Ashland Area Fishing Report for July 3, 2014

~ Fishing Guide Nate Baron from Up North Guide Service (http://www.upnorthguideservice.net/) and fishing guide Scott Bretting from River Rock Inn and Bait Shop, 715/682-3232 (http://www.riverrockinn.net), report the following:

Fishing has been good this past week despite the very high winds. The smallmouth bass in Chequamegon Bay are near the end of spawning and can still be found in shallow water in the Sand Cut and slough areas. Slow-moving swimbaits and Senkos hooked wacky-style have been working very well. Trolling in 4-8 foot of water (FOW) with small Berkley Flicker Shads has also been producing real well for both walleyes and smallies.

Anglers have met with a lot of success out on Lake Superior around the Apostle Islands trolling near shore for a nice mixed bag of brown trout and lakers in 15-60 FOW flat-lining stickbaits and running spoons on downriggers halfway down in the water column.

Trolling for lake trout and king salmon has also been good with anglers flat-lining stickbaits and running spoons or flashers on dipsy divers or downriggers in 40-60 FOW in front of Saxon Harbor and off of Marble Point.

Anglers fishing our surrounding area lakes have been doing well on a mixed bag of crappies and bluegills. The crappies have moved out and are suspending over deeper water with reports of the bluegills just coming off the beds now depending on the size of lake due to such a late spring.
Musky fishing has finally started to pick up and the topwater action has been very good in the hours around dawn and dusk.

The forecast for this coming Fourth of July weekend looks outstanding with low winds and beautiful weather. Good luck fishing and tight lines to all!

~ Fishing Guide Roger LaPenter and wife Carolyn from Anglers All, 715/682-5754 (http://www.anglersallwisconsin.com), report the following:

This report is about the Ashland side of Chequamegon Bay. Smallmouth bass action has been great! They are doing their summer move now and seem to be all over the place. Smallies are still being caught in the shallows at different times of the day, but they also can be caught out in 10-20 FOW. You can sight-fish them in the shallows if the water is clear, and the rock pile, drop-offs and weedbeds are good spots as well.

Walleyes are being caught at the mouth of the Kakagon Slough and anglers are trolling with stick baits in the deeper areas. They can be found in the drop-offs to the channel and at the bottom of the channel during high-sun days. Anglers are trolling for walleye during the evening along the shoreline at the east end of the bay and over the rock pile.

Trout and salmon fishing has been very good from Houghton Point all the way to Outer Island and to the south into the flats. People are using spoons off of downriggers near shore, especially early in the morning when anglers are catching them on first breaks off stick baits.

Northern pike are being caught along shore and over the weed beds. “The Ashland shoreline provides a good opportunity to cast for northerns, panfish and bass in general,” notes Carolyn LaPenter.

For the most complete and up-to-date fishing report, just give us a call at Anglers All and we will keep you informed!

~ The Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce, www.visitashland.com, 1-800-284-9484, reports:

Fishing is always a thrilling adventure in the Ashland area!! The Chequamegon Bay is famous for its world-class smallmouth bass fishing!

Come home to Ashland and celebrate an old-fashioned Independence Day! The 4th of July Parade will head down Historic Main Street in downtown Ashland at 11 a.m. on Friday, July 4. Also happening on the 4th, the Ashland Lions Club will have their brat & hot dog stand in front of the Ashland County Courthouse and Moore’s Army Navy Store on Main Street from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. The Ashland Historical Society will host the annual Cemetery Walk from 2-4 p.m. at Mount Hope Cemetery on Sanborn Avenue. Interesting stories from Ashland’s past will be told. Call 715/682-4911 for more details.

In addition, Upper 13 Baseball featuring Merchants vs. Lumberjacks will begin at 2 p.m. at Pufall Field. The Chequamegon Bay Concert Band will perform at 8 p.m. at the Ashland Bandshell along U.S. Hwy. 2. The spectacular fireworks display over Chequamegon Bay will follow the traditional “Fire Run” of fire trucks and other emergency vehicles down Main Street starting at 9:45 p.m. For optimum viewing, the best spot to watch the fireworks this year will be Bayview Beach. All of these great activities and events will take place on Friday, July 4th. For more details, contact the Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce at 715/682-2500.

Mya Laack of Waukesha caught this smallie in June while out with Nate Baron ofAshland’s Up North Guide Service. Nate says little Mya “loves to fish and reels in these monsters all on her own.”

Chicagoan Mel Stahl poses with a personal best smallmouth caught in June onChequamegon Bay while fishing with Up North Guide Service using a Senko hooked wacky-style.

Brendon of Minneapolis, Minn., with the first fish of the day caught June 28 while trolling on Lake Superior off of Long Island with Nate Baron of Up North Guide Service.

Riley Bretting of Ashland holds up a nice laker he caught recently with Nate Baron while flat-lining a Hot Steel Scatter Rap in 40 FOW on Lake Superior near Long Island.