Fishing Report

There has been little angler activity and not much to report. Pier anglers have managed to catch some steelhead.

Brown trout have been caught up near the First Dam. Cleo's, rapalas, spinners and spawn bags have caught fish. The hot colors for spoons were blue and silver or yellow and orange. Whitefish were caught from the mouth up to the dam as the fish are still spawning. Walleye have been caught at night off the Hattie Street Bridge. Rapalas and thundersticks in gold and black or silver and black have caught fish. Bluegills are hitting on wax worms.

Lake trout and whitefish are still being taken by boat and pier anglers. Boat anglers are trolling with spoons or crankbaits for lake trout. Those surfcasting for whitefish are using small jigs, flies or a single egg.

Good numbers of anglers can be seen fishing off the pier. Fish have been caught all day long, however; the better fishing seems to be in the early morning. Most are fishing just off the bottom with anything small such as small minnows, wax worms, wigglers, or a single egg on a gold hook.

Light numbers of steelhead have been caught in the lower stretch of the river.

The whitefish action continues with fish hitting on teardrops with wax worms. The better fishing seems to be when the winds are out of the south.

Whitefish can still be found out around the reefs in Thunder Bay. Good fishing should continue for a couple more weeks. Dusk and dawn are truly the best times to fish.

Good walleye fishing in the Lower Trenton Channel. Try jigs with Twister Tails and minnows. Those handlining for walleye off the Detroit Edison Stacks and off Harrison Avenue have also caught some steelhead. Some nice yellow perch reaching 12 to 13 inches have been caught north of Sugar Island and near the Hole-in-the-Wall which is just north of Powder House Island. In the same area, Crystal Bay is usually a good spot for musky and northern pike.

Boat anglers trolling for walleye are using a variety of baits and lures including crankbaits, stickbaits, or jigs with minnows or a piece of crawler. Those fishing off the wall up near the Blue Water Bridge have caught walleye and steelhead, with the better fishing in the early morning or late evening.

Fair to good perch fishing continues off St. Clair Shores. Anglers are using jigs with minnows or wax worms in 12 to 16 feet of water between Nine Mile and Twelve Mile Roads. Those fishing off the 400 Club have caught perch in 10 to 12 feet of water.

Should continue to provide some steelhead fishing. With warmer temperatures, concentrate on the deeper holes and up near the dam at Flat Rock. Try casting crankbaits or floating spawn under a bobber.

Walleye fishing remains hot from Cedar Point to Vermilion, as well as in Cleveland. Water depths have ranged from 25’ to 36’, with some fish coming in shallower water. Crankbaits have been the ticket for both numbers and size, and large fish are being taken on Reef Runners, Ripsticks (try Blueberry Muffin, Blue Hawaiian, and Mooneye), and Rapala Husky Jerks (Glass colors seem better). Night trolling in shallow water is popular. Night pier fishing is better; try casting Husky Jerks from dark to mid-night.

Yellow perch fishing had been spotty. Few catches have been reported as most anglers have either switched to walleyes or finished for the year. Try traditional areas from Catawba to Cleveland. Be prepared to search for fish.

Steelhead fishing has been fair to good in the Vermilion River, Rocky River, Chagrin River, Grand River, Arcola Creek, Cowles Creek, Geneva State Park, Conneaut Creek, and along the Conneaut west breakwall. Shore anglers are using small spinners and spoons, and jigs and maggots rigged with a split shot under a light bobber.

Pier anglers are taking steelhead off the North Pier. Floating spawn under a bobber in the early morning has worked best. Those surfcasting up near the State Park are also taking some steelhead.

Decent numbers of steelhead can still be found from the mouth all the way up to Tippy Dam.

Steelhead fishing continues. Pier anglers are floating spawn under a bobber or casting rapalas. The North Pier continues to yield good numbers of whitefish.

Still has a decent number of steelhead in it.

Pier and surf fishing for steelhead has been good. Whitefish have also been caught off the pier.

Steelhead have been caught from the mouth up to the dam. Floating spawn under a bobber has worked best.

Whitefish are hitting in the East Bay. Try jigging wigglers or pimples in 60 to 90 feet of water off Deepwater Point and up near Elk Rapids. In the West Bay, a few perch have been caught in 60 to 80 feet of water in Bowers Harbor.

It seems the steelhead have moved upstream towards Newaygo. Boat anglers have done well using spawn or crankbaits.

Boats are trolling between the shoreline and 30 feet of water for steelhead. The fish are 10 to 20 feet down and are hitting on spoons and crankbaits. Pier anglers have caught steelhead when floating spawn bags early to mid-morning.

There has been no word on steelhead activity in this area. Anglers may want to try the usual spots between Lansing and Grand Rapids, as there must be some fish that have moved up.

Steelhead and a few brown trout are still being caught up near the Sixth Street Dam. Spawn is still working, but more fish are starting to hit on a jig with a wax worm. Some are floating large choker bags or drifting crawlers. Those fishing off the Fulton Street Bridge have caught fish on blue or purple Hot-n-Tots. Walleye are hitting on bucktail jigs, rapalas or thundersticks. Crappie were caught near Riverside Park. Closer to Grand Haven, those fishing in Lloyd's Bayou have caught bluegills on ice fishing jigs with wax worms.

Continues to produce good catches of steelhead with the better action below the Allegan Dam

Good steelhead fishing continues up near the Berrien Springs Dam. The best action has been below the first dam as it seems not many fish are going through the ladders.