TOPIC:

dnr.wi.gov/topic/fishing/lakemic ... eport.html
Lake Michigan Outdoor Fishing Report - September 30, 2015
In general, fishing reports will be updated once per week, usually on Tuesdays. This may change based on availability of reports and work schedules of field staff.
Recorded versions of this information are also available. For Northern Lake Michigan and Green Bay, call 920-746-2873. For Southern Lake Michigan, call 414-382-7920.
Southern Lake Michigan Fishing Report
Northern Lake Michigan Fishing Report
Green Bay Fishing Report
Southern Lake Michigan Fishing Report: September 28, 2015
Kenosha Co.
Ramp: No fishing boats were interviewed this week.
Piers: Fishing pressure was slightly lower this week from the north and south piers. The majority of fish caught were Brown Trout with an occasional Chinook salmon. Most anglers have switched from using tube jigs to fishing with spawn on a bobber or on the bottom.
Shoreline: Fishing pressure is high from the shoreline near the mouth of the Pike, but not many anglers have had success. The mouth of the Pike is very narrow due to a decreasing flow.
Pike River: Fishing pressure on the Pike is low. A few anglers reported catching Chinook last week, right after the rain, but no fish were reported this week. Flow has been decreasing all week and the river is relatively low. If we get a decent rain in the next two weeks, fishing will improve on the Pike.
Racine Co.
Ramps: Not very many boats were at the ramp this past week. The few boats that were interviewed reported catches of both Chinook and Coho salmon. Most of the fish were caught trolling within a couple hundred yards of the south pier. The number of Coho salmon caught recently has continued to increase.
Shoreline: Decent numbers of Brown Trout have been caught from shore by the Pershing Park boat ramp. The floating dock is a popular place for anglers targeting the Brown Trout. Shore fishing in the harbor has been productive with almost all Chinook and Coho being caught on spawn under a bobber.
Piers: Fishing pressure is high on the south pier and slightly lower on the north pier. Anglers have had success in both the early morning and late afternoon fishing with spawn on bobbers. Chinook and coho have been caught in decent numbers from the end of south pier to the rocks extending into the harbor. The Chinook being caught are all darkened while the Coho still are very silver.
Root River: Fishing pressure on the Root River has increased since the rain last Thursday. Fish have been caught at multiple spots along the river by fly fishermen using spawn imitation flies. Horlick dam has been a successful spot with Chinook also being caught at Quarry park, Lincoln park and Island park. The Root River Steelhead Facility is up and running, but very few fish are moving upstream at this point. Since the facility was started on September 21, DNR crews have handled a total of 21 Chinooks, 5 coho, and 12 brown trout. The Root River Steelhead Facility will be hosting an Open House on Saturday, October 10, from 9AM to 3PM. Everyone is encouraged to attend this fun-filled event, whether you're a novice angler, a veteran angler, or just like to eat fish! Enjoy guided tours of the facility with DNR crews demonstrating fish spawning procedures. Volunteers from local fishing clubs will provide fishing rod casting lessons, fly casting, knot tying, fly-tying, tips for cooking fish, and much more! For more information, please call 414-750-8382 or go to the Root River Open House page of the DNR website.
Milwaukee Co.
Milwaukee North: No new report.
Milwaukee South: No new report.
Milwaukee River: The water level at Estabrook Park decreased from 2.60 feet last week to 2.02 feet on Sunday (Sept. 27). The flow rate decreased from 547 cfs to 258 cfs. The water temperature decreased from 68F to 65F. The majority of fishing pressure this week was at Kletzsch Park. 6-8 anglers on average fished at Kletzsch during the week and up to 20-25 on the weekend. The fishing area near the water fall was very crowded at times. Most of the fish caught at Kletzsch were brown trout along with a couple of coho and rainbows. One angler caught and released a 6-7 pound rainbow trout on Thursday on an orange yarn fly. Another angler landed a brown trout, a rainbow, and a couple of smallmouth bass on a spinner bait. Two brown trout and an 11 pound chinook were landed Saturday afternoon by a fly fisherman casting a large, black spey fly. Most of the fish caught at Kletzsch during the week were landed by fly fishermen. A few nice size smallmouth bass and rock bass were caught near the Estabrook Park water fall on twister tails and artificial nightcrawlers. A couple of 3-4 pound catfish (and a few larger ones) were caught at Estabrook by anglers fishing with chicken liver. A 23” northern pike was caught and released on a silver/chartreuse shad rap on Thursday. 2-3 fly fishermen were seen in Hubbard Park on Sunday. One of the anglers reported seeing a rainbow moving upstream but none of the anglers landed a fish. 4-5 anglers on average have been fishing at the mouth of the river (behind Summerfest) during the week and 8-10 on the weekend. The catch rate by Summerfest has tapered off ever since the baitfish (alewives) moved out of the harbor (2 weeks ago). One angler landed a king and a coho Thursday afternoon while jigging gulp on the bottom. Anglers fishing with shiners in the harbor behind Summerfest have been landing a few kings. One angler landed 3 kings Sunday morning while fishing with golden shiners. Fishing on the bottom of the river with live bait has been difficult due to a large number of round gobies. A large number of boats were trolling and casting for kings at the mouth of the river Sunday morning but very few fish were caught according to anglers fishing on the shoreline.
Menomonee River: Fishing pressure on the Menomonee River continues to be low. Very few trout and salmon have been seen or caught on the river during the month of September. Most of the anglers interviewed over the past 3-4 weeks have been targeting panfish. 8-10 anglers were targeting bluegills along 13th & Canal Street on Saturday. Most of the bluegills caught were in the 3-4” range along with few “hand size” gills. Nightcrawlers and red worms fished 6-12” down was the most popular bait. Another angler landed 8-10 bluegills within 2 hours at the 11th & Bruce site on Saturday but only 2-3 of the fish were “keeper size”. An angler at the MMSD office site targeted smallmouth bass with spawn sacks and crank baits but reported no luck after 2 hours of fishing on Sunday. No anglers were seen at Miller Park or Three Bridges Park during the week. Two kayakers reported that large fish were splashing on the surface of river downstream from Three Bridges Park and upstream from the MMSD office site on Sunday. The water temperature at the 45th and State Street site decreased from 68F last week to 65F on Sunday (Sept. 27). The water temperature at the MMSD office site was 70F on Sunday.
Ozaukee Co.
Port Washington Ramps: No boats were interviewed over the weekend.
Port Washington Shore and Piers: Catch rates were low throughout the harbor area. The best spot was right by the utility discharge, and the fishing pressure was highest there as well. Similar to last week, fishermen reported a fairly equal number of chinook, browns, and cohos. Crank baits and plastics were successful on the south wall and harbor side of the breakwall, but fewer fish were reported here than farther inside the harbor area. A few chinook were reported from near Rotary Park, mostly on skein but crank baits as well. Most fishermen near the utility discharge used skein exclusively. Fishermen used a variety of techniques in the north slip, but very few fish were reported. The surface water temperature inside of the harbor was 58F on Sunday, up eight degrees from last week.
Sauk Creek: No fishermen were seen fishing the creek, the water level was very low on Sunday. A few salmon were seen making their way upstream on Tuesday.
Sheboygan Co.
Sheboygan Ramps: A few boats continued to fish inside of the harbor with little success. Catch rates were low, but a few lakers were reported out near 150 feet of water, and a coho was caught inside the harbor on a J plug.
Sheboygan Piers and Shore: The fishing from the piers seems pretty hit or miss right now. It was reported on Friday that catch rates were decent along south pier and into the mouth of the river, but the next two days were rather slow. The most popular method continued to be casting cleos or crank baits near the mouth of the river, and this produced mostly browns followed by chinook and coho. The fishing pressure on north pier was much less, and no fish were reported. The surface water temperature inside of the harbor was 58F on Sunday, up eight degrees from last week.
Sheboygan River: Chinook can be found throughout most stretches of the river, but the numbers remained relatively low. Good numbers of browns were reported in more upstream stretches, and many were landed by fly fishermen using bright colored egg patterns. A few chinook were landed near Esslingen Park by fishermen using bright spoons. The fishing has been slower in downstream areas near the 8th Street ramp. The water temperature was 60F on Sunday near Esslingen Park, the same as last week.
Pigeon River: No fish were reported; the water level was very low on Sunday.
Northern Lake Michigan Fishing Report: September 28, 2015
Manitowoc Co.
Mishicot remained the most popular shore angling spot this past weekend. The ramps were more active on Sunday, with heavy fog present Saturday evening. Anglers in Manitowoc stayed away from the pier and started moving upriver fishing for King Salmon.
Manitowoc Shore: Manitowoc Harbor water temperature is 63F. Surface temperature on Lake Michigan is around 58F. The piers were quiet this weekend as many shore anglers moved inland. The North side of the Marina was busy on Saturday with people catching some Brown Trout. The river in Downtown Manitowoc remained popular with sporadic success landing King Salmon.
Manitowoc River: People are catching King Salmon in Manitowoc City Park. More effort was concentrated at this location than in Manitou Park. A few Kings were caught casting Cleos and Champs using blue and white or silver and green. Downtown Manitowoc remained active on both sides of the river with sporadic success landing Kings. The Manitowoc River levels are good and the water temperature is 65F. More people were fishing upriver in Manitowoc this weekend. A few Kings were caught all the way up to Manitowoc City Park. Areas as far East as Clark's Mills were not active as of yet.
Branch River: The Branch River remained inactive this past weekend.
Silver Creek: Silver Creek remains inactive. The water is clear, and low. Silver Creek's water temperature is 61F.
Two Rivers Shore: The water temperature in Two Rivers Harbor is 65F. The piers remained busy, but the catch rate was slow. Most fish were caught on the very end of the north pier; some of these fish were landed in the pre-dawn hours around 2:00 a.m.
Two Rivers Ramps: Boats are marking a lot of fish in water from 20 to 50 feet, but it is hard to get these fish to strike. Most boats came in with one or Two Kings, or a rainbow or two.
East Twin River: The water levels in the East Twin River are good allowing people to fish south of the fire station. The water temperature in the East Twin River is 67F.
West Twin River: A few fish have been spotted in the West Twin River near the Shoto Dam. Still, the numbers remain low and only a few people tried fishing near the dam this weekend. The flow is strong from the Shoto Dam downstream to Two Rivers, and the water temperature is 68F. Brown Trout were still being caught in Mishicot this past weekend. The fishing was not as active as the previous weekend. Only 1 or 2 King Salmon were landed in this location over the weekend. The water is fairly clear, and fish can be seen swimming below the dam. Most people were fishing with spawn sacs.
Kewaunee Co.
Kewaunee and Algoma Ramps: Activity continues to be slow for those fishing out on the lake. Fishing has been best in the shallows and by the piers heads in 90 feet of water and 50 to 60 feet down. Anglers have been catching brown trout, king salmon and rainbow trout in these areas using mostly spoons, plugs and crank baits.
Kewaunee and Algoma Piers: Anglers have been having some success catching browns and rainbows using spoons and spawn sacs. Spawn sacs have been the more dominant bait.
Kewaunee River: Fishing activity has begun to pick up on the Kewaunee River and there has been some success using yarn. The river has moderate flow, decent clarity, and was 54F. Some salmon have been observed. The Besadny Anadromous Fish Facility on Ransom Moore Lane in Kewaunee is having its Open House on Saturday, October 3rd, and it will run from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm. Activities include salmon egg collection demonstrations, Adopt-a-Sturgeon for river release, fish print a t-shirt, see the fishing displays and participate in casting lessons, tour the facilities, take wagon rides, and food and beverages for sale. For more information go to the Besadny Open House page of the DNR website.
Ahnapee River: Some fishing activity was observed along the Ahnapee River, but there haven’t been any reports of success yet. The river has moderate flow, average water level, and is slightly murky. No fish have been observed.
Northern Door Co. and Sturgeon Bay (Lake and Bay sides)
Northern Door: There has been no observed fishing pressure over the past week on the Door Peninsula. The streams have moderate to good flows, good clarity and have not had any observed fish.
Sturgeon Bay: Anglers targeting perch have been doing well fishing 10 – 15 feet of water in front of the stone quarry using mostly worms and some minnows. Anglers targeting northern pike have been doing well in the canal fishing about 10 feet of water using daredevils. Smallmouth anglers have been fishing the bottom in 13 to 16 feet of water using plastics. Although salmon anglers have been having a tough time fishing the canal, anglers have been having success with walleye from shore.
Green Bay Fishing Report: September 21, 2015
Brown Co.
Musky fishing on Green Bay’s West Shore has remained good. Suamico, Metro and Geano Beach boaters landed fish at decent rates. Fishing large cranks and/or spinners in 8-15 feet of water worked best. An increasing number of musky fishermen are choosing to troll as opposed to cast. Fifty inch fish continue to be caught.
Late week walleye catch numbers were good. Trolling crawler harnesses and crank baits in fifteen to twenty-five feet of water has been the most common approach. Several undersized fish are being caught. Fishing near reefs has been a good starting point. Very few walleye are being caught in the Fox River by shore anglers.
West Shore Perch fishing was spotty this week. Limits are being caught from Duck Creek through the bay. Many of the fish are on the small-side. Fishing night crawlers and minnows near the bottom is the most popular method. Perch measured at Duck Creek ranged from 6.3 to 8.8 inches. Perch measured from the Suamico River were from 6.5 to 9.8 inches.
Channel catfish are being caught by shore anglers at the Fox Point boat launch and the Green Bay Metro boat launch. The larger fish are at the latter. Live bait fished off of the river bottom has been the most effective method.
Water flow and clarity on the Fox River and Duck Creek remain low. The Fox River is green from the Fox Point launch to the dam in Voyager Park. Water clarity on the bay, for most of the week, was between three and four feet. Fishing pressure was very heavy at the Suamico boat launch, moderate at the Green Bay Metro launch and light at the Fairgrounds, Fox Point and Geano’s Beach. Incidental fish catches for the week included round gobies, freshwater drum, redhorse suckers, white perch, white bass and common carp.
Bay Shore Park: Walleye anglers continue to produce good numbers of fish through the week. Water temperatures vary throughout the bay with a low of 54 and a high of 67. Cranks and crawlers are producing equally well with most anglers reporting finding fish in 30-35 feet of water during midday and 12-16 feet in the early mornings and late evenings. Perch are still being caught just north of the launch area with anglers working 20-24 feet of water through the morning hours. Minnows provided the greatest action and best catch rates into the weekend. Water clarity also varied day to day with anglers reporting poor to moderate visibility late into the week.
Door/Kewaunee Co. - Bay side from Sturgeon Bay area south
Chaudoirs Dock: In this area anglers continue to target perch with the majority using minnows, suspended over structure, in 20-30 feet of water. Black and white cranks trolled at short length and moderate speeds have produced the most walleye through the week, although schools continue to be finicky. Water temps continue to hold in the low 60’s through the week, but has varied along with the wave action. Water clarity ranged from poor near the shoreline to moderate at ½ mile out.
Little Sturgeon Bay: Fishermen targeting perch have been able to boat good numbers of fish throughout the week. Worms and minnows have produced equally well this week, with the ability to locate and hold over schools being the main driving factor to good catch rates. Smallmouth bass action continues to be slow with water temps in the area dipping into the low 50’s. Water clarity has improved from good to excellent throughout most of the bay.
Sawyer Harbor: Perch continue to be caught in the area, with anglers continuing to catch larger than average size fish. Minnows, suspended under a bobber and fished above structure, have brought in the highest numbers again this week. Northern pike action also continues to increase, with multiple boats catching fish between 17-25 inches. Fishing drop offs with either minnows or cranks baits have proven effective anywhere along the shoreline. Water temps in the area have dropped to the high 50’s and clarity is good to excellent.
Oconto Co.
Fishing pressure was low this past week due in part to windy conditions. Anglers at the Dam at Stiles report fishing has slowed some, but mainly crappie and a few bluegill are still being caught up by the Dam. Minnows and slip bobbers have been the bait of choice. Pink Salmon can be seen from the Iron Bridge as they prepare to spawn. Some smallmouth and the occasional perch are being caught at the mouth of the Oconto River fishing with bobbers and live bait and casting jigs tipped with plastics. When the weather permits, some nice catches of perch are being reported from the Pensaukee River to Oconto Park II. Fish location varies from 4 to 14 feet of water with minnows being the best bait.
Geano's Beach: Fishing pressure has been light at Geano's Beach.
Marinette Co.
Fishing pressure was low this past week due in part to windy conditions. A few catfish are being caught at the mouth of the Peshtigo River fishing crawlers on bottom. Pink Salmon are also being seen in the upper reaches of the Peshtigo along with a few walleye and smallmouth. Perch anglers are having some success out of Little River and the anglers report the fish can by in quite shallow water. The King Salmon have yet to show up in the Menominee or Peshtigo Rivers.
Last revised: Wednesday, September 30, 2015
General Information 1-888-WDNRINFo | (1-888-936-7463) | Hours: 7 a.m. - 10 p.m.
101 S. Webster Street . PO Box 7921 . Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7921 . 608-266-2621