| Weekly Fishing Report | |
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Thursday, June 2, 2005 With bass season now open, anglers have reported some very good fishing on many of the inland lakes. Warmer weather should put the bluegills on their beds. Anglers are reminded that the Michigan waters of Lake Erie opened to walleye fishing on June 1, 2005. Bass season remains closed on Lake St. Clair, St. Clair River and Detroit River until the 3rd Saturday in June.
Southeastern Lower Peninsula Walleye anglers continue to catch fish east of West Sister Island and along the Toledo Shipping Channel. The walleye opener in Michigan waters looks to be a good one as fish have been caught just off the mouth of the River Raisin and near the Sputnik when trolling with crawler harnesses, spoons, Hot-n-Tot’s or Reef Runners. Yellow perch have been caught in Brest Bay and between Point Mouillee and the Banana Dike. Smallmouth bass are hitting on tube baits. White bass and catfish can be found near the hot-water discharge. On the Detroit River, anglers are catching walleye near the launch site at Wyandotte and around Mud Island when drifting or trolling with crawler harnesses. Walleye can still be found in the lower Trenton Channel. Some yellow perch were caught between Stony Island and Sugar Island on minnows. Lake St. Clair has fair to good walleye fishing. Water temperatures should warm to near 65 degrees by the weekend which is just right for walleye. Boats are starting to troll or drift crawler harnesses in 8 to 10 feet of water in front of Metro Beach. Northern pike can be found off Selfridge Air Base. Panfish are starting to show up in the canals north of Selfridge. From Lexington to Port Austin, boats are catching good numbers of lake trout in waters 20 to 120 feet deep. Boats fishing over 100 feet deep have also caught a couple chinook and coho. Dodgers and flies or spoons in various colors have caught fish. At Lexington, a few anglers are still pursuing perch south of the harbor in waters up to 25 feet deep. Pier anglers are fishing for walleye at night. In Saginaw Bay, good walleye action in 3 to 5 feet of water east of Spoils Island when trolling crawler harnesses. Further north, walleye have been caught in 18 feet of water around Buoy A and off Parish Road. Both crawler harnesses and Hot-n-Tot’s worked well. Some limits of walleye and catfish were taken in 5 to 8 feet of water off Quanicassee. At Bay Port, walleye were caught around North Island and Sand Point. Fishing off Caseville was slow with only smallmouth bass caught off the pier.
In the Lower Saginaw River, anglers are catching largemouth bass in the cuts and canals. Shore anglers are catching largemouth bass from Bay City to Quanicassee. The bass opener was off to a slow start on the Tittabawassee River, but warmer weather should improve fishing. Southwestern Lower Peninsula Boat anglers are still catching chinook along with steelhead and brown trout when fishing the top 35 to 50 feet in waters 100 to 150 feet deep just north of the pier. Spoons on dipsey divers or downriggers worked best. Perch were found north of Jean Klock Park in 45 feet of water. Fair to good walleye fishing was reported in the St. Joe River when fishing between I-94 and the Hospital or near the Berrien County Sportsmen Club. Steelhead have been caught up near the Berrien Springs Dam on Wobble Glo’s and flies. Catfish and smallmouth bass are starting to bite. The fishing remains good at South Haven. Chinook and steelhead could be found 30 to 90 feet down in waters 35 to 190 feet deep. Boats are trolling spoons and dipsey divers with fish catchers and flies. On the Kalamazoo River, channel cats are starting to bite near the Allegan Dam. Try using small bluegills or cut bait. Walleye and carp have also been caught. Bluegill and crappie fishing continues to improve on the inland lakes. Crawlers, wax worms and flies on the surface are working well. On Paw Paw Lake, bass are hitting on spinner baits, tubes and crawlers. On the Grand River at Grand Rapids, channel cats have been caught on shiners, leeches or bluegills. Good catches of smallmouth bass were reported. Some fresh steelhead have been caught near the Sixth Street Dam. Near Lansing, the bluegills are now on their beds in the slow sections of the river. Walleye and channel cats are biting at Moore’s Park. Anglers fishing near Ada and Cascade on the Thornapple River have caught walleye, northern pike and smallmouth. Boats trolling near Grand Haven are catching good numbers of chinook mainly 35 to 90 feet down in waters 80 to 175 feet deep. On the inland waters, good bluegill and crappie fishing was reported on Reeds Lake and Big Pine Island Lake in Kent County. Northern Pike are biting in Murray Lake. In Eaton County, shore anglers are catching crappie near the boat launch in Narrow Lake. At Muskegon, boats are trolling in 150 to 240 feet of water for chinook, lake trout and steelhead. Most of the fish have been caught just south of the pier on spoons with dipsey divers. Hot colors have been the blue or green Dolphin, Orange Crush, or Monkey Puke.
Northeastern Lower Peninsula Water temperatures from Rogers City to Presque Isle are in the mid to upper 40’s. Off Rogers City, lake trout have been caught around Adams Point when fishing just off the bottom in waters 35 to 45 feet deep. Cowbells and small green dodgers along with chartreuse Spin-Glo’s worked best. Lake trout have been caught near the harbor. The best location to fish has been straight out and north up to the Forty Mile Point in waters 60 to 100 feet deep. Best colors have been purple, orange and black or blue and green. Good fishing for lake trout at Presque Isle. Try fishing north of the harbor between the two light houses or south towards Stoneport. Inland, walleye anglers on Black Lake are trolling, jigging with minnows or drift fishing with crawler harnesses. Northern pike are hitting on sucker minnows. A few smallmouth bass have also been caught. Anglers are catching panfish, bass and northern pike in Fletcher’s Floodwaters. The panfish are hitting on natural baits and chubs are working for pike. Bass are hitting on crayfish. At Rockport, walleye were caught off the end of the pier when casting Rapalas. Lake trout have been caught out near Middle Island in 65 feet of water. Shore anglers are reminded that the brown trout fingerlings that were planted should not be targeted. A great deal of effort has gone into saving these fish and anglers should not compromise this effort. Near Alpena, lake trout have been caught when trolling in the early mornings. Boats are going out about eight miles to North Point and fishing in 60 feet of water. Walleye have been caught when fishing at night with yellow, green and orange Rapalas with black markings. Near Oscoda, anglers caught walleye off the piers in the early mornings and late evenings. Boat anglers are catching lake trout. At Harrisville, lake trout fishing continues to be good with several boats catching their limits. Chinook were caught in 90 to 150 feet of water. Pier fishing at Tawas is still a bit slow. Anglers are casting a variety of lures or still-fishing with minnows for walleye, northern pike and smallmouth bass. Boats are trolling for lake trout just past Buoy #2 and up near Au Sable Point in waters 45 to 90 feet deep. Some walleye have been caught in 15 to 35 feet of water near Jerry’s Marina. At Au Gres, the better walleye fishing has been south of Point Au Gres where the water is a bit warmer. Crawler harnesses and Hot-n-Tot’s are both producing fish. Good smallmouth bass fishing out around the Charity Islands.
Inland, walleye are starting to bite on Lake Margrethe. Anglers fishing Higgins Lake are catching brown trout and rainbow trout. Lake trout have been caught on spoons when trolling in 100 feet of water. A few perch have been caught near the Sunken Island. On Houghton Lake, crappie are hitting on minnows and walleye on leeches or stick baits.
Northwestern Lower Peninsula Between Harbor Springs and Petoskey, anglers are fishing for lake trout from 40 to 140 feet down throughout the Bay. The fish appear to be healthy and are feeding on gobies and smelt. Shore anglers are trying their luck on the piers and around the mouth of the Bear River. Lake trout can be found near Charlevoix. Fish have been caught north of Big Rock and near the Cement Plant. Walleye are starting to bite in the channel at night. Good fishing was reported at Traverse City. In the East Bay, whitefish have been caught near Deep Water Point. Anglers are jigging or fishing wigglers on perch rigs in waters 75 to 90 feet deep. Perch can be found in 55 to 65 feet of water near Elk Rapids. In the West Bay, lake trout can be found at various depths and the perch are scattered in waters 55 to 65 feet deep. On the Lower Boardman River, light numbers of rainbow trout in the 6 to 10 inch range have been caught below the Union Street Dam. White suckers are still spawning and have been caught on crawlers from the mouth up to the Dam. Bass fishing was slow because of cold water temperatures. Walleye have been seen, but none have been caught. Along the Upper River, brook trout and brown trout have been caught on crawlers and spinners. Those fishing near the campgrounds have caught fish using dry flies such as the Hendrickson or the Midges. A variety of streamers have worked well. The Hendrickson and the Little Black Caddis hatch are almost done. Good salmon fishing was reported from Leland to Empire. Inland, anglers reported very good walleye fishing on Lake Leelanau, Long Lake and Platte Lake. Those fishing during the afternoon have caught walleye using a slip bobber and leech in waters 12 to 20 feet deep. Anglers fishing at night have caught fish in 5 feet of water with Rapalas. Near Frankfort, the monster brown trout fishing in Platte Bay seem to shut down. Salmon fishing has been very good in waters 80 to 130 feet deep in front of the piers and to the south. A few brown trout were caught by boat and pier anglers. Blue and green spoons worked best. Boat anglers looking to fish Lake Michigan near Arcadia will need to find a different access point as a crew started dredging the outlet from Arcadia Lake to Lake Michigan this week. Pier anglers fishing near Onekama have caught walleye and northern pike in the mornings.
Great chinook fishing was reported at Manistee when fishing the shelf in a north to south direction. While some limits were reported, anglers will need to work a little harder to catch fish. Pier fishing was slow. Very good chinook fishing was reported at Ludington. Limits have been caught by those trolling in 100 feet of water to the south or straight out of the port.
Inland, good walleye fishing was reported in Portage Lake. Anglers are fishing in 12 to 20 feet of water in the afternoon and in 5 feet of water at night. Those fishing the bass opener did very well and caught smallmouth on the east end of the lake. Perch have been caught on the west end of the lake near the piers. Anglers can usually find good smallmouth action in Green Lake, Duck Lake, and Silver Lake.
Upper Peninsula Fishing in Keweenaw Bay has been spotty. Boat anglers have caught some chinook and lake trout. Fair catches of lake trout were reported when trolling or jigging in Traverse Bay. At Marquette, some boats reported taking limits of lake trout while other had none. Most of the fish were caught in waters 150 to 230 feet deep. Many are in the 2 to 5 pound range, with the exception of a 26 pounder that was caught near the Upper Harbor. On the inland waters, anglers are still catching bass and bluegills that have not spawned yet. Warmer weather should put the fish on their beds. Walleye and northern pike have been caught in the Michigamme Reservoir. Anglers reported good fishing for walleye, bass, bluegills and crappie. Trout fishing was also good. Dry flies or spinners seem to work best. Walleye fishing has been slow in the Upper Menominee River, but should pick up with warmer temperatures by the weekend. Yellow perch, crappie and bluegill have been caught above the Grand Rapids Dam and near the Recreation Area located a couple miles north of the Chalk Hills Dam. Good catches of northern pike and smallmouth bass are taking place in the river. On Little Bay De Noc, the walleye fishing is really starting to pick up as anglers have moved into shallow waters and up into the rivers. Those fishing the mouth of the Ford River and the Escanaba River are catching walleye when jigging or drifting crawlers in 4 to 12 feet of water. Good fishing was also reported in the Whitefish River. Those fishing off the beach at Gladstone had good catches when jigging or drifting crawlers in 8 to 25 feet of water. The deep water from Saunders Point north to the Center Reef produced fewer catches but larger fish. Good smallmouth fishing just south of the Day’s River and near the Ford River when casting crank baits or spinners in 6 to 10 feet of water. The bass opener in Big Bay was good, but the fish were not quite as active because of cool water temperatures. Good catches were reported near Ogontz when casting between the weed lines and waters 8 feet deep. Fair to good catches were reported in Puffy Bay, Martins Bay and off Porcupine Point. The best spot has been South River Bay where several limits were reported when casting in 4 to 6 feet of water. Fair fishing was reported along the east shore in Munising Bay, but slow fishing near Au Train. Coho fishing has been slow in both bays but those seeking lake trout reported fair to good fishing. Splake can be found at the mouth of the Anna River. Anglers fishing off the pier at Grand Marais have caught good numbers of whitefish when the winds are from the northwest. Limit catches were reported when using a 1 ½ ounce pyramid sinker on a slide, with a stopper about a foot above a number 10 hook baited with 2 or 3 single cured eggs.
Along the St. Mary’s River, anglers have caught walleye when slow trolling with Hot-n-Tot’s in 3 to 6 feet of water in Munuscong Bay. Those fishing in Potagannissing Bay and around Drummond Island have taken some limits when trolling with crawler harnesses. Atlantic and chinook salmon have been caught when fishing 45 to 55 feet down in waters 80 feet deep near De Tour. Boats are trolling from the Shipping Channel to the #3 Green Can and around the Lighthouse. Lake trout and steelhead have also been caught.
Those fishing Cedarville and Hessel have caught northern pike when casting stick baits in shallow waters. Smallmouth bass are hitting on spinners. Anglers are still catching splake at Hessel. Near St. Ignace, walleye and northern pike have been caught on blue and silver spoons near the mouth of the Carp River.
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