Curly's Photo and Fishing Blog

High Winds and Colder Weather Slow FIshing

I’m hearing of a real good perch bite on Glen Lake and Crooked with nice perch being taken. There are very few people fishing with most sport-shop tearing down there tanks getting ready for ice, so very little live bait is avalible in some area’s.

Lake Charlevoix is also reporting a perch bite at Ironton Most lake are reporting a good perch bite this fall which is great for us perch lovers. Fishing pressure is slow with fishing being about the same as last week. This will be the last fishing report until ice. Fishing should remain constant with walleye bite getting better until ice.
Look for many anglers to get their waders out and start casting from shore with body baits or minnows on a lighted bobber

Muskegon Lake - Anglers are catching perch but the fish are running small.

White Lake - Perch are being caught here as well but the fish are small.

Betsie River - need more rain to get steelhead up the rivers

Manistee River - need more rain to get steelhead up the rivers.

Traverse City - Whitefish action has been very good in 70 feet of water off the Center Road launch site. Jigging Swedish Pimples tipped with a minnow or perch rig on the bottom worked best. In the West Bay, steelhead were caught off the mouth of the Boardman River. Perch fishing is slow to fair on Lake Leelanau and Big Glen. Both minnows and wigglers are being used as bait.

Bradford and Otsego lakes near Gaylord are producing good perch fishing. The Boyne and Jordan rivers are seeing some steelhead are moving into the rivers.

Elk River - steelhead are just starting to show at the dam when drifting spawn or casting hardware.
Traverse City - Strong winds have limited boat access. In the East Bay, whitefish have been caught off the Center Road launch site when jigging Swedish Pimples. In the West Bay, perch anglers seem to be catching more gobies than perch.

Glen Lake - Perch are being caught, but anglers will need to sort out the small ones.

Little Bay De Noc - Water temperatures are now 48 to 54 degrees. Many are fishing north of the Narrows where fair to good walleye fishing was reported when trolling crankbaits and crawlers in 13 to 20 feet of water. Good catches were taken off Kipling when fishing about 8 feet off the bottom in waters 30 to 40 feet deep and near the Black Bottom when jigging or drifting crawlers just off the bottom. Several nice perch were caught northeast of Butler Island when jigging minnows. Bass were caught on crankbaits just north of the Day’s River.
Big Bay De Noc - Walleye were caught just south of Fayette off Burnt Bluff, which usually does not provide fall fishing for walleye. Boats trolling crankbaits in 30 feet of water along the break have marked good numbers of fish. Others are trolling in waters 20 to 30 feet deep between Round Island and St. Vitals Island.

In the Manistique area, anglers on Indian Lake are catching good numbers of perch, using minnows as bait. The steelhead and salmon fishing is good along on the Manistique River.

Saginaw Bay - Perch were caught in the old shipping channel off the mouth of the Saginaw River, and around Buoy 22. Some were fishing in 7 feet of water out at the end of the navigation channel near Quanicassee.
Lake Leelanau - Reported good walleye fishing and a great perch bite on the south -end.

Lake Margrethe reports a fair walleye bite with minnows working best and big perch are biting also.

Portage Lake - A few nice perch are starting to be caught in waters 16 to 20 feet deep near the Inn and out in the channel. Bluegills, rock bass, and sunfish have been caught.

Wixom Lake the gills and crappie are on the bite right on the drop-off.

By Kalkaska, the perch fishing is very good on both Skegemog and Manistee lakes. Both minnows and wigglers are working well as bait. Anglers on Skegemog are catching good numbers of smallmouth bass. The salmon action is good near the Elk River Dam. Fife Lake is producing good perch fishing. Minnows are working well as bait in water ten to 12 feet deep.

Higgins Lake - Some boats are still out trolling for lake trout, but angler numbers have dropped with the onset of hunting season. Perch fishing has been good with wigglers working best.

Houghton Lake - This should be a good weekend to target pike and walleye. Look for the panfish such as bluegills, crappie, and rock bass in waters 8 to 12 feet deep.

Cadillac, the bass and pike fishing is very good on both lakes Cadillac and Mitchell. The crappie fishing is fair on Lake Cadillac. The crappies are found on the bottom of the lake, with minnows working well as bait.

Cedarville and Hessel - Yellow perch activity gets better every week. Fish the Middle Entrance, Musky Bay, and Government Bay. The Middle Entrance has been producing the best results when using minnows in 8 to 12 feet of water. Smallmouth bass have dispersed, but should still be present in Musky Bay, around Connors Point and Pleasant Point. Those targeting pike are casting minnows off the pier at Hessel. The waters are still a bit murky, but should clear up now that the dredging is done. Salmon are slowly migrating into Bush and Beaver Tail Creeks..

Around Sault Ste. Marie, the perch fishing is fair on the upper end of the St. Marys River. The fishing pressure has tailed off this week on Munuscong Bay, but for those anglers who are heading out the musky and perch fishing is fair with minnows working best..

Upper Peninsula:

Around Copper Harbor, a few lake trout are being caught off the docks along the harbor.

The walleye fishing ranges from fair to good on Lake Gogebic (go-GEE-bic). Anglers are fishing off docks on the lake and are using sucker minnows as bait.

Out of the Marquette area, the lake trout fishing is fair on Lake Superior, when the weather allows anglers to get out. Anglers on the Chocolay (chalk-oh-LAY) and Dead rivers are reeling in a few steelhead.

In the Escanaba area, the walleye fishing ranges from fair to good on Little Bay de Noc. During the day anglers are trolling with crawler harnesses, at night they switch over to crank baits.

By Manistique, the steelhead fishing is fair on the Manistique River.

Fishing activity this week on Munuscong (muh-nuss-CONG) Bay is slow.

Anglers around Drummond Island are catching a few perch, when the weather allows anglers to get out.

And the perch fishing on Brevort Lake by St. Ignace ranges from slow to fair.

Northwest:

Burt Lake by Alanson is producing fair perch fishing, when the weather allows anglers to get out. Minnows are the preferred bait.

Around the Boyne City area, the perch fishing ranges from fair to good on both Charlevoix and Walloon lakes.

Anglers on Lake Leelanau near Traverse City are reeling in good numbers of walleye.

Out of the Frankfort area, the salmon fishing is fair along the Betsie River. Anglers on the pier or surfcasting along the Lake Michigan shoreline are catching a few steelhead. The perch action is fair on Crystal Lake.

By Manistee, the steelhead fishing is fair along the Big Manistee River, off the pier on Lake Michigan and along the shoreline for people out surfcasting. On Manistee Lake, anglers are catching a few coho salmon and steelhead.

In the Kalkaska area, the bass fishing ranges from fair to good on Lake Skegemog. The walleye action is improving on Lake Bellaire. The best time to be out fishing is at night.

Bradford and Otsego lakes near Gaylord are producing fair to good bass and walleye fishing. A few salmon and steelhead are being caught along the Boyne and Jordan rivers.

And at Cadillac, the crappie and perch fishing is fair to good on the east side of Lake Cadillac. Some of the best fishing is found off the city dock.

West:

Out of the Ludington area, the bluegill fishing is good on the upper end of Hamlin Lake. The steelhead fishing is fair off the breakwall on Lake Michigan and on Pere Marquette Lake. Anglers along the Sable (say-bull) River are catching a few salmon.

By Muskegon, the bluegill fishing ranges from good to very good on the east side of Muskegon Lake. Anglers are fishing from shore, with the midday period being the best time to be out. The perch fishing is fair, anglers will have to do some sorting to find any keepers. Anglers are catching a few steelhead off the breakwall on Lake Michigan and on the lower end of the Muskegon River.

And at Baldwin, the steelhead are starting to move into the Pere Marquette River. The bluegill fishing ranges from fair to good on many of the inland lakes in the area. The pike and walleye fishing on the inland lakes is slow.

Southwest:

Fishing activity this week near Holland is slow. By Benton Harbor, the steelhead fishing is fair along the St. Joseph River. Anglers on the pier on Lake Michigan are reeling in a few whitefish, coho salmon and steelhead.

Around New Buffalo, the bass fishing is fair along the Galien River.

Out of the Kalamazoo area, the pike fishing is good on both Gull and Gun lakes. Anglers trolling are using Rapalas, other anglers are using sucker minnows as bait. Cora and Huzzy lakes are producing fair bluegill fishing. Anglers on Maple Lake, at night, are reeling in a few walleye. The steelhead action on the Kalamazoo River near the Allegan Dam is improving.

And at Three Rivers, the bluegill fishing is fair on the local lakes. Wigglers are working well as bait.

Northeast:

In the Alpena area, the perch fishing is fair on the Thunder Bay River, along with Grand and Hubbard Lakes. Minnows are the preferred bait.

Around Grayling, the perch fishing is good on Lake Margrethe. Minnows are working well as bait in water about 18 feet deep. The walleye fishing is fair to good in the lake, with the fish found near the bottom, in water about 22 feet deep.

Out of the Oscoda area, the perch action is good on Van Etten Lake. Foote Dam Pond is producing fair smallmouth bass and walleye fishing. Anglers on the Au Sable River are catching a few steelhead, salmon and smallmouth bass.

Fishing activity this week is slow on Higgins Lake.

Houghton Lake is producing some good walleye fishing at night. The marble eyes move into water as shallow as four feet at night. The pike fishing is fair along the shoreline, and the panfish action is spotty.

And at Au Gres, the salmon and steelhead fishing is fair on the Au Gres River. Early mornings or evenings are the best times to be out.

East:

Anglers are finding some steady perch action on Saginaw Bay near Linwood in water about 20 feet deep.

Around Bay City, the perch fishing is good on Saginaw Bay, when the weather allows anglers to get out. The perch activity is beginning to improve in the cuts along the bay.

Along the Saginaw River near Saginaw anglers are reeling in a few catfish.

Posted by curly on 11/01 at 08:41 AM