Curly's Photo and Fishing Blog
Up North Warm Up
A warm-up is on the way to Northern Michigan and we need it bad as most lakes report lots of slush. Fishing has been slow with all the below zero temps, but we are hoping the warm-up get fish back biting
Crystal Lake is froze all the way so look for that lake to be great when we get back to normal winter. Grand Traverse Bay is all the way over and look for whitefish and perch fishing to get going this weekend. Most are reporting lots of slush on many lakes after the storm on saturday. They say there is a hot bite at Torch Lake with lake trout and whitefish biting very good. For lake trout most are using a #9 Swedish Pimple tipped with perch minnows in 140 feet of water. Whitefish were caught just off the bottom.
Higgins Lake- Smelt fishing has been good on the north end of the lake from Evergreen Park to the State Park, near Big Creek, the west launch and the Birch Lodge. Fish during the evening hours and start in about 50 feet of water. Lake trout are in 85 to 100 feet of water. Rainbow trout are moving into the shallows near the springs and creeks. Some decent perch were caught on the north side of Sunken Island and Treasure Island and just off the bottom in 40 to 60 feet of water south of Point Detroit and Flag Point. 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 Skip??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 great for perch and walleye , with some getting walleye during the day. Call Osborn??s Sport Shop in Bear Lake @ 231-889-3775 or Don??s Sport Shop in Manistee @ 231-723-5028
Hamlin Lake- Fishing has been slow however anglers able to get out to new areas are finding fish. Some anglers fishing east of the Wilson Hill Park in 7 to 12 feet of water were taking about a dozen nice bluegills per trip while others in the same area had no luck. Jigs and wax worms were the ticket. A couple walleye and some crappie were taken in 15 to 30 feet of water off Pete’s Bayou. Those fishing Lower Hamlin were finding a few fish in 15 to 25 feet of water. 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 - Catch rates have been steady with walleye caught off the north shore and in the East Bay and some bluegills taken off the south shore. Call Lyman??s Sport and Shanty Rental @ 989-422-3231
Near the Kalkaska area, Skegemog Lake - Some 24 to 28 inch pike have been caught on large minnows in 12 to 15 feet of water in the flats between the access site at Baggs Road and the mouth of the Torch River. A lot of perch anglers can be seen on the northwest corner of the lake near the narrows and fishing 10 to 20 feet of water with minnows, wax worms, wigglers or shrimp. Many fish are small but a few were ranging 7 to 10 inches. Manistee Lake is producing nice counts of crappie and walleye and Fife Lake is providing nice catches for pike. Pike are biting on suckers or goldens. Call Jack??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 but no keepers yet. 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 good at Maple Bay for jumbo perch. I had reports that it was slow the last couple days as three guys caught 33 perch in five hours but they were from 10 to 14 inches.
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 - Had several anglers catching perch, but not in big numbers. Most are using minnows in 30 to 45 feet of water. Use caution and avoid the east side of the lake which still had open water.
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 - Pike are still active. Those using tip-ups or spearing have done well. Catch rates for panfish should improve by the weekend.
East Twin Lake - Had a lot of fishing pressure and good numbers of perch caught, but many were small. There were a few good days however when anglers took home some bigger perch. Most are using minnows or a tear drop jig with a wax worm.
West Twin Lake - Had limited fishing pressure. A few walleye were caught in 15 feet of water. Try jigging a Swedish Pimple tipped with a minnow. Perch fishing has been slow and the fish are running small.
Lake Mitchell - This has been a good winter for pike anglers but the panfish action has been slow. Catch rates will improve once the weather stabilizes and warms up.
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 - Walleye fishing on the bay often picks up in the month of February however those willing to go way out and fish deep have caught fish. Anglers are heading out five to six miles off Pine River and Palmer Roads however the best fishing was off Linwood and Erickson Road when heading out three to six miles and fishing in 14 to 26 feet of water in the early morning or late evening. Walleye were caught off Cody-Estey Road, White’s Beach and the Bay City State Park. At Quanicassee, a few perch were taken off Vanderbilt Park. Some limits of walleye were taken seven to nine miles out off Thomas Road. A few small perch and the occasional pike were taken inside the Sebewaing Marina. At Bay Port, some perch were caught straight off Bayshore Marina by those willing to move around to locate schools of fish. For the Caseville area, the perch and pike action were slow.
Saginaw River - Has lots of angler activity in downtown Saginaw. Some nice walleye have been caught primarily at dawn when using blue and silver Jig-n-Rapalas. Anglers are fishing Bay City and beyond. Cass Avenue and the Independence Bridge were getting a fair amount of pressure. Walleye have been caught around Essexville and perch off Smith Park. Perch were also taken out of the Bay Aggregate cut and the marina basins in the lower river.
Little Bay De Noc - Water clarity has been good and light snow has made for easier travel on the ice. Walleye anglers reported fewer catches but marked good numbers of fish from the mouth of the Escanaba River north to the Center Reef. The Center Reef has produced the most consistently for those jigging rapalas with minnows in 22 to 40 feet of water while those fishing from the Terrace Inn south to the Escanaba River reported fair action when jigging or using tip-ups in 22 to 35 feet of water. Catch rates for whitefish were up this week with the best reports around Sand Point in 80 feet of water. Those perch fishing near Kipling and Stonington reported few fish taken however those that caught fish were finding jumbo’s when jigging minnows in 20 to 30 feet of water. Northern pike were caught off the east bank in Kipling when using tip-ups with minnows in 10 to 17 feet of water.
Muskegon Lake- Perch fishing has been good with some nice fish taken off the west end in the deep water basin. Most are using perch rigs with minnows or wigglers. Excellent pike fishing on the east end near the river when using tip-ups or when jigging spoons. Walleye were caught in 17 to 30 feet of water.
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:
Extremely cold temperatures for anglers in Manistique, but only the brave are getting out on Indian Lake to find good fishing opportunities for perch and walleye on minnows.
Tremendous walleye activity is taking place in the Bay on Munuscong Lake as well as good perch fishing. Anglers tell AAA 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.
Anglers fishing around Drummond Island will find a slow go. This morning is was 20 below and those temperatures are keeping anglers off the ice. The few brave soles that are fishing Scott Bay and Whitney Bay are catching one or two perch. Anglers are seeing plenty of perch, but fish just are not biting. Pike activity is also slow, and a few whitefish are hitting on teardrops or wax worms.
Very cold around the St. Ignace area where anglers seem to be staying indoors, not much activity taking place currently. February 14 is the ??Brevort Ice Jamboree?, call 906-643-7289 or 906-643-6743 to pre-register.
Extreme cold has slowed angling activity around the Bergland area. Lake Gogebic is giving up a few walleye and perch. Walleye are found all over the lake and sucker minnows are working well, while perch seem to be found near the north end towards Porcupine Point and wigglers seem to be doing the trick. Angling activity is expected to kick up for the weekend with warmer temperatures in the forecast.
Marquette anglers have the mid-winter blues. Activity has slowed and it seems that the fish just shut off. Ice conditions are outstanding with thickness ranging from 24 to 30 inches.
Escanaba anglers are doing well for walleye and perch all over Little Bay De Noc and Big Bay De Noc from one end to the other. Tip ups with sucker minnows work well on walleye. Other baits working well include Moonshine Shiver Minnows, Buck-Shot Rattle Spoons, and regular minnows. Inland lakes are decent for blue gill action.
Northwest:
Alanson anglers continue to be plagued by very cold weather slowing activity. Fishing on Burt and Crooked lakes is hit or miss for walleye and perch, however outstanding ice conditions prevail. Warmer weather for the upcoming weekend is expected to increase angling activity.
Near Boyne City, Walloon Lake and Lake Charlevoix anglers are finding some decent angling activity for walleye, perch and some browns. Walleye are biting on Buck-Shot Rattle Spoons, Lindy Rattlin?? Flyers, blue spoons and Warrior Weasel Spoons. Browns are taking to blues in 20 to 32 feet, some biting at lowest point and some biting at higher levels.
Torch Lake near the Kalkaska area is giving up perch, splake and herring in 90-feet of water. Anglers are jigging with Prism Pearl Swedish Pimples using numbers 8 and 9 ice auger size for good results, also popular are the Lindy Rattlin?? Flyer Spoons, perch minnows, blues and mousies. Lake Bellaire is good for perch and walleye.
The Petoskey pier is giving up some whitefish in 90-feet of water and Bear River towards the middle is producing some steelhead. Spoons, wigglers and blues seem to work.
Traverse City anglers are fishing heavy at the west bay by Boardman reeling in decent counts of perch, burbot, and whitefish. The Boardman River is good for steelhead using bobbers and jigs, wax worms and wigglers.
Crystal Lake and Green Lake are both giving up very good counts of smelt. Whitefish, burbot, and perch are currently slow but by the weekend should pick up considerably. Anglers are using Hali jigs, wax worms, live bait, Swedish Pimples, Buck-Shot Spoons and spikes with good success.
Otsego Lake has good ice and walleye are biting best between 5 and 9 p.m. on big sucker minnows, silver and gray spoons. Perch are hitting in the late afternoon in 11 to 12 feet of water on small blue minnows. Bradford Lake is giving up nice counts of blue gill on minnows.
Good action on Mitchell and Cadillac lakes for large size pike. Anglers are also getting some crappie on minnows, blue gill on wax worms and spikes, and some pan fish. Perch are hanging out on the bottom and are not biting.
West:
Lively activity taking place around the Ludington area, Hamlin Lake is giving up nice numbers of walleye, blue gill and perch. The ??Hamlin Lake Ice Fishing Tournament? takes place February 7. The majority of inland lakes in the area are doing great for perch, as well as Pentwater, Manistee, and Pere Marquette Lake. Wigglers and minnows are working well. Ice is good all over the area.
Around the Baldwin area, the Pere Marquette has very good water clarity, some ice dams exist so boat traffic is difficult. Big Manistee has fair action for browns. Natural bait, wigglers and egg patterns seem to work. Wolf Lake is giving up some nice size pike but perch and blue gill are slow. Big Bass Lake is decent for blue gill, sorting is necessary and it is so cold that ice holes are freezing within minutes of boring. Warm weather is expected to arrive in the area for the weekend creating perfect fishing conditions. Idlewild Lake is giving up some perch, and Cecilia Lake is decent for blue gill on wax worms.
Reeds Lake in Grand Rapids is giving up good counts of specs on minnows. Ice throughout the Grand Rapids area is good, even on a majority of rivers. Most ice ranges from 12 to 20 inches.
Muskegon Lake continues to produce very good numbers of perch. Best location is the west side of the Lake in deep water. Perch rigs, perch eyeballs, wax worms and spikes are getting good results. Good to excellent numbers of pike can be found in the mid-section of the Lake and near the mouth of the River. Pike are measuring up to 38 inches in size. Tip ups and a suspended golden shiner seems to be working well. Walleye activity is fair to good before dark around Johnson Point, 2nd Street and Fisherman??s Landing.
Very good ice fishing is taking place on Chippewa Lake for pike, specs and pan fish. Pike are small in size but plenty of fish available. Best baits include wax worms and spec minnows.
Northeast:
The Au Gres area has some good ice if you go out from the M-65/Hale Road area straight out to the Bay. From the River anglers need to use extreme caution, large cracks are apparent due to windy conditions and ice movement from the current. Perch activity is slow, and walleye activity is fair and improving as the season moves on.
Around Oscoda, Van Etten Lake is giving up some perch. Walleye, pike and perch continue to be decent on Foote and Cooke Dam Ponds. The “59th Annual Perchville USA” gets underway Friday and runs through the weekend on Lake Huron off of Tawas Bay.
Alpena anglers are pulling in some good numbers of perch on Whiskey Bay on shiners. Thunder Bay River has fair perch fishing with grays.
Within the Grayling area, Manistee Lake has a good bite going for blue gill on wax worms and wigglers. Lake Margrethe is giving up good numbers of pike. Anglers are using tip ups with live sucker minnows or spearing with good results.
Walleye activity is good on Houghton Lake when using Swedish Pimples, or blue shiners. The best location seems to be the east bay or north shore. Pike are everywhere and pan fish are near the weed beds on the south shore. Blue gill are hitting on spikes and wax worms.
Higgins Lake is really hot for smelt. Lake trout is fair on tip ups with big green shiners. Perch action is picking up. The ice is strong enough to drive a truck on.
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