Curly's Photo and Fishing Blog
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Up North Fishing Report 2/18/09
Our ice is in great shape, but fishing reports have been real slow except for smelt on Higgins Lake.
Crystal Lake- Still had good smelt action at night. Ice not safe past railroad point!
Higgins Lake- Still has ice and ice fishing however anglers are advised to keep cars and trucks off the ice. The smelt are still hitting on the north end of the lake, evenings are best. Lake trout are still deep and the perch are hitting around the islands. It is Winterfest Weekend and Ice conditions are good. You can call Phoenix Park @ 989-821-7220 for info off the west access site and Sports Barn @ 989-821-9511 for info on the south-end of Higgins Lake
Lake Margrethe has good ice and fishing has been a little better this week. Call Skipâ??s Sport Shop @ 989-348-7111 for the latest info.
Tremendous walleye activity is taking place in the Bay on Munuscong Lake as well as good perch fishing. Anglers tell us that this is probably the best fishing in 15 years. The ice is outstanding and ranging between 30 and 40 inches thick. Perch are biting on minnows and any type of jig seems to be working. Near Cedarville, perch are hitting on Musky Bay.
Portage Lake by Onekama has been good for perch, with some getting walleye right at dark. Call Osbornâ??s Sport Shop in Bear Lake @ 231-889-3775 or Donâ??s Sport Shop in Manistee @ 231-723-5028
Hamlin Lake- Anglers are taking a mixed bag of keepers in 12 feet of water off the Boy Scout Camp. They are catching big bluegills, pumpkinseed, rock bass, crappie and some perch when using pink, orange or very bright colored jigs with two wax worms. A few big crappie were taken in 32 feet of water while the big bluegills were caught on the bottom in 17 to 25 feet of water. Fishing on Lower Hamlin stopped because the ice conditions had become questionable. Call Pere Marquette Sport @ 231-843-8676 or Hamlin Grocery @ (231) 843-2058
The Eyes Have It reports great fishing in the Leroy area call Craig @ 231-768-5653
Houghton Lake - Still has ice fishing. Anglers are taking some nice bluegills on tear drops with wax worms. Perch ranging from 10 to 12 inches were starting to hit as well as some crappie. Walleye fishing is still good in the East Bay and off the north shore and pike are still going after the tip-ups. Call Lymanâ??s Sport and Shanty Rental @ 989-422-3231
Near the Kalkaska area, Some 20 to 27 inch pike have been caught in 12 to 15 feet of water when using large minnows. Fish the flats between Baggs Road and the Torch River or the Narrows between the two lakes. For perch, try off the Baggs Road access site as well as the northwest portion of the lake near the Narrows in 10 to 15 feet of water and be ready to sort out the small ones. Bluegills, pumpkinseed and rock bass were also caught off the access site. Those spearing muskie have taken a couple fish ranging from 46 to 50 inches. Elk Lake - Lake trout have been caught near the town of Kewadin, off Gay Road and off the Whitewater Park. Most are jigging Swedish Pimples with spawn or minnows in 80 to 140 feet of water. The trout are averaging 22 to 32 inches. A few lake herring were also caught near Kewadin in 30 to 50 feet of water. No lake whitefish, walleye or steelhead were reported this week Call Jackâ??s Sport Shop for the latest info @ 231-258-8892
Lake St Helen has been good this week for pike, walleye and panfish and has great ice conditions. Call Malcoms Sport @ 989-389-2100 for latest info
Sanford Lake at the first fill has been hot for crappie this week with minnow working best. Call Sanford Sport Shop @ 989-687-5161 for latest info.
Otsego Lake has a good perch bite with some walleye being caught and Bradford has nice perch being caught. Also some Stugeon being caught with three keepers last weekend. They have been seeing quite a few sturgeon in the evening. Call Stugeon Joe @ 989-732-5866 for the latest info.
Burt Lake has been slow this week.
Green Lake by Interlochen has been good for smelt off both access sites with halis and waxworms working best.
Traverse City - Good angling action near Traverse City on Long Lake and most inland lakes for walleye, blue gill and pan fish. Minnows, wax worms and spikes are popular. Anglers need to check the ice before attempting to walk on the ice.
Big Glen Lake - ce conditions have deteriorated. Some areas may have 5 inches while other may only have 3 inches of ice and snow on the lake makes it difficult to see the areas of thin ice. Anglers should avoid driving quads or snowmobiles on the ice. Fishing was slow except for some nice perch caught off Inspiration Point. Try minnows in 14 to 20 feet of water. Perch over 10 inches were caught recently.
Betsie River - Those willing to brave the cold could very well hook into an occasional steelhead.
Lake Missaukee - Lots of fisherman out this weekend catching gills and pike with ice conditions great.
Lake Cadillac - Ice fishing is still going strong but it would be a good idea to keep the cars and trucks off the ice. Pike and panfish are still being caught.
East Twin Lake - The ice has frozen again but anglers still need to use extreme caution around the large pressure cracks. Small perch are hitting on perch minnows. A few walleye have been seen, but none were caught.
West Twin Lake - Anglers should avoid traveling over or near the pressure cracks. Walleye fishing was decent in 10 to 15 feet of water when using a Swedish Pimple tipped with a minnow or a rapala minnow.
Lake Mitchell - Anglers are still ice fishing here for pike and panfish. Keep the cars and trucks off the ice!
Indian Lake by Manistique has a good perch and walleye bite this week. South Manistique Lake - Still has good walleye action when jigging or using tip-ups. For those spearing, try the southeast side between the access site and Norton Island in 5 to 10 feet of water.
Brevoort Lake - Is still producing some nice bluegills on the northwest end of the lake near the campground. Look for walleye along the east shoreline in the early morning or late evening.
Munuscong Lake has decent ice at this time but the temperatures are extremely cold. A few brave soles are getting out and fishing for perch using minnows and reeling in some good sized fish.
Around St.Ignace a few anglers are getting out on Christiansen Bay and pulling in a few perch and walleye on minnows.
Lake Gogebic near the Bergland area is giving up a few walleye, pike and perch on minnows. However it has been so frigid that most anglers are staying indoors. Ice shanties are appearing on the north and south ends of the Lake as anglers are getting geared up for ice fishing this weekend.
Near the Alanson and Boyne areas, Burt, Crooked, Pickeral, Mullett, and Walloon lakes are all freezing up nicely, as well as most of the rivers and parts of Lake Charlevoix. Ice fishing should be able to commence this weekend; however anglers should use extreme caution when attempting to walk out on any body of water.
Saginaw Bay - Off Palmer Road, some perch were caught in 5 feet of water. The walleye fishing was good about 2 ½ miles out in 8 feet of water. Good walleye action out near the Pinconning Bar. Erickson Road was good out in 17 to 20 feet of water and those fishing off the State Park did well 4 to 5 miles out in 18 feet of water. At the Hot Ponds, those wading did great for walleye but now the water is muddy and the bite is slow. Look for the action to pick up when the river goes down. Pike were speared off Quanicassee. Off Thomas Road, the shore ice was bad but anglers were still going out 7 to 8 miles for good numbers of walleye. The ice around Sebewaing, Rose Island Road and Geiger Road is not good. At Bay Port, the ice in general is not good so anglers are using airboats to go out and fish for perch even though the bite has been slow.
Saginaw River - The ice conditions have deteriorated to the point that it is no longer safe for ice fishing.
Little Bay De Noc - Several pressure cracks have popped up and anglers should use extreme caution when traveling in these areas. Also, there is open water out by the Escanaba Docks, so avoid that area. Walleye fishing was spotty with most of the fish caught between Gladstone and the Center Reef when jigging rapalas or using tip-ups with minnows in 24 to 40 feet of water. Good numbers of fish were marked off Portage Point however the bite was slow. Perch fishing was slow but a few nice jumbos were caught off the beach in Gladstone. Perch were caught in 8 to 14 feet of water near Kipling. Pike spearing near Kipling has seen a banner year with several reports of large fish taken. Most are using live sucker decoys in 8 to 14 feet of water. The better whitefish reports came from the Terrace Inn north to the Narrows when jigging minnows and spawn in 30 to 40 feet of water..
Muskegon Lake- Anglers are still ice fishing however caution needs to be used. Stay clear of the channel, the river and the hot water discharges. The channel has open water. Fishing was hit-or-miss however the water did start to clear up. Those able to find perch did catch enough for a meal.
White Lake - Yellow perch have been caught along the southwest portion of the lake including Indian Bay. Look for pike up in the narrows off Montague.
AAA Fishing Report
Upper Peninsula:
Weather is taking a toll on activity in the Manistique area this week despite good ice. Anglers out today came back with a big zero.
Off of the Sault Ste. Marie area, anglers are catching good numbers of whitefish on wax worms. On Munuscong Bay minnows seem to be working well on perch and walleye. Ice is in good condition. Brevort Lake in the St.Ignace area is giving up good numbers of walleye and perch on minnows.
Lake Gogebic in the Bergland area is giving up good counts of perch and crappie with crappie minnows and wigglers working well. Walleye activity is a bit slow this week and anglers are using minnows with limited success. The ice has firmed up after last weekâ??s thaw.
Again this week not much improvement for anglers in the Marquette area with fishing hit or miss. The conditions on the ice seem to be the main reason for inactivity. The snow is very deep ranging from 18 to 24 inches in some areas and slush can be up to your knees in others.
Fishing has improved in the Escanaba area. Anglers are finding good numbers of perch and walleye on the north end of Little Bay De Noc in 8 to 20 feet of water. Minnows seem to be doing the trick. Whitefish action is also good in 70 feet of water on wax worms. The ice has firmed up and is in good shape.
Northwest:
Anglers will find fair to good action taking place in the Alanson area on Burt, Crooked, Pickerel and Mullett lakes for walleye, perch and pan fish. The ice is good and fish are soft biting or nibbling at the bait. Anglers will go home with enough fish for a meal. Walleye and perch are hitting on blue minnows, wax worms, mousies and spikes.
Boyne City fishing ranges from fair to good this week. Lake Charlevoix is producing decent catches of perch and walleye on minnows near the south arm. So far it is a slow go on Walloon Lake for perch and walleye. Blue and gray minnows are being used with some success. Fish are soft biting.
Cedar Lake near Traverse City is giving up good numbers of smelt and perch, while the rivers range from fair to good for steelhead on spawn or wax worms.
Frankfort fishing is good on the Betsie River for steelhead on spawn. Minnows seem to be working well for fair to good catches of perch on Portage Lake and Crystal Lake is producing good quantities of perch and smelt with wax worms and minnows are working well. The ice is in good condition.
Torch and Elk lakes the ice may be unstable, use caution before attempting to fish. Angling activity in the area has slowed considerably due to the weather. The ice has shored up a bit.
Otsego Lake has good ice and some good fishing taking place. Perch and walleye are hitting on blue and gray minnows.
Mitchell and Cadillac lakes have ice ranging from 12 to 15 inches thick. Pike are hitting in good numbers on minnows and crappie fishing is rated fair, also biting on minnows.
West:
Good action in the Baldwin area. Wolf Lake is producing good numbers of pike on minnows. The fish are small in size, ranging 22 to 24 inches, but plentiful. Big Bass Lake is giving up good catches of perch on wigglers and wax worms in the 10 to 12 inch range. The Tippy Dam is doing ok for fair to good numbers of steelhead on spawn and wigglers. Hewitt Lake is giving up good counts of sunfish in the 9 to 11 inch range and some nice blue gill on wax worms and wigglers. The ice conditions overall remain good.
Angling has slowed down considerably for Muskegon anglers due to excessive water run-off causing murky water. Overall the ice is in good condition, with the exception of the channels and river areas where the ice is very unsafe.
Chippewa Lake has good ice remaining but has slowed due t the warmer temperatures. A few pike and specks are being caught.
Northeast:
Alpena angling has slowed down this week. Long Lake and Grand Lake are only giving up a few perch on wigglers, blue minnows and regular minnows.
Good fishing for taking place around Oscoda. Cooke and Foote Dam Ponds are producing good numbers of perch, pike and blue gill. Minnows, wax worms, spikes and mousies are working well. Van Etten Lake has fair to good activity for perch and pike, but use caution the ice may be unstable. Au Sable River is producing good counts of steelhead on wax worms, wigglers and spawn.
Lake Margrethe in the Grayling area is fair to good for walleye and pike action. Anglers are fishing in 20 feet of water and using minnows for best results. Manistee Lake is giving up good numbers of crappie in 12-feet of water on minnows.
Houghton Lake has good ice, nice and hard and in good condition. Pike, walleye and pan fish are hitting in good numbers on minnows, wax worms and mousies.
Higgins Lake is good to excellent for fishing this week. Smelt activity is exceptional on wax worms. Perch are hitting on minnows and lake trout are biting on gray minnows.
Au Gres anglers will find slow activity mainly due to ice breaking up and floating down the river. Ice is not good north of Point Lookout, but some decent ice remains along the shore areas south.