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Southeast Lower Peninsula

Lower Saginaw River: Walleye and yellow perch were caught in the lower part of the Saginaw River. Blade baits seemed to work well for walleye and minnows did well for the yellow perch.

Eastern Saginaw Bay: Fishing pressure was low due to poor weather conditions. What few anglers were able to make it out tried for yellow perch around Quanicassee and reported slow fishing with just a handful of small perch to throw back. A few boat anglers tried for walleye in the area but reported slow fishing. Anglers targeting bass from Quanicassee to Wildfowl Bay caught largemouth bass in nearshore areas and around weed beds on a variety of artificial baits. Shore anglers were getting a few small yellow perch and some panfish along the east side in the various cuts, rivers, and marinas using waxworms and minnows.

Lexington: An occasional Atlantic salmon and steelhead were caught in the harbor by anglers casting spoons and spinners.

Port Sanilac: Low numbers of fish were caught. Anglers were casting spoons and spinners for coho salmon off the pier, but fishing was tough.

Harbor Beach: A few coho salmon were caught off the pier and in the harbor by anglers casting spoons and spinners, but the big run of salmon had yet to arrive.

Lake Erie: With water temperatures coming down, yellow perch were biting much more frequently. The best spot for them was reported to have been directly east of Stony Point in 26 feet of water, hugging the Michigan-Ohio line. Live minnows on perch rigs seemed to work best. Nice-sized largemouth bass were caught on Texas rigged soft plastics in Swan Creek. Channel catfish were active on the shores off the road leading to the boat launch at Sterling State Park, biting on both artificial and natural bait. 

Lake St. Clair: Strong winds over the weekend prevented most fishing. Walleye and perch action was reported to have been steadily picking up. These fish were caught between the spillway and the Metropark in 13 to 15 feet of water. Most of the perch action was near the dumping grounds. During this time of year anglers typically catch perch in Ford Cove as well. With the cooler temperatures during the nights, smallmouth bass and musky action should begin to pick up. A good place to look for smallmouth bass is along the shoreline south of Hartley and the shoreline near Selfridge or near Brandenburg Park. Natural bait fish and crayfish colors seemed to work well. 

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Southwest Lower Peninsula

Grand Haven: Poor weather conditions slowed angler activity. Pier anglers found the steelhead action to be slow, however a few were caught using live bait (gizzard shad) or spawn.

Muskegon: Strong winds made it difficult for anglers to get out. The few boats that were able to make it out found the action to be slow for salmon and steelhead. No salmon and steelhead action reported from the piers.

South Haven: Fishing pressure remained very low. Few boat anglers made it out targeting salmon. The pier fishing was slow for salmon and steelhead.  

St. Joseph: Fishing pressure was down this week. Pier anglers did catch a couple of salmon and a steelhead. All fish were caught on spoons or spinners. Boat anglers trolling the pier heads saw slow fishing.

St. Joseph River: Anglers continued to make good catches of salmon in the lower river. Fish were also caught at the Berrien Springs Dam.  

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Northeast Lower Peninsula

Cheboygan: Boat anglers had some luck in the Cheboygan River catching Chinook salmon when casting deep diving crank baits or drifting spawn. Salmon were reported to have been stacked at the Cheboygan dam spillway; however, there were still fish moving upstream from the mouth. Anglers were testing their luck downstream by the Cheboygan lock as well. Anglers were primarily catching Chinook salmon with the occasional pink or coho salmon mixed in. Those drifting natural baits such as spawn had the best results. Other good options were beads, minnow crank baits and spoons. Smallmouth bass anglers caught small fish using night crawlers and soft plastics at the Cheboygan dam spillway.

Alpena: Weather permitting, anglers were still having success on Chinook, coho and Atlantic salmon when trolling from the pier head through the shipping lane. Anglers had best results trolling early and late in the day with chartreuse, silver, and orange spoons and plugs. Pier anglers casting glow spoons had hit or miss success on Chinook salmon. Anglers caught walleye while trolling natural colored crank baits along Whitefish Point in 15 to 25 feet of water. 

Thunder Bay River: Good numbers of salmon were found throughout the river with more fish near the 9th Street dam. Drifting spawn and beads worked well throughout the day as well as pink and chartreuse spinners. Those fishing at night reported glow spoons and crank baits in green, chartreuse, and glow as productive. A few Atlantic salmon were also caught in the river on spinners and smaller spoons in orange, gold/orange, and orange/silver. No anglers reported catching walleye.

Rockport: Very few boat anglers made it out from this port over the last week, and fishing was reported as slow. A good number of Chinook salmon were near the pier with only a few anglers targeting them. The most productive baits were crank baits in fire tiger, purple, and black/gold. 

Rogers City: Anglers were targeting young salmon and steelhead. The best depths were reported to have been 55 to 85 feet of water. Anglers were mostly fishing from the marina up to 40 Mile Point for the best results. Running lines all over the water column while mostly staying in the upper 50 feet seemed to work best. Lead cores of 3, 5, and 7 colors were very effective as well as sliders off downrigger lines. Good colors were reported to have been greens, blues, red/white, and oranges. Smaller spoons, such as the regular size slims, and walleye sized spoons were also reported to have worked well.

Ocqueoc River: Very little rain and no runoff has prevented salmon from coming into the river. The mouth was reported to be open just a tiny bit to allow a small batch of salmon to come in but, with low water not very many in total. Anglers were casting spinners and using spawn under a bobber but reported very little luck.  

Oscoda/Au Sable River: Anglers fishing the end of pier caught a few coho and Chinook salmon early in the morning when casting spoons. Moonshine and Ko wobblers were popular brands and orange/gold seemed to be the best color. A few Atlantic salmon were pushed into the Au Sable River and were caught on spawn bags, streamers and spinners. Orange spinners and goby pattern streamers seemed to work best.

Harrisville: Anglers trolling in 30 to 40 feet of water outside of the Harrisville marina caught a few steelhead while pulling spoons 7 to 15 feet down. Those fishing inside the marina caught Chinook and coho salmon while casting spoons or floating spawn.

Black River: Anglers were catching a few coho salmon and the occasional Chinook salmon when casting pink arctic spinners and floating spawn. 

Au Gres/Standish: When the weather cooperated in Au Gres, perch were caught just off the shipping channel along with an occasional walleye. Anglers targeting bass were catching both largemouth and smallmouth bass. Out from the Pine River, many were able to get their limit of keeper perch but were still having to do a bit of sorting. Shore anglers at Eagle Bay Marina caught bluegill, crappie and perch. 

Tawas: Very little fishing effort reported. A few Chinook salmon were caught at the Tawas River mouth. 

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Northwest Lower Peninsula

Charlevoix: Anglers fishing for smallmouth bass on the piers reported slow but steady numbers. Fishing on the bottom of the channel with live bait produced some results.

Little Traverse Bay: Anglers fishing the Bear River reported Chinook, coho and pink salmon while drifting beads, skein and flies. The occasional lake trout was reported making its way up the river. Those fishing the break wall and the “clock dock” reported slower numbers casting spoons towards the evening and early morning.

Manistee: High winds and waves kept most anglers off the water. Pier action was slow as well; however, a couple steelhead were caught while using spawn.

Ludington: The piers remained slow; however, when weather permitted, a mix of salmon and trout were caught in 40 to 100 feet of water straight out from the pier heads while fishing the top 40 feet. 

Leland: Poor weather conditions kept most anglers off the water. Boat anglers who made it out found success fishing for cisco when trolling along the first bank heading north in 100 to 120 feet of water using small silver spoons. Pier anglers caught very few dark Chinook and coho salmon while float fishing skein. 

West Grand Traverse Bay: Fishing efforts were reported to have decreased on the bay. Anglers were switching their target species to cisco and yellow perch. Cisco fishing was producing decent numbers of mature females. Anglers found the most luck when trolling anywhere along the east shoreline up to whitewalls. Cisco were caught trolling small silver spoons in 100 feet of water. Anglers did not report any success catching perch. There was no fishing activity on the piers this past week.

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Upper Peninsula

Keweenaw Bay/Huron Bay: Poor weather conditions kept most boat anglers off the water. Those who were able to make it out were successful in catching lake trout while trolling. Shore anglers had varied success on brown trout and coho salmon while casting spoons and fishing with spawn.

Big Traverse Bay/South Portage Entry Canal: Most fishing in the last week was from piers and docks, with some anglers able to find a quiet few hours to get out on Lake Superior. Boat anglers found lake trout and brown trout while trolling. Most fish were caught in waters above 100 feet of depth.

St. Ignace: Angler fishing pressure for salmon declined at both the Carp River and Nunns Creek. Those who were catching fish used spoons or spawn for Chinook and pink salmon. Anglers fishing in the morning had better luck than at night. 

Little Bay de Noc: Anglers fishing for perch reported fair fishing. Some perch were caught south of Gladstone, across from the Kipling Launch, as well as near the Escanaba River. Walleye anglers reported an increase in the number of bites and size when jigging or trolling. Anglers were targeting the mouth of the Escanaba River and areas south of the Ford River. Anglers targeting coho salmon had mixed results. Some anglers were still having luck fishing near the mouth of the river, trolling or casting spoons or crank baits. Anglers fishing further up the river reported more fish than last week and that more coho salmon had entered the river. Smallmouth bass anglers reported good fishing.

Manistique: Fishing pressure on the lake was low. Anglers fishing the river were targeting Chinook and pink salmon. Anglers targeting Chinook salmon had success when drifting skein near the paper mill. Some anglers were also trolling the river with crank baits and caught both Chinook salmon and northern pike. Anglers fishing for pink salmon were catching them by the “flumes” and lumber yard.

Ontonagon River: The river saw very low angling efforts over the past week. Few fish were reportedly being caught.

Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Fishing efforts from these ports were greatly limited by recent weather. Angler reports show that common catches consisted of lake trout in fair numbers as conditions allowed.

Black River Harbor: The harbor saw very low fishing efforts over the past week. Strong winds greatly limited lake access for anglers. On fair-weather days, catches consisted of lake trout in low numbers.

Les Cheneaux/ DeTour: With the end of the splake season on September 30 and unfavorable weather conditions, fishing efforts were reported as poor out of both ports. There were a few Chinook and pink salmon swimming within the marina in Hessel, but the majority of fish spotted there were splake. In DeTour, anglers reported that the morning perch bite north of Drummond Island was decent, however anglers were struggling in the afternoons.

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Fishing tip: Lake whitefish, not just for commercial anglers!

Already extremely important to Great Lakes commercial fishers, lake whitefish are becoming more and more popular with recreational anglers throughout Michigan. But you really have to know how to catch this delicious species!

The lake whitefish has a small, delicate mouth and is confined to dining on insects, freshwater shrimp, small fish and fish eggs, and bottom organisms. Most feeding takes place on or near lake-bottoms. Keep that in mind when selecting your bait.

If you’re interested in staying inland and looking for lake whitefish, stick with deep, clear-water lakes. If you’re interested in heading to the Great Lakes, they can most often be found in deep water, either on or near the bottom.

Click here for more information on fishing for lake whitefish.

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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.