Smelt Report for April 23, 2015
The ice went out of Chequamegon Bay on Saturday night, April 11, and the smelt run began the very next night. The smelt ran pretty well all last week, with a few hiccups here and there.
The run did continue over the past weekend. On Sunday and Monday nights people were still getting some smelt, but Carolyn Swartz, co-owner of Anglers All in Ashland, said she thinks the run is now winding down here.
According to River Rock Inn & Bait Shop, smelters were having some luckTuesday night up by Cornucopia and Port Wing.
We had a caller to our office tell us he was down behind Anglers All last night and the smelt were running there at 2 a.m. This smelter said he filled four 5-gallon buckets.
Obviously, there is no earthly way for us to predict how long the run will last, so we strongly urge you smelters to get out there as soon as possible! If you wait, you will miss out on this year’s harvest.
The smelt usually run late at night and are brought in with a seine net or dip net. The seine net is used on the shores of the big lake and some smelters use a dip net in the creeks.
At times, the smelt may start running at 9 p.m. or they may be running at midnightor later, so it pays to be patient and stay down at the beach. They are unpredictable little fish (approximately 4 to 5 inches in length) that only answer to Mother Nature.
Please note: Neither of the bait shops have smelt for sale any longer.
We hope all of you smelters had a great time during this year’s run and that you will visit Ashland next year when the smelt come to our shores once again!
For more information on smelting season in the Ashland area, call us at 1-800-284-9484.