×

Gone fishin’

Upper Peninsula

– Marquette: Fishing picked up as anglers were jigging and trolling for coho, brown trout, and steelhead near the “Bubblers” with artificial and cut bait. One of the docks was accessible for launching boats in the Upper Harbor. Shore anglers caught steelhead in the Chocolay River and the Carp River when using spawn. Brown trout were also caught in the Chocolay River when using spawn and wax worms. Most of the fish were between 10 and 12 inches.

– Menominee River: Walleye and brown trout were caught by those trolling and by shore anglers. Boom Landing, 6th Street Slip, and the Menominee Lighthouse landing were still iced in.

– Little Bay De Noc: Is now in-between seasons. Any remaining ice is no longer safe. Perch anglers were forced to fish shallow waters only near Kipling and most of the fish were small. All the rivers in the area with the exception of the Escanaba River are frozen at the mouth but had areas of open water up river. On the rivers, where there is open water the flow is fast and ice dams are present.

– Au Train: The boat launch was still not usable due to ice. Ice in the bay was not stable. Small coho and steelhead were caught in both the Au Train River and the Rock River when using spawn.

– Munising: In general fishing was slow with some reporting one or two fish but most were getting none. Ice conditions were holding but still had some deterioration. The mouth of the Anna River and Bay Furnace had a slight opening with open water. Those ice fishing with jigging spoons and Swedish pimples caught a couple coho but the bite was slow. Catch rates for splake were down. Minnows were still the better choice for tip-ups and minnows or cut bait for jigging spoons. A few smelt were taken off Sand Point.

– Keweenaw Bay: The remaining ice is bad and anglers should stay off it. This area is in transition from ice fishing to open water. The Falls River had slow fishing.

– Munuscong: Ice breaking operations have started and shipping season is open in the St. Marys River. This will affect the ice in Munuscong Bay. Please use caution. Stay away from the shipping channel. Be careful around the islands and river mouths. Warmer temperatures and rain will weaken the ice. Anglers have caught perch but the action was slow. Most were still-fishing with minnows.

– Cedarville and Hessel: There is a lot of open water. Many of the channels and larger bays are now open. Stay clear of the river mouths. Hessel Bay still had some ice and anglers were getting some perch but were also sorting out the small ones.

— Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Most were jigging or still-fishing with wigglers. Musky Bay still had ice and anglers were getting a few perch. Ice conditions are changing daily so use caution.

Newsletter

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper *
   

Starting at $4.62/week.

Subscribe Today