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Little Bay de Noc: Yellow perch anglers reported catching some fish near the Escanaba Harbor and the mouth of the Escanaba River. Perch fishing in the head of the bay was slow, and anglers targeting walleye had limited success. Walleye fishing was slow, with anglers trolling crawler harnesses with bottom bouncers. Walleye anglers targeted deeper water along the bottoms of drop-offs. Some anglers reported catching eater-sized walleye near weed beds. Smallmouth bass anglers targeted rocky areas near steep drop-offs or flats adjacent to deep water.
Munising: Boating anglers trolling and jigging picked up a few lake trout around Grand Island and Wood Island. Anglers reported a slow bite for splake off the Anna River mouth.
Keweenaw Bay/Huron Bay: Anglers reported fair to poor fishing for coho salmon and lake trout while trolling. Anglers used spoons and flasher/flies while trolling, but had limited success, reporting slower fishing compared to previous weeks. Anglers reported a slow to fair bite while jigging for lake trout, with most fish caught on natural presentations in waters ranging from 150 to 200 feet.
Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers trolling near structure in 60 to 100 feet of water reported good numbers of lake trout and a few coho salmon while using spoons and flasher/flies. Anglers also reported catches of smaller Chinook salmon in low numbers. Anglers jigging for lake trout reported a poor to fair bite when using natural and artificial baits, with a few fish being caught between 140 and 180 feet of water.
Ontonagon River: Angling efforts on the river remained fair over the past week. Anglers reported catching walleye in fair to good numbers. Both trolling and jigging proved to be successful methods for finding these fish. However, some anglers showed a preference for jigging. Shore anglers reported catching walleye and rock bass in low to fair numbers. Occasional catches of lake sturgeon were also reported.
Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Angling efforts from Ontonagon were low. Efforts from the Silver City and Union Bay access sites were even lower by comparison. Recent angler reports included catches of lake trout in low to fair numbers, along with less frequent catches of coho salmon. Trolling continued to be the preferred fishing method for boat anglers. Anglers reported catches occurring across depths ranging from 40 to 180 feet of water.
Black River Harbor: Angling efforts from the harbor were low over the past week. Anglers reported catching lake trout in low numbers. Trolling continued to be the preferred method for targeting these fish. Boat anglers had the best success while trolling across a variety of depths ranging from 40 to 180 feet of water. Shore anglers reported occasional catches of smallmouth bass and northern pike within the harbor boundaries.
St. Ignace: At the Pine River, anglers reported catches of walleye, perch, and bullheads throughout the week. The perch bite was excellent early in the week, with anglers finding success while drifting nightcrawlers near the M-134 overpass bridge and at the mouth of the river. As the week progressed, walleye catch rates declined, with anglers reporting fewer consistent bites. Many of the walleye caught were undersized and were released, though occasional anglers were able to harvest up to three walleye. Most anglers, however, were unable to catch any keeper-sized walleye.
Grand Marais: Boat anglers did very well targeting lake trout while trolling and jigging. A few reports of coho salmon being caught while trolling were also received. Fishing pressure off the break wall remained low.
Les Cheneaux Islands/DeTour: Anglers in DeTour caught good numbers of cisco around Fairbank and Trout Island. If mayflies were in the area, the fish remained in the area as well, although they were often on the move. A walleye tournament was scheduled for Thursday and Friday, anglers pre-fished for it but had little success due to the high winds and ongoing mayfly hatches. There were reports of salmon being caught while trolling around the lighthouse, as well as lake trout caught while trolling through the flats.
In Hessel, anglers caught perch off the pier, having to sort through many small fish to find keepers. There were good numbers of bass caught around Mackinaw Bay and the Echo Islands.
Manistique: Chinook salmon anglers reported fair fishing. Trolling spoons and flasher/fly combos at depths of 50 to 90 feet of water was productive. Glow lures were commonly used during low-light periods of the day. Rainbow trout and a few lake trout were also reported.
Marquette: Lake trout anglers fished deeper than usual. Most anglers trolled north of White Rocks toward the area north of Granite Rock in 120 to 220 feet of water or jigged structure around White Rocks and the surrounding islands in about 140 feet of water.
Anglers began heading back out to Sand River and Shot Point, where they experienced fair success catching lake trout and brown trout in around 70 feet of water. The fish caught this week were holding deeper in the water column, unlike the previous two weeks when many fish were caught closer to the surface and were full of bugs.
Au Train: Fishing in Au Train remained slow this week, only one angler was observed on the water due to the smoke and poor weather. However, he fished three times and caught his limit of lake trout on all three trips, along with a few coho salmon. He had to move to different locations each day to find fish. The lake trout appeared to be holding shallower compared to the previous three weeks, in 120 to 180 feet of water.
Most fish were holding near the bottom this week and were full of ciscoes, unlike last week when they were suspended in the water column feeding on bugs. Fishing effort remained very light.
Lake Independence/Big Bay: Fishing activity increased with most anglers targeting yellow perch. Anglers had the most success in 10 to 15 feet of water using natural bait.
-- By the Michigan Department of Natural Resources