Wisconsin Statewide fishing report 3.26.10Ice conditions have continued to deteriorate with the mild spring weather. Ice thickness has dropped down to the 8- to 12-inch range on northern lakes, and southern lakes are opening. Portions of the Madison area lakes are open and ice may go out of Lake Monona completely this week. For all practical purpose, the ice fishing season has now ended statewide, as access conditions and honeycombed ice have made it just too unsafe for anglers to get out. Rivers and parts of many flowages have lost their ice cover even through northern Wisconsin.
Some ice flows remain on Green Bay and shifting ice can make boating on any open areas of the bay hazardous. Most of the west shore is ice-free and anglers have been fishing open water, with some limited success for walleye, trout and northern pike. On the Door County side, Sturgeon Bay has open water and anglers have been fishing from boats, but Sawyer Harbor still has some ice.
Lake Michigan tributaries generally have good water levels. Anglers on the Sheboygan River have been catching steelhead and a few rainbows and browns have also been caught in the harbor and at Port Washington. Anglers fishing the Milwaukee River have been catching a few browns and rainbows. Flows are good on the Menomonee River and Oak Creek, and some steelhead have been taken from both. Fair numbers of steelhead and browns have been found throughout the Root River and the Root River Steelhead Facility is running, with the first fish processing scheduled for March 25.
Walleye anglers had good luck this week on the Menomonee River in Marinette. The Mississippi River has continued to rise and was at 13.9 feet this week at Prairie du Chien. The high flows have moved much of the ice out of backwater sloughs. Fishing activity below the dams on the main channel has been spotty, with some decent walleyes taken along with some smaller sauger.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) -
Ice conditions have continued to deteriorate with the unseasonably mild spring weather and ice thickness has dropped down to the 8- to 12-inch range on most lakes. For all practical purpose, the ice fishing season has ended - as access conditions and honeycombed ice have made it just too unsafe for most anglers to try getting out. Area rivers and parts of many flowages have lost their ice cover, but most natural lakes have not yet opened up. The lakes are still completely ice covered - except for a moat of 5 to 20 feet of open water along the shorelines.
Peshtigo
Due to the warm weather over the past few weeks and the lack of precipitation water levels this spring are low. Water temperatures at the landings are in the low 40s with good clarity, although a bit stained. All boat landings are open with the exception of Oconto Park II. Care should be taken went venturing out on the bay because the ice flows will move in strong winds.
Marinette County -
The big story in Marinette County is the walleye bite on the Menominee River. Boaters out of Boom Landing are reporting good catches of walleye along the wall adjacent to the Turn Basin and in the Turn Basin itself. Vertical jigging with lead headed jigs tripped with a minnow has worked extremely well. Shore anglers were also catching walleye from the dam to Stephenson Island. Raps, twister tails and lead jigs tipped with minnows work well. The down side with the shore anglers is when the dams are shut down the bite suffers. The Peshtigo River is fishing slow for walleye and trout at this time but more walleye are starting to show up, things will get better.
Oconto County -
Anglers in Oconto County have been keying on the Oconto Breakwater landing looking for walleye, trout, and pike. Success has been limited. Stiles dam is seeing its share of anglers also searching for the above named species with the same results. It is very early in the year but with rising water temperatures, expect fish to become more active.
Lake Michigan fisheries team report
Sheboygan County -
In Sheboygan, the water levels on the Sheboygan and Pigeon rivers are somewhat high but dropping. Anglers on the Sheboygan River have been catching steelhead on spawn sacs at the Kohler dam. A few rainbows and browns have also been caught off the south pier on both spawn sacs and crank baits.
Ozaukee County -
In Port Washington anglers have been catching a few rainbow and brown trout on spawn both in the north slip and near the power plant discharge. A few steelhead have been taken in upstream stretches of Sauk Creek on yarn flies and spawn sacs.
Milwaukee County -
In Milwaukee anglers fishing the Milwaukee River along the wall under the Hoan bridge have been catching a few browns and rainbows. Spawn and small shiners have produced the most fish. Flows are good on the Menomonee River and Oak Creek, and some steelhead have been taken from both. In the Milwaukee River anglers have been catching fair numbers of steelhead on yarn flies at Kletzsch Park. Boaters jigging around the gaps in Milwaukee continue to catch lake trout.
Racine County -
In Racine water levels and clarity on the Root River are good. Fair numbers of steelhead and browns have been found throughout the river, and most have been taken on spawn sacs or small tube jigs. Fly anglers have had the most success with woolley buggers and egg imitations. The Root River Steelhead Facility is running, and the first fish processing day will most likely be on Thursday, March 25. Fishing in the Racine harbor has been slow.
Kenosha County -
In Kenosha flows on the Pike River are good, but steelhead fishing has been rather slow. In the harbor anglers are catching a few steelhead and browns on white tube jigs or spawn sacs.
Dane County -
The Madison lakes are on the verge of ice out. The north end of Lake Waubesa is ice free and Monona should have ice out any day now, possibly by the weekend. A few anglers have been open water fishing on Monona Bay and some of the other open areas but haven't been having much luck. A few crappies have been taken below the Stoughton dam. Fish refuges along the Yahara River have been posted and northern pike have been observed spawning. Muskies have begun to show up below a few of the dams. Water levels are below the winter minimum and some runoff from rainfall would be helpful. It's been fairly dry and most of the snowmelt has been absorbed into the soil.
Crawford County -
The Mississippi River continues to rise. Last week the river was around the 10 foot mark. As of March 23, the Mississippi River was at 13.8 feet and rising. The forecast, baring any heavy rain, is for a continuing rise of a couple feet which will approach flood stage of 16 feet. The rising water and warm temperatures have moved most, if not all, the back water ice out of the area. The main channel and the east channel of the Mississippi River are completely free of ice. Most of the boat landings on the Mississippi River?s main channel are ice free, but access is becoming difficult due to the rising water. The Kickapoo River is in good shape for this time of year. In Gays Mills the water level was at the 7.75 foot mark and falling. Flood stage is 13 feet. The Wisconsin River at Muscoda was at 3.21 feet and falling. Flood stage is 9 feet. Prairie du Chien Area and Lower bottoms: The increase in water level made fishing difficult for the most part. Swift current is traveling through Garnet Lake, Pickerel Slough, Hunters Slough and St. Feriole Slough. There was ice on Dillman?s pit, however it was to dangerous to travel on. Fishing activity in these areas had changed from panfishing to bass, northern and walleye fishing. Fishing success has been spotty. Prairie du Chien Ambro Slough Complex: For the most part all the ice in the back water area of the Ambro Slough complex is gone. With the high water areas like Tilmont Lake, Spring Lake and Gremore Lake are seeing current traveling through them, which makes fishing difficult. Some anglers have been trying the Roseau Slough area for walleyes with limited success. Sturgeon Slough Area: Current is now flowing through Sturgeon Slough, which really shuts down the fishing. Sturgeon (aka McGregor or Horseshoe) Lake is now ice free and water from the East Channel is flowing across the land and into the lake. Fishing in these areas is slow. Cold Spring: Fishing here remains very slow and the ice is gone. Reports of a few small bluegill and an occasional crappie have been reported by those fishing from boats. Cold Spring is considered inland water. The game fish season closed on Monday March 8. Mississippi River: The boat landing at Gordon?s Bay is now open to boat traffic, however the road leading into the boat landing might be closed due to high water. Anglers are reminded to pay for their launch fee prior to heading out onto the water. Fishing activity below the dam has been spotty. Some decent walleyes have been taken along with some smaller sauger. Anglers will have to use heavier jigs to get to the bottom. A few perch are starting to show up along the long wall at the dam. Anglers are dead lining with night crawlers for perch. Also, a few northern pike have been caught. A huge influx of migratory birds continues.
Brunet Island State Park -
Most of the Cornell Flowage is open, though backwater bays are still holding some ice. The boat ramp is ice free.
Minoqua Area Fishing Report 3.23.10
http://wisconsinoutdoor.com/smf/index.php?topic=3569.0Information compiled from the WDNR outdoor report and private sources
