Spring fishing was starting to pick up until the wind, rain, snow and cold once again put a damper on fishing conditions. No boats have been out on the Great Lakes and very few were fishing the inland lakes and rivers. With the continued cold weather, anglers in the Upper Peninsula were still ice fishing.
Want to fish southeast Michigan’s Great Lakes areas (St. Clair System and Lake Erie), Lake Huron, Lake Michigan or Lake Superior…but aren’t sure when or where to go? Our Great Lakes Fishing Roadmapsare starting points to provide you with information on many fishing sites and times of the year when great opportunities exist. Where you’re a seasoned angler or new to the sport, these roadmaps can provide great insight into fishing these waters!
Southeast Lower Peninsula
Lake Erie: Was producing limit catches of walleye but strong winds and gale warnings have kept boat anglers off the big water.
Detroit River: Both the perch and the walleye bite slowed. Shore anglers were getting a few small perch in the cuts and canals.
Lake St. Clair: Had almost zero boat effort due to the weather. Shore anglers were finding some panfish in the marinas and canals.
St. Clair River: The ice floes look to be over. Walleye along with the occasional trout or salmon were caught in the lower river as well as the upper river near Port Huron.
Saginaw Bay: Only a few boats had been out from Linwood but those making it out did catch some walleye in 15 to 17 feet when trolling body baits. East of Bay City and up into the Thumb, perch fishing in the rivers and cuts was hit-or-miss. At the Thomas and Allen Cuts, the Sebewaing River and on up to Bay Port fishing was generally slow. Very few perch were caught in Mud Creek. At Caseville, some lake trout were caught in the marina basins but perch fishing was slow.
Saginaw River: Yellow perch fishing in the lower river and just off the river mouth was phenomenal with limit catches of 25 fish the norm. A lot of the fish were 12 to 14 inches. Minnows on a perch rig without beads seemed to work best. Perch anglers were shore fishing at the Cement Plant in Essexville and at Smith Park. Bad weather and windy conditions will slow fishing once again.
Overall: Pier anglers will want to watch for icy conditions especially after the gale force winds and high waves.
New Buffalo: When they can get out, anglers were taking coho when trolling along the beach.
St. Joseph: Coho, brown trout and the occasional steelhead were still being caught when the weather allowed but no boats have been out.
St. Joseph River: Had a few anglers out targeting steelhead but the bite was slow once again. We need rain and warmer temperatures.
South Haven: Before the storm, boat anglers were catching good numbers of coho when trolling small crank baits south of the piers. Pier fishing was slower with only a couple coho and the occasional brown trout caught on spawn.
Grand Haven: Boat anglers were catching a few perch south of the piers in 60 to 75 feet when using minnows however with the strong winds, no boats were out. Pier fishing was slow.
Grand River at Grand Rapids: Catch rates slowed but a few anglers were still finding some steelhead.
Muskegon: Pier anglers had caught a couple steelhead and brown trout on spawn.
Muskegon River: Has some nice steelhead however cold water temperatures have slowed the bite. Try fishing the deeper holes until it warms back up.
Whitehall: Pier fishing was slow but anglers caught the occasional steelhead when using spawn bags near the bottom.
Overall: Deep snow and cold temperatures have slowed both fishing activity and the bite.
Black Lake: Had no reports this week as ice conditions are unknown and the river mouths have open water.
Tawas: Pier anglers caught a couple Atlantic salmon, walleye, steelhead and brown trout when casting hardware or still-fishing with minnows. Not many boats fished out of the river mouth but the few that did went down toward Alabaster and picked up some lake trout and walleye when trolling body baits in 15 to 25 feet.
Tawas River: Anglers caught a couple steelhead and some suckers.
Au Gres River: Steelhead caught in the lower river down near the Singing Bridge. Shore anglers were drifting spawn sacks in the river or floating spawn in the surf.
Rifle River: The sucker run was starting to come in at Omer. Hook and line anglers were doing well, but dip-netters had spotty success. If the suckers are in at Omer, they should also be moving into the other local rivers including the Shiawassee, Cass and Flint. Perch fishing in the lower Pine River near Standish was still slow but those using worms caught a few suckers.
Overall: Snow and cold water temperatures are delaying the primary steelhead run. We need warm weather and rain as water levels were low and clear. Cold and windy conditions have kept the boat and pier anglers off Lake Michigan. The inland lakes were open water for the most part but no one was fishing.
Frankfort: The water was open and ice free. When they can get out, boat anglers trolling body baits between the pier heads caught a few brown trout.
Betsie River: The steelhead bite slowed with the onset of snow and cold temperatures.
Onekama: The water is open and ice free but there was no fishing activity to report.
Portage Lake: The west end of the lake is ice free but the east end was about 50 percent covered with drifting ice. Both launches were accessible for launching boats.
Manistee: Surface temperature readings were about 36 degrees. The city launch has three docks in but the restrooms and fish cleaning station are still closed. Pier anglers caught a couple steelhead and brown trout on spawn. When they can get out, boat anglers caught coho, steelhead and brown trout in the basin and outside the piers in 9 to 12 feet when trolling spoons and rapalas.
Big Manistee River: Has fresh fish but the bite has slowed with the cold weather. Target the deeper holes until it warms back up.
Ludington: Surface water temperatures were 36 degrees. Docks were in at the city launch but the restrooms and fish cleaning station were still closed. The launch at Copeyon Park also had a dock in. Those trolling spoons and rapalas around the pier heads caught the occasional steelhead or brown trout.
Keweenaw Bay: Fishing was still slow unless you are looking for smelt as the fishing off Sand Point was great in 30 to 100 feet. Jig something shiny if the smelt are not there right away as it will usually bring them in. This would be a good time to bring a youngster out as the fish are frequently right below the hole during the day. Put a flasher fish right above the school and every time you catch one they move higher in the water column which can be exciting for a young angler. Try a light action rod with a Hali lure on the bottom and one or two small teardrop jigs above it and all tipped with a wax worm. A spring bobber is very helpful as smelt have a light bite.
Little Bay De Noc: Anglers were still ice fishing however a foot or more of fresh snow has covered many of the dangerous areas. Extreme caution needs to be used. Perch fishing was fair at best with fish caught in the Kipling area. Anglers were using wigglers or minnows in 30 to 35 feet. It seems the fish had moved out from the usual areas and were scattered.
Marquette: The bubblers were ice free but there is still a lot of ice in and around the harbors and it could blow back in any day. Coho fishing was hit-or-miss with some days producing limit catches while other days were only a fish or two. Brown trout, splake and a couple Chinook were mixed in with the coho catches. Slow fishing on the Carp and Chocolay Rivers with only a couple steelhead or brown trout caught over the last couple weeks. Water levels are still very low.
Au Train River: Coho fishing was hit-or-miss. When the fishing is good anglers are getting limits in less than an hour but when it is slow they were only getting a couple. Those ice fishing the river need to use extreme caution as the ice is very unpredictable and a few people have fallen through.
Munising: Had heavy snow with an additional four to seven on top of the 10 inches received on Saturday. Coho fishing was a bit slower but some parties did manage to take a limit catch for the day especially from Trout Bay and off Sand Point. Smelt were still being caught off Sand Point with most using teardrop jigs or a Hali jig with a wax worm. No word on steelhead action.
Two Hearted River: No access continues as the area gets hit with yet another snow storm. The only access will be by snowmobile as there are still no open roads in the area because of the deep snow pack.
Cedarville and Hessel: Fishing slowed this week. Anglers did catch some perch between eight and 10 inches but many were throwbacks at only five inches. Anglers were using minnows, wigglers, spikes and spoons. A couple splake were caught on spoons at the pier. The area still had ice however strong currents are creating unstable ice conditions in some areas so extreme caution needs to be used.
Fishing Tip: Spring is a great time for targeting steelhead
The month of April is often a perfect time to fish for steelhead in Michigan’s rivers. Did you know our state is thought to offer some of the best steelhead fishing in the country?
A variety of techniques can be used to fish for this aggressive species; including live bait, artificial lures and flies. Rivers all across Michigan provide access for steelhead fishing. Some better-known rivers include the Betsie, Grand, Little Manistee, Manistee, Manistique, Pere Marquette and St. Joseph rivers in the Lake Michigan watershed, the Au Sable River in the Lake Huron watershed, the Huron River in the Lake Erie watershed, and the Huron and Two Hearted rivers in the Lake Superior watershed.
Want more information on spring fishing in Michigan? Visit Michigan.gov/fishing!
Southeast Lower Peninsula
Southwest Lower Peninsula
Northeast Lower Peninsula
Northwest Lower Peninsula
Upper Peninsula
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