Wisconsin Statewide Fishing report 9.21.12The opening of many hunting seasons seems to have cut down on the amount of angling pressure throughout the Northwoods. Musky continue to provide the most consistent action and anglers report musky have been active at nearly all times of the day. Sturgeon anglers continue to have fair success with most anglers reporting catching a few of these ancient fish on northern rives as well as the lower Wisconsin River. With the cool night-time temperatures of the past couple weeks, the aquatic weeds have begun to die back and densities have declined from their high summer levels and some decent perch, bluegill and crappie action was showing up along the deeper weed edges. In the south game fishing picked on the Madison area chain of lakes, with more and more musky anglers out. Smallmouth bass, walleye and northern pike fishing has also been picking up. Some good perch fishing continued to be reported on the east shore of Lake Winnebago.
West winds throughout the week moved cold water into shore along Lake Michigan, and the near-shore trolling bite has been fair to good. Trout and salmon continue to stage off shore along tributaries, but low water levels and warm water temperatures continue to hamper fall spawning runs. The Root River Steelhead Facility has opened, but as of yet no fish have moved that far upstream.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) The opening of most of the major hunting seasons, along with the colder weather that has prevailed for the last week, seems to have really cut down on the amount of angling pressure throughout the Northwoods. In addition, general angling success has dropped off a bit in the last few weeks, although musky fishing has provided the most consistent action. Reports indicate that musky have been active at nearly all times of the day and most anglers continue to report some sort of action (follows, swirls, short hits, etc.). The most successful baits continue to be artificials, with bucktails, jerk baits, and soft-bodied lures being the favorites of late. A good number of musky in the 28 to 38-inch size have been caught, and there have been rumors of fish up to 48 inches being landed. Sturgeon anglers continue to have fair success with most anglers reporting catching a few of these ancient fish. Most of the fish have been in the 30 to 52-inch size, with just a couple legal 60-inch-plus fish reportedly being caught. The larger rivers have been the most popular spots, with the best action coming on cut bait or a gob of night crawlers fished in the deep holes or deep river bends. Just a few reports of walleye success have come in as most anglers seem to have given up until the fall bite begins. Several anglers have reported some nice walleye caught incidental to their fishing for bass - on small plastics that are fished around cover or near deep water. Fishing for largemouth bass has started to become erratic on local waters, though some good action has been experienced on a couple of days when temperatures warm in the afternoon hours. The most consistent success has been near mid-depth cover, woody structure, bog edges or along weed edges; with soft plastics and jig/craw combinations being the best baits. Smallmouth bass continue to confound many of the regular bass anglers, though a few decent catches have been reported by fishing crank baits along mid-depth weed edges. Panfish success has been mixed, with some decent perch, bluegill and crappie showing up along the deeper weed edges. With the cool night-time temperatures of the past couple weeks, the aquatic weeds have begun to die back and densities have declined from their high summer levels.
Peshtigo Fishing pressure this past week has been light due in part to wind weather and low water. Floating weeds have been a problem for walleye anglers trolling the Bay.
Marinette County The Peshtigo River is experiencing very low water, rendering the boat launch at the mouth of the river and Klingsborn landing unusable to most water craft with the exception of kayaks and canoes. Some panfish were being caught by the dam in Peshtigo on crawlers and worms in deep water pockets. Salmon action at Little River has yet to start with the water being extremely low. Some very nice walleye were reported being caught around Green Island off the mouth of the Menominee River in 15 to 30 feet of water using large stick baits. A few brown trout are being caught at the Hattie Street Dam by sturgeon fishermen using crawlers.
Oconto County The panfish bite below the Stiles Dam remains fair to good with garden tackle working well, fly fishers have also been doing well using bead head nymph's drifted cross current. Some smallmouth bass were being caught down river on the Oconto from the Highway 141 Bridge to the mouth of the river. Crank baits and plastics are the baits of choice. Walleye and perch were hard to come by this past week although a couple of anglers reported a fair perch bite about a mile out of Oconto Breakwater Park.
Brown County With the cooler weather the Green Bay water temperatures are dropping resulting in a more active musky bite. Anglers are reporting still catching musky along the west shore of Green Bay between Little Tail Point and Pensaukee. Several 50-plus-inch fish have been reported to have been caught and released. A few people were also targeting musky in the Fox River and at the mouth of the river, but it was slow and not much success. There were also some Musky fishermen out of Suamico and Geano beach. The walleye are also still active. At Bayshore Park, fishing pressure was low, but anglers were looking for perch and walleye. Perch numbers were steady with an average size being between 8 to 10 inches. There were a few perch that were larger in size, around 12 to 13 inches. Anglers were using minnows and night crawlers in about 20 feet of water. Walleye numbers were very low, they were being caught on flicker shades and crank baits (tiger color). Sheepshead, catfish, gobies, white perch, and white bass were also being caught.
Manitowoc County The west winds throughout the week have moved some cold water into shore. With the cold water moving in, the near-shore trolling bite has been fair to good. Some days the action for these staging salmon has been very good with boats usually having better success out of Two Rivers than Manitowoc. The harbor and pier fishing has been decent in the morning with waves of fish moving through during the day. Off of Manitowoc County most surface temperatures are in the upper 50s, with subsurface temperatures in the lower 50s offshore. Trollers are still having success in water over 120 feet though it seems a majority of the mature king salmon are in shallower. Boats out from the river mouths are having the most success in 12 to 50 feet of water with a variety of different patterned J-plugs and noisy crank baits. Some fish were being caught on glow spoons before sunup reportedly. Most boats are trolling in the 2.5 to 3.5mph range. The offshore winds have been limiting many boats from venturing too far out. Temperature off of the piers are in the low 60s, with some upper 50-degree water off the pier heads. Most fish were being caught off spoons though some anglers are using crank baits. Not many anglers are reporting catching much using spawn or alewives fished off the bottom, except occasionally at night. More brown trout were being taken off the Manitowoc piers than in Two River, though it seems more kings were being harvested from Two Rivers. Two Rivers harbor anglers have had more success than anglers from the piers on specific days. There has also been some quality northern caught in the last week with a 37-inch fish measured today and others of similar size caught recently there, with spoons the most productive. Not much has changed regarding the river fishing over the last week. The Manitowoc, Branch, East Twin, and West Twin Rivers are all in the mid 60s yet. The cooler nights are helping to drop water temperatures but rain would help considerably. There are some chinook salmon near the Shoto Dam on the West Twin River, though the water is very low. There aren?t many fish being caught at any of the damns yet. Anglers targeting smallmouth are having success on the Manitowoc River with fly anglers catching some nice fish. The mouth of the Manitowoc River, near the Maritime Museum and the towers has been giving up periodic brown trout and chinook.
Door County The northern part of the county has received very light fishing pressure over the past week. Anglers that continue to fish both Green Bay and Lake Michigan from Egg Harbor up and around the peninsula to Bailey?s Harbor were still having success. Smallmouth bass were still hitting at most piers, where rocks and other structures are present, as well as for those fishing off-shore. Those targeting fish from boats are reportedly having luck with soft plastics as well as crank baits anywhere from 6 to 18 feet of water. Those from shore still prefer crawlers fished from a slip-bobber or right on the bottom or plastics. Trout and salmon were still being caught, though not in great numbers. Cooler water seems to have the fish into shallower water and higher up in the water column. Most anglers are reporting catching fish in 60 to 90 feet and fishing the upper half of the column. Those looking to fish the Sturgeon Bay shipping canal and its surrounding areas might run into more fishing pressure. However, the shipping canal has been pretty hot lately. Almost all anglers targeting perch were catching a least a few nice fish in the 8-inch or larger range. Both shore anglers and those fishing from boats have been mostly using minnows either on a slip-bobber or straight down in deeper weeds for the larger fish. Northern pike action has continued over the past few weeks. Deep weeds throughout the canal are producing most fish. Anglers were both trolling and casting a variety of baits, and all methods, according to anglers, are working. Some large fish in the 40-inch or larger range have been showing up. Walleye action has some anglers confused while others are still hooking into fish. Deep edges of the canal as well as reefs are still the main focus for walleye anglers. Some anglers also report having good success in pre-dawn hours. Both shore anglers and those trolling are having luck on salmon and the occasional trout in the shipping canal. Spoons and stick baits are receiving the best reviews from anglers aiming to hook into some of the fish staging to spawn. Overall the fishing pressure was low during the week at Sawyer Harbor and Little Sturgeon Bay, but it picked up in over the weekend. At Sawyer Harbor anglers were targeting perch, northern pike and musky. No musky were caught and perch numbers were okay for the week. Perch were being caught on minnows in about 10-12 feet of water with average sizes of about 6-8 inches.
A few northern pike were caught. The northern pike ranged in the water column of where they were caught, anywhere from 8-12 feet and up to 25 feet of water. Gobies were also being caught. On Little Sturgeon Bay, anglers were targeting perch, walleye, smallmouth bass, and northern pike. Perch numbers were good this week with anglers using night crawlers and minnows. They seemed to be caught in more shallow waters. The bigger-sized perch (8-10 inches) were caught in about 4 feet of water, while the smaller sized perch (6-7 inches) were being caught anywhere from 11-15 feet of water. Walleye were caught, but anglers were using stick baits and spoons for bait. Smallmouth Bass numbers were very low this week. At Chaudoir's Dock, fishing pressure was low, but anglers were targeting perch. Numbers were steady for the week and they were using minnows and night crawlers for bait with night crawlers being the most successful. Perch were being caught in about 26-27 feet of water and they averaged in sizes of about 6 to 8 inches. Fishermen were also catching sheepshead, gobies and white perch.
Kewaunee County Wind speed and direction haven't often been kind to boating anglers this week, and lack of rain continues to hinder any major movement of spawn-minded salmon and trout into the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers. Some pier anglers and nearshore trollers were still scoring on fish -- mostly chinook with an occasional brown trout or coho salmon. With cooler air and offshore winds dropping nearshore water temperatures this week, any salmon and trout that are staging may become more aggressive toward baits. However, it will still likely take a significant rain event to get more than a scattering of fish into anything but the harbors or early stages of the rivers. In recent days, the most successful trollers have been deploying colorful body baits behind planer boards or flat lines in the nearshore shallows, along with spoons and other favorites. Some are using one or two colors of lead-core line behind planers or shallow-set downriggers to get the baits down into the strike zone. Divers dialed all the way out with 30-40 feet of line out also produce an occasional strike. Be sure to use a rubber snubber about 6 to 7 feet ahead of the bait -- attached to and right behind the Diver -- to absorb the savage hit from a trophy ?king? so close to the boat. Before the winds fired up, offshore trollers were finding some nice ?silvers? (non-spawning chinook salmon) along with steelhead and an occasional lake trout in the 300- to 500-foot depths. One charter captain reported finding what appeared to be a lot of young of the year alewife at those depths, which was likely attracting the non-spawning fish. Spoons and flies presented in the top 50 feet lured most of the hits.
Outagamie County For those wanting to try their hand at perch fishing, the bite has reportedly been very good on the east shore of Lake Winnebago.
Lake Michigan fisheries team reportSheboygan County
Trollers in Sheboygan have been catching mostly chinook, along with a few rainbow, brown, and coho. The majority of fish have been taken on spoons, crank baits, and j-plugs, and some were also caught on flies. Most trollers have been fishing in and around the harbor. Anglers fishing off the Sheboygan piers continue to catch some fish, with chinook caught off both the north and south piers. Spoons in glow-in-the-dark colors and silver have produced. Sheboygan area rivers have low water levels and temperatures around 60-62 degrees. Boating, canoeing, and kayaking are currently discouraged on the Sheboygan River from Esslingen Park to the Sheboygan Harbor due to the high volume of dredging and habitat restoration projects underway to benefit anglers in coming years. Contaminated sediment is being removed and fish habitat restored to boost fish and wildlife populations and reduce contaminant levels in fish in the river so people can safely eat them. Anglers are now advised ?do not eat? resident fish from the river due to high levels of environmental contaminants. Dredging is being conducted from the harbor to Wildwood Island, and habitat restoration projects are being conducted at Kiwanis Park, Wildwood Park, and Esslingen Park. Anglers should be aware that these projects will limit, and may sometimes prevent, access to those areas of the river.
Ozaukee County
In Port Washington trollers have been taking chinook, along with a few coho and rainbow, brown, and lake trout. Most fish were taken in 50 to 120 feet of water, although some trollers were out as deep as 220 feet. Spoons and J-plugs as well as flasher and fly combinations have all taken fish. Shore anglers in Port Washington continue to catch a few chinook on spoons off the rocks in Rotary Park, as well as in the north slip. Anglers working near the power plant have been catching a mix of brown, rainbow, and coho on spawn, and anglers fishing the pier have taken chinook on crank baits and silver spoons. Water levels remain very low in Sauk Creek, and the temperature is about 62 degrees. No fishing activity has been reported in the creek.
Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee trollers have been catching chinook, along with a few rainbow and lake trout in 50 to 110 feet of water. Spoons and flashers & flies fished have been productive when fished in the lower part of the water column. When the lake has been rough, a few chinook have been caught by boats trolling the gaps and the river channel. Anglers fishing off McKinley pier continue to catch a few brown trout and chinook taken. The browns were caught on alewives, spoons, and crank baits, but the chinook were taken in the pre-dawn hours on glow spoons. Anglers fishing off the pier at Grant Park have been catching a few chinook and rainbow at daybreak on spoons, and some fish have been moving up into Oak Creek as well. Anglers fishing the pier at the Oak Creek Power Plant have reported a few browns, chinook, and rainbow taken on spoons, crank baits, or spawn sacs. The Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers have low flows and temperatures in the low-60s, and no trout or salmon activity has been seen yet.
Racine County
In Racine trollers have been catching mainly chinook with occasional brown trout mixed in. Fish have been taken 30 to 70 feet down in 50 to 100 feet of water, and some have also been caught in nearshore waters and the harbor. Those fishing from shore in Racine have had some success for chinook and brown trout off of the piers and in the harbor. Spoons have produced for both species. Water levels are low on the Root River with temperatures in the mid-60s. The Root River Steelhead Facility is running for the fall season and the stop logs are in place, however, no salmon have been seen migrating upstream yet. The 4th annual Root River Steelhead Facility Open House will take place in Lincoln Park on Saturday, October 13 from 9 a.m. ? 3 p.m. Mark your calendars now, and more details will be coming in the next couple of weeks.
Dane County Panfishing has slowed down over the last couple of weeks. Game fishing on Lake Monona has been picking up little. More and more musky anglers have been out with several reporting catches and seeing a decent amount of fish. Lake Mendota has also started to pick up a bit as well. Smallmouth bass were still really biting on Lake Mendota. Walleye and northern pike fishing has been picking up as well. It is important to remember that Mendota has different size and bag limits than the other Dane County Lakes. Bass has an 18-inch size limit and only one fish may be kept. Walleye has an 18-inch size limit and only three fish may be kept. Northern pike has a 40-inch size limit and only one fish may be kept. Lake Kegonsa has been producing some walleyes, although many of them are undersize.
Sauk County Numerous sturgeon are being caught below the Prairie du Sac dam on the Wisconsin River. There were several sturgeon that were caught that were over 60 inches. Sturgeon can live more than 100 years and grow to be over 200 pounds. Males will reach maturity at 15 years of age while it takes females 25 years to mature. Male Sturgeon will spawn every other year while females spawn every four to five years. Anglers have to bulk up their fishing gear for sturgeon. Normally, anglers will use 45-50 pound line on their rods. Most commonly seen rods are going to be catfish rods with a sensitive tip to detect the smaller bites. Anglers will also have to use a heavy sinker to get their line into the deep hole that they will be fishing. The water temperatures in the Wisconsin River are starting to drop and the walleyes are starting to bite. Anglers are reminded to follow the size limits. Fishing on Lake Redstone and Dutch Hollow Lakes has been slow, but with the cooler weather, the lake temperatures has come down in to the low 70?s at the surface. Continued cooler weather should increase fall fishing on the lakes. Crappies and bluegills were suspended off of the breaks in the cooler waters.
Rock County Anglers on the Rock River below the Indianford Dam have been catching northern pike, walleye, and white bass. Several walleye were over the 15-inch minimum size limit and one northern pike was 28 inches long. The white bass were in the 13-14 inch range. Squirrel hunters were out in force for the opening weekend of the season and had good success throughout the county.
Dunn County Panfishing on Lake Tainter has been good.
Minocqua area fishing reporthttp://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/minocquafishingreport.htmLake Michigan Fishing Report and tipshttp://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/lmfishingtips.htm
Wausau Area fishing reporthttp://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/wisconsinriverfishingreport.htmInformation compiled from the WDNR Outdoor report and private sources 
