Northern Lake Michigan Fishing Report: June 15, 2010Manitowoc Co.Heavy rains during the week turned into great fishing weather by the weekend with light winds and temperatures around 70 degrees. Water temperatures rose slightly in the area ranging from 57-59 degrees. Angler success has continued to improve week by week, with boaters averaging 5-7 fish and some boats coming in with 4 or 5 person limits. Chinook salmon continue to dominate most coolers, but several nice rainbows in the 10-12 pound range have been consistently caught. Out of Two Rivers, angling success has been concentrated in the 60-100 foot range north of the trap nets to the lighthouse. The fishing straight out of Manitowoc and south of Manitowoc in 100-125 feet had the most luck during the week. Coolers consisted mostly of Chinook salmon, with a few nice rainbow trout mixed in. Blue flasher/aqua fly, green dodger/green fly combinations, and green glow spoons have been successful with more fish coming on pump handles and dypsies. Green pro kings and various color spoons with a purple ladder also had success. The large rainbows have been caught deep north of Two Rivers, coming 40-60 feet down on down riggers and lead core. Out of Manitowoc, the rainbows have been taken on surface lines using orange and green spoon combinations. Those of you looking to go out north of Two Rivers, watch out for the crane wreck in the 60-65 foot range just south of the lighthouse. This wreck is marked with a white buoy.
Kewaunee Co.The week began with great fishing weather with relative low winds and partly sunny skies. This unfortunately didn?t last as the clouds began to roll in on Wednesday and the rain followed starting on Friday. The weather during the weekend was sporadic rains with increasing winds that limited some of the boats that were able to launch. Algoma: The steelhead action on the pier continued this week with fish being taken on fire tiger colored spoons. A few brown trout were also caught this week with fire tiger spoons as well. The Algoma ramp saw a lot of fish being caught between Monday and Friday with many boats filling their limits. Unfortunately, Saturday and Sunday were not as productive as boats had trouble landing more than 2-3 fish each. The fish being caught were mostly Chinook salmon and were caught in waters with depths ranging from 60-110 feet. Kewaunee: The Kewaunee ramp was again a very successful location for trout and salmon fishermen this week. The action was hot all week but slowed down on Saturday and Sunday. Many boats hit their limits of fish on Friday and Saturday with some large fish being brought in. The majority of the fish being caught have been Chinook salmon but just below half the fish being caught have been Lake Trout. A few Coho salmon and steelhead have been hooked as well. The most successful depths seem to range from 60-100 feet with the fish striking around 40 feet down. There hasn?t been one specific color that has been more successful that others this week. A lot of people have been trying their luck at the Kewaunee pier this week and have seen some increased success. Some nice sized brown trout and rainbow trout have been caught on spoons near the lighthouse.
Door Co. (Lake and Bay sides)The second week of June brought happiness to farmers in the area and tough conditions for anglers as some wet weather was had in Door County, along with some decent thunderstorms. The rain was spotty all week and into the weekend, but anglers were still seen targeting good catches of Salmon and Trout. The somewhat needed rain compensated for relatively dry conditions up until this point. Salmon fishing has continued to be steady and productive with many nice coolers coming in off the Lake. Fishing out of Sturgeon Bay, Baileys Harbor, and Rowley?s Bay has been successful for sometime now, with more anglers starting to get out on the big pond. Flasher and fly combinations have been consistent, however anglers have also reported success with spoons too. Working anywhere between 60-150 feet of water has produced the best catches, with some rainbows still being taken in the upper part of the water column. Fishing on the Green Bay side has also picked up with some decent catches being reported out of Ellison Bay and Gills Rock. One fisherman stated, ?Paying attention to natural signs around you is helpful,? in regards to seeing diving terns picking alewife out of the top water area, and switching the lures and depths he was working. Smallmouth bass fishing pressure has reduced somewhat, with perch fisherman quickly taking their place. Some decent catches of perch have been reported in the Bay, with some wall hangers in the mix. Working the edges of the shipping channel and Dunlap?s Reef have been common spots for anglers using minnows suspended near the bottom. On an exciting note, musky fishing in the area has been producing some nice fish. Five reported legal fish have been caught and released in the last week, and a few others just below legal have been seen throughout the Bay. Bucktails have been the hot ticket, and most anglers admit that it didn?t take 10,000 casts.
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