Lower Peninsula

Some of the smaller lakes have frozen; however, there was no safe ice yet. Steelhead are in the rivers, but angler numbers are down due to the cold weather. Pier fishing may no longer be an option because of icy conditions. 

Boyne River: Anglers caught a couple steelhead. 

Platte River: Anglers caught coho along with the occasional steelhead and brown trout.        

Betsie River: Was producing steelhead but the bite has slowed. 

Lakes Cadillac and Mitchell: Are now frozen but no safe ice as of yet. There may be some anglers out by the weekend but at this point it is hard to tell. 

Big Manistee River: Was producing trout for those using jigs tipped with a wax worm and beads. 

Pere Marquette River: Steelhead were caught in Mason County and portions of Lake County.

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Upper Peninsula

Heavy snows throughout the western Upper Peninsula warrant extreme caution when going out on any lakes that have frozen. On the east end, ice is just beginning to form on most lakes and waterbodies. 

Lake Gogebic: Anglers were ice fishing Bergland Bay on the north end of the lake; however, heavy snows have caused water to push up on the ice, causing some safety issues. Anglers will need to use extreme caution, especially with the onset of heavy snow in the area. 

Manistique River: Anglers were still taking some steelhead in the lower river.

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Fishing Tip: How to target popular fish species through the ice

Are you getting anxious for thick enough ice to head out fishing? Consider using the following tips when targeting four species popular with anglers in the winter.

Walleye

Early-ice walleyes are known to be active and aggressive. Use tip-ups at varying depths around the lake (anywhere from 15 to 35 feet deep) to appeal to this species. Regardless of the depth, always set the live minnow under the tip-up to swim 12 to 15 inches off the bottom.

Crappie

Consider using plastic bait, rather than live bait, when fishing for crappie. Focus on weed lines to find them. A lot of times crappie will hang out in the middle of the water column, half-way between the ice and bottom.

Northern Pike

You’ll find these aggressive fish near off-shore structures and weed lines, so try these types of spots on your favorite pike lakes first. 

Yellow Perch

Attract bigger perch by using tip-ups with minnows, that’s what they’re primarily eating this time of year. Sticking a minnow on an ice fishing rod is also very productive.

For more information on fishing during Michigan’s winter, visit Michigan.gov/fishing. 

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