Looking for more information about your favorite fishing spot? Check out the Status of the Fishery Resource Reports, which contain the results of major fisheries surveys on Michigan lakes and rivers. Each report briefly describes the environment, resource and management of the body of water—including the fish species you can find there!

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Southeast Lower Peninsula

Lower Saginaw Bay: Anglers reported walleye being caught trolling out in front of Linwood Marina in 20 to 25 feet of water using crankbaits. Anglers found success trolling out in front of Bay City State Park in 17 feet of water with crawlers as well as near Callahan Reef at 17 to 20 feet of water. Shore anglers at Smith Park in Essexville reported mostly sheep head and catfish.

Saginaw River: Walleye were reported caught by shore anglers at Veterans Park casting jigs. Reports of crappie from boat anglers around the marina docks in Bay City fishing with a small tube jig under a bobber.

Eastern Saginaw Bay: Angling efforts on the east side of the bay was limited with windy conditions and kept boat anglers on shore. Walleye were caught in the slot off Sebewaing trolling crawler harnesses. Walleye were caught around the inner bay from Quanicassee to Sebewaing. Successful starting points were Callahan Reef, the slot, the bar, and the shallows in 8 to 12 feet of water.

Lake St. Clair: Anglers targeting smallmouth bass had good success around the corner from the Selfridge boat launch towards the barracks. Top water lures found success in the early morning hours. Anchor Bay saw a good yield for smallmouth bass along with anglers fishing the mile roads. Anglers used jerk baits, swimbaits, and dropshots. Walleye anglers did well between the Clinton River Cutoff launch and the 400 club while trolling with crawler harnesses with the mouth of the south channel finding the most success. Anglers reported catches trolling with crawler harnesses in 17 to 18 feet of water. Perch were also being reported.

Lake Erie: Reports of walleye in deep and colder water as air temperatures rises. Anglers who fished in and around 24 feet of water, right by the Michigan-Ohio state line had the most success bottom bouncing with crawler harnesses. Yellow perch were also reported being caught with crawler harnesses.

Port Austin: Anglers reported trolling for walleye west of the harbor with body baits in about 20 feet of water with fair success with an occasional coho salmon. Anglers also reported smallmouth bass caught from the break wall casting artificial lures.

Harbor Beach: Boat anglers targeting salmon and trout reported catches in 60 feet of water using downriggers. Anglers reported smallmouth bass being caught from the break wall and around the shore casting artificial lures.

Port Sanilac: Boat anglers trolling for salmon and trout reported catches in 40 feet of water with steelhead in 10 to 15 feet of water using downriggers with spoons and 2-3 color lead core.

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Southwest Lower Peninsula

South Haven: Boat anglers had another pretty good week of fishing. The fishing has slowed down a bit, but decent numbers of Chinook salmon and a few coho salmon and steelhead mixed in. There were a few fish around 100 feet of water. Most of the fish caught were quite a bit deeper than that. Most fish were caught on spoons. Pier fishing was very slow for all species. Perch fishing was slow.

St. Joseph: Boat anglers continued another good week of fishing. Fishing slowed down but remained good. Boats caught mostly Chinook salmon and some coho. There were some fish being caught around 80 feet of water, but the best fishing was well beyond 120 feet of water. Most fish are being caught on spoons. Pier fishing was very inconsistent. There were some steelhead and coho caught. The fishing is not very consistent. Anglers would have a couple of good days followed by 3 or 4 slow days. Shrimp fished under a bobber and casting spoons caught the most fish. Lots of freshwater drum were being caught. Perch fishing was very slow.

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Northeast Lower Peninsula

Cheboygan: Many lake trout anglers reported being close to catching their limit when trolling off Poe Reef and Reynold’s Reef. Anglers did well with combinations of dodgers/flashers with spoons/spin-n-glos. Good colors reported were combinations of greens, whites, oranges, and chartreuse. In the Cheboygan River, there were reports of steelhead fishing being slow. Anglers targeting steelhead floated beads at the Cheboygan Dam spillway. Anglers reported success targeting smallmouth bass between the Cheboygan Dam spillway and the Cheboygan DNR field station. Anglers targeting smallmouth bass reported using night crawlers, flies, soft plastics, crank baits, and spinner baits to good success. Boat anglers targeting walleye drifted night crawlers.

Tawas/Au Gres: Largemouth bass and smallmouth bass were reported caught on artificial baits by shore anglers. Walleye fishing picked up with boat anglers reporting walleye and perch being caught trolling natural baits. Largemouth bass and smallmouth bass were caught by boat anglers using artificial baits.

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Northwest Lower Peninsula

Little Traverse Bay: Fishing pressure along Bear River increased with reports of steelhead, smallmouth bass, and walleye being caught. Walleye and smallmouth bass were caught by casting jig heads with artificial imitation minnows. Steelhead were caught by drifting spawn bags or artificial beads through fast moving water. Boat anglers reported increased catches of smallmouth bass along Little Traverse Bay with white casting bottom-oriented rigs or deep diving swimbaits.

East Grand Traverse Bay: Water temperatures rose to around 55 degrees throughout the southern parts of the bay leading to anglers having good success when targeting smallmouth bass. Casting swim baits in 5 to 15 feet of water yielded good results. Reports of smallmouth starting to show up in the Elk River. Steelhead and lake trout continue to be caught on spawn bags and minnows just downstream of the dam.

Manistee: Anglers trolling for chinook salmon reported smaller catches to the south in 180 to 300 feet of water while fishing 50 to 120 feet down; spoons were most successful while some reports of fish hitting flasher/fly combos. Pier anglers reported a slowdown but did report brown trout being caught on spawn.

Ludington: Smaller chinook salmon were caught south out from Pentwater in 200 to 300 feet of water. Pier anglers reported smallmouth bass in the river at the state park.

Leland: Boat angling efforts were limited with cooler water temperature. Offshore anglers had success targeting lake trout trolling deeper using spin-n-glos and spoons around the Manitou Islands. Pier anglers had great success targeting smallmouth bass when casting swim baits around docks.

Charlevoix: Fishing pressure along the Pine River channel steadily increased with reports of walleye, cisco, and lake trout being caught. Walleye and lake trout were found caught between 3am-6am while casting spoons, while cisco were caught throughout the day casting bright colored 3/4- to 1-ounce spoons. Reports from the North Pier and the walkway by the ferry docks on the east side of the bridge were fair.

Suttons Bay/Northport: Fishing pressure was reported slow with water temperatures increasing to 47 degrees. Anglers did not have success targeting perch.

Leland/Lake Michigan: Fishing pressure continued to be slow; shore anglers reported having good success off first bank trolling for lake trout. Blue baits were found to be most successful. Pier anglers reported catches of smallmouth bass using plastic swim baits.

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Upper Peninsula

St. Ignace: At the Carp River, walleye anglers floated night crawlers/leeches or jigged soft plastics. At the Pine River, boat anglers trolled night crawler harnesses with combinations of reds and oranges for walleye.

Grand Marais: Boat anglers reported good success targeting lake trout when trolling and jigging at deeper depths. Anglers targeting coho salmon found success trolling east of the break wall. Anglers fishing the break wall reported whitefish and Menominee along with coho salmon. The preferred bait for whitefish anglers was spawn and worms for Menominee. Anglers reported the most success early in the morning.

Ontonagon River: The river saw many anglers over the past week; anglers reported walleye being caught in good numbers. Trolling was the preferred method of fishing for most anglers, while some found success when jigging.

Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: These ports saw a good amounts of angling effort in the past week; common catches consisted of coho salmon, chinook salmon, lake trout, and brown trout. These species were caught in fair to low numbers by those trolling in shallow waters.

Black River Harbor: Angling efforts from the harbor were low over the past week; Shore anglers fishing within the harbor reported catches of northern pike and common white suckers in low numbers. Boat anglers had the best luck trolling shallow waters. Reported catches consisted of coho salmon, brown trout, and lake trout in low numbers.

Little Bay de Noc: Anglers targeting northern pike reported good success. Walleye anglers cited the north winds and cold front made for a slower bite this week. Perch anglers reported fair fishing.

Big Bay de Noc: Anglers targeting smallmouth bass reported good success. Pike anglers reported larger fish and good numbers of catches.

Keweenaw Bay/ Huron Bay: Anglers reported catching coho salmon and chinook salmon while trolling crankbaits, spoons, and flies in 60 to 120 feet of water while targeting the upper 30 feet of the water column. Anglers jigging for lake trout saw some success with both natural and artificial baits.

Marquette: Water temperatures continued warming to around 45 to 50 degrees. The coho salmon and chinook salmon bite around Marquette continued to hold steady in the size and number of fish. East of the Chocolay River was a popular spot for salmon and brown trout in about 40 feet of water. Chinook salmon, brown trout, and coho salmon were caught out towards Shot Point toward Sand River in 30 to 60 feet of water. Upper Harbor anglers found coho salmon, brown trout and a few lake trout when trolling from the end of the break wall out towards east of the White Rocks.

Au Train: Boat anglers were finally able to go out this week in Au Train. Anglers targeting coho salmon and brown trout found success. Lake trout anglers did very well with many who reported catching their limit in only a few hours of fishing. Lake trout were also reported in shallower water by anglers targeting salmon from Scott Falls out towards 5 Mile point in 40 to 60 feet of water.

Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers reported catching lake trout while jigging in 100+ feet of water with the most success around 150 feet. Anglers trolling crank baits and flasher/flies caught both coho salmon and chinook salmon in small numbers.

Les Cheneaux Islands/DeTour: Anglers in Hessel and Cedarville caught good numbers of smallmouth bass in the shallows casting tube jigs and ned rigs. Perch were reported being caught but reports of a tough bite. Reports of Atlantic salmon caught while trolling out in the big water out of Hessel. Northern pike were caught throughout Hessel Bay and Musky Bay areas. In DeTour, anglers did well jigging and trolling for lake trout near the lighthouse and out in the flats. Chinook salmon, Atlantic salmon and coho salmon were reported caught by the lighthouse.

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Fishing tip: Match the hatch!

Pay close attention to what baitfish or insects are naturally active in your area this week. Using lures or flies that closely mimic local forage to dramatically increase your hookup rate. Observe the water surface and shoreline for clues and adjust your presentation accordingly.

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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.