(Photo courtesy of Metro Creative)

Ontonagon River: The river saw very low angling effort over the past week. Reports suggest that walleye were caught in very low numbers. Anglers had the best luck when fishing in the early morning hours.

Marquette: Anglers reported another great week of weather and success, both trolling and jigging for lake trout from northwest of the White Rocks out toward north of Granite Island. Anglers did well in both deep and shallower waters. Numerous boats caught their limit or came close to it for lake trout, which were still being caught consistently north of the White Rocks in 120 to 160 feet of water. Anglers also found coho salmon at depths of around 120 feet while trolling for lake trout. Anglers reported catching coho salmon off the break wall this week. Chinook Salmon and Steelhead were caught at the mouths of some rivers by surf fishermen. Lake trout fishing continued to be very productive, but the increasing salmon numbers appeared to draw more interest from anglers, both in the lake and in the rivers this week.

Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Ontonagon saw low amounts of angling efforts over the past week. Union Bay and Silver City saw more effort, respectively. Reported catches consisted primarily of lake trout. Catches of brown trout and coho salmon were also reported less frequently. Reports suggest that anglers had the best luck when trolling in water depths of approximately 60 to 80 feet.

Black River Harbor: Angling efforts from the harbor were low over the past week. Reported catches consisted primarily of lake trout in low numbers. Coho salmon and brown trout were reportedly caught on lesser occasions. Anglers had the best luck when trolling in water depths of 60 to 80 feet of water.

Little Bay de Noc: Anglers who targeted perch reported scattered schools in the upper bay. Some anglers caught perch near Escanaba Harbor, mostly jigging perch rigs baited with minnows, although some use of bobbers was also reported.

Big Bay de Noc: Some smallmouth bass anglers targeted bass near the Fayette Bluffs, although fishing was slow. Anglers fishing Ogontz Bay reported fair fishing. Anglers still caught bass at shallow depths, although some reported bites deeper.

Keweenaw Bay/ Huron Bay: Anglers reported fair to good numbers of salmon caught. Coho salmon, pink salmon, and the occasional Chinook salmon were caught while trolling spoons, crankbaits, and flasher/flies in the upper portion of the water column. Anglers also reported fair to good lake trout fishing while jigging in waters deeper than 150 feet.

Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers reported good lake trout fishing, as well as a few coho salmon being caught. Lake trout were caught by anglers trolling near the bottom in 80 to 120 feet of water, with spoons and flasher/flies being the most productive. Anglers noted that targeting depths of 25 to 50 feet around river mouths yielded the most success when fishing for salmon.

Grand Marais: Fishing activity was low, anglers reported a few coho salmon at the mouth of the Sucker River casting spoons and using spawn.

Munising: Boat anglers trolling the bay did very well on coho salmon. Anglers also caught a mix of coho salmon and splake off the fishing pier at the mouth of the Anna River, doing well casting spoons or using spawn. A few coho salmon had also started making their way up the Anna River.

St. Ignace: At Nunns Creek, salmon anglers floating spawn in the early morning were the most successful. Stick baits, spoons, and spinners were also good options. Productive colors included silver/blue, gold/red, and green/silver. Glow lures were used in low-light conditions. The fish had started moving closer to the mouth of the creek, with low numbers beginning to make the run upstream. The Carp River experienced limited fishing pressure, but those who did fish it casted spoons at the cement footing pier near the mouth.

Au Train: Anglers reported doing well when targeting Lake Trout, weather permitting. Most anglers went northwest of Au Train Island out to the flats, fishing in around 120 to 160 feet of water. Both trolling and jigging were effective. Anglers reported better catching Lake Trout this past week compared to the previous couple of weeks. Anglers were either trolling or jigging for Lake Trout in 120 to 180 feet of water, north to northwest of Au Train Island. Salmon and brown trout fishermen were working depths of around 60 to 100 feet between Au Train Island and the Rock River.

Les Cheneaux/DeTour: Anglers in Hessel caught a few smallmouth bass outside of Hessel; however, fishing was tough due to the warm water temperatures. A few splake were caught within the Hessel Marina, but small schools that came in were not cooperative. Perch were also caught in and around Cedarville Bay. A few pike were caught in the Hessel Marina as well. In DeTour, fishing pressure slowed, but some perch were caught north around the islands.

U.P Counties: Salmon were stacked up in the Manistique and Milakokia Rivers getting ready to spawn. Perch and walleye were caught on Indian lake.

Inland lakes showed mixed reports, with lakes near the northern Alger County/Schoolcraft County line showing more success for pike, bass, and panfish than southern lakes. Coho salmon were caught in the Escanaba River. Perch fishing was reported as decent on the St. Mary’s River.

Fishing tip: Watch the wind

Pay close attention to wind direction and how it affects water movement. Wind blowing into a shoreline can push baitfish into those areas, attracting predator species like walleye, bass, and pike. Fishing the windblown side of a lake or structure–especially points, breaks, or weed lines–can dramatically increase your chances of hooking active fish.

— By the Michigan Department of Natural Resources