With many hunting seasons open, fishing pressure has really dropped off on the waters in the north. There have still been
quite a few musky anglers out, and with water temperatures finally cooling down into the low 60s, more anglers have started using suckers but initial success has been rather low.
Walleye fishing continued to improve slowly, with greater numbers of fish showing up in the shallows. Bass are becoming more temperamental in their biting. Panfish action has been good and some nice catches of crappie reported. Walleye fishing activity has been good on the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers.
As expected, the rain triggered a salmon run on some Lake Michigan tributaries. Chinook were being caught in the Little, East and West Twin, Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers. Water levels remained low on southeastern tributaries, but the rain did trigger some upriver movement and chinook have been caught on the Sheboygan, Pigeon and Milwaukee rivers with a few being found in the Root and Pike rivers. The cool temperatures and windy conditions resulted in fishing pressure being extremely light on Lake Michigan. Salmon action was only fair for those anglers who ventured out. Smallmouth bass action continued to be good on Green Bay from Little Sturgeon all the way north to Washington Island. Walleye action was reported as good to very good throughout the county. Perch action was fair to good.
Brule River State Forest Anglers are reminded that fishing on the Bois Brule River, Highway 2 and upstream to the headwaters closed Sept. 30. Highway 2 and downstream to the mouth of the River will be open until Nov. 15. Anglers are still reporting a mixed bag of lake run fish being caught.
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) - With nearly all of the major hunting seasons open, fishing pressure has really dropped off on the waters in the north. There have still been quite a few musky anglers out -- they have been enjoying some real nice weather but action has been on the slow side. The most productive baits have been bucktails and stick baits, with most of the fish being seen along the deep weed edges. With water temperatures finally cooling down into the low 60s, sucker anglers have just started trying their luck. But initial success has been rather low and anglers were finding that it's been hard to keep the suckers alive with the unseasonably warm water temperatures. Walleye fishing has been slowly improving, with greater numbers of fish showing up in the shallows. Jig and minnow combinations worked on the weed edges and mid-depth gravel bars have produced the best success, but casting crank baits in the shallows near dark has also produced some fair catches. Largemouth bass continue to be found in shallow water, though they've been a bit temperamental in their biting. The best action has been in the late afternoon hours after the water has warmed up over the course of the day. Smallmouth bass have still been fairly active and some nice fish are still showing up in the local rivers and flowages. They have still been found near cover along the deep water areas -- but look for the fish to go deeper (and become harder to catch) with the declining water temperatures this fall. Panfish action has been good and some nice catches of crappie have been made in the late afternoon hours. The fish have been found along weed edges and near mid-depth cover, with small minnow producing the best success. Anglers are reminded that the general trout season closed on September 30 with most streams, rivers, and spring ponds closed to trout fishing. Many stocked trout lakes do remain open and those can be found in the Wisconsin Trout Fishing Regulations and Guide pamphlet.
Woodruff Area conservation wardens and guides report that musky fishing is picking up and walleye fishing stays steady. Musky anglers are employing the use of sucker rigs and reporting increased success. Anglers are reminded that dragging a sucker behind the boat while utilizing a trolling motor to propel the boat along the shore is a violation of the trolling restrictions and citations will be issued. A few largemouth bass have been caught, although they will become less active as the lakes continue to cool. Smallmouth bass have moved into deeper waters ? about 15-20 feet. Perch activity is reported as sporadic but they are being caught on weed edges or in flowages with submerged wood in about 6-12 feet of water. Bluegills are hanging about the weed edges and have been somewhat aggressive. Crappies are beginning to school in shallow weeds.
Marinette County - Cool temperatures, windy conditions, and rain has resulted in fishing pressure being extremely light, with a few exceptions. Water temperatures at the landings has dropped into the upper 50s. One exception has been Little River. Anglers have still been lining the banks looking to hook into a salmon as they start to make their spawning run. Some salmon were being caught, but the numbers are down from last week. Another exception has been the walleye anglers who have been enjoying good success trolling crawler/harness around Chambers and Green islands (weather permitting). Salmon are jumping in the pocket at the Hattie Street Dam, hook ups have been few.
Oconto County - Some salmon have made their way up to the dam in Stiles but most anglers were still keying on panfish. Susie's Rapids (south) was producing some nice salmon in the 12 to 15 pound range using the triple swivel method. A few browns were being caught by anglers casting spoons from the end of the breakwater at the Oconto Harbor.
Manitowoc County - Salmon fishing in Two Rivers and Manitowoc was good early last week, but slowed by the weekend. A few nice sized chinook salmon and an occasional brown trout were caught by anglers fishing the piers or from boats in the harbors. Yellow perch anglers fishing deep water inside the Two Rivers harbor had slow but steady success this week. Most of the perch ranged in length from 6 to 12 inches and were caught using small minnows. On the East Twin River, salmon anglers have had some success fishing at the road crossings on the lower half of the river. Some nice catches were made by drifting spawn sacs or fly fishing in the early morning (AFTER SUNRISE). Salmon fishing success near the Mishicot dam has been slow so far, but on Sunday, one angler fishing the dam landed a nice, very brightly colored, male steelhead. On the West Twin River, salmon anglers were concentrated near the Shoto dam. Friday was a good fishing day for most anglers with many chinook salmon harvested that ranged in weight from 12 to 22 pounds. A few brown trout were also landed on Friday. By Sunday fishing success near Shoto had dropped substantially. Most anglers were using spawn sacs or casting spinners and spoons.
Door County - The weather this week was more seasonable, with occasional showers producing some much needed rain. Temperatures were seasonably pleasant and the winds were mostly calm. The salmon action on Lake Michigan was only fair again this week. Anglers trolling out deep with spoons and fly and dodger combinations in the top 60 to 80 feet over 100 to 300 feet of water were having some limited success. Action off the piers at the Coast Guard Station and from the shore along the canal was best described as fair. Spoons and crank baits were producing a few fish for anglers trolling in the canal. Farther north, anglers continued to report taking a few fish out of Baileys Harbor, Gills Rock and the waters around Washington Island. Smallmouth bass action continued to be good on Green Bay from Little Sturgeon all the way north to Washington Island. The reefs and points are all producing some smallmouth. Tube jigs, stick baits, grubs and Katelands fished in 8 to 15 feet of water all were producing a few fish. Top water lures, spinners and crank baits fished in 2 ? 10 feet of water near structure were also productive. Walleye action was reported as good to very good throughout the county, especially at night and under low light conditions. Anglers trolling over Henderson Reef and Monument Shoals as well as around islands such as Chambers and the Strawberries reported some success, mostly on crank baits and crawler harnesses fished in the 12 to 15 feet of water. Perch action was fair to good this week. The usual areas off of Chaudoir?s dock, the weed beds in Sturgeon Bay and Little Sturgeon Bay, the flats and the area between the bridges in Sturgeon Bay all were producing some perch, minnows and night crawlers fished in 8 to 15 feet of water remain the baits of choice. Northern pike were cooperating with anglers casting off the points and along the weed edges in Sturgeon Bay and Little Sturgeon.
Strawberry Creek Egg Collection Facility - The Sturgeon Bay area received 0.8 inches of rain Sunday night to Monday morning. This was enough rain to slightly increase the flow of Strawberry Creek for a short period of time and a few salmon made their way up Strawberry Creek and jumped into the pond. The flow has since dropped and the number of salmon coming up the creek has slowed. Current plans are for a Thursday, Oct. 1, start up of the pump that supplies supplemental water to Strawberry Creek. Based on past experience there will likely be a near immediate response by the fish and the pond should be full of chinook by Monday morning Oct. 5. Crews are planning to conduct a chinook egg harvest on Monday. Staff will be at the pond by 8:30 a.m. setting up but given that this is the first harvest of the season crews may not be in full operation mode until 9:30 or later. Visitors are always welcome. School groups planning a visit to Strawberry Creek and people wanting to volunteer to help at Strawberry Creek are asked to contact Paul Peeters paul.peeters@wisconsin.gov or Scott Hansen scott.hansen@wisconsin.gov to coordinate those activities.
Kewaunee County - Weather this past week was more seasonable with some rain in the middle and end of the week. Winds were calm out of the south and the east for most of the week, but they did pick up toward the end of the week. Salmon are continuing to get darker as the fall spawning run gets closer, and there are many fish being spotted and caught up the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers. Anglers have been reporting some success casting spoons for trout and salmon off of the piers in Algoma and Kewaunee. Most of the fish were being caught at sunrise and sunset, but some were being taken during the day. Anglers that have been going out on the lake had limited success this week. Kings, steelhead, and lakers were all being caught this week. Water temperatures are still been holding in the upper 60s on the surface this past week. Most of the fish that are being caught are being found in water depths between 75 and 125 feet with most anglers fishing over water that is in the 125 to 200 feet range. Anglers have also been fishing in the near shore areas around the mouth of the harbors and in the harbors and have also been finding a few fish.
Oshkosh Anglers looking for white bass have reported the key is to zero in on the seagull activity and anglers will find good fishing. Just follow the flock. High winds this week have made for some turbid water and rough fishing. Good size bluegills and crappies have been the pay off for persistence in weed beds and often times in open water. Maple trees, sumac and prairie grasses are showing their fall colors in Winnebago County. New England aster and goldenrod are the current bloomers. The migrant Canada geese are coming down from the north. The deadline to purchase a Winnebago System sturgeon spearing license is Oct. 31. Additional turkey permits for zone 3 are still available for purchase.
Baldwin Walleye fishing activity has been good on the Mississippi River, St. Croix River and Cedar Lake.
Minocqua area fishing report 9.29.09http://wisconsinoutdoor.com/smf/index.php?topic=2795.0Chippewa Flowage fishing report 10.1.09http://wisconsinoutdoor.com/smf/index.php?topic=2794.0Great Lakes Fishinghttp://wisconsinoutdoor.com/smf/index.php?board=13.0Information compiled from the WDNR Outdoor report and private soursces
