The Michigan DNR has released its latest Upper Peninsula fishing report, and after carefully analyzing dozens of locations, hundreds of water depths, and approximately 47 different ways to troll a spoon, one conclusion has emerged:
The fish are absolutely everywhere… except directly under your boat.
In Little Bay de Noc, yellow perch fishing has been slow, though anglers are picking up a few fish near the Escanaba River and the reefs. Walleye continue hanging around the weed beds, while salmon anglers heading south into Green Bay are finding good Chinook fishing in more than 100 feet of water using spoons and trolling flies.
Local experts confirmed the Chinook are currently accepting appointments only, with openings available between 5:42 and 5:47 a.m., provided you left the dock before everyone else.
Over in Munising, splake near the Anna River have apparently entered witness protection, with only a handful being caught. Lake trout continue cooperating around Grand Island for anglers trolling and jigging, while salmon remain in their annual “we’ll let you know when we’re interested” phase.
In Keweenaw Bay and Huron Bay, coho and lake trout are providing fair action while trolling spoons and flasher-fly combinations in the top 40 to 80 feet. A few Chinook and rainbow trout have also been caught. Whitefish and jigged lake trout, however, have decided they’d rather admire natural bait from a safe distance in 180 feet of water.
At Traverse Bay and the Portage Entry, trolling anglers continue bringing in good numbers of lake trout along with a few smaller Chinook and coho. Jigging anglers, meanwhile, reported that dropping a bait 180 feet to the bottom remains an outstanding way to strengthen shoulder muscles.
The Ontonagon River has seen plenty of fishing pressure, with fair numbers of walleyes being caught by both trolling and jigging anglers. Shore fishermen are also finding a mix of walleyes and rock bass.
The rock bass would like everyone to know they’re doing their part to keep morale high by biting immediately before the walleyes refuse to.
Out on Lake Superior near Ontonagon, Silver City, Union Bay, and Black River Harbor, trolling remains the name of the game. Lake trout are coming in at fair rates, with an occasional coho or Chinook mixed in. Some anglers are catching fish shallow, others deep.
Scientists describe this pattern as “fish being wherever you aren’t.”
At St. Ignace, lake trout have become difficult to locate around Mackinac Island, though persistent anglers are finding a few in 80 to 90 feet of water. Meanwhile, the Pine River has become a buffet featuring walleyes, yellow perch, northern pike, and bullheads. Anglers are harvesting up to three keeper walleyes per trip while releasing plenty of undersized fish. Shore anglers are drifting leeches and worms under the M-134 bridge, while boat anglers continue pulling crawler harnesses and body baits.
The undersized walleyes issued a statement thanking anglers for the free piercings before being released.
At Grand Marais, lake trout continue providing good action for anglers willing to troll and jig, while a few coho are showing up as a bonus. Fishing pressure along the breakwall has remained surprisingly light, possibly because everyone assumes someone else already found “the spot.”
The Les Cheneaux Islands continue offering a little bit of everything. Hessel anglers are catching perch from the marina docks and northern pike early in the morning. Between Hessel and Cedarville, pike, smallmouth bass, and perch are keeping rods bent, while anglers around Drummond Island are finding good numbers of walleyes and bass. Cisco are still around, although they’ve apparently become aware they’re being targeted and have adjusted their schedules accordingly.
In Manistique, Chinook fishing near the launch remains slow, but nearshore lake trout continue producing. Anglers running farther south toward Fairport are marking much more bait and fish, along with a few rainbow trout.
Translation: the fish were exactly where your buddy suggested going after you already committed to the other direction.
Around Marquette, lake trout have packed up and moved into significantly deeper water—140 to over 300 feet—north of White Rocks and Granite Rock. A few coho were also caught while trolling.
Marine biologists believe the trout moved deeper because they heard someone at the dock confidently announce, “They’re still shallow.”
Finally, Au Train offered perhaps the week’s most honest fishing report. Anglers fishing 3 to 5 miles north of Au Train Island reached their limits of quality lake trout… after spending about seven hours searching for them. Once they located the fish, the action was fast, with all the trout holding tight to the bottom.
In what may be the most relatable statement of the week, anglers proved that finding the fish is 95% of fishing. The other 5% is explaining to your spouse why a “quick morning trip” somehow lasted until dinner.
The DNR’s report makes one thing abundantly clear: fish are being caught all across the Upper Peninsula. It just requires the correct lure, the correct depth, the correct weather, the correct trolling speed, the correct moon phase, the correct amount of confidence… and, according to the guy at the bait shop, “You should’ve been here yesterday.”
Good luck this weekend, and remember: every 18-inch walleye becomes a 24-incher by the time the story reaches Facebook.
