Wisconsin Statewide fishing report 7.6.10The erratic weather and increased water levels continued to make for some very inconsistent fishing. Musky action has been slowly picking up on northern lakes. Walleye have been especially tough to find with just a few reports of success. Fishing for both largemouth and smallmouth bass has been slow. The typical summer pattern of associating with thick cover has not fully developed yet, and most largemouth have still been found along weed edges and in the lily pad beds. Panfish have provided the most consistent success, with quite a few nice crappie being found along with some decent bluegill and perch.
Along Lake Michigan, strong south and west winds last week brought in cooler water near shore creating great fishing conditions for pier anglers. Water temperatures near the lakeshore dropped to 58 to 61 degrees. Two Rivers pier anglers landed several 8-10 pound rainbows with a few browns and chinook salmon reported. Angles at the Manitowoc piers had success fishing for chinook salmon. Action out on the lake for trollers was mixed, with some ports reporting continued success for chinook along with some coho and rainbows, but other reporting action slowed.
The Mississippi River rose rapidly this week. The river stage was at 11.39 feet at Prairie du Chien Monday and was forecast to reach about the 13 foot mark. Flood stage is 16 feet. Boaters are urged to use caution on the Mississippi River as the rising water pulled some trees and debris off shorelines, with those obstructions now floating down the river. The heavy current, dirty water and floating debris and weeds caused problems for anglers, but some pretty decent bluegill action was still reported in the backwaters and walleye and sauger were still being found along wing dams.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) -
The erratic weather and increased water levels on Northwoods lakes has made for some very inconsistent fishing success in the last week. Musky have been the favorite target species lately and action has been slowly picking up. Weed lines and sparse weed beds have been productive areas, with jerk baits and slow-moving surface baits providing the best action. Quite a few small and medium-size fish in the 30- to 40-inch size have been seen and hook-ups are becoming more frequent. The increased water levels and addition of a lot of stained water to the lakes and flowages really seems to have disrupted the walleye and bass bite across the Northwoods. Walleye have been especially tough to find and just a few reports of success have been coming in. The best action has come on leeches and crawlers that have been fished over and in the mid-depth weed beds. Fishing for both largemouth and smallmouth bass has been slow, with success for largemouth being a bit better than for smallies. For largemouth, success has been only been fair and most of the fish have been in the 12- to 15-inch size. The typical summer pattern of associating with thick cover has not fully developed yet, and most largemouth have still been found along weed edges and in the lily pad beds. Smallmouth bass have been especially erratic in last few weeks, with the best action being found around hard bottom and deeper water woody structure. Panfish have provided the most consistent success, with quite a few nice crappie being found along emergent weed edges and over mid-depth cover. Some decent bluegill and perch are also being caught and most have been found around deeper cover and along the deep weed edges.
Peshtigo
Fishing pressure this past week has been light due to rain and winds. Water clarity has suffered due to the run off. Temperatures at the landings are in the low to mid 70s, with the rivers running high and fast.
Marinette County -
The Peshtigo Harbor catfish bite remains good, with the occasional smallmouth also reported. Worms and cut bait has been working well, enough weight must be employed to keep your bait on bottom. The Menominee River has been producing some nice catfish in the 3 to 6 pound range for anglers trolling crawler/harness. The evening bite for walleye has still been good. The bay is producing some nice salmon for anglers fishing fly/flasher and spoons in 60 feet of water off the mouth of the river and by Green Island.
Oconto County -
Stiles Dam was still producing some panfish up by the dam along with some red horse suckers being caught on worms and night crawlers. Angles at the Oconto Breakwater report some nice catches of walleye caught by drifting and jigging along the weed beds in 12 feet of water. Some perch were also being caught in 9 to 12 feet of water in the weeds; however, the fish are running small. Oconto Park II angles also reported walleye and some perch activity.
Governor Thompson State Park -
Flowers on the hiking trails are blooming, and there have been reports of baby fawns, bear cubs and fox kit sightings. Berry pickers along the road report blue berries are now ripening.
Green Bay
Manitowoc County -
Strong south and west winds throughout the week brought in cooler water near shore creating great fishing conditions for pier anglers. Water temperatures near the lakeshore ranged from 58-61 degrees, with temperatures reaching nearly 65 degrees in 80 feet of water. Air temperatures through the week ranged in the upper 70s to low 80s. Scattered thunderstorms and heavy rain during the week slowed fishing at times, but with local fishing derbies approaching, many went out undeterred. Success of boaters at the ramps rose slightly to average 3-5 fish per boat. Out of Two Rivers, most fish appear to be coming into shallower waters, anywhere from 40 to 100 feet range. Some success has been out as deep as 120 feet. Most the boating pressure remains north of the trap nets off the lighthouse, with some boats fishing inside the trap nets off Two Rivers. Very few boats have tried fishing the pier heads, but that should pick up any day now. The fishing straight out of Manitowoc from 65-80 feet has been the hotspot for boaters during the week. South of Manitowoc, fishing has slowed down with only a few fish being caught. Out of both ports, coolers consisted of mostly chinook salmon with a few small rainbows and lake trout. The salmon have been relatively small compared to the last few weeks, with only a few fish in the 14-16 pound range being reported. The rainbows and lake trout caught were in the 3-5 pound range. Blue flasher/aqua fly and green dodger/green fly combinations remains the common theme for success out of both ports on the down riggers and pump handles. Green glow, blue/silver, and orange spoons have been successful both on the dypsies, down riggers, and high lines for salmon and rainbows. By the weekend, the Two Rivers? piers heated up with anglers landing several 8-10 pound rainbows with a few browns and chinook salmon also reported. On the Manitowoc piers, first signs have been seen of successful pier fishing for chinook salmon. Several chinook have been caught during the morning hours, with a few rainbow and brown trout mixed in. Cleos, dare devils, and crocodile spoons took the majority of rainbows using an assortment of colors. Fishing off bottom also worked using shiners, alewife, or any other kind of bait fish that could be netted. No specific specie or size worked better than another. For salmon, 3/4 oz. champs have taken several of the fish. A few perch remain a common sight off both Manitowoc piers, with many anglers keeping 3-4 perch averaging 7-10 inches. Using minnows or crab-tails has brought the best angling success. A few ventured out for the opening of the perch season, with only a handful being caught of which all were very small. Chartreuse jig heads with a small plastic tail of several colors has been working with no live bait. The perch fishing in the area will only get better.
Sturgeon Bay
Door County -
Some wet and gnarly weather continued into the fourth week of June, but many anglers were still seen hitting the water. An intense storm cell hit the Egg Harbor area in the middle of the week causing some fallen trees near the Bay. Spotty storms and some patches of fog over the weekend caused some difficulty for anglers; however, good catches were still being reported. Salmon fishing remains steady county wide with many nice coolers coming in out of Sturgeon Bay on the Bank Reef and north out of Bailey?s Harbor. With some of the inclement weather water temperatures have been somewhat erratic, but most success has been had fishing 70-100 feet down in 120-130 feet of water. Flasher and fly combos have been a popular choice with some rainbow trout and lake trout still showing up sporadically. Perch fishing has remained hit or miss in the bay; however, anglers were still working hard for their catches. Some anglers have been bottom bouncing minnows while drifting very slowly along weed edges and the edge of the shipping canal, hoping to land on a school to stay on top of. Although numbers have been lower, some very nice size fish have been seen with some regularity. Walleye fishing and smallmouth bass fishing pressure has reduced in the most recent weeks with the salmon fishing going well, but fish can still be found trolling crank baits and crawler harnesses along the flats and along the shorelines around the county.
Kewaunee County -
The weather this week was not very cooperative with the anglers. Scattered thunderstorms with high winds hammered Kewaunee County throughout the week and limited the boats that launched from the boat launches. One benefit of the storms was that they brought a southwestern wind that helped cool the water temperatures down to about 62 degrees at the surface. The fishing in Kewaunee has been very sporadic this week with a few boats reporting catching limits in the morning but other boats returning empty handed. The boats having the most success seem to be catching the majority of their fish around 4:30-5 a.m. and have been on both dodger/fly combinations and spoons. The most successful spoon color seems to be glow green and orange. The most successful dodger/fly colors seem to be green dodger/green fly and blue dodger/ aqua fly. The anglers on the Kewaunee pier braved many of the storms but didn?t yield much success. The fishing seems to be better in the late evening around 9 p.m. The majority of hits have been on spoons that are green/silver or blue/silver. The pier fishing in Algoma has slowed down this week with a few rainbow trout being caught but have been few and far between. There have been reports of schools of alewives being spotted of the pier but the high water temperatures (64 degrees) seem to be slowing the catch. Fishing out of Algoma continued to be slow this week but the fish being caught seem to be in depths ranging from 70-130 feet of water with many of the fish being caught deep. The fish being netted seem to be smaller than average with most King Salmon averaging about 8-10 pounds and the rainbows are averaging about 4-6 pounds. The action appears to be split between spoons and flies with the best color green glow for spoons and blue flasher/aqua fly combinations.
Lake Michigan fisheries team report
Sheboygan County -
In Sheboygan trollers have been catching chinook, coho, and rainbow trout. Most fish have been caught from 35 to 50 feet of water. Spoons and flies fished 20 feet down have been productive. Shore fishing in Sheboygan has been good, with chinook, rainbows, and coho caught off both piers. Spoons have taken the most fish.
Ozaukee County -
Trollers in Port Washington have found a mixed bag of fish between 35 and 90 feet of water. Good numbers of chinook, coho, rainbows, and a few browns have been hitting spoons or flashers and flies, and fish have been from the surface to 50 feet down. Shore anglers in Port Washington have been catching perch on jigs and minnows fished off the harbor side of the pier. Anglers fishing the lake side of the pier have been catching rainbows, chinook, and a few browns on alewives. Boaters fishing for perch in Port have been catching fair numbers on fathead minnows at the south pier.
Milwaukee County -
In Milwaukee trollers have been catching coho and chinook, along with a few rainbows and lake trout. Spoons have taken the majority of fish, and the best colors have been watermelon, white, and blue. The most consistent depths recently have been 40 to 60 feet of water, and most fish have been caught straight east of the harbor or north off the filtration plant. The hours before sunrise and after dark have been most productive for trollers. For shore anglers in Milwaukee, the most consistent spot has been McKinley pier. Live alewives fished off the bottom have taken browns and chinook, and perch have been taken on plastics. Boaters launching at Bender Park and fishing for perch have been catching good numbers at the boils off South Milwaukee, and near the Oak Creek Power Plant. Small minnows fished about a foot off the bottom have produced.
Racine County -
In Racine trollers have been catching decent numbers of coho and chinook. Fish have been near shore, and the best catches have come in less than 60 feet of water. Shore fishing in Racine has been good the past several days, despite the muddy water being discharged from the Root River. The north pier has had the clearest water, but the fewest fish. Perch fishing has been fair to good, with fish being caught in nearly all manners from south pier all the way to the wastewater treatment plant. Along with the perch, there have been browns, rainbows and even a few coho hooked recently, many by those targeting perch and spoons accounted for the remainder. For those fishing in boats, the perch bite has been fair to good, with the breakwalls and the bubbler providing good action at times. Minnows and crab tails have both produced, as have jigs.
Kenosha County -
In Kenosha the trolling bite remains consistent, with good catches coming from as shallow as 40 feet of water, to as deep as 100 feet or more. Nearly all methods have produced fish at times. Fishing in the Kenosha harbor has been improving steadily, especially in the evening hours and into the night. Silver & green spoons as well as glow in the dark have been catching fish, as have tube jigs. Most fish have been brown trout, and activity has been good from the Best Western all the way out to the ends of the piers. Perch fishing has been slow from the piers, but better from Southport marina, especially in the early morning hours. Live bait has accounted for a large number of perch. Boats out for perch have been having a good bite in the mornings. Minnows have been the most consistent producer, but others are having luck with jigs and plastic.
Governor Nelson State Park -
The lake level is slightly higher than usual. Panfishing has been good with and bluegill being plentiful.
Crawford County -
A large amount of rain fell in the last 10 days. The Crawford County area didn?t receive as much rain as areas north. However, local rivers are being affected. Heavy rains fell in the upper basins of the Mississippi, Kickapoo, and Wisconsin rivers. Water levels locally have risen substantially. The Mississippi River rose rapidly this week. Last week at this time the river stage was at 9.73 feet at Mc Gregor. The Mississippi River was at 11.39 feet this week and rising. The forecast is for a continued rise to about the 13 foot mark, which is considered the ?action? stage. Flood stage is at 16 feet. The Kickapoo River rose rapidly too. Last week the river stage in Gays Mills and Steuben was at 7.37 and 7.44 feet respectively; this week it was up to 11.15 and 11.4 feet respectively. It appears that the Kickapoo might have crested and is on its way down. The Wisconsin River has been up and down quite a bit this week. The river stage in Muscoda was 2.85 feet this week. Canoers and kayakers who spend the night camping on the Wisconsin River must make sure they secure their watercraft so it doesn?t drift away over night. Local trout streams are running high and a bit dirty. They are expected to clear up within a couple days. Boaters are urged to use caution on the Mississippi River as the rising water had caused some trees and debris to be pulled off the shorelines. Those obstructions are now floating down the river. Keep a sharp eye open and slow down. The ?slow-no-wake? zone on the Mississippi River is in effect for the summer boating season. The main channel is marked with buoys in the Mc Gregor Iowa area. Carp are actively spawning in the backwaters. Bow fishers have been taking advantage of it. Fishing has been disrupted due to the high water. Heavy current, dirty water and floating debris and weeds are causing problems for anglers. Anglers have been finding some pretty decent bluegill action in the backwaters in the flooded timber and vegetation where the water recently flooded. Access to those areas by boat is tough. Most of the traditional bluegill fishing areas are now seeing strong current, even in the backwater lakes and sloughs. Horseshoe Lake and Sawmill Slough have produced some ?gills?. Try finding weed edges with clear water and no current. Some decent perch have been taken along the deeper weed edges. Primarily anglers are using a chunk of night crawlers on a dead line. Crappie action has been very spotty to slow. White bass action has been very spotty with this high water. Some white bass action can be found along wing dams and up near the Lynxville dam. The high water has disrupted action a bit; however, anglers can still find plenty of action. Look for smallmouth bass on wing dams close to shore, on closing dams, and rocky shorelines. The Wisconsin River has seen some very good smallmouth bass action. Largemouth bass were also being caught all over the place. Look for ?bucket mouths? in the weeds, weed edges, and in the timber. A variety of artificial baits have worked. Even with the high water walleye and sauger were being taken. Angler will have to move around a bit and try different tactics. Wing dams are probably the best bet, although some the deeper back water sloughs are producing fish. Drifting with live bait (leeches or nightcrawlers) and trolling are the most popular tactics. Areas to check for walleye and sauger would be up near the Lynxville dam, McDonald?s Slough, the ?S? curve by Harper?s Ferry Slough, wing dams, Roseau Slough, and the Wisconsin River. Up on Pool 9 near Lynxville and Ferryville try the Deer Island complex and the area of the main channel by Lansing. It probably goes without saying, but sheepshead (freshwater drum) are very active, even in the rising water. Sheepshead are being caught on night crawlers throughout the area. Catfish, both channel and flathead had been good. However fishing conditions are a bit tough as most cats are caught fishing off the bottom. Floating weeds and other debris makes that type of fishing difficult. Fishing conditions aren?t the best, but even so anglers are finding decent action. Fly fishers, spinners and live bait are working well even with the high water. Trout anglers will find insect pests and shoreline vegetation might cause some problems. Gnats, deer flies, horse flies and mosquitoes are out.
Minocqua Area Fishing Report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/minocquafishingreport.htmChippewa Flowage Fishing Report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/chippewaflowagefishingreport.htmLake Michigan Fishing Report and tips
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/lmfishingtips.htmCentral Wisconsin Fishing report
http://www.wisconsinoutdoor.com/wisconsinriverfishingreport.htmInformation compiled from the WDNR Outdoor report and private sources
