Lake Michigan Outdoor Fishing Report - May 06, 2019
In general, fishing reports will be updated once per week, usually on Tuesdays. This may change based on availability of reports and work schedules of field staff.
REMINDER - Anglers must carry a paper copy of their license/stamps while fishing on the waters of Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, and the WI/MI, WI/MN and WI/IA boundary waters.
- Southern Lake Michigan Fishing Report
- Northern Lake Michigan Fishing Report
- Green Bay Fishing Report
Southern Lake Michigan Fishing Report: May 06, 2019
Sheboygan County
- City of Sheboygan: Thursday was windy and chilly with a light drizzle. Michigan waters were cold at 48°F within the harbor, relatively calm, and turbid with debris within the harbor. The Pigeon River was turbid, 48°F, and water levels were up. Boat numbers in the marina were marginally up and the cleaning station and bathrooms have been opened. Evergreen Park has also been officially opened. The majority of anglers were fishing at the south pier for trout, but no catches were reported. Saturday was sunny, slightly hazy, with relatively calm Michigan waters (52°F). Boat numbers at the marina remain low. The Pigeon River (52°F) was slightly down and mostly clear. Anglers took advantage of the good weather to fish all along the shore and on the Pigeon River. Many boaters were also out. Although waters were calmer in the morning, they became choppier as time went on. Most boaters came in at this point. A few browns were caught by boat. A smallmouth was caught on the Pigeon River. Sunday evening was breezy and sunny with a few clouds but became windier, chiller, and cloudier as a storm front moved in. Michigan waters (56°F) were muddy within the harbor and crashing over the south pier. The Pigeon River (60°F) was clear. A few anglers fished at the south pier and at Pigeon River Park. A brown was caught, with reports of more browns being caught earlier in the week.
- Sheboygan River: Wednesday was windy, chilly, and raining. The Sheboygan River (48°F) was slightly higher, clear, and running swiftly. Due to difficult conditions no anglers were fishing on the Sheboygan or at Weedens Creek.
Ozaukee County
- Port Washington: Wednesday morning was windy, chilly, and rainy moving to a drizzle by midday. Waters were especially turbulent at the power plant outflow and 58°F. Boats were being put in at the marina, porta potties placed, and the cleaning station at the marina was opened. Sauk Creek’s water levels were up, still mostly clear, and cool at 46°F. Few anglers were out, trying many different tackle, and there were no recorded catches. Thursday evening was chilly, drizzling, and with a fog rolling off the water (58°F). Sauk Creek was higher, slightly more turbid, and 48°F. A few boats were being put in slips at the marina. A few anglers put their poles in to test the waters, but no catches were recorded. Saturday morning was sunny, cool, and warming up. Michigan waters (56°F) were calm. Sauk Creek water levels were reduced, mostly clear, and cool at 48°F. More boats were being put in at the marina. Most anglers were boating, with a few at the outflow and on Sauk Creek. A steelhead was caught at the outflow. Sunday was warm, sunny, and getting cloudier as time went on. Waters were choppy but warm (60°F) at the power plant outflow. Sauk Creek (60°F) was lower, clear, and swift. Many anglers were at the outflow, on Sauk Creek, and boating. An alewife was caught at the outflow, with reports of browns earlier in the week. Several steelhead were caught at Sauk Creek
Milwaukee County
- The Yellow Perch Season for Lake Michigan is now closed. The closed season for yellow perch on runs from May 1 to June 15. Fishing for yellow perch on Lake Michigan during this time is prohibited.
- City Shoreline, North: With the yellow perch season closed as of May 1st, shore fishing on the north end of the city has decreased significantly. A few anglers could be seen near the red lighthouse and around the harbor. All were targeting browns but no fish were reported.
- McKinley Marina: After a quiet week, the ramps were fairly busy this weekend with anglers and pleasure-boaters. The boats coming in on Saturday reported browns and coho that were caught in the harbor. Additionally, some small coho were being caught off the pier. Good news: the cleaning station is finally open at McKinley!
- Riverfront Ramp: Not many boats launched from the Riverfront Ramp this week, likely due to weather conditions.
- City Shoreline, South: Shore fishing has been slow this week, likely due to the weather. A few anglers were seen at Jones Island over the weekend but reported no fish. There were reports of some small browns being caught during the week, but overall fishing has been slow.
- South Shore and Bender Park Ramps: After a slow week due to rain, the South Shore and Bender Park Ramps saw some action on the weekend. Boats reported catching some browns, lakers, and coho near the power plant. One angler also caught a good-size steelhead. The cleaning station is now open at South Shore!
- Milwaukee River: Not many anglers were out during the week due to all the rain we got, but a few anglers were seen over the weekend. Most anglers were targeting smallmouth bass at Kletzsch Park and near North Ave but did not have much success. Water temperatures during the week were reading at about 48°F.
- Menomonee River: Very few anglers were seen on the Menomonee River during survey times, due in part to weather and the end of the trout run. Water temperatures on the river averaged around 54°F on Sunday.
- Oak Creek: Fishing pressure on Oak Creek have continued to decrease, with just a few anglers testing their luck with the remaining steelhead. Only one steelhead was caught during survey times. Some families had fun catching suckers near the dam over the weekend.
- Oak Creek Power Plant: Angling efforts were relatively slow on the pier during survey times - but those that were out reported catching some small browns and coho on crankbaits.
Racine County
- Fishing efforts were very sparse earlier in the week due to bad weather conditions. Nobody was reported fishing on the piers, shorelines, or ramps in Racine. Activity on the Root River was low as well but there were a few people seen trying their luck. Activity picked up later in the week at both locations as the weather improved.
- Racine Harbor and Piers: Fishing efforts were nonexistent on the shores and piers earlier in the week due to the poor weather. The good weather later in the week brought a few anglers along with it. A small handful of people tried their luck along the south pier. A variety of different baits were being used, however none were successful at catching fish.
- Racine Ramp: Just like at the piers, activity was absent early in the week because of the bad weather. Several trailers were reported later in the week though. Success was kind of hit and miss. The most targeted species was Coho Salmon, with one boat bringing about a half dozen Coho, along with a few Brown Trout as well. The bathrooms and cleaning station at the Pershing Park Boat Launch are now open.
- Root River: Water levels on the river went up significantly over the past week due to a few rainy days. Previously walkable areas along the riverbanks were underwater. With the higher water levels meant decreased water clarity and increased water movement. The water temperature was about 58 degrees. The bad river conditions caused fishing efforts to be low. A few anglers tried their luck in the rough weather, with all the fishing activity occurring above the steelhead facility. A few steelhead were reported hooked with one being caught. A few suckers are still being caught as well. The weather improved later in the week with more anglers trying their luck. The improved weather brought less fish though, as only a few suckers were caught. The fishing activity was mostly reported above the steelhead facility, with a few people fishing below the facility.
Kenosha County
- Fishing efforts were very low early in the week due to the bad weather conditions. A few people were spotted fishing along the piers and shorelines early in the bad weather, with no fishing success. There were no boat trailers spotted in the week either. Fishing efforts on the Pike River have still been nonexistent regardless of the weather conditions. The good weather later in the week brought many anglers to the lake.
- Kenosha Harbor and Piers: Fishing efforts were very low earlier in the week due to the bad weather, but a few anglers were still spotted. No catches were reported though. The good weather over the weekend brought out a few more anglers, but not as many as expected. Brown Trout or Coho Salmon were the preferred fish to catch. No fish were caught though. Throwing spoons or crankbaits is the most popular fishing method.
- Kenosha Ramp: The bad weather early in the week left all anglers away from the lake, as there were no boat trailers reported at the launch. The good weather over the weekend brought many boats back to the lake as there were several boat trailers spotted at the launch. Coho Salmon was the most preferred catch, with several Coho being caught between only a few boats. The bite on the lake appeared to be slow along with the Coho caught being small.
- Pike River: Fishing efforts have still been very low on the river regardless of whether the weather was good or bad. Nobody was reported on the river early in the week, but two people were seen trying their luck over the weekend at the mouth of the river, but with no success.
Northern Lake Michigan Fishing Report: May 06, 2018
Manitowoc County
- While running creel this week in Manitowoc it occurred on windy and rainy days, which resulted in no fishing effort. I did not see any one fishing in Manitowoc or in Two Rivers.
Door County
- Door County Lakeside: While on creel this week I managed to find someone still fishing along Hibbards Creek, however, I did not get an interview. While I was walking along Heins Creek I managed to find some yellow perch in the creek and that was it. Whitefish Bay Creek still has some northern pike hanging out around the road crossings that I checked. I did not talk to anyone fishing on the Lake itself.
- Northern Door County Bayside: The only spot where I found anglers going out on the bay was out of the Stone Quarry Launch. The anglers were targeting walleyes and had mixed results. Some anglers fished nearly all day and managed to move a couple of fish. While other anglers only spent half a day fishing and managed to land 15 walleye. Walleyes were being caught using jigs.
- Chaudoirs Dock: During the week the fishing pressure was light with only a handful of boats launching off from here. The anglers were not having the best of luck catching anything most of the time it was either 1 walleye or none. On Saturday the launching pressure increased drastically. All of the parking areas for vehicles and trailers were filled. The average catch was between 2 to 3 walleyes. With the average size being between 18 to 22 inches. They were being caught more on night crawler harnesses while trolling.
- Door County Shipping Canal: I talked to a few anglers that were fishing in the canal behind Stone Harbor resort that managed to catch some northern pike and even a smallmouth bass. The fish were caught casting crankbaits.
Kewaunee County
- Kewaunee County Lakeside: While doing creel in Algoma I was able to talk to few anglers that were fishing for brown trout. Fish were caught in depths ranging from 8 feet to as deep as 30 feet of water. Crankbaits and spoons were effective in catching brown trout. There were also a lake trout and rainbow picked up while trolling for browns. Fish were caught both north and south of town. Northern pike were being caught at Olson Park, on spoons. Carp were being caught in The Ahnapee River ranging from the Algoma Marina up to Heritage Road. I did not have any creel routes along the Kewaunee River or along the lake in Kewaunee.
- Kewaunee County Bayside at Red River: This boat launch had no boaters launching off of it during the week. On Saturday there was one person who launched off of it. There has been nobody shore fishing from this location either.
Fox River and Green Bay Creel Report: May 06, 2019
Fox River
- Traffic at launches was slow until the weekend where anglers were out in large numbers. Metro boat launch at the mouth of the Fox River was very busy with all docks now installed for the season. Warm clear weekend weather showed high numbers of people utilizing the Fox River walk, a few people were even jet skiing and water skiing on the river. Shore angling was in moderate numbers with low success. One party harvested 12 White Bass on Saturday launching near the mouth.
Oconto County
- Overall fishing pressure has slowed from previous weeks. Anglers were still fishing for walleyes in the Oconto River and in the bay. Rather slow fishing was reported all week. Wind and rain hurt effort early in the week. Anglers reported a few walleyes caught in the bay along with northern pike and a couple small muskies. Fishing in the Oconto River yielded suckers and a few pike.
- Geano Beach: Early week rough weather caused large waves to cast quite a bit of debris along the channel and launch. This was cleared by the weekend and use of this launch increased from previous weeks. Although use and effort was increased, anglers reported slow fishing.
Brown County
- Duck Creek, Longtail Point, Suamico River: These locations are still mainly being utilized by people walking, and bird watching. The launch at Suamico River became busy over the weekend, however many anglers reported low success.
- Bayshore: During the week there was nobody fishing off the pier or from shore. The boaters were having luck and averaging one or two per boat usually. The water temperature was between 48 to 51. During the weekend the fishing pressure increased dramatically due to opening weekend of fishing. On Saturday there was 153 boats launching from this launch. A lot of the anglers were having luck and averaged 2 to 3 walleyes. The size range of the walleyes being caught were 16 to 22 inches. Trolling with night crawler harnesses and flicker shad raps were having the most luck catching the walleyes. The pier anglers on Saturday were not having any luck.
Marinette County
- Peshtigo River: Peshtigo River fishing pressure was steady this week with boats being seen at all 3 launches fairly equally. Walleyes were reported caught out of all three areas but in low numbers. Suckers, northern pike, perch, and muskies were also reported as species caught. Sturgeon have now made it upstream now and can be seen below the dam in Peshtigo.
- Menominee River: Menominee River had fair numbers of anglers this past week with most effort upstream of the Hwy 41 bridge early in the week. Most boat anglers were trying their luck in the bay during the week with more boats showing up in the river come the weekend. Overall walleye fishing was slow with best results below Hattie St. dam in the beginning of the week. Over the weekend the fishing shifted downstream with walleyes being caught by boat anglers jigging from Marinette Marine down to the Turnbasin off the 6th street launch. A few boats were targeting brown trout and walleyes of the Little River launch with no fish reported.
Last revised: Tuesday May 07 2019