Upper Peninsula
Little Bay de Noc: Walleye fishing was good, with anglers targeting reefs and nearby drop-offs. Trolling slowly near the bottom with crawler harnesses was the most effective method. Yellow perch anglers reported fair to good fishing, though action varied from day to day, with schools located in 20 feet of water or deeper. Coho salmon anglers reported a few fish in the river. Morning hours were the most productive, though the overall bite for coho salmon remained slow, with only a few boats recording productive trips while trolling standard-sized spoons or crankbaits.
Munising: Boat anglers reported good success jigging and trolling for lake trout around Grand Island and Wood Island. Salmon action was slow for trolling boat anglers, though a few splake were caught in the bay. Anglers fishing off the mouth of the Anna River reported slow splake action, with only a few fish caught. Spawn and spoons were the most effective presentations.
Ontonagon River: Angling effort on the river increased slightly over the past week and during the holiday weekend. Anglers caught walleye in low to fair numbers while jigging. Trolling was not an effective method for locating fish. Fishing was productive during the early morning hours.
Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Angling effort out of Ontonagon increased slightly over the past week. Effort from the Silver City and Union Bay access sites also increased, though it remained lower than that observed in Ontonagon. Anglers reported fair catches of lake trout with lower numbers of coho salmon. Successful boat anglers trolled in depths ranging from 50 to 150 feet of water.
Black River Harbor: The harbor saw a slight increase in angling effort over the holiday weekend. Anglers reported catches of brown trout, steelhead, coho salmon, and lake trout in low to fair numbers. Lake trout remained the most common catch. Anglers caught fish while trolling in depths ranging from 50 to 150 feet of water.
St. Ignace: Although fishing pressure increased at the Carp River, catch rates remained very low for Chinook salmon. The few successful anglers caught fish casting small glow spoons before daybreak and at nightfall.
Grand Marais: Boat anglers had good success catching lake trout while trolling and jigging. Anglers reported slow salmon action.
Manistique: Anglers reported fair fishing near the river mouth. A few salmon were reported in the river, though the primary run for salmon is yet to be seen. Anglers trolling in deeper water near the Garden Peninsula or south of Manistique reported fair catches of salmon. Most mature fish were seen moving toward river systems.
Marquette: Most anglers trolled north of White Rocks toward Granite Rock and the Clay Banks in 80 to 160 feet of water for lake trout. Anglers reported catching lake trout throughout the water column with no consistent pattern. A few anglers reported catching salmon and brown trout near Little Presque Isle, the Clay Banks, Granot Loma, and the Little Garlic River in 60 to 100 feet of water, though action was slow overall. Angling effort remained low off the Sand River and Shot Point, where lake trout numbers were low except in deeper water near the Sand Hole in approximately 180 feet of water.
Au Train: Angling effort out of Au Train increased substantially over the past week following low fishing pressure throughout the summer, with catch rates reflecting the improvement. On Saturday, many boat anglers caught bag limits of lake trout. Boat anglers targeted depths similar to previous weeks, working 140 to 180 feet of water along the Flats northeast of Au Train Island and west of the Wood Island Reef. All lake trout were caught near the bottom. Anglers targeting brown trout and salmon in shallower depths of 40 to 60 feet of water reported marking high concentrations of fish on sonar, though the fish did not bite.
Keweenaw Bay/Huron Bay: Anglers reported fair fishing, with catches consisting primarily of lake trout along with an occasional coho salmon or brown trout. Anglers jigging for lake trout reported a fair to poor bite, with fish taken on both natural and artificial presentations. Most catches occurred in approximately 150 feet of water, though some boats reported success in depths greater than 200 feet.
Lake Independence, Big Bay: Fishing activity increased, with most anglers targeting walleye and yellow perch. Anglers had the best success while trolling in 10 to 15 feet of water using natural bait.
Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers reported fair to good fishing when targeting lake trout while trolling spoons and flasher-fly combinations around structure in 50 to 100 feet of water. A few coho salmon were also caught while trolling nearshore waters or around river mouths. Anglers jigging for lake trout reported a fair bite using natural presentations, with most fish caught in 100 to 140 feet of water and some success reported in depths greater than 200 feet.
