Over 500,000 rods and reels donated in the past decade as the annual Gone Fishing event returns with free in-store fishing events and the Johnny Morris Bass Pro Shops Kids’ Braggin’ Board

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Johnny Morris, Bass Pro Shops founder and noted conservationist, is encouraging families to get outside and enjoy the joys of fishing this summer, reminding them to “take a kid fishin’, you’ll be happy you did!” To help make those moments possible, Johnny and Bass Pro Shops are donating more than 55,000 rods and reels to youth-focused nonprofit organizations across the United States and Canada, helping more kids experience the excitement of their first catch.

With this donation, Bass Pro Shops has provided more than half a million rods and reels to youth-focused nonprofit partners across North America through the Gone Fishing program, opening the door for hundreds of thousands of kids to discover a lifelong love of fishing. Read more

June 2, 2026

Contact:?Ron Yesney?(ORV), 906-228-6551 or Marcee Wardell (fishing), 517-284-5830

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources encourages everyone to take advantage of “Three Free” Weekend, coming up Saturday, June 13, and Sunday, June 14.

It’s two full days when Michigan residents and out-of-state visitors can grab a fishing rod, ride the off-road trails and visit state parks, boating access sites and other outdoor locations – all free of charge.

“This season, we’re encouraging newcomers to discover the outdoors and inviting longtime outdoor explorers to dust off their gear and get out there,” said DNR Director Scott Bowen. “Whether you want to cast a line, hit the ORV trails or relax in Michigan’s award-winning state parks, ‘Three Free’ Weekend checks all the boxes.”

Enjoy it all

The DNR’s “Three Free” Weekend includes the following: Read more

June 1, 2026
Contact: Doug Schultz (DNR), 989-590-9073 or Tim Cwalinski (DNR), 989-217-7042

Aging dam to be replaced with a channel-spanning bottomless box culvert

Work to remove Roberts Lake Dam in Cheboygan County and replace it with a channel-spanning culvert will begin in August. The new culvert will allow water and debris to pass beneath the road, reconnect aquatic habitat and protect road infrastructure and downstream habitat, as well as prevent a future dam failure event.

The construction work is expected to take approximately four weeks and will include incremental lowering of the lake level, full dam removal, and installation of a new, 16-foot-span bottomless box culvert that meets modern standards.

Roberts Lake Road will be closed during construction but will reopen to the public upon project completion. Read more

May 2026

Fun facts and activities about Michigan fish for students, parents, and teachers. Expect to receive Fish Bites about four times each year, and have your friends sign up, too!

Name that fish!

Can you name this species? Scroll to the bottom of the email to learn more!

Current happenings

Michigan Department of Natural Resources fisheries research biologist Shawn Sitar and the crew of the research vessel Lake Char will be joining documentary filmmakers Yvonne Drebert and Zach Melnick to explore Superior Maximus  — the deepest point of Lake Superior — as it has never been seen before.

You can watch live as they begin the challenging descent to Superior Maximus, using a cutting-edge ROV (remotely operated underwater vehicle) equipped with high-resolution cameras. The livestream is planned for June 6 at 1 p.m., with a window of June 6–9 in case of weather delays.

Watch “Hidden Below LIVE” ? Read more

The city of Alpena operates Alpena Marina, which was awarded $150,000 in Waterways Grant-in-Aid Program funding in 2022. Photo courtesy Michigan DNR

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources today announced that seven communities throughout the state will share $4.035 million in Waterways Grant-in-Aid Program funding to improve public access to recreational boating.

This year, projects in Benzie, Emmet, Mackinac, Marquette, Ottawa and Sanilac counties were approved for projects that include marina dredging, an engineering study and various site improvements. With each community’s matching funds, these projects represent a collective investment of more than $6.5 million. Read more

May 15, 2026
Contact: Laurie Abel, 517-599-6703

Conditions have improved at the Cheboygan Lock and Dam Complex, and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has demobilized pumps and other emergency equipment used to channel water around the dam.

To allow for the spillway gates to be reinstalled, pumps that were used during emergency operations had to first be shut down and removed.

Spillway gates are scheduled to be reinstalled early next week. Officials report that water levels at the dam have dropped out of the emergency stage, and the spillway is currently managing water flow effectively.

Officials emphasized that when the gates are reinstalled, they will remain fully open, and the volume of water passing through the spillway will not change from its current rate of flow.

Once the spillway gates are back in place, crews will reinstall the safety cable, which helps keep small watercraft from getting too close to the spillway gates.

The DNR reminds everyone that the Lincoln Street and Forks boating access sites remain closed for emergency operations. Other DNR access sites also are closed due to high water and dangerous conditions. Recreationists are encouraged to check the DNR website for closures at Michigan.gov/DNRClosures.

May 14, 2026
Contact: Olen Gannon, 231-389-2551 or Joe Mickevich, 231-878-5234

After a lightning strike at the Little Manistee River Weir (Manistee County) threatened to derail steelhead egg collection for this season, the Department of Natural Resources rallied to collect approximately 4.2 million steelhead eggs for Michigan’s state fish hatcheries. Staff were able to proceed with collection at the Little Manistee Weir, as well as deploy the Lower Platte River Weir (Benzie County) as a backup egg source for the first time, both of which contributed to the successful collection of steelhead eggs for future stocking throughout the state.

During severe weather the night of April 13, the Little Manistee River Weir facility was struck by lightning, which took out the main power, backup power source and emergency alarm notification system at the facility. This resulted in a loss of some of the fish being held in maturation ponds, as the systems that sustained the fish were offline — egg collection was scheduled to begin the following morning.

Once the damage was discovered, staff worked swiftly to restore power to the facility and collect eggs from the live fish on-site. Egg collection proceeded at this location in the following weeks, with the final collection there occurring April 29. Read more

May 12, 2026
Contact: Acting 1st Lt. Jason Becker, 313-396-6890

A group of anglers from northern Michigan was caught Friday with an overlimit of 34 walleye – more than double the daily legal limit, after fishing on the Detroit River.

“People visit Detroit from all over to take advantage of the abundant fishing offered by the Detroit River,” said Todd Szyska with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division, and the division’s acting captain for the south region of the Lower Peninsula. “Our walleye fishery is world-class in part because of the many respectful anglers who follow the daily limits.”

The five anglers were staying at a rental property in the city of Detroit for the duration of their fishing trip.

Conservation officers saw the group north of Milliken State Park Friday morning. When the anglers returned several hours later, the officers observed them taking additional fish and approached the group with a search warrant.

In total, the five anglers were over the daily limit by 34 walleye. The daily walleye limit for the Detroit River is six fish per angler.

The anglers kept their legal daily limit and received citations for the misdemeanor offense. Read more

Michigan’s Great Lakes fishery is under direct threat — and the window to stop it is closing fast. House Bills 5801 and 5802 are expected to receive a hearing before the House Committee on Natural Resources and Tourism on May 20th. If passed, these bills would authorize commercial netting of walleye, lake trout, and yellow perch from Lakes Michigan and Huron. These are the fish Michigan anglers spent generations rebuilding. These are the fisheries your license dollars restored after commercial overfishing helped devastate them decades ago. And now, those same fisheries are being put back on the table. We need every angler, conservationist, charter captain, bait shop owner, and Great Lakes supporter to act immediately.

Read more

Anglers on a boat hold up a walleye they caught. (Photo credit: Pure Michigan)

Do you love walleye fishing and want to help support a strong fishery? Get out on the water this summer for the Midwest Walleye Challenge — you’ll have the chance to win cash prizes and provide useful information to fisheries biologists.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is partnering with MyCatch by Angler’s Atlas on a statewide walleye fishing challenge that includes all inland waters in the state. The challenge runs May 15 through June 28.

As part of the challenge, anglers report their catches of walleye and their fishing trips in the MyCatch mobile app. The app uses anonymous location data, so your best fishing spots stay secret, while Michigan DNR fisheries biologists get valuable information — generalized lake and river catch data entered via the app — to better assess and manage walleye populations. This year, the challenge will include two new features: County Captains and weekly challenges aimed at boosting angler engagement in participating states. Read more