By Tom Watts, Journal Register News Service
We are thankful for many things on this holiday, but when it comes to our water resources in Southeast Michigan, we are grateful when good news gushes our way.

Small miracles do happen on the Detroit River. Land that was once used a chemical dump has been turned into new habitat for bass, sturgeon and walleye.

Some of the leaders in this comeback project may surprise you. John Hartig, Detroit River International Refuge Manager, said the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality took the lead in negotiating and approving the cleanup of the BASF Corporation Riverview site in the Trenton Channel of the Detroit River,

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service have a goal to reduce levels of toxic substances to a threshold that does not threaten or harm or adversely affect wildlife, fish or human health, Hartig said. "We have an interest in stopping the input of toxic substances to the river and refuge."

Hartig said the USFWS provided input to the DEQ and BASF regarding the need to stop the input of contaminants from the BASF Riverview site.

"Further, we encouraged the removal of 35,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediment from the Trenton Channel (out in front of the BASF Riverview site) and disposal of the contaminated sediment in the upland containment cell on site," Hartig said. "An inward hydraulic gradient is maintained, stopping any input of contaminants. Once the sediment remediation was completed, BASF built one acre of fish habitat."

Once the input of contaminants was stopped and the sediment remediation was completed, the USFWS encouraged BASF to construct the fish habitat and provided advice.

For their part, BASF spent about $100,000 on the habitat. "The money was used to purchase limestone rock for fish spawning habitat and to place the stone in the river," Hartig said. "They also added some incidental habitat (habitat features added to navigational structures like break walls and jetties) at the base of the steel sheet pile wall."
Records indicate BASF acquired the property near the Grosse Ile toll bridge and the Riverview boat dock in the 1960s. The land was used as a dump site by its previous owner. In 1998, mercury, PCBs and dioxin were found to be contaminating the groundwater.

"This habitat project was done as part of the Michigan DEQ approved remediation of the BASF Riverview site," Hartig said. "Again, once the input of contaminants was stopped (as a result of the remediation) and 35,000 cubic yards of contaminated sediments in the Trenton Channel remediated, then one acre of fish habitat was constructed."


Click here for the entire article:
http://www.dailytribune.com/articles/2009/11/29/sports/srv0000006948301.txt

Chris Craft Marsh



Hawkins Point



Cuthbertson cabin

Pair are 1st of their kind since 1890s, officials say
BY JOHN GALLAGHER FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER

First the beaver made a comeback, and now the osprey.

State and federal wildlife authorities said today that a pair of osprey successfully nested in Wayne County this year in the first such documented case since the 1890s.

One of the largest birds of prey in North America with a nearly six-foot wingspan, osprey are known as “fish hawks” and feed almost exclusively on fish.

The pair of osprey built a nest earlier this year in a cell phone tower near the Gibraltar Wetlands Unit of the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge, said John Hartig, manager of the wildlife refuge. The pair fledged two young.

Osprey have been returning to the southeast Michigan region since about 2002, with 18 confirmed nests and 46 chicks born, said Jim Kortge of Osprey Watch of Southeast Michigan. But the pair near the Gibraltar refuge marks the first successful nesting pair in Wayne County in more than a century.

Click here for the entire article: http://www.freep.com/article/20090928/NEWS02/90928027/1319/Osprey-nest-in-Wayne-County-is-cause-for-celebration

Caught on Sept 20, 2009 it was 54" and tipped the scale @ 36lbs 

They are still catching walleyes over by the Middle Channel, but they are working really hard for them. Perch are being caught all over the Lake, but are still running on the small size. Nice sized Bass are still hitting in the Channels. A few cat fish and suckers are being caught in the channels.

Walleyes are really hitting in most parts of Lake St. Clair right now, especially in the Middle and Shipping Channel. Most people who are going Walleye fishing are coming back with their limits.

Also, perch is doing really well in channels and by the lights houses, but be warned the perch are running on the small size. There are reports of the larger perch being caught in the weeds and down the Sni.

Bass is still doing very well in the channels.

Good luck this weekend and enjoy the holiday!

Supporters hope Obama pledge will bring environmental, economic boost
Deb Price / Detroit News Washington Bureau

Washington -- Congress is poised to nearly double its funding commitment to the Great Lakes, adding up to $475 million for restoration that would deter invasive species, clean up polluted sites and create jobs in Michigan and the region.

Earth-mover Craig Hamlin is encouraged because a surge in federal funds could mean new business.

Since home building went bust in Michigan, Hamlin has kept his business going by digging up land to create wetlands instead of basements.

"Great Lakes work is pretty much all there is," said Hamlin, whose bulldozers, other heavy equipment and crews are transforming 70 acres of corn and bean farmland in Newport into a wetlands habitat for migratory birds along Lake Erie.

"These Great Lakes jobs affect a lot of people," added Hamlin of Hamlin Grading in Stockbridge. "Beyond my own workers, probably another 150 people end up getting work, by making pipes, or pumps and other materials we use."

The unprecedented amount of money being considered for the Great Lakes reflects President Barack Obama's pledge on the campaign trail of $5 billion for large-scale restoration.

Obama asked Congress for $475 million to get started. Already the federal government appropriates about $550 million a year to Great Lakes programs, which environmentalists expect will continue. If all goes as advocates hope, Congress would be committing about $1 billion to the Great Lakes in fiscal year 2010.

"This is a Great Lakes president," said Rep. Dale Kildee, D-Flint, noting Obama built his career in Illinois. "He really cares about the Lakes because he knows them."

The House passed Obama's requested amount in June. The Senate seeks less money -- $400 million -- in a bill that could pass as early as mid-September.

Click here to read the entire article:
http://www.detnews.com/article/20090831/LIFESTYLE14/908310371/$1-billion-proposed-in-2010-for-Great-Lakes-restoration

Southeast:

Anglers fishing Lake St. Clair are doing well near the St. Clair Light for walleye near Mac and Ray’s and the Dumping Grounds. Anchor Bay and Fairport anglers are doing well for perch near the shipping channels. Throughout the Downriver area the Detroit River is giving up plenty of walleye in the early morning and late evening hours around Celeron Island, Rat Island, pretty much the entire lower Trenton Channel, off of Sugar Island and near the Cross-Dyke. Anglers are finding good numbers of walleye all around Grosse Ile and Gibraltar. Straight out of Monroe good numbers of walleye and perch are hitting near Stony Point, Pt. Mouille, Banana Dyke, Bolles Harbor and Luna Pier in waters 12-25 feet. Walleye action continues to be good around the Islands, Toledo Light, dumping grounds and near the Sputnik Buoy. Anglers are finding decent fishing for bass, a few walleye and good fishing for carp and cat fish on the Huron River.

East:

Off of Port Austin walleye action is good in 20-50 feet of water trolling crawler harnesses. Steelhead and lake trout are biting in about 150 feet of water. Off of Lexington anglers are doing decent for a few pike, small mouth bass and some salmon. The steelhead action is better for anglers fishing in 100-150 feet of water. Perch numbers are nice with anglers fishing near the weed beds and lake trout are biting more toward the bottom. Around the Port Sanilac area anglers are doing well for salmon, steelhead, lake trout and a few perch. Off of Harbor Beach decent numbers of walleye are hitting right inside the harbor on a variety of spoons with blues, greens and yellow the most popular. Bass action is very good. Try fishing in 80-160 feet of water for lake trout on body baits. The steelhead activity remains good on orange spoons in deeper waters. Anglers fishing on Saginaw Bay near Linwood are finding nice walleye numbers in 15-20 feet of water. Quanicassee anglers are getting great numbers of walleye in very shallow water near the river. Anglers near Bay Port are having good success around North Island for walleye. Callahan Reef continues to be hot for walleye on crawler harnesses

Southeast:

Around Fair Haven and Algonac, the walleye action on the south channel is producing good results. Perch fishing has picked up from the Fair Haven area to Grass Island in the bay. Bass continue to be plentiful no matter where you cast a line.

On Lake St. Clair, walleye action has been hot around the dumping grounds, the St. Clair Lighthouse, the 29 and 30 cans and in front of the Grosse Point Yacht Club. In Canadian waters, the best place to fish is near the Belle River. Perch fishing around the shipping channel and buoy 26 is producing good results. For the best musky fishing, head toward the red barn or over to Canadian waters and bass can be taken just about anywhere.

Around the Detroit River, anglers are hand-lining, drifting and jigging for walleye with success. In the northern part of the river, hand-lining is working well at dawn, dusk and at night. From Trenton to Celeron Island, on both sides of Grosse Ile, jigging has resulted in good numbers of walleye. Walleye are also being caught in the channel cuts of the river, near the last green buoy and near Sugar Island in 14 feet of water. Perch action is good from buoy 10 south to the Detroit Light and south of Celeron Island.

Near Monroe, walleye activity remains good around Estral Beach, Stony Point, Bolles Harbor and out in front of the Fermi Stacks in water up to 23 feet deep. Perch action has increased near Luna Pier, E-Buoy, the Toledo Lighthouse and C-can. Minnows and worms are the bait of choice.

Further out on Lake Erie, anglers are doing very well around the Sputnik and McDonalds buoys for walleye. In Canadian waters, walleye can be found near Harbor Beach in about 21 feet of water. Around Colchester, try fishing near the helicopter pad or near the One Mile buoy.

In the Belleville area, Ford Lake is producing nice crappie, blue gill, Small Mouth bass and walleye. The Huron River near Geddes Road or Argo Park in Ann Arbor are good spots for a variety of fishing. Popular baits overall include leaf worms, minnows, wax worms, leeches and night crawlers.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; The Bait and Tackle Box-Trenton; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe and Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale.

East:

Anglers heading into the Saginaw Bay from either Standish or Bay Port continue to work for their catch. The walleye are being caught in about 20-25 feet of water fishing the bottom. A variety of baits are working well including crawler harnesses, spoons and even the occasional Hot ‘N Tot.

Out from the Standish area, anglers are finding success near the sand bar. The best attracting colors have been pinks and purples. The occasional perch is being caught as well.

Near Bay City, the best areas have been close to the edge of the shipping channel and between the Spark Plug and buoys 1 and 2. Anglers looking for perch can try near the Spark Plug or out from the Quanicassee River. The fishing around Bay Port has been very spotty. The most consistent fishing has been beyond Sand Point with Hot ‘N Tots as the bait of choice.

Around the tip of the thumb, walleye action has been excellent. Try using a crawler harness or bomber near the Grindstone area in water 20-25 feet in depth. Lake trout have moved in closer out from Port Austin with good numbers being caught.

Perch fishing out from Port Sanilac or Lexington has been very slow with no report on walleye action for the week.

Drift fishing near Port Huron has remained solid and hand-lining is beginning to pick up using an F7 Rapala. In the Black River, the silver bass bite has remained consistent near the city building. Farther up the river, Large and Small Mouth bass and pike are being caught.

Information providers: 1st & Main-Bay Port; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish and Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron.

Boat registrations drop but fishing licenses soar
BY L.L. BRASIER • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • JULY 27, 2009

More Michigan residents are hanging out their "Gone Fishin' " signs this year, looking for a cheap afternoon of fun -- and with some luck, a free dinner.

The number of fishing licenses has jumped by more than 54,000 since 2007, state records show.

But, while more people are fishing, they appear to be doing it mostly from small boats or shorelines. Boat registrations have dropped in Michigan in the past year: There were 8,200 fewer boats registered this year, down from 950,772 in 2008, according to state records.

Boat sales are down and more boat owners, especially those with larger vessels, are keeping them in dry dock because of rising fuel costs and a sluggish economy.

With Michigan's rich abundance of freshwater lakes and rivers, boating experts predict that boat sales and registrations again will climb once the economy recovers.

"There is no place like this in the world," said Van Snider, president of the Michigan Boating Industries Association. "It's the place to have a boat."

Like raising home vegetable gardens, fishing may be another enjoyable way to augment the family pantry in tough economic times. Although there are no numbers kept to show how many people are frying up the walleye and filleting the bluegill, people in the industry said the trend is obvious.

"You can't eat golf balls," said Veronica Pinto, a co-owner of Lakeside Fishing Shop on Jefferson Avenue in St. Clair Shores, where she has been selling fishing gear for 33 years.

Fewer customers come in looking for high-end equipment these days, she said. Now, it's families on a budget. Pinto said she recently began stocking a Lady Shakespeare rod and reel for $39, designed for women. A young angler can get started with a $14.99 package.

"The face of our customer has changed," she said of fishing. "People don't have the money. And, hey, when you're done, you can sit down and eat dinner."

Click here for the entire article

Southeast:

Around Fair Haven and Algonac the walleye action remains strong on crawler harnesses and Hammer Lures with beads. Perch action is spotty. Bass are everywhere but try around Grass Island, near the cut, or the mouth of the North Channel, spinners are working well.

Great walleye fishing taking place near Harrison in 28-30 feet of water near the Fire Cracker and anglers are obtaining limits using crawler harnesses. Small Mouth bass are all over the lake in 8-14 feet of water and tubes are working well. Musky action is very good generally all over the lake, but one hot spot is near the middle and dumping grounds. Hi-Fin Bucktails are working well and fish are measuring up to 53-inches and some near 35 pounds.

Fishing near the St. Clair Shores area anglers will find perch out in front of the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, around the 29 and 30 Cans, near the St. Clair Lighthouse and the Nine Mile Tower. Lake St. Clair has some nice walleye activity in the early morning hours.

Walleye are still present on the Detroit River from the Ambassador Bridge down to the lower Trenton Channel on both sides of the river. Anglers need to move around a lot. Some anglers are jigging, but it seems that hand liners may be doing better in the evening hours and crawler harnesses and Wyandotte worms continue to work. Out on Lake Erie the walleye action is strong using spoons, Dipsy Divers, In-line planer boards and crawler harnesses remain popular. Perch action is good south of Celeron Island in 8-13 feet of water, near the Detroit Light and Rat Island. Stren series bass tournament takes place July 23-25 out of the Elizabeth Park Marina. For details call 734-675-8051 for details.

Near Monroe walleye activity remains good around Stoney Point and Brest Bay and out in front of the Fermi Stacks in 19-20 feet of water. Hot-n-Tots, Wiggle Warts, minnows and worms are working well. Luna Pier is giving up nice walleye numbers in 14-feet of water.

Further out on Lake Erie, anglers are doing very well around all of the Islands and near Buoys 1 and 2. Heading towards Leamington plenty of walleye are being caught in 30-feet of water. Further south, Pelee Island has great walleye action and all of the charter services are limiting out. Perch action is good near the Sputnik and McDonalds buoys, near the S and W-cans but watch for lots of nets.

In the Belleville area some great crappie and walleye fishing is taking place near Sandy’s Marina and near the Rawsonvillle Road Bridge in the early morning hours. Belleville Lake is producing nice crappie catches near the bridge and walleye near the Dam. The blue gill bite is good and the Small Mouth bass are starting to bite better as well. The Huron River near Geddes Road or Argo Park in Ann Arbor is a good spot for some nice bass fishing with artificial frogs. Ford Lake has limited angling due to the heavy algae at this time. Popular baits overall include baby crawlers, minnows, wax worms, leeches and night crawlers.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe and Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale

East:

Standish anglers continue to find good catches of walleye in 35-feet of water. Green, yellow, pink and purple spoons in a variety of combinations are working as well as crawler harnesses. No perch action at this time. Linwood anglers are heading straight out to the edge of the shipping channels in 20-25 feet of water for some nice perch action. Fish are averaging nine inches. Straight out from Bay City three to four miles, near Finn Road and the Spark Plug the walleye fishing is good. Perch activity is decent near the last buoy bout 13 miles out. Catfish are hitting around Quanicassee and a few bass can be had near the Lafayette Bridge on the Saginaw River. Sand Point is a good location when the winds are calm for some good walleye fishing in deeper water with crawlers and harnesses. Anglers fishing early were limiting out by 11 a.m. Overall the entire Saginaw Bay is doing well on walleye on crawler harnesses.

Anglers fishing right in the harbor at Harbor Beach are getting walleye biting on crawler harnesses, pink is a hot color. No perch at this time.

Information providers: 1st & Main-Bay Port; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish and Gander Mountain-Saginaw.

SOUTHEAST

Good walleye action for Fair Haven anglers fishing in the north shipping channels, near Grass Island and near Decker’s. Crawler harnesses are the bait of choice for walleye. Perch action is good near Buoy 27 and the shipping channels on minnows.

Lots of anglers are out just off of Harrison where the musky and walleye fishing is hot on crawler harnesses in 19 feet of water. Musky are measuring in 40-51 inches. Perch are also active in 14-19 feet of water. Small mouth bass are biting around Nine Mile on brownish colored tubes.

St. Clair Shores anglers are having good luck fishing for walleye on the Detroit River near the sand piles, near the Ambassador Bridge towards the Canadian side, in front of Windsor Casino and off of Joe Louis arena. The evening hours seem to be best. Lake St. Clair the bass are biting all over.

The Detroit River is alive with walleye once again and anglers are just killing them around Belanger Park near River Rouge on Wyandotte worms and lead head. Actually all up and down the Detroit River the walleye fishing is good on both the Canadian and U.S. sides and hand liners are doing very well near the salt mines and all the way down to the Trenton Channel, around Celeron and Horse Islands. The evening hours seem to be better. Rapalas, Stubbies or fat pencil plugs, Vampire and Bleeding Copper Flash are working well. Walleye are averaging 15-inches. Bass action is good around Celeron Island using tubes, center and gulp baits. Carp Tournament July 18th and Huroc Park in Flat Rock, call 313-388-3474 for details.

In Rock Wood the Lake Erie Metro Park Boat Launch near the south end has some good fishing taking place. The Huron River is loaded with catfish. Perch, large and small mouth bass are active near the mouth of Lake Erie and around sandy spots.


Off of the Monroe area, the walleye are hitting in 19-20 feet of water near the Fermi Stacks on spoons. Popular colors are purple and chartreuse, purple and gold, pink, Hot Lobster and Blueberry Muffin. Walleye are hitting pretty much all over Lake Erie, but especially near the E-Buoy, Dumping Grounds and Luna Pier on Hot-n-Tots and Wiggle Warts. Walleye are moving in closer towards Stoney Point, near the Toledo Light and around all of the Islands. Perch action is good near the C-Can, Luna Pier, Sputnik Buoy, Turn-Around Buoy and the edge of the shipping channel. Pointe Mouille, anglers are catching a bit of everything including bass and catfish.
Belleville Lake has some good fishing for crappie and walleye during the evening hours and in deeper water. Pike and blue gill activity is also good, but the bass seems to be off. All types of baits seem to be working well with baby crawlers and a variety of green colored crawlers quite popular.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale and Gander Mountain-Taylor.

EAST

Off of Standish walleye are biting on crawler harnesses and spoons. Preferred colors include bright yellow and purple, chartreuse and pink combinations. Bay City anglers are pulling in some perch near Buoy’s 1 and 2 off the channel on crawler harnesses and worms. In the same location walleye are hitting on bottom bouncers, popular colors include chartreuse, pink or purple and south of the Spark Plug anglers are obtaining limits. Saginaw Bay is giving up limits of walleye on the west side of Callahan Reef in 9-12 feet of water. Crawler harnesses 10-20 feet back with quarter ounce in-lines running 1.3-1.5 seems to be working well with purple, pink, red and chartreuse bead combo’s with various #6 Colorado blades, gold or copper backed. Bay Port anglers are finding good fishing despite windy conditions and rough water. Walleye are in deeper waters past North Island and taking a little longer to get limits. Perch are hitting on minnows and closer in. The Sebewaing area is on fire for walleye.

Port Sanilac is crazy with catfish especially during the evening hours. Night crawlers are working on the bottom and egg sinkers on a three foot lead. Perch action is spotty in Port Sanilac and Lexington. Hot walleye activity in Port Huron where anglers are drifting with blades and crawlers. Popular colors seem to be a variety of greens and chartreuse. Shore anglers are doing very well all up and down the Boardwalk, near Thomas Edison and Pine Grove Park. The mouth of the Black River is mass producing Silver bass and the fish are huge and anglers can expect to find large quantities of Silver bass around Marine City as well. Minnows are running and the walleye are following. Twisters, Rapalas and spinner baits are working well during the evening hours. All up and down the Black River anglers are reeling in good numbers of bass, pike and catfish.

Information providers: 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish; Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; WalleyeKid.com and Lance Valentine’s Walleye 101.

Southeast:

Fair Haven anglers are doing well fishing near Grass Island for perch using minnows and the walleye action is good from Marysville to Port Huron. Bass are all over Anchor Bay and spinner baits and large Golden Shiners are working well. Musky action is also picking up on Anchor Bay.

Walleye action is good off of the Harrison area in 10-14 feet of water. Anglers drifting at 1.5 mph with night crawlers are getting good results. Lake St. Clair is giving up good amounts of small mouth bass and musky. Trolling around 4.5 mph and using body baits and Buck Tail Spinners in the wash seems to work well.

Off of the St. Clair Shores area, perch action is decent around Cans 23, 24, 29 and 30. Huge amounts of bass can be found all over Lake St. Clair and a variety of baits are working well that include crawler harnesses, Hot-n-Tots, wiggle warts, bombers, live baits and using planer boards. The St. Clair River is also producing good fishing on a variety of species and anglers are using Pencil Plugs and Rapalas and hand lining at night with good success.

Anglers fishing the Detroit River anywhere between Melvindale and Gibraltar are finding that the walleye fishing has picked back up. Jigging, trolling and hand lining all seem to be working. Jointed Rapalas and crawler harnesses are very popular and flatfish tipped with one inch crawlers, worms or spoons seem to be working. When trolling try wiggle warts and purple, copper or pink spoons. Walleye activity is also good at the Hole-in-the wall. Around Celeron Island and Rat Island the perch fishing is good in 8-13 feet of water using Shiner minnows on perch rigs.

In Rock Wood, anglers shore fishing from Lake Erie Metro Park are doing well for small and large mouth bass using Kelly rubber worms or crayfish as well as catfish on shrimp and green crawlers. The Huron River in Rock Wood is giving up nice numbers of pike and bass on spinner baits.

Monroe anglers shore fishing from Pointe Mouille are pulling in plenty of catfish along with small and large mouth bass. Crayfish, Kelly rubber worms and spinner baits seem to work well on bass while shrimp and crawlers are attracting catfish. River Raisin, Estral Beach, Brest Bay, Stoney Point, Bolles Harbor and the Banana Dyke are all producing nice numbers of walleye in 15-24-feet of water or shallower with anglers getting good results using bottom bouncers, crawler harnesses and worms. Anglers do best when trolling 1.3-1.5 mph. One ounce in-line weights 25-35 feet behind the planer boards produced the most fish. Perch are biting near the E-Buoy and McDonalds Buoy on worms and minnows. Luna Pier is giving up a few fish.

Lake Erie continues to produce good numbers of walleye. Anglers are heading out about a half mile and fishing waters 17-20 feet deep with good success. Otherwise anglers are fishing 25-feet or deeper around the shipping channels, Sputnik and E-Buoys. The hot spot continues to be West Sister Island on either the west side or 3-5 miles northwest of the Island. Purple and mixed Veggie Spoons on Jet or Dipsey Divers seem to be working well. Fish have been close to the bottom in 27-31 feet of water.

Near the Belleville area the Huron River, Ford Lake and Four-Mile Lake are producing good numbers of small mouth bass, white bass and catfish. Belleville Lake has great fishing opportunities for good numbers of crappie, walleye and blue gill. The popular baits include leeches, wax worms and night crawlers.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; WalleyeKid.com; Lance Valentine’s Walleye 101; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale and Gander Mountain-Taylor.

East:

Saginaw Bay anglers have been dealing with windy conditions for several days now limiting angling activity. Near Standish anglers getting out are locating walleye in 25-30 feet of water and using crawler harnesses and spoons while off of Bay City 12-feet of water seems to be the hot depth for walleye. Again this week, Callahan Reef is producing fish in 8-10 feet of water, most anglers are trolling quarter to half ounce in-line weights and crawler harnesses 10-20 feet behind planer boards.Gold blades with Chartreuse beads are still working well. Southeast of the Sparkplug is a hot area. Anglers are trolling 1.0 to 1.2 mph using crawler harnesses with gold #6 Warrior spinner blades on two ounce in-lines about 20-40 feet back. Grindstone City and Harbor Beach are good for walleye fishing in 10-20 feet of water with Bombers, Hot-n-Tots and crawler harnesses. Sanford Lake and Wixom Lake both have good crappie fishing using minnows. Saginaw River is producing catfish.

Off of Port Huron and Lexington, Lake Huron anglers are reeling in jumbo perch catches in 15-20 feet of water. Boaters are doing very well off of Port Huron where awesome walleye fishing is taking place, anglers are pulling in abundant numbers of fish, though small in size. Gold, Chartreuse and Silver Blades are working well with crawler harnesses. Hand liners are finding that small spoons are working well during the day. Boardwalk fishing is good in the evening hours for a variety of species jigging. Small mouth bass are hitting in big numbers all along the Boardwalk and near the sewage plant. Best time is in the early morning hours, using small minnows or crappie rigs on the bottom.

Black River is producing great fishing for pike, bass, small and large mouth bass. Anglers are locating the fish near rock piles and log jams. Musky action is also good near the mouth of the River and averaging 20 pounds.

Information providers: 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Gander Mountain-Saginaw; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City and Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron.

Southeast:

Off of the Fair Haven area the bass are just about everywhere and anglers are finding good results using golden shiners and spinners. Walleye activity is good around Decker’s Landing and around Marine City. Grass Island is producing nice numbers of perch near the Baltimore cut. Walleye action is good off of Algonac in the Middle and South Channels and a lot of bass are being caught in Lake St. Clair.

Anglers fishing around the Harrison and Metro Beach area are doing well for perch out at the St. Clair Light and near Buoy 27. Walleye are in the same line. Crappie action is good behind Metro beach and walleye great behind Gino’s. Small mouth bass are hitting in Lake St. Clair. Musky action is good using trolling baits, jointed body baits or Buck Tail Spinners.

Windy weather slowed up fishing in the past few days, but conditions are improving off of the Ecorse, River Rouge and Melvindale areas where walleye fishing is decent on the Detroit River. Shore fishing is good off Delray and Belanger parks. Bottom bouncers and harnesses are working well. Hand lining is working but drifting seems to be better.

In the downriver area, thunderstorm threats and high winds kept many anglers off the waters the last few days in the Trenton, Riverview, Wyandotte and Grosse Ile areas. Anglers getting out are getting some fish in various locations. Try the Livingston Channel starting near Turtle Bay and work your way up the shoreline towards the Hole-in-the-wall and lots of fish can be had, including walleye in 25-30 feet. Night crawler harnesses and bottom bouncers are working well. Perch fishing is good all over and perch rigs, minnows and Emerald Shiners are doing the job. South of Celeron has good perch fishing as well as near the shipping channels and Rat Island. Small mouth bass are biting on tubes drifting bobbers and leeches. The Silver bass are gone in the Detroit River but now anglers are dealing with plenty of weeds that have moved in. Walleye activity is decent hand lining from the lower Trenton Channel to the mouth of Lake Erie but the white perch fishing is actually better at this point. The Amherstburg Channel is also good for jigging walleye. The Huron River near Rock Wood is giving up lots of small and large mouth bass catches.

Off of the Monroe area just north of the Fermi Plant plenty of fish are active in 20-22 feet of water particularly near the Bell Buoy. Weeds, murky waters and plenty of Mayflies are making trolling difficult. Off of the River Raisin fish are active just outside of the muddy water in 18-23 feet. Crawler harnesses are working well and trolling less than 1.5 mph. Anglers are getting results using one ounce in-line weights about 25-35 feet behind planer boards. Purple is a popular color. Stoney Point and Brest Bay producing an abundance of fish on crank baits and spoons in 18-20 feet of water. Anglers are getting results fishing half way down the water column. Walleye activity is also good off the Banana Dyke in 15-feet of water. The average size fish is ranging from 16 to 22 inches long, many undersized. Luna Pier is giving up nice numbers of perch. Worms and minnows are working well on perch and trolling is working better than drifting.

Out on Lake Erie walleye fishing is good in the shipping channels, near the Detroit Light, Sputnik and E-Buoys. Perch action is good off the E-Buoy, C-Can, Toledo Beach, in 21-feet of water around Holiday Beach, near Colchester and off all of the Islands. Ohio waters continue to produce fish three to five miles northwest of West sister Island and just east of Buoy 1 in the Toledo Shipping channel. Spoons and crawler harnesses are both working well.

Again this week anglers are doing very well on both Belleville and Ford lakes for good numbers of walleye using Fathead minnows, wax worms and night crawlers. Blue gill action is also good on both lakes and the Huron River particularly near Le Forge Road and Huron River Drive where the old Crown Vantage Paper Mill use to stand in Ypsilanti.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; WalleyeKid.com; Lance Valentine’s Walleye 101; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale; Gander Mountain-Taylor and The Bait & Tackle Box-Trenton.

East:

Saginaw Bay near the Standish area continues to be a good location for walleye. Anglers fishing in 15-16 feet and deeper in 25-27 feet are doing well with crawlers, harnesses with spoons. Purple, Chartreuse and bright colors seem to be best. Plenty of rain and windy conditions for anglers around Bay City but the weather is improving and the walleye continue to bite around Finn Road. Linwood to Quanicassee is producing fish in 8-10 feet of water. Most anglers trolling are running quarter to half ounce in-line weights on crawler harnesses trolled 10-20 feet behind planer boards. Gold blades with Chartreuse beads continue to work well. A few anglers are starting to pick up fish casting crank baits around the weeds. Pan fish are good all over.

Bay Port anglers continue to do well for walleye around North Island with crawlers. Bass activity is very good and the fish are good size as well several five pound fish have been caught right off the docks. Pike action is decent.

Perch are in the harbor and are overall small in size at Harbor Beach. There is a few bigger fish in the mix and the best bait is worms.

Information providers: Frank’s Place-Harbor Beach; 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Gander Mountain-Saginaw and Eagle Bay Marina-Standish.

Southeast:

Fairhaven anglers are doing well out near the shipping channel near Buoy 28 for perch on minnows. Perch action also good northeast of Grass Island around the cut, 10-feet out in front of Selfridge and in the reeds on Goose Bay. Walleye are hanging in the river and good action is taking place from Marine City to Algonac using crawler harnesses and bottom bouncers.

Off of the Harrison area bass and blue gill are being caught around Gino’s Surf and the 400 Club in 8-12 feet of water. Bass are active near Masonic Boulevard in eight feet of water. Out in the shipping channels near Buoy 26 and around the St. Clair Light the perch and walleye are hitting in 18-feet of water.

The Detroit River between Melvindale and the Ambassador Bridge seems to be turning back on for walleye. Could be that since the silver bass have slowed tremendously the walleye are just easier to catch. Near the Ambassador Bridge on the Canadian side hand liners are doing well at night typically getting limits. Anglers fishing around Fighting Island are pulling in decent size walleye on crawler harnesses generally getting limits.

Perch fishing on the Detroit River is decent north of Grassy Island and on the north side of Grosse Ile, the south side of Sugar Island, around the Cross-Dyke and south of Celeron. Shiner minnows on perch rigs work well. Lots of yellow perch caught at the mouth of the Detroit River and ranging 12-15 inches. The Trenton Channel is slow for walleye but the fish are moving back in and up the river and anglers are trolling with spoons, hand lining and averaging 6-10 fish per boat. Walleye that are in the river are larger this time around. A Mayfly hatch seems to have triggered the fish to eat. The Detroit River is slow for bass and the fish are small.

Anglers fishing Lake Erie and out by the Detroit Light and Buoy 10 are pulling in a few good size walleye on minnows and some perch are biting on shiner minnows on perch rigs.

Off of Rock Wood shore fishing is good for catfish on shrimp and crawlers, while bass are hitting in good numbers on spinner bait. The Huron River is producing a few bass and some catfish near the mouth of the river.

Near Monroe Lake Erie is producing nice numbers of perch near Toledo Beach, Sputnik and E-Buoys, off the Banana Dyke, near the Dumping Grounds and around Luna Pier. Walleye activity is good at Stoney Point, Estral Beach and out in front and north of Fermi in 13-20 feet of water using crawler harnesses and bottom bouncers with purple and pink the best producers. Anglers also are using whites and blades with some gold in them and Erie Deeries. Weeds are a problem pretty much all along the shoreline. Mayfly hatch is heavy in several areas.

Out deeper anglers are getting walleye in 24-30 feet of water near the shipping channels, near the Michigan and Ohio line. Walleye are on fire near Middle Sister Island, northwest of West Sister Island, east of Buoy 1 in the Toledo shipping channel and near Holiday Beach and Colchester. Crawler harnesses, spoons and Hot-N-Tots are all working well.

Belleville and Ford lakes are producing nice numbers on a variety of fish including walleye, bass, crappie and blue gill. The bass bite is particularly good. Four Mile Lake near Chelsea has great fishing. The Huron River near the paper mill is great for bass and walleye fishing. Several baits are working well including Golden Shiners 2 ½ inches long, pan fish worms, night crawlers, wax worms and leeches.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale; WalleyeKid.com-Canton; Gander Mountain-Taylor and The Bait & Tackle Box-Trenton.

East:

Off of Standish walleye action is good in 25-27 feet of water and best results are found using crawlers, harnesses and spoons.

Saginaw Bay, the fish are hitting off of Linwood in deeper waters around 20-24 feet on crawler harnesses and Hot-N-Tots. Take part in the Scottish Rite 1st Annual Walleye Tournament at Linwood Beach Marina. Anglers need to be registered prior to 6:30 a.m., call 989-832-3360 for details.

Near Bay City the walleye fishing is phenomenal everywhere from Oakhurst to Au Gres. Water depths range from 3-20 feet. Crawler harnesses are popular as well as Hot-N-Tots for deeper waters. Catfish and Gar pike are hitting on crawlers, dough balls or dried shrimp around Finn Road.

Callahan Reef is a hot spot for limits of fish on Saginaw Bay. Try using quarter or half ounce in-line weights and crawler harnesses trolled 10 to 20 feet behind planer boards. Anglers are doing best in 7-9 feet of water using gold blades with chartreuse beads. Mid-day seems to be most productive and trolling at low speeds less than 1.3 mph.

A few larger fish are hitting in 5-6 feet of water. Hot weather has heated up the walleye fishing and Bay Port anglers are heading straight out to fish around North Island and using crawlers with very good results.

Anglers fishing in Port Austin are finding that the walleye are moving in and some good fishing is taking place for King and Coho salmon.

Kings, Coho and lake trout are abundant near Harbor Beach. Anglers are doing well on Lake Huron fishing in waters 80-110 feet with a variety of spoons. Bass are active in 12-feet of water on leeches, while walleye are found in 45-feet. Perch action is good fishing 18-25 feet and using minnows.

Perch are starting to move in to Port Sanilac and around Lexington in good numbers.

An overload of walleye has anglers limiting out quickly in Port Huron. Anglers drifting the river are finding walleye three deep with crawler harnesses working well. Out on Lake Huron anglers are whipping and hand lining with good results. Shore fishing is very good for walleye and even an occasional Brown trout, Coho and steelhead. Thanks to the silver bass, they brought a lot of fish to the area.

The mouth of the Black River is loaded with silver bass and minnows on crappie rigs on the bottom are working well. The Black River has small mouth bass and pike everywhere and hitting just about everything.

Mill Creek is good for small mouth bass. All of the ponds in the area are giving up plenty of bass on spinners and even a few pike. Anglers will have to deal with plenty of weeds though.

Information providers: Frank’s Place-Harbor Beach; 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish; Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron and Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood.

Southeast:

Algonac anglers are finding plenty of perch starting to hit in Lake St. Clair. Lots of bass are being caught and this weekend bass opens on the American side. A few walleye are being caught in the North Channel, St. Clair River and South Channel. Off of the Fair Haven area the St. Clair River is producing decent numbers of walleye. Walleye activity is good near Sans Souci and Marine City as well. Anglers are vertical jigging and using crawler harnesses. Perch action is picking up around Harsen’s Island.

Walleye action remains strong around the Harrison Township area near Metro Beach, Gino’s Surf, and the 400 Club. Anglers are fishing on Lake St. Clair in about 14 feet of water and drifting crawlers. Small mouth bass and musky action is excellent around 9 Mile Road near the shallows. Green tubes are working today, but some anglers are starting to transition to light green or greenish/brown.

St. Clair Shores anglers are heading right out in front of the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club for some pretty good walleye action on the Detroit River.

Off of the Melvindale, River Rouge and Ecorse areas the fishing has slowed a bit on the Detroit River; possibly due to a transition of many fish heading out to the lake. Silver bass may be slowing down some and the walleye that are left seem easier to catch. Perch are starting to run in the Detroit River and are biting in most canals and around marinas and yacht clubs. Near Fighting Island and down to Buoy 94 anglers continue to jig for walleye with decent success. Fish are deep in the channel and generally smaller in size. A Mayfly hatch is just starting. Walleye fishing is decent around Celeron and Calf Islands using Chartreuse jig heads. When the fish are biting, hand liners are doing great. Popular baits include bottom bouncers, crawler harnesses and a variety of spoons with no particular color. FLW Walleye League Tournament takes place this Saturday on Lake Erie. Call 313-388-3474 for details.

In the Rock Wood area the Huron River is producing good numbers of large and small mouth bass. Perch action is picking up and anglers should find good numbers in front of Lake Erie Metro Park and towards the shipping channels. Silver bass are still on the heavy side in certain areas of the Detroit River and walleye remain in the river but overall the majority seems to have moved out from the Gibraltar area to deeper waters of Lake Erie. This may change as walleye follow spawning shiner minnows back into shallow water once the water temperature gets to about 70 degrees, right now the water is 65 degrees. Popular baits include bottom bouncers with harnesses and jigs with Wyandotte worms as well as Jet Divers and Michigan Stinger Spoons.

Straight out from Monroe heavy walleye fishing is taking place in 24-30 feet of water on Lake Erie near the Turn-Around Buoy out in front of the Fermi Plant. Bottom bouncers and crawler harnesses are working well, especially in purple and pink. Perch activity is really good around Luna Pier, E-Buoy and the Dumping Grounds. Stony Pointe and Brest Bay anglers will still find a few walleye. Trolling is better than drifting right now. Worms and minnows are still popular. Further out near the Michigan/Ohio/Canadian line and the Sputnik Buoy walleye fishing is great however Mayflies and bugs are really bad on the lake. The FLW Walleye League Tournament comes to Sterling State Park in Monroe Saturday, June 20. Call 313-910-0229 for details.

Anglers are finding hot walleye action in Ohio waters three to five miles northwest of West Sister Island and just east of Buoy #1 in the Toledo shipping channel. Anglers are getting results in 27 to 30 feet of water. Purple and watermelon colored crawler harnesses and one ounce in-line weights 40-55 feet back seem to take most fish, but a few are hitting on bottom bouncers. In the same area, charter boat services are doing well trolling spoons and jet divers 80-100 feet.

Blue gill are hitting in good numbers on Belleville and Ford lakes. Otherwise fishing overall is steady but don’t expect huge quantities of any fish. Jumbo and baby night crawlers, leeches, wax worms, Fathead minnows and worms are popular baits working on a variety of species.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale; WalleyeKid.com-Canton; Lance Valentine’s Walleye 101 and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

Straight out from Standish and towards the north, anglers are fishing in 14-18 feet of water for some nice walleye catches. Purple spoons are working well.

Night crawlers are working ok for Linwood anglers fishing Saginaw Bay in 16 to 20 feet of water. Bay City anglers are fishing the Saginaw River for catfish using crawlers with harnesses and walleye catches remain good off Quanicassee and Finn Road. Anglers fishing straight out from Quanicassee are also doing well on catfish with cut bait and limiting out on perch using minnows.

Sand Point off of the Bay Port area is producing good numbers of walleye and anglers using Hot-N- Tots and crawler harnesses are limiting out. A few walleye are being caught close to shore off the Long Dock. Walleye are good size too. Off of the Bay Port Public Access the catfish and bass fishing is good. Off of Port Austin, Saginaw Bay is producing nice numbers of walleye particularly around the Pointe. Anglers are doing well trolling with crawler harnesses in 8-15 feet of water.

Off of Harbor Beach Lake Huron is giving up good numbers of perch and walleye in 45 feet of water. A few Kings, Coho and steelhead remain and the lake trout fishing is great along with plentiful bass. Butterscotch spoons are hot.

Off of Lexington and Port Sanilac, King fishing is decent in 70 feet of water. Water temperatures have improved greatly. A smelt run is coming up the river bringing a lot of other fish with them. Perch are starting to show up as well. Perch are starting to hit off of Lakeport.

In Port Huron anglers fishing off the boardwalk continue to pull in good numbers of walleye and an occasional Brown. The water clarity has improved. Walleye fishing above the bridge while drifting is getting good results and when using crawler harnesses, Chartreuse and Copper Blades. Huge numbers of Silver bass are biting all along the mouth of the Black River and near the filtration plant. Minnows and crappie rigs seem to be working well. Pike and small mouth bass have really turned on in the Black River and Mill Creek. Local ponds are producing good numbers of bass.

Information providers: Frank’s Place-Harbor Beach; 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish; Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood and Gander Mountain-Saginaw.

Southeast:

Note: Boat traffic will be banned or limited along a portion of the Detroit River roughly between the Joe Louis Arena and Chene Park for the “Red Bull Air Races” Thursday through Sunday. The U.S. and Canadian Coast Guard will enforce the safety zones, visit www.DetroitAirRacing.com for time restraints.

Harrison anglers are finding phenomenal fishing in the area just below Metro Beach on Lake St. Clair in five to seven feet of water and between Nine and 16 Mile Roads. Small mouth bass are extremely active, walleye is fair to good and musky is excellent. Anglers are catching and release up to a 100 bass in a day, fish are averaging five pounds. Walleye are hitting on night crawlers and crank baits in 12 to 15 feet of water. Musky are biting on Buck Tails are the hot location is near 14 Mile Road or Masonic. Fish are large in size up to 30 pounds. Off of the St. Clair Shores area the walleye are hit-or-miss on the Detroit River with best results jigging or hand lining. Silver bass continue to cover the entire stretch of the River.

From River Rouge and Ecorse to Gibraltar and Grosse Ile, the Detroit River still has plenty of silver bass and walleye activity taking place. Anglers will find that when the walleye are on limits can be had, when they aren’t plenty of patience is needed. Hand liners are doing ok. Sugar Island anglers are jigging with crawler harnesses and getting a mixture of walleye and silver bass. Anglers are catching decent amounts of blue gill on the north side of the cross-dyke. Carp are spawning and creating a stir in several of the yacht clubs on Grosse Ile and averaging 20 to 25 pounds and right along with them silver bass are in abundance. Rooster Tails are hot for silver bass.

Near Rock Wood, right out in front of Lake Erie Metro Park the walleye action is good as well as south of Calf Island. Also straight out from Lake Erie Metro Park the perch action is good and further out towards the shipping channels and around Buoy 3. Perch minnows are the bait of choice. The Gibraltar Rotary Walleye Tournament takes place June 14 out of the Lake Erie Metro Park with check in at 6:30 a.m. For details call 734-379-9762.

Off of Monroe, anglers fishing Lake Erie for walleye are doing well near Stoney Point in 23-27 feet of water, near Estral Beach in 19-20 feet and near the north side of the Banana Dyke in 15-18 feet of water. Crawler harnesses, bottom bouncers, purple and chartreuse spoons all are working well including Michigan Stinger Spoons with a Jet or Dipsy Diver and Wolverine Tackle Jr. Streaks. Off shore fishing is great off Pointe Mouille at night for catfish and on the Huron River for large and small mouth bass. Bass are biting on spinner baits, Kelly worms and Rapala Shad Wraps.

Further out on Lake Erie the walleye action is good around West Sister in 24-28 feet of water, around the shipping channels, near the Sputnik, Turn-Around and E Buoys, and near the Dumping Grounds, worms and minnows work well.

Belleville anglers are finding that fishing is picking up on Ford and Belleville lakes. Walleye, bass and crappie are hitting on leeches and worms. The Huron River between Ford and Belleville lakes is producing good amounts of walleye and silver bass. Nearby, Kent Lake is also great for walleye, bass and crappie fishing.

Information providers: Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Pro-Fishing & Archery-Harrison Township; South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shop-Monroe; Andy’s Tackle Box-Melvindale and Gander Mountain-Taylor.


East:

Standish anglers are doing well for walleye on Saginaw Bay near the Catfish Hole and in waters 14-feet deep. Crawler harnesses in green and yellow seem to be working well. Saginaw Bay around the Linwood area continues to be hot for walleye in 16-feet of water. Plastics, spoons and crawlers are very popular. Overall walleye on Saginaw Bay is strong and steady and bottom bouncers, sinkers and in-line planer boards will do the trick. Deeper water 16-24 feet deep and north of Pinconning is producing good sized walleye on crawler harnesses and gold spoons. Anglers are doing well trolling at speeds between 1.5 and 2.0. Good action around Sebewaing, Quanicassee, Finn Road and Thomas Road in 7-10 feet of water, try using crawler harnesses with gold blades. Many anglers are obtaining limits. Catfish action is pretty hot too. Bay Port Anglers are limiting out for walleye near Sand Point on crawlers. The Saginaw River has decent fishing for white bass, sheephead and small mouth bass on crank baits.

Wixom Lake and Sanford Lake are both producing nice numbers of blue gill and crappie, fish are spawning. Try using tube jigs, micro-soft plastics, wax worms and Fat Head minnows.

Holloway Reservoir is producing some good catches of walleye for anglers trolling on both the lower and upper reservoir. Try shad style crank baits in 4 to 8 feet of water. Both sides of Goose Point productive and following the river channel in the upper reservoir near Columbiaville.

Off of Port Sanilac and Harbor Beach the Coho are in tight and lake trout are fairly active. Water remains about 10 degrees cooler than it should be for this time of year.

Port Huron anglers are finding a lot of walleye near the boardwalk and near the parkways. Pencil plugs and blue ladder backs with pink heads are working well, chrome is also an option. Some anglers are finding success in the evening hours. Out in Lake Huron anglers are drifting for walleye and getting good results using silver and copper blades, pretty much any variation.

The mouth of the Black River has a few perch, walleye and steelhead and the silver bass are just starting. The Black River is very good for a variety of fish with small mouth bass consistent. Most ponds in the area have fish on the beds and close to shore and spinners are working well.

Information providers: 1st & Main-Bay Port; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; Eagle Bay Marina-Standish; Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Lance Valentine’s Walleye 101; WalleyeKid.com and Gander Mountain-Saginaw.

Research biologist says cause of thousands of deaths happened somewhere out on the lake
Jim Lynch / The Detroit News

State wildlife experts want to know why thousands of dead fish are floating on Lake St. Clair near St. Clair Shores.

Rotting fish, including smallmouth bass, muskie, walleye, perch and bass, are littering boat wells and shorelines across several miles.

"It was just unbelievable," said Adam Jankowski, a Harrison Township resident who usually puts his boat in the water at St. Clair Shores. "Thursday and Friday, my wife and I were on the boat coasting south from 11 Mile Road to Seven Mile Road. We saw fish after fish after fish -- all dead."

Officials with Michigan's Department of Natural Resources began receiving complaints about a fish kill last week, but answers remain a long way off. Biologists removed fish -- both live and dead -- from Lake St. Clair and sent them on to a laboratory in Lansing for testing.

However, many of the dead fish were already so decomposed that they may yield nothing to investigators. The live fish taken in showed no outward signs of disease, said Bob Haas, a DNR fish research biologist. Results from the samples taken won't be available for six to eight weeks.

Click here for the entire article:
http://www.detnews.com/article/20090609/METRO/906090346/DNR-investigates-fish-kill-in-Lake-St.-Clair

Southeast:

Off of Fair Haven, Anchor Bay is spotty for perch, but spear fishing pike is good. There is a lot of snow on the ice and drifts can get up to a few feet.

Off of St. Clair Shores the activity is great for walleye in the evening hours.Also off of Selfridge the morning hours are very good and then again in the late afternoon. Orange and silver are popular colors and Do-jiggers are working well.

Perch action is only getting better for anglers in the Rock Wood, Flat Rock, Grosse Ile, and Gibraltar areas. Anglers are averaging 20 to 40 perch around the Erie Metro Park Marina. Mousies, wax worms, wigglers and green and pink teardrops are working well, pink is especially hot. Gibraltar canals are kicking with perch, anglers can expect to get limits but weeding through is necessary. Airport Bay is producing large quantities of yellow perch.

Off of Monroe, anglers are marking fish, but the fish just are not biting. The ice is very good ranging between 8-12 inches thick. Anglers fishing near Stony Point or Brest Bay are getting out on four-wheelers and going out one to three miles. Popular baits include spoons, jigs with Rapalas and walleye minnows. Anglers fishing off of the Banana Dyke in Berlin Township are doing well for perch and an occasional walleye in the mix. Remember that to get to the Banana Dyke you are on State Game Area, and motorized vehicles are not permitted, so anglers need to be prepared for a lengthy hike.

In the Bellville area, Ford and Bellville lakes are on fire for perch, crappie, walleye and limits of blue gill. Sorting is necessary on perch catches. A few anglers have pulled in limits of crappie in 45 minutes hitting a group of crappie passing through. In the surrounding areas, all inland lakes, ponds and gravel pits are doing well on a variety of fish. Mousies, wax worms, walleye minnows, big pike chubs and Emerald Shiners are popular baits. Four Mile Lake is giving up plenty of nice sized crappie and hammer handle size pike. An angler yesterday pulling in a 10-inch crappie had a 29 inch pike grab on to the crappie, nice surprise landing that pike.

Information providers: South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores. East:

The 22nd Annual “Shiver on the River” walleye contest in Saginaw begins this Saturday and runs through February 14. All entries, online or in person, must be purchased on or before January 30. Register at www.Mlive.com/shiver.

Anglers fishing off of the Bay Port area are doing well for walleye just off Thomas Road and seven miles out. Mud Creek is giving up some walleye and perch remain great using chartreuse beads in the early morning and late at night.

Off of the Standish area, Saginaw Bay is providing plenty of good walleye action 5 ½ to 6 miles out. Anglers are fishing in 19 to 22 feet of water with great success. Small lures, quarter ounce size, and Cleo’s or Do-jiggers all working very well. Don’t forget about the “Walleye Fishing Seminar & Tournament” taking place February 7 and 8. Call 989-846-1809 or 989-846-6065 to register.

Port Sanilac anglers will find a few perch and brown trout. Lexington anglers are fishing in 30-40 feet of water during the early morning hours before the traffic starts for perch and a few steelhead. Wigglers,large Emerald shiners and spawn are baits of choice. Most ponds around the Port Huron area are producing nice numbers of pike and blue gill. Sucker chubs work well on pike, blue gill are small in size.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; 1st and Main-Bay Port, and Eagle Bay Marina-Standish.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Good action in Fair Haven on Anchor Bay. Pike spearing is good, perch activity is good, but fish are small in size and anglers will need to sort. Ice ranges 8 to 12 inches thick and popular baits include minnows and jigs with spikes.

Anglers are doing well around St. Clair Shores for walleye, particularly near Gino’s Surf and Metropolitan Beach. Perch are active but small. Anglers will find decent activity in 8 to 9 feet of water during the morning hours. Wigglers seem to do the trick.

Downriver anglers are certainly seeing an improvement with ice conditions. Good ice averaging 12 to 15 inches thick can be found around Rock Wood near the Metro Park Marina. Perch and blue gill are active but fish are small in size. The Banana Dyke is giving up plenty of perch, typically anglers are keeping 20 to 30 fish, and an occasional blue gill in the mix. Overall the action in the Gibraltar canals has slowed down this week, but near the South Gibraltar Road towards the north end the perch are biting but sorting is necessary. Airport Bay is hard to access but anglers getting out are finding that pike, blue gill, and perch are biting on wax worms and spikes. Frenchman’s Creek is also giving up nice catches of blue gill on mousies and wigglers.

Around Monroe, the ice is good at Stoney Point and anglers are jigging for perch. Brest Bay has solid ice and the walleye fishing is really good after 5:30 p.m. Activity has slowed around Bolles Harbor and slim picking around Luna Pier.

Mill Pond near Dexter is giving up nice catches of perch and crappie. Near Pinckney, Joslin Lake is decent for perch and crappie and Wild Goose Lake has some great action for big blue gill. South Lake near Chelsea has fair fishing taking place and fishing improves over on Four Mile Lake where good numbers of pike and blue gill are biting.

Belleville and Ford lakes are both fair for perch and crappie, but really good for blue gill fishing. Overall fish are biting on several baits that include chubs, spikes, golden shiners, and walleye minnows.

Information providers: South Street Tackle-Belleville; Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rock Wood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores.

East:

Linwood fishing is good for anglers looking for walleye, 10 to 14 feet of water seems to be popular and closer to shore fairs well for perch. Ice conditions are good, but caution should still be exercised.

Bay City area anglers are finding good ice and fishing is taking place all over for perch and walleye. Walleye are biting on jigs and Rapalas on the Saginaw Bay and River. Perch action is good around Sebawaing and Quanicassee in two to three feet of water using teardrops and perch rigs.

Off of the Bay Port area, Mudd Creek continues to give up nice catches of perch. Anglers are still using jack hooks and chartreuse beads with good success. Some walleye are starting to run.

Anglers fishing in the Standish area will find outstanding angling for walleye on Eagle Bay in 12 to 20 feet of water and fishing three to six miles out. Ice is solid and measuring up to 14 inches. Mark your calendar for the “Walleye Fishing Seminar & Tournament” coming February 7 and 8. Call 989-846-1809 or 989-846-6065 to register.

Information providers: Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; 1st and Main-Bay Port; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood, and Eagle Bay Marina-Standish.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

East:

Around Caseville, lake trout fishing is temperamental, out of the River is good, off of the break wall not so good changes day to day. Ice is averaging 10-inches in depth and anglers are reminded that trout from the River are legal, but trout off the break wall must be tossed back.

Ice fishing is picking up around the Bay City area. Ice is forming on the Saginaw River. Anglers should still be very careful at this point. Near the Independence Bridge, walleye action is spotty. Anglers fishing the area are using a variety of lures and baits. Rapalas and jig heads seem to be working ok and the popular colors include yellow, orange, green, silver and blue.

Anglers fishing around Bay Port can expect good solid ice averaging 12-inches. Perch are biting at Mudd Creek on minnows, wax worms, jack hooks with chartreuse beads. In the perch mix an angler pulled in a five pound walleye, certainly a keeper.

Port Sanilac anglers are pulling in a few perch. Around Lexington there are numerous anglers out on the ice, steelhead action is decent and only a few perch are hitting. The popular baits seem to be Emerald Shiners and wax worms. Port Huron activity has slowed and the Boardwalk is shut down at this point. St. Clair anglers are finding some blue gill action fishing around various marinas.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st and Main-Bay Port.

Southeast:

Around the Fair Haven area, the ice is improving daily and Anchor Bay is registering 7-8 inches. Anglers are doing well for northern pike, mostly spearing.

St. Clair Shores anglers are finding plenty of small size fish, blue gill and crappie near Gino’s Surf and a few around Metro Beach. Angling seems to be hit or miss and it seems that small fish are the rule.

Anglers headed down river will find some nice perch available near the Metro Park Marina near Rock Wood. The ice is 8-inches and the baits of choice include minnows, wax worms and wigglers. Gibraltar canals are giving up decent counts of perch on minnows as well as Airport Bay. Near the Banana Dyke the ice is averaging 6-inches and wigglers are working well on perch with anglers getting 15-20 in a trip. The Detroit River has mushy ice, but improving everyday. The Huron River has no activity at this point due to a very heavy ice flow.

Off of the Monroe area, Bolles Harbor has some mushy ice and improving. Brest Bay is averaging five to six inches of ice but the walleye fishing is extremely slow with anglers only getting one or two per person during a few hours of fishing.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Near Algonac and Fair Haven, anglers are fishing on Anchor Bay near the Raft Bar. Some blue gill being pulled out of the shallow waters on wigglers, spikes, wax worms and minnows. Plenty of anglers are ice fishing near Gino's Surf. Ice is 4-7 inches across Bouvier Bay and decent action is taking place near the Bouvier Bridge for perch, and blue gill. Saginaw Bay is giving up good numbers of perch, and many times anglers are getting limits.

Near Rock Wood good ice has formed near the Erie Metro Park Marina where good angling action is taking place for perch on shiners and tear drops. Around Grosse Ile, Airport Bay, Pte. Mouille, and the Banana Dyke, anglers are getting nice numbers of yellow perch and blue gill when using mousies and tear drops. Perch action is very good around the canals of Gibraltar. The Huron River is giving up some nice sized steelhead in the 8-10 pound range on spawn. Anglers will have to deal with ice chunks and heavy ice flowing. Use extreme caution.

Off of the Monroe area, angling activity is minimal due to open water, windy conditions and the fact that the Detroit Edison Plant is dumping thousands of gallons of warm water preventing ice from forming. The Raisin River is still running very high, use caution.

Ford and Independence lakes near the Belleville area have good ice and anglers are doing well for crappie, perch, and pike on wax worms, and pike chubs.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fairhaven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Near Bay City, Hidden Harbor is producing good numbers of walleye on jigs and Rapalas. The ice is good and measures 9-10 inches thick. Now the ice on the Saginaw River is not safe just yet. Near Quanicassee the perch fishing is good.

Off of Bay Port anglers are walking on the ice but watch for big cracks. Rose Island and Mudd Creek have some sporadic walleye activity for anglers with plenty of patience.

In Port Huron the ice has firmed up and steelhead activity is decent when using Emerald shiners near the water filtration plant. Ice shanties are popping up off of Lexington and perch and steelhead action is good. Be sure to register your fish if you see the DNR census representative in the area. Lake St. Clair is frozen and anglers are getting some small blue gill and a few perch. Evening hours seem to be better for pulling in the bigger fish.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st and Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Some ice fishing is taking place around the Metro Park Marina and boat launch near Rock Wood. The ice is safe and fishing is good for pan fish and large size perch. A 13-inch perch was reeled in today off of the marina area. The ice is about 4-6 inches all around the Rock Wood area. Spikes are the bait of choice with many anglers buying small teardrops and wax worms. Many canals around Gibraltar and Grosse Ile have decent ice ranging between 4-6 inches.

Off of the Monroe area, the ice was frozen, however yesterday with the west winds the water blew out and busted up the ice. There is open water about 160 yards off the shore. Anglers use extreme caution. No activity is taking place at this point.

Belleville and Ford lakes have approximately four inches of ice. Blue gill activity is good near Sandy’s Marina. Popular baits include Emerald Shiners, mousies, spikes, wax worms, pike chubs and minnows.

Edison Lake is giving up crappie, blue gill, perch and pike.

Independence Lake near Pinckney is very good for crappie and the park is open with the ice averaging 11-inches thick.

Kent Lake is frozen and good ice-fishing is taking place.

Near Chelsea, Four Mile Lake has 6-8 inches of ice and blue gill fishing is decent.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Ice fishing is taking place around the Bay City and Sebawaing areas. Anglers are jigging with minnows and perch catches are decent. Ice ranges from 4-6 inches. Linwood Road to Palmer Road is a hot spot for perch on minnows. The Bay Port area is receiving snow currently halting angling activity at this point. Perch action has been decent when anglers can get out. There is still plenty of open water, use caution.

All of the ponds around Port Huron are frozen but the thickness certainly needs to be checked before heading out. There is open water near Portage Street.

Lexington anglers are fishing off of the boat ramp in 6-7 feet of water for brown trout. Ice is not safe at this point.

Information providers: Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st and Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Around Algonac and the Fairhaven area, anglers are catching a few blue gill, crappie, and perch by the Raft Bar and in the boat wells near Bouvier Marina. Some small pan fish are being caught near the Brandenburg Memorial Park as well. Minnows and bugs are working well. Some big bass have also been caught ice-fishing, but use caution the ice is only 4-inches or so thick.

Overall anglers in the southeast and downriver areas will find pretty much no activity taking place due to the weather conditions. Anglers are anxiously awaiting safe ice. Near the Metro Park Marina, some anglers are fishing from shore for perch.

Near Belleville area, Ford and Belleville lakes still have plenty of open water. Near Sandy’s Marina some anglers that are staying close in to shore are getting limits of blue gill and crappie on spikes, wax worms and mousies.

Four Mile Lake near Chelsea has 4-inches of ice and anglers are doing well for pike, blue gill and perch. But anglers need to use extreme caution since the ice is questionable.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Blue water Bait-Fair Haven; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Bay City received a major snow storm this week that has pretty much halted any angling activity. Ice is not safe at this time.

Bay Port anglers are pulling in limits of perch while ice fishing on Mudd Creek and around Sebawaing.

Port Huron angling is very limited this week and ice fishing is about a week away. Around Port Sanilac the ice is busted up pretty good near the shoreline and about six brave soles hav set up ice shanties. Yesterday a few anglers reeled in some steelhead on spawn bags and Emerald shiners.

Harbor Beach received up to 4-inches of snow this week putting the cabash on angling activity. Also the snow is packed up on the ice leaving the lake very questionable.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st and Main-Bay Port.

They are catching a few bluegills and perch by The Raft and in the boat wells of Bouvier Marina.  There are also reports of a few small fish being caught on the ice by Brandenburg Memorial Park‎.

East:

Bay City anglers are ice fishing on the cuts for perch. The Saginaw River has no ice due to dredging that is currently taking place. Near Linwood some shore ice is forming and some fishing is taking place in the shallow waters.

A few steelhead are being caught around Sanilac and Lexington.

Grindstone Harbor is giving up a few brown trout when anglers take the time to bust up the ice near the shoreline and drop a line using crawlers.

Steelhead action is decent off of Port Huron near the city building. Anglers are getting best results with minnows, crawlers, Red Eye spoons and flatfish. The Black River has some ice forming and anglers are in a transition mode since the launch ramps will shortly be taken out for the winter. A few anglers are drilling holes from the docks and fishing for perch, and good size blue gill.

Harbor Beach anglers remain in a transition period, ice has formed, but anglers need to use extreme caution before venturing out.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

Southeast:

Algonac anglers are heading out to ice fish behind The Raft in Anchor Bay. Use caution when attempting to take to the ice. The temperatures are fluctuating rapidly.

Anglers fishing the canals around Gibraltar, Grosse Ile, and Horse Island are pulling in a few perch. Off of the Rock Wood area warm waters are flowing from the Edison Power Plant and providing some perch and blue gill action for shore line anglers fishing near the Lake Erie Metro Park boat launch and marina. Shiners and wax worms seem to work best. The Huron River is decent for perch on Hot-N-Tots. Belanger Park in River Rouge has slowed, but anglers are getting a few perch on shiners.

Off of the Monroe area angling action is really slow. Thin ice is starting to form on most bodies of water, however with the warmer temperatures that could all change by the weekend. Some walleye action is taking place off of Luna Pier and the State Park.

Around the Belleville area, Ford and Belleville lakes have open water due to warmer weather this past week. Perch, blue gill and crappie action is good under the Belleville Bridge and near the paper mill. Independence Lake has 3-4 inches of ice and some brave anglers are attempting to ice fish.

Around the Fairhaven area not much ice has formed, maybe 2 ½ inches in the canals and on the Bay. The ice is certainly not safe at this point. A few anglers are fishing from docks or shore and pulling in a few perch and blue gill.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Blue water Bait-Fair Haven; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

A few walleyes are being caught in the North and Middle Channels via jigging. Some perch is being caught in the cuts along the shore but the ice is not yet safe so be careful.

Southeast:

Angling activity is down to a minimum in the southeast due to weather conditions. So far no ice has formed on any southeast inland lakes, the Detroit River or Lake Erie as of yet. Overall anglers are waiting for ice-fishing and safe ice.

A few anglers around the Rock Wood area are pulling in some yellow perch around the Lake Erie Metro Park boat launch on small minnows. Metro Park Marina has decent pan fish activity when using wax worms. The Huron River is giving up some crappie on minnows, but overall activity is slow.

Anglers fishing on the Detroit River from Belanger Park in River Rouge are pulling in some nice perch on shiner minnows and a perch rig. Perch are averaging 11-inches.

Ford and Belleville lakes are frozen but not safe and there is open water. A few anglers are fishing from shore for pike, crappie and perch. Wax worms and pike minnows seem to do the trick.

Fairhaven anglers are in a transition period and no angling activity is taking place currently and so far no ice has formed.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Blue water Bait-Fair Haven; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Off of the Bay City area some anglers are fishing from shore and breaking the ice by tossing a log tied to a line and fishing for perch. Some boats are getting out near the mouth of the river and pulling in a few perch. Ice is forming, but definitely not safe.

Lexington anglers are doing well from shore for pike and perch and minnows are abundant.

Slow activity taking place off of Port Huron for Coho, steelhead and a few brown trout. Red eye spoons seem to work decent and some anglers are casting twisters for good results on walleye. The Black River is producing some decent catches of brown trout, steelhead and some walleye which are in their winter pattern.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

East:

Port Huron harbors are giving up a few perch and steelhead, but overall activity is fairly minimal due to weather and a majority of the population hunting. The water is very dirty due to high north winds, so anglers fishing for steelhead, Coho and walleye need to fish close to the wall where the fish are hunkering down.

Off of the Linwood area perch fishing is still good on most of the channels and cuts.

No activity is taking place around the Bay City area mainly due to ice forming on the Saginaw River. The ice is not safe to venture out on yet.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

Southeast:

Adverse weather and windy conditions has limited angling activity in the southeast.Any fishing being done is mostly from shore and spotty at that around Rock Wood, Flat Rock, and Gibraltar. The Huron River is producing steelhead through out Rock Wood and Flat Rock. Action on the Detroit River is pretty bleak due to the weather one or two boats braved the conditions to venture out.

Monroe anglers are experiencing the same situation as cold weather takes hold and is keeping anglers from getting out on the water. Some skim ice is forming on shallow bodies of water and streams. A few more weeks of cold weather and ice fishing should start up. Very limited fishing is taking place around the St. Clair Shores area. Some small fish are being caught when using jigs. Canals are starting to form thin ice, but not safe to walk on yet.

It’s a slow go for anglers on Ford and Belleville lakes mostly due to adverse weather. Anglers that are braving the weather are pulling in a few crappie, perch and walleye.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St.Clair Shores and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

East:

Off of Caseville and Port Austin the lake trout have arrived early.

Off of the Port Huron area, a few perch and steelhead are still in the harbors. Some Coho, walleye and steelhead are close to the break wall due to murky waters. The activity is fair to good. The Black River and Mill Creek are both producing a few steelhead.

Good salmon action continues at Harbor Beach the fish are active inside the harbor.

Off of Tawas and Oscoda whitefish are starting to show up on Saginaw Bay.

Perch fishing remains good around the Bay City and Linwood areas when fishing around the marinas, and throughout the cuts and channels. No word on walleye at this point.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair.

Southeast:

Gibraltar and Grosse Ile anglers are doing fair to good for crappie, perch and blue gill when fishing off docks or throughout the canals. The Detroit River is giving up some walleye on jigs or hand lining with Rapalas.

Near Rock Wood, shore fishing for yellow perch is decent around Metro Park Marina and the Metro Park Boat Launch. Shiners and wax worms are working well.

The Huron River is giving up decent to good catches of steelhead throughout the River system including around Flat Rock, Rock Wood, and South Rock Wood. Near La Beau Park is a good location and between the two dams in Flat Rock is a good spot. Jigs or wax worms floating under a bobber are working well. Below the spillway anglers are using spawn, Hot-N-Tots and Rooster tails. Pan fish are also plentiful on the Huron River in the Flat Rock area using bombers and minnows.

Near the Monroe area, fishing overall is slow, however anglers are doing ok at night for walleye around Sterling State Park near Detroit Beach, Stony Point, and off of Luna Pier casting stick baits, with bombers the popular choice.

Off of the St. Clair Shores area some perch are being caught off the docks. Otherwise, weather conditions have been adverse and minimal angling activity is taking place. Some skim ice is forming on several canals within the area.

Belleville Lake anglers braving the cold weather are getting out in boats and getting limits of perch, walleye and blue gill. Minnows, wax worms and night crawlers are working well. A good location is near the Denton Road Bridge. Ford Lake is decent for walleye near the dam and Rawsonville Road.

No angling activity in the Fair Haven area this week due to adverse weather conditions. Not a sole on the water.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Little Dipper Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Algonac anglers basically have awful angling this week due to weather conditions.

Downriver the perch action has slowed this week due to weather. Anglers that are getting out are finding decent action at Fox Island, throughout the Gibraltar canals, near the Livingston Channel and around the cross-dyke. Perch fishing from shore is decent off Horse Island and Metro Park. Flat Rock and Rockwood anglers are doing well on the Huron River. Steelhead are all over due to perfect water conditions and the ladder has been repaired and opened as well as the dam. Jigs and wax worms floating under a bobber are working well and Rooster Tails are very hot in no particular color.

Monroe anglers are finding a few perch off of Bolles Harbor. Walleye activity is decent on the lower Huron channel and casting off Luna Pier with jointed bombers.

Around the St. Clair Shores area perch action is hit or miss on the Belle River, but the action is pretty good in the South Channel. Walleye action is decent on the Detroit River jigging or hand lining.

Belleville anglers are finding decent crappie and walleye activity on Ford and Belleville lakes using big minnows. Perch action is decent on wax worms, minnows, and pan fish worms near most bridges. Bass are biting like crazy and ranging between 4 ½ to 5 ½ pounds, fish are hitting on big minnows, rubber worms, really just about anything. Get the bait right out in front of them and they will bite.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Little Dipper Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock, and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

Lexington Harbor is producing some nice perch catches, fish are plentiful. Minnows are the bait of choice. The evening hours seem to produce smaller size fish, while the early morning hours are giving up larger size fish.

Port Huron anglers are seeing more and more steelhead this week. On average, fish are ranging from 8-10 pounds. Some lake trout and splake are in the mix as well. Good choices of bait include Red Eye spoons and crawlers. Orange is the hot color. A new run of walleye is apparent, however fishing is slow. Mill Creek is giving up a few steelhead, small in size and salmon is over.

Harbor Beach anglers are getting a few salmon from shore inside the harbor on spawn. No boating activity due to weather. A few walleye are also hitting off the break wall.

Bay City has good perch fishing all over Saginaw Bay, in and around the cuts and the channels of the Saginaw River. Perch rigs and minnows are working nicely.

Off of Linwood perch are biting in the cuts around the marinas, near the Spark Plug, in the shipping channels. Perch are plentiful but small in size. Walleye activity is minimal.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Good perch action for anglers fishing near Rockwood, Gibraltar, Trenton, Grosse Ile, Monroe, and Luna Pier. Further south good perch action around Toledo Beach, and if you are headed north good locations include Fair Haven, St.Clair Shores and Grosse Pointe.

Anglers near Rockwood this morning pulled in steady buckets of yellow perch. Good action in the channels around the Lake Erie Metro Park, Horse Island, near the mouth of Lake Erie and the Huron River in 8-10 feet of water and off of the weed lines. Shore fishing around Metro Park and Pointe Mouille is good for crappie and blue gill. Monroe anglers are finding good perch action around the Sputnik Buoy, W-Can, buoys 1 and 2, near Luna Pier and around Toledo Beach. Evening hours seem to be best.

The Detroit River is producing good catches of walleye on big minnows near the bottom end of the river, off of Celeron Island and near the Trenton Power Plant. Anglers are hand lining with number 9 or 11 jointed Rapalas. Chartreuse is the hot color and fishing at night seems to be the best choice.

Anglers around the St. Clair Shores area are seeing walleye, perch and musky pick up. Perch are active around the Nine Mile Tower, Grosse Pointe Yacht Club. Musky are doing well around the south shore, and the south, middle and north channels are giving up nice catches of walleye jigging.

Off of the Fair Haven area, angling action continues to be on the slow side but picking up. Perch activity in the Bay is plentiful but the fish are small in size. A few walleye are biting near the middle channel and anglers are vertical jigging with big minnows.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; and Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Anglers around Port Huron have mixed fishing conditions. Off of Port Sanilac and Lexington silver fish activity is poor, but fair to good catches of perch and pike can be had out of Lexington. Near the boardwalk and city building good action for walleye on crawlers and the Black River is producing fair counts of steelhead on spinners.

Off the break wall at Harbor Beach the walleye action is good. The salmon run is just about done as conditions are rated poor.

Near Bay City, perch fishing is good using minnows on the Saginaw Bay in and around most of the Islands. Perch action is good in the cuts off the Quanicassee River and near the Vets Bridge on the Saginaw River.

Information providers: Frank’s Place-Harbor Beach; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Off of Rockwood near the Lake Erie Metro Park, yellow perch, walleye and blue gill are in good numbers close to shore. Good action for perch at the mouth of Lake Erie and the Huron River in 8-13 feet of water. All around Gibraltar the yellow perch and walleye action is good. The bottom section of the Detroit River is giving up nice catches of walleye jigging with big shiners.

St. Clair Shores area, the perch are active in good numbers near the shoreline. Nice sized musky are plentiful on Lake St. Clair around the north and south channels and anglers fishing the Detroit River are also doing well near the mouth of the Detroit River and fishing further south up to and past the Ambassador Bridge.

Algonac anglers are scarce on the waters due to weather conditions and the water is really dirty.

Near Monroe recent weather has caused for some extremely rough waters limiting anglers in boats. Perch fishing off of the Bolles Harbor pier is decent. Some nice walleye are biting off of Stony Point and Luna Pier where anglers are wading and casting out in 10-12 feet of water with good results.

In the Belleville area, angling action is minimal due to wind, rain and frost. Both Ford and Belleville lakes are giving up some crappie and perch on minnows, pan fish worms, and small grubs.

Around the Fair Haven area, weather has slowed activity a bit. Walleye are biting near the Sturgeon Hole and the North Channel on jigs and big minnows in 60-70 feet of water. Blue gill are hitting on wax worms off of Harsens Island.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Off of Linwood, perch action is good in around the channels, marina’s and out near the shipping channel near the Spark Plug. Perch are small in size but plentiful.

Off the Port Huron area, walleye are hitting on crawlers with a light line working the current. The Black River is producing nice size steelhead in the 8-10 pound range and anglers are using spinners with good results. A few Kings remain in the Black River. Off of Port Sanilac and Lexington, silverfish activity is slow. Some perch and pike are biting around Lexington, quantities are small but the fish are good size.

Near Bay City, perch activity is decent in 7-11 feet of water at the mouth of the Quanicassee River and throughout the cuts and channels.

Information providers: Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

PERCH ACTION HOT IN SOUTHEAST

Perch action is hot in the southeast regions, but several areas throughout the state are experiencing a seasonal transition mode and slow angling opportunities.

Southeast:

Rockwood has excellent yellow perch fishing taking place. Hot spots include near the mouth of Lake Erie and the Huron River, 10 to 13 feet off Lake Erie Metro Park, and the weed line to Rat Island. Shiners on perch rigs are working great. Shore fishing for yellow perch is good near the Lake Erie Metro Park boat launch and yellow perch and walleye are active near Campeau Road.

Huron River is giving up some nice steelhead around the Flat Rock area with little Cleo’s on a Fellow jig. The canals throughout Gibraltar are producing good numbers of yellow perch and blue gill. Hand lining and trolling works well. Rapalas are doing the trick. Hot colors are Hot Steel and Fire Tiger. Perch action is very good on the east side of Grosse Ile, and around Fox, Dynamite and Sugar Islands.

Perch action is excellent off of the Monroe area around Stony Point and Bolles Harbor, and around the W-Can, Dumping Grounds, McDonalds Buoy, and Sputnik Buoy, near the Detroit Light, off of Luna Pier and near Toledo Beach. Shiners are working great. Walleye are biting at dusk around Stony Point and Luna Pier on bombers. Walleye are biting during the morning hours between the Detroit Edison Plant and Horse Island Flats.

In Belleville, the Huron River has plenty of steelhead schooled up near the dam, and great fishing is taking place between Belleville and Flat Rock, and the hot spot is near the paper mill. Berkley Gulp is working on crappie near the Barton Dam. Ford Lake is giving up limits of perch, and both Ford and Belleville lakes the fall walleye bite is starting. Try using wax worms, fathead minnows, horse hair jigs, Road Runners, pan fish worms, baby crawlers and neon green night crawlers.

In the Fair Haven area, perch are active near Seven Sisters and Grass Islands. Blue gill are biting around Swan Creek and out in Anchor Bay bass are hitting on everything.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Port Sanilac and Lexington Harbors seem to be sluggish this week for Kings and steelhead, but pike are hitting in Lexington Harbor in good numbers.

Around Port Huron, the Black River is giving up a few Kings and steelhead. Shore anglers are getting a few walleye near the water filtration plant using one ounce sinkers and Emerald shiners.

In Bay City, a few perch are biting on the Saginaw Bay, but small in size and plenty of sorting is taking place. Angling activity is hit or miss and basically in a transition period.

Off of the Bay Port area, perch are active just past North Island in deep waters. Overall fishing is slow in the area.

Harbor Beach anglers are fishing right in the Harbor for salmon and walleye on spawn and Cleo’s.

Information providers: Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Around the Algonac area walleye fishing has really picked up all over Lake St. Clair. Anglers are catching good quantities of walleye from Grassy Island to the North Channel and in the North and South Channels. Perch fishing is fair to good on Lake St. Clair particularly around Grassy Island.

Good action in the Fair Haven area, walleye are spotty but improving and can be pulled in around Sassy Marina. Grass Island is good for perch on minnows. Hot action for blue gill at the mouth of Swan Creek, and bass are biting just about every where.

St. Clair Shores anglers are doing well for perch on both the American and Canadian side. Try using dead minnows around the weather buoy as well as the Belle River. Expect plenty of bass in the mix when fishing for perch. Anglers remember you can not take live bait across the border to Canada, fines are stiff. Perch are biting around buoys 29 and 30, off of the St. Clair Light, in front of Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and off of the Nine Mile Tower.

Perch, perch and more perch are being pulled in around the downriver area. Outstanding fishing available off of Grosse Ile, Sugar and Celeron Islands. Also near the Detroit Light, off the W-Can, 3-way and McDonalds buoys, near the Dumping Grounds, and the perch are starting to move in around the cross-dyke. Minnows and shiners are very popular. Walleye are hitting on hard baits and minnows on the Trenton Channel in the evening hours hand lining or jigging.

Off of the Monroe area perch are hot on Lake Erie, at Bolles Harbor and even a few anglers are doing well fishing off of the Bolles Harbor pier in the early hours. Perch are biting on Luna Pier Beach in 20-feet of water, near Stony Point, the E-buoy, buoys 1 and 2 and near West Sister Island. Shiners and minnows are hot baits. Walleye are biting on minnows and hard baits off of Brest Bay.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores, and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Off of Port Huron near the break wall Kings are decent and of good size. Steelhead and brown trout fishing has picked up and should be good through the winter months. Good action for Kings on Mill Creek. The water is very clear and plenty of good fishing taking place. Small mouth bass anglers are doing well when shore fishing using two jigs and bouncing off rocks.

Port Sanilac Harbor has a few silver fish to be had, and in the Lexington Harbor, perch and silver fish are decent.

Bay Port anglers are finding that fish are scattered, a few walleye and some small sized perch can be pulled in around Sand Point. The Bay Port public access launch is closed.

In Harbor Beach the fall walleye bite is on and anglers are doing the best during the evening hours with night crawlers. Lake Huron and inside the Harbor salmon are still biting on spawn and Cleo’s.

St. Clair area it seems that anglers there are more interested in hunting than fishing this week and minimal activity is taking place.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron, and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Off of Linwood, Saginaw Bay is providing nice catches of perch on minnows in 20-24 feet of water. Walleye action is good at the mouth of the Kawkawlin River and near buoy’s 1 and 2.

Anglers fishing off of Bay City and Quanicassee will find good action on Saginaw Bay in 6-8 feet of water for perch.

Angling activity in the Bay Port area is slow, but anglers that are getting out will find some walleye action just past North Island on Saginaw Bay. As a reminder, the Bay Port public access launch is closed.

Harbor Beach fishing is good on both Lake Huron and within the Harbor for salmon and perch. Salmon are hitting on spawn bags and Cleo’s, while perch are biting on minnows and crawlers. Anglers are anxiously awaiting the fall walleye bite.

Off of Lexington and Port Sanilac silver bass and pike are biting in good numbers out on Lake Huron.

Port Huron anglers are doing well for perch around Metcalf Road and near the buoys in the Lake in 15-feet of water. Out from shore off of the city building, salmon and steelhead action is good when using redeye spoons and walleye are biting at night. The mouth of the Black River is producing good numbers of silver bass and steelhead.

In the St. Clair area, the Saginaw River is plentiful for walleye and perch using crawler harnesses or minnows.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Southeast:

Downriver anglers are experiencing very good fishing conditions. Perch are biting like crazy at the mouth of the Huron River and into Lake Erie, off of Rat Island in 13-feet of water, off of Point Mouille and in and around the channels off of the Metro Park Marina. Perch activity is good all around the east side of Grosse Ile in 8-15 feet of water and throughout the channels. The mouth of the Detroit River is giving up plenty of perch as well. Anglers will need to do plenty of sorting but will find plenty of keepers in the 8-11-inch range. Trout are becoming active in the Huron River on minnows. Walleye action is back on for the fall feed. Anglers are hand lining and trolling on the lower Trenton Channel with Rapalas and the hot color is pot steel. Walleye action is great on the bottom end of the Detroit River around Horse Island Flats (front of Erie Metro Park) in 8-10 feet of water while drifting with crawler harnesses.

Around the Fairhaven area, Goose Bay is a hot spot for nice perch action on minnows. Perch are biting between Grass Island to the Pointe in New Baltimore and also off of the Pointe in Fair Haven.

Off the St. Clair Shores area, perch activity is very good in the morning and evening hours. Best locations include near the shipping channels, off of the St. Clair Lighthouse, off of the Crescent Sail Yacht Club and around most of the buoys. Anglers headed over to the Canadian side can expect very good perch action with dead large shiners. Most perch are keepers in the 8-10 inch range. Perch are biting on the Detroit River near the Belle Isle Coast Guard Station, further down near the Ambassador Bridge and out in front of Great Lakes Steel Boat Club.

Near the Belleville area, Ford Lake is giving up nice catches of blue gill, crappie and walleye as well as lots of small size large mouth bass. Belleville Lake has some nice fishing for crappie, walleye and sporadic small and large mouth bass. A variety of baits are working well that include spinners, pink jigs, green or neon night crawlers, Twister Tails, and the popular Roadrunner. Catfish are biting on night crawlers, fatheads, and 6-8 inch river minnows. A few pike are also biting on river minnows.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Saginaw Bay is producing plentiful perch off of Bay City and Quanicassee in 7-11 feet of water and east of the Spark Plug in 16-17 feet of water. Other good locations include the shipping channels and around buoys 18 and 19. Anglers are using perch minnows with good results.

Bay Port anglers are experiencing minimal angling activity this week. Mainly due to heavy north winds creating rough waters. Walleye and perch are scattered and perch are limited. As a reminder, the Bay Port public access launch is closed.

Fishing is good on Harbor Beach for salmon thanks to cooler temperatures and rain helping to bring them in. Colored spoons are working well out on the Lake as well as in the Harbor. Perch are biting on minnows.

Information providers: Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Southeast:

Straight out from the Monroe area, weather conditions have slowed anglers from getting out and the algae on Lake Erie is pretty thick floating on the water. Perch action remains good around Stony Point, West Sister Island, C-Can, 1 and 2 buoys near the river, Pointe Mouille, the Banana Dyke and around the Sputnik Buoy. Good activity continues for perch between Sterling State Park and Bolles Harbor. The perch hot spot is in Canadian waters around Chandlerville. Be sure to have a Canadian fishing license before dropping a line and know the new rules on live bait.

Fairhaven anglers are doing well on blue gill out of Anchor Bay near Grass Island using minnows. Perch action is picking up around Harsens Island and anglers are using 50% minnows and 50% crawlers with good results.

St. Clair Shores anglers are pulling in some big musky near the south shore. On Lake St. Clair the perch are starting to pick up near the mouth of the Detroit River, off of Grosse Pointe Yacht Club and around the shipping channels. Anglers are using minnows with good results. Perch are ranging between 10-11 inches. Walleye action is back on and anglers are jigging near the Dumping Grounds and fish are biting around Belle Isle, the Sand Pile and off of Peche Island in Canadian waters.

Belleville Lake is producing good numbers of white bass on small flat heads. Anglers are limiting out in short timeframe. Crappie biting on minnows and walleye are hitting on Hot-N-Tots near the bridges while trolling. Blue gill are hanging out around the Rawsonville Launch and ranging between 10-11 inches. Blue Channel Cats are biting on chicken livers, night crawlers or minnows. Ford Lake is giving up ample counts of walleye and large mouth bass.

From Wyandotte to Flat Rock anglers can find perch around most any island off of Lake Erie and the Detroit River. Perch rigs and shiner minnows work best. Walleye have switched to hitting on minnows and going strong for the fall feed. Bass are doing well on crayfish and artificial baits.

Fishing is slow in the Algonac area due to weather conditions.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Southeast:

Algonac angling is much improved after last week’s rain. Water clarity has improved. Lake St. Clair is producing fair catches of perch in deeper waters. Catfish activity is good all over the Lake.

Muskie action is good around the St. Clair Shores area. Some big fish in the 31-32 pound range have been caught using brown and natural colored baits. Yellow belly perch are doing well on Lake St. Clair near the Thames River. Walleye are still active on the Detroit River on both the American and Canadian sides. Anglers are hand lining and jigging. The St. Clair River is also good for walleye action near the Coast Guard Station.

Flat Rock, Huron, and Gibraltar the perch action is good. The two buoys just outside of the Metro Park Marina is a hot location. Walleye are biting throughout the channels and cuts of Humbug Marsh during the evening hours jigging and hand lining.

Off of the Monroe area good action for perch around Stony Pointe, West Sister Island, E-Buoy, near the shipping channels, Pointe Mouille and further south around Toledo Beach in 19-20 feet of water and near the Sputnik Buoy. Limits of perch are being caught between Sterling State Park and Bolles Harbor.

Information providers: Blue Water Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Rockwood; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside Fishing Shop-St. Clair Shores, and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Bay City fishing is much improved over last week. Perch is picking up off of Quanicassee straight out, and just west of the channel, and east of the Spark Plug in 17-feet of water. No fall walleye bite as of yet.

Bay Port angling has improved with walleye becoming active off of Sebewaing. Plenty of walleye activity taking place behind North Island, just a couple miles off of Bay Port. Don’t forget anglers, the Bay Port public access launch is closed.

Harbor Beach area anglers are doing well for perch inside the Harbor with minnows. Salmon are moving towards the shallow waters and jumping like crazy in 35-40 feet. Body baits and spoons are working best. Walleye are biting on night crawlers and crawler harnesses in 55-feet of water. Spoons are working well on steelhead in 65-feet of water.

In the Port Huron area perch fishing is starting to pick up as cooler waters set in. Off of Port Sanilac Kings are hitting in 30-35 feet of water on J-plugs and silver streak. Walleye activity is spotty due to dirty water on the American side fish are biting more on the Canadian side. North of the Black River some nice sized King salmon are hitting on Red Eye spoons.

Information providers: Anderson’s Pro Bait-Port Huron; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; 1st & Main-Bay Port, and Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

The sun is shining and the water is finally clear from all the rain, so it is the perfect time to go fishing.  In Lake St. Clair, perch fishing is fair in the deeper water.  Also, they are still catching catfish everywhere in the lake.  

In Lake Erie, they are catching limits of perch from Sterling State park to Bolles Harbor.

East:

AAA Tip: Sanford Lake west of M-30 in Midland County under US-10. Due to construction on the bridge, boat traffic underneath will be limited to a single channel now through the winter months. The channel will be clearly marked but may vary.

Bay City anglers are just starting to get back out to fish today due to adverse weather conditions and rough water the last few days. Perch are hit or miss at the mouth of the Saginaw River, near the first Spark Plug and around Linwood. Walleye are scattered and hard to get right now.

Bay Port anglers have had there fair share of rain and rough waters causing for slow angling activity. And the Bay Port public access launch is closed as well causing for additional inactivity. Action should start improving by the weekend as the weather pattern changes for the better. Anglers getting out are finding that fish are in deeper water and anglers need to work hard to find them. Linwood area, walleye activity is slow, salmon action is decent out of Lake Huron and some perch are being caught in 19-21 feet of water, however anglers are having to work hard to find the fish.

Information providers: Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; 1st & Main-Bay Port, and Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood.

Southeast:

In the Algonac area, anglers are not fishing as of yet, mostly due to the recent weather conditions earlier this week. The rain and wind has stirred up the water so much causing it to be very dirty. Best bet before heading out this weekend call your local bait shop to verify the clarity of the water.

St. Clair Shores anglers are finding minimal angling opportunities this week due to muddy waters from recent storms. Good weather is in the forecast and conditions should be much improved by the weekend.

Downriver anglers had a lull earlier in the week thanks to rain and some windy conditions. Perch action is starting to pick back up around Metro Park Marina, and Sugar Island, as well as up and down the Detroit River.

Near Monroe limited fishing taking place this week due to rain and windy conditions causing for rough and murky waters. A few boats ventured out yesterday but it will take a day or two for the fishing activity to pick back up.

In the Belleville area, the recent weather snap has cooled the water temperature causing walleye activity to slow down on Ford Lake. Belleville Lake continues to give up decent crappie and small mouth bass. Wax worms, minnows and jumbo pan fish worms are working ok.

Information providers: Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Mark Modrak of China Township took the individual lead and Michigan was tops in the six-state team event after the first day of competition in the Bass Federation's Northern Divisional Championship on Lake St. Clair.

Modrak caught five fish totaling 22 pounds, 4 ounces, while Nicholas Smyers of Franksville, Wis., was second at 21 pounds, 11 ounces.

Michigan's 12-man contingent totaled 170 pounds, 3 ounces for a huge lead over Indiana, which was second with 125 pounds, 12 ounces.

The tournament runs through Friday from the Selfridge DNR Ramp (Clinton River Access) in Clinton Township. The public is invited to watch the takeoffs (6 a.m.) or weigh-ins (2:30 p.m.). Admission is free.

Anglers are competing both individually and as state teams in an effort to qualify for the Bass Federation National Championship. The top three state teams will be awarded trophies and cash prizes. The top-finishing angler from each team will advance as a boater to the 2009 TBF National Championship. The No. 2 competitor from each state team will advance as a co-angler.

Click here for the entire article:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080911/SPORTS10/809110365/1058

Southeast:

Algonac anglers are finding a few walleye at the end of the Middle Channel, around buoy 19 and near the Cutoff. Perch can be found near the Firecracker and South Channel lighthouses. Anchor Bay is still spotty for perch. Pike, walleye, catfish and bass are being caught in the channels. The North Channel is giving up a few sturgeon and if you are fishing more towards the south, Lake Erie is hopping with perch biting on Emerald Shiners.

Off of the Fair Haven area, some bass are decent around Grass Island and a few perch are biting off of Harsens Island on minnows.

Off of the St. Clair Shores area, perch are sporadic, best bet is off the Nine Mile tower and the South Channel around buoys 29 and 30. Anglers jigging on the Detroit River will find plenty of action for bass, sheep head and white perch, along with a few walleye.

Wyandotte to Flat Rock and south towards the Ohio border perch are hot on the Detroit River, Lake Erie and the Huron River. Sugar Island is a great hot spot with best action is 24-25 feet of water on minnows. Walleye are still biting on the Trenton Channel and around the Detroit Light.

Off of the Monroe area perch are really hot around Stony Point, the two stacks near the Raisin River, out in front of the Fermi Plant, near the dumping grounds, and further out near Ohio waters off of the Sputnik buoy, Turnaround buoy, and near the Camp Perry Range near the E-Can. Walleye activity is spotty but a few are being pulled out around West Sister Island in 26-30 feet of water and near the water intake. Shiners are the hot bait.

Fishing in Belleville is very good. Anglers are doing well on both Ford and Belleville lakes for crappie, blue gill, walleye and bass. No specific location fish are being caught all over the lakes, with night crawlers, leeches and wax worms working well.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Near Bay City perch are active around Callahan Reef the Black Hole and Buoys 18 and 19. Walleye action remains great north of Buoys 1 and 2 in deeper water and also in 6-7 feet of water around Callahan Reef.

Around the Bay Port area crawler harnesses and Hot-N-Tots seem to be working on fair catches of walleye. The fish are in deeper water and are scattered. As a note, the Bay Port public access launch is closed and will be open by duck hunting season.

Harbor Beach anglers are finding a few salmon near the shore by small boat, and near the break walls. Some good walleye and perch fishing is taking place in 45-50 feet of water. Shiners are the bait of choice.

Near the St. Clair area, fishing activity is picking up and many anglers are chugging for walleye.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City; 1st & Main-Bay Port and Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

• A few walleyes are being caught in the Middle and South Channels.
• Bass fishing is still good all over the lake.
• Perch fishing is spotty. Most are being caught in the deep water in the lake.
• Muskie fishing is still good.
• They are still catching cat fish in the South and Middle channel.
• In Lake Erie the perch fishing is really hot. Most people are catching the perch with Emerald Shiners. The following bait stores in Lake Erie currently are selling Emerald Shiners: State Park Party Store, Erie Park Party Store, and Riverfront Fishing Cleaning

Southeast:

Anglers fishing in the downriver area are finding great perch action off of Flat Rock, Trenton, Gibraltar and Grosse Ile. Just off Sugar Island and the mouth of Lake Erie is a great location as well as the Detroit River around Celeron Island in 25-feet of water. Rat Island continues to be a hot spot for perch on Lake Erie. Minnows are the bait of choice.

Between Estral and Detroit Beach, Stony Point is offering up good perch action on Lake Erie. To the south perch are biting on minnows near the Turnaround Buoy in Ohio waters. Walleye action is good out from the Raisin River in 25-feet and south near the water intake near Toledo. Fish are active in deep water on crawler harnesses.

Fair Haven angling is good for bass, fair to good for walleye and fair on perch. Crawler harnesses are doing the job on walleye when fishing off of Grass Island while minnows are the choice for perch.

Good action around St.Clair Shores where walleye are active throughout the day on Lake St. Clair and the Detroit River off of Peach Island, and jigs seems to be working well. Perch minnows are doing the trick on musky in 12-20 feet of water near the St. Clair Light.

In the Belleville area, Ford and Belleville lakes are giving up very good catches of crappie and blue gill on night crawlers, and bass on leeches.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores and South Street Tackle-Belleville

East:

In the Linwood area the perch fishing is good on Saginaw Bay in 19-21 feet of water. Walleye activity is slow and salmon action is rated fair.

Off of Bay City, anglers are pulling in some really nice perch around the Black Hole and Buoys 18 and 19 on minnows in 17-feet of water. Hot-n-Tots are working well for some good catches of walleye just north of Buoys 1 and 2 in deep water.

Angling action around Bay Port ranges between fair to good for walleye and perch. Best location for walleye is between Sand Point and North Island in Wild Fowl Bay. Anglers are finding good results using crawlers and chartreuse Hot-n-Tots and fishing in 20-feet of water. Perch are hitting on minnows off of the Sebewaing area.

Port Huron anglers are reeling in good numbers of catfish on crawlers near Lighthouse Beach. Fair activity for perch is taking place in deep waters around Port Sanilac in 30-40 feet of water just north of the harbor, off of Lexington state Park, and Buoy #5 off of Port Huron. The Belle River is fair for King salmon on spoons and Rebel Rousers.

Information providers: Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Michigan Sportsman-Essexville; 1st & Main-Bay Port, and Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

All around Algonac a variety of fish are being caught in the channels. Sturgeon action is still good around Pearl Beach, and off of the St. Clair Light some really nice catches of perch and walleye are being reeled in. Some musky action is taking place on Lake St. Clair. Angling action around the firecracker and on Anchor Bay has slowed down.

From Wyandotte to Rockwood the perch action is hot on the Detroit River especially east of Celeron Island, both sides of the Cross Dyke, around Sugar Island and the Metro Park Marina. Perch activity is also great on the Huron River and south of Rat Island. Walleye activity is good on the Raisin River, the lower Trenton Channel of the Detroit River. Hot spots include in front of Humbug Marsh, south of the Detroit Light, all around Celeron Island, and between Toledo Beach and the Dumping Grounds.

Near the Monroe area, perch action is starting to pick up off of Bolles Harbor, Stoney Point, and the E-buoy in 26-28 feet of water.

A little further to the south, Lake Erie anglers will find the perch hitting around Turtle Island and Toledo Beach, as well as off of the Sputnik and McDonald buoys. Walleye activity is decent near Turtle Island and off of West Sister Island in 30-feet of water.

In the Fair Haven area, not much has changed from last week with walleye and perch still active around Grass Island. Crawlers remain the bait of choice for angling activity on Anchor Bay for nice quantities of small and large mouth bass.

In the St. Clair Shores area, walleye, bass, catfish and musky are abundant on Lake St. Clair in 70-80 feet of water. Best activity is taking place north of the St. Clair Light. Night crawlers, Hot-n-Tots, and River Warts are working well.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

Around Essexville and the Bay City area, the walleye may not be biting, but the perch are hitting on minnows around the west and east side of the Spark Plug.

Around Linwood, the walleye have moved off to the deeper waters on Saginaw Bay. Perch action is good near the shipping channels. Lake Huron is starting to give up nice catches of salmon.

Off of Harbor Beach, Lake Huron is producing decent perch catches on shiners. Walleye are being caught further out in deeper waters, and salmon action is picking up.

Information providers: Frank’s Great Outdoors-Linwood; Michigan Sportsman-Essexville and Frank’s Place-Harbor Beach.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Lake Erie - Walleye fishing was good in recent days with fish caught off Bolles Harbor. Most anglers are slow trolling with bottom bouncers around the E Buoy. Perch fishing was fair with fish caught near Stony Point when using minnows. Some nice largemouth bass were caught on jigs near the mouth of the River Raisin.

Huron River - Smallmouth action has picked up over the last week. Anglers are using leeches and crayfish. Largemouth bass are hitting on crawlers. Carp and freshwater drum are still being caught.

Detroit River - Walleye fishing was fair in the Trenton Channel. Some are back to jigging with a worm or leech while others are still trolling or drifting a bottom bouncer with a crawler harness. Perch were caught in the weedbeds in the lower river.

Lake St. Clair - Continues to provide excellent muskie fishing.

Lexington - Boat anglers were marking perch around the weedbeds but no bite.

Grindstone City - Boats trolling for lake trout are heading out to waters 150 feet deep. Try spoons or plugs.

Port Austin - Walleye anglers are heading back west toward the reefs. Smallmouth bass were also caught. Those trolling for lake trout are doing best northeast of the port in 130 to 150 feet of water.

Saginaw Bay - Walleyes are still hitting east and northeast of the Spark Plug in 19 to 23 feet of water and north of Quanicassee in 13 to 15 feet of water. Very good walleye fishing was reported from 30 feet of water east of Eagle Bay Marina, formally known as Great Lakes Marina. Heading northwest off Sebewaing, a few walleye were caught over the Bar. Perch were hit-and-miss, but some were caught around the Black Hole northeast of Linwood and north of the Quanicassee River.

Click here for the entire DNR fishing report:
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364-34956--,00.html

Southeast:

Around the Algonac area small mouth bass continue to hit in Lake St. Clair and Anchor Bay on live bait. Perch action remains slow for anglers fishing Anchor Bay. Sturgeon action is good, while only a few walleye are hitting in the Middle, North and South Channels.

Around the Fair Haven area, walleye and perch are active near Grass Island and the walleye are biting on crawler harnesses. Anglers fishing anywhere on Anchor Bay are coming up with great catches of small and large mouth bass. Crawlers are working very well.

Around the Downriver area, the Detroit River is really starting to pick up for catfish from the lower end all the way up to the St. Clair Shores area. A variety of bait is working on catfish. Walleye activity is decent from the lower Trenton channel, mouth of the Detroit River and off of the Monroe and Flat Rock areas. Bottom bouncers, night crawlers and glow in the dark lures seem to be working best. Perch action on minnows is good on the lower Trenton Channel, around Celeron Island, throughout Gibraltar in most cuts and channels, off of Metro Park, the south side of the cross-dyke and off of Rat Island.

Off of the Monroe area, windy conditions and rough waters curtailed some anglers from getting out this week. Walleye activity has slowed a bit, but anglers can still reel in a few from out in front of the Fermi Power Plant in waters averaging 24-feet. Steady action for perch this week, best locations include near the Sputnik buoy, E-buoy, Luna Pier, Stony Point, and off of Toledo Beach in 16-17 feet of water and lined up with the water towers as well as right on the Michigan/Ohio line.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; and Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac.

East:

In the Linwood area, Saginaw Bay is giving up some walleye on a variety of baits and anglers are finding best results in deeper waters. Perch remain constant again this week in the shipping channels in 19-21 feet of water, south of the Black Hole. Salmon action on Lake Huron is picking up particularly for anglers fishing off the wreck, around Presque Isle, and off of Rogers City.

Around Bay City, Callahan Reef is giving up a few walleye and perch action is decent around buoy’s 18 and 19 and near the Black Hole.

Salmon activity around Harbor Beach is picking up especially south of the wall and when fishing down 20-30 feet.

Information providers: Frank’s Bait shop-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach, and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

It's back to schools on Lake St. Clair
BY ERIC SHARP • FREE PRESS OUTDOORS WRITER • AUGUST 7, 2008

It's testimony to the amazingly increased water clarity in Lake St. Clair since the zebra mussels arrived about 20 years ago.

The jerkbaits we're using are running about six or seven feet down in 17 feet of water. The smallmouths are hanging out just above the cabbage weed on the bottom.

Yet the fish are able to see those lures coming and rocket up 10 feet to intercept them with strikes that feel like the lure has hit a wall.

"I think that most of the fish out here have never seen a lure," Dearborn bass guide Gerry Gostenik said as he watched Windsor angler Dave Isley work a four-pound smallmouth to the side of Gostenik's 21-foot Triton bass boat.

Reaching over the side to lip the fish and remove the hooks before releasing it, Gostenik said, "You can still catch smallmouths in the shallow water off the mile roads (at St. Clair Shores), but this time of year the big fish are roaming out here in deep water.

"I call these bass the Cabbage Patch Kids because that's where you find them. They're schooled up, but they're not everywhere. You sometimes have to move around some to find them, but when you do you can usually catch 20 or 30 before the bite stops."

Click here for entire article:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080807/SPORTS10/808070409/1058

Lake Erie - Has fair walleye fishing with most boats bringing in two or three fish per trip. Trolling bottom bouncers in 25 feet of water near the Fermi Plant and Stony Point was producing most of the fish. Perch were being caught in 18 feet of water off Stony Point and Bolles Harbor near the E Buoy. A few smallmouth were caught.

Huron River - Fishing has been slow. About the only thing biting is catfish, carp and freshwater drum. A few pike were caught on bluegills in the backwaters.

Detroit River - Catfish action continues to be good and a few perch have been caught. Walleye fishing has been fair to good. Anglers are using bottom bouncers with crawler harnesses in the Trenton Channel. Good colors were chartreuse, purple or anything that glows.

Lake St. Clair - Nice muskie have been caught when anglers can find clear waters to fish. The muskie is a sight feeder so the cleaner the water the better.

St. Clair River - Anglers are catching some walleye when trolling crawler harnesses with bottom bouncers.

Saginaw Bay - Walleye fishing has slowed considerably for the time being. Strong winds have stirred up the bay and floating weeds and algae were causing some problems with lines. Experienced anglers are reporting large quantities of forage fish showing up on their fish finders, and this may help account for the bite slowing down. A few perch were caught out near the Spark Plug and on the edge of the Black Hole.

Saginaw River - A few walleye are still being caught in the lower river by those trolling the edge of the shipping channel.

Click here for the entire DNR fishing report:
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364-34956--,00.html

Southeast:

Algonac anglers are catching plenty of bass in the channels and the perch fishing is on fire all over the lake. Some walleye are coming up on the lines while fishing for perch as well. Sturgeon activity is good in the evening hours throughout the channels however the fish are small and most anglers are catching and releasing.

Anchor Bay in the Fair Haven area is giving up some really nice quantities of small, large, and rock bass on spinners and golden shiners. Walleye and perch remain sporadic this week with anglers doing best when using minnows or small crawlers.

Off of the St. Clair Shores area, Lake St. Clair is producing good catches of walleye around the south channel and near the Canadian side.

Good action for perch In the Downriver area, hot spots include the south side of the cross-dyke, in front of Metro Park Marina, and on the Detroit River between Humbug Marsh and Celeron Island. Minnows are working well. Walleye action remains good in the lower Trenton Channel. Some decent perch action is taking place between Grosse Ile Yacht Club and Sugar Island.

Near the Monroe area, good walleye activity taking place in front of the Fermi Power Plant in 21-22 feet of water. Perch are hitting around the E-buoy and the dumping grounds on shiners and minnows. A little further south perch are active around Rat Island, the Sputnik buoy, and near the Michigan/Ohio line of the shipping channel; and walleye action is decent as well, but anglers are having to really work for them. Worms are working best on walleye.

Ford and Belleville Lake is giving up nice catches of blue gill, crappie, and catfish, with only a few walleye being caught. Leeches are doing the trick near the Township Park, all of the bridges, and near Huron River Drive near Ford Lake.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

Around the Linwood area, the walleye fishing remains strong and steady on Saginaw Bay. The fish have moved to deeper waters, and all types of baits are working well. Perch are active in the shipping channels in 19-21 feet of water south of the Black Hole. Salmon are decent on Lake Huron near Presque Isle.

In the Bay City area, on Saginaw Bay the walleye action has slowed a bit and fish are moving to deeper waters. Perch are just starting and the hot spot is near the Spark Plug. Saginaw River is giving up good catches of catfish and bass however fish are small in size.

In the Bay Port area, windy conditions are keeping anglers off the water for the most part. Anglers that are getting out are finding scattered catches of walleye and catfish.

In the Harbor Beach area good activity for walleye, steelhead and lake trout in front of the beach area on orange and pink lures. Anglers are finding that the perch are very scattered.

Information providers: Frank’s Bait shop-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

They are catching Sturgeon in the channels. Most people are catching them at night, but there are reports of a some being caught during the day.

Southeast:

Fair Haven is a hot spot for very good catches of bass all around Anchor Bay. Perch action is spotty around Grass Island and near the B-Buoy. The North Channel is decent for catfish.

In the St. Clair Shores area, anglers are finding the bass fishing very good in the early morning hours or just before dark. Lake St. Clair is giving up a few musky near the Canadian side. Perch action is good on crawlers again this week around Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, 9 Mile, Metro Beach and buoy’s 29 and 30. Fair to good activity is taking place for walleye on the Detroit River around Peche Island and up to Belle Isle. Anglers are jigging and hand lining.

In the Downriver area the Trenton Channel of the Detroit River is giving up good catches of walleye on jigs with a worm. Anglers are getting best results fishing near the edges of the weeds. Perch action is good on minnows off of Celeron, Rat and Sugar Islands when fishing in waters 8-15 feet deep. Throughout the cuts and channels around Grosse Ile the bass activity is good. Near the Flat Rock area, the Huron River is decent for catfish and bass when shore fishing and the mouth of the Detroit River is fair.

Off of the Monroe area, the walleye activity is rated fair on Lake Erie near buoys 26 and 29 and using crawler harnesses and spoons. Minnows are working well on perch near buoys 12 through 17 and near Toledo Beach.

Belleville Lake is good for blue gill on wax worms and fair for walleye when trolling with crank baits.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

In the Linwood area, walleye fishing is good in the deeper waters on Saginaw River and Bay. Crawlers and Hot-N-Tots are working well. In the channel and around the Black Hole, the perch action is good when using minnows.

Bay City anglers are finding good fishing activity four miles out from Quanicassee and around Thomas Reef using crawlers and Hot-N-Tots. Perch action is good on Saginaw Bay around buoy 18 and 19 when using minnows.

Near the Bay Port area, walleye activity has slowed a bit but persistent anglers using crawlers, minnows and Hot-N-Tots will reel in a few especially near the “gap”.

Around Harbor Beach the angling activity is very good for perch, particularly in 15-feet of water and when fishing the weed beds with minnows. Fair action is taking place for kings and lakers in waters up to 100-feet and decent action for walleye on crawler harnesses and jigs.

Around the St. Clair area, fair activity taking place for perch and walleye on minnows and crawlers while all other species seem to have slowed down.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Frank’s Bait shop-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st & Main-Bay Port.


Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

Anglers on Anchor Bay in the Fair Haven area are reeling in good numbers of smallmouth bass. The bass are hitting on a variety of baits. The perch action is spotty by buoy “B” and on the west side of Grass Island. The perch are mainly hitting on minnows.

The musky fishing is good on Lake St. Clair, especially on the Canadian side of the lake. Musky anglers are also reeling in a few walleye. The bass fishing is very good pretty much anywhere on the lake. The perch fishing is good out from the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club, 9 Mile and 10 Mile roads. Early mornings are the best times to be out for the perch.

The Detroit River near Wyandotte and Gibraltar is producing some very good bass fishing. The perch action is good around Sugar Island. Out on Lake Erie, the walleye fishing ranges from fair to good in front of the Fermi power plant and along the sputnik. The perch action is good between the “E” buoy and the “dumping grounds.” The walleye are hitting on crawlers, the perch prefer minnows as bait.

And at Belleville, the bluegill fishing is good on Belleville Lake, with both waxworms and leaf worms working well as bait. The bass fishing is fair on the lake, while the crappie fishing is slow.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

The perch action is improving on Saginaw Bay near Linwood. The best fishing is found along the edge of the shipping channel in water 20-23 feet deep. The walleye fishing is steady on the bay in water approximately 20 feet deep.

Out of the Bay City area, the walleye fishing is very good on Saginaw Bay. Early mornings are the best time to be out, with crawlers being the preferred bait. Anglers on the bay are also catching a few perch. The catfish and bass fishing on the Saginaw River is good.

Around Bay Port, the walleye fishing is very good a few miles west of North Island. The marble eyes are being caught with Hot-N-Tots or crawlers.

In the Harbor Beach area, the walleye fishing is good by the harbor. The walleye are hitting on crawler harnesses up to 55 feet below the surface, in water that is up to 65 feet deep. The lake trout and king salmon fishing is fair straight out from the harbor, in water 80 to 110 feet deep. The perch fishing is improving daily on Lake Huron between Wagner Park and Deckerville Rd. The perch are hitting on minnows, in water 24 to 35 feet deep. The bass fishing is good in the shallows along the Lake Huron shoreline from Grindstone City to Harbor Beach.

On Lake Huron north of Port Sanilac, good numbers of perch are being caught in water 22-25 feet deep. Around Lexington, by the state park, the perch action is also decent.

By Port Huron, the walleye fishing is improving on the St. Clair River. The silver bass fishing is very good at the mouth of the Black River. Minnows are working well as bait.

And from St. Clair to Marine City the bass fishing is good on the St. Clair River, the perch action is fair.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Frank’s Bait shop-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Great Lake Outfitters-Port Huron; and Michigan Sportsman-Bay City.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Southeast:

The Detroit River continues to give up good walleye counts in 8-16 feet of water near the Detroit lighthouse, off of Banana Island and the mouth of the Detroit River. Lake Erie Metro Park, Sugar Island, and either side of Celeron are hot locations as well. Anglers are using crawler harnesses, hand lining, and trolling with spoons or Rapalas. Yellow perch are steadily picking up in and around Sugar Island in the weed pockets off the east side of Celeron along the weeds in 6-10 feet of water and the best bait seems to e shiner minnows on perch rigs. Small mouth bass are picking up near the mouth of the Detroit River and anglers are getting good results with Berkley Gulp leeches and Gulp Goby’s, as well as 4 or 5-inch salty tubes. Pointe Mouille is providing good catches or catfish for shore anglers around the south end or Roberts Road. Green worms and live shrimp are working best.

Algonac anglers continue to pull in nice catches of perch by the Fire Cracker on the South Channel. A few walleye are hitting in the south and middle channels. Plenty of action for bass on Lake St. Clair and the channels are also starting to pick up.

In the Fair Haven area, the perch action is fair in the south channel and near buoy’s 28 and 30 with plenty of sorting required. Straight out in front of the 400 Club in 14 feet of water perch are doing well with a few walleye and small mouth bass also biting. Walleye action on the St. Clair River has slowed a bit, but anglers are reeling in a few on crawler harnesses.

St. Clair Shores anglers are doing well for walleye near the dumping grounds when using crawler harnesses with a bottom bouncer. Early risers are finding good results for bass out of Lake St. Clair.

Around Monroe, anglers are using chartreuse and fire tiger baits with good results. Walleye are active near the Sputnik buoy, and perch are hitting around Luna Pier and the E-buoy near Bolles Harbor.

In the Belleville area, crappie, blue gill and walleye fishing is steady on both Ford and Belleville lakes. The majority of walleye are being caught in the early morning hours.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Lakeside-St. Clair Shores; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Moving Wall will be on display July 24th - July 28th at the Riverfront Park in Algonac, MI. Mr. Meldrum will sing the National Anthem at the 4:00pm opening ceremony July 24th

"The Moving Wall" is the half-size replica of the Washington, DC Vietnam Veterans Memorial and has been touring the country for more than twenty years. When John Devitt attended the 1982 dedication in Washington, he felt the positive power of "The Wall." He vowed to share that experience with those who did not have the opportunity to
go to Washington.

7/24/2008 - 7/28/2008
Algonac, MI at Riverfront Park
810-794-3000 or 810-650-7600

Date: 7/24/2008 - 8/4/2008
Hours: Open 24 Hours
Website: www.themovingwall.org
Cost: Free

Southeast:

Around the Algonac area, anglers are catching a lot of perch by the Fire Cracker on the South Channel, and plenty of bass near the light house. Bass are very active in the channels as they are on the move to cooler waters. Patient walleye anglers are reeling in a few from the North Channel.

Near the Fair Haven area, angling action is a bit slow this week thanks to high winds and rain that stirred up the waters. Night crawlers are working decent on blue gill, and a few walleye.

Walleye action remains great on the lower portion and mouth of the Detroit River in 8-14 feet of water, with the weed line a good bet for some decent size fish. Another good walleye location is off the Bell Buoy out in front of the Fermi Power Plant in 20-26 feet of water. One walleye angler pulled in a steelhead off of Sugar Island while hand lining. Walleye are averaging 2 ½ pounds with the typical catch ranging from 2-10 fish. Congratulations to Vic Vatalaro from Kent Ohio, the second place winner of the FLW Bass Tournament this past weekend, he purchased his bait and license from Bottom Line Bait and Tackle in Flat Rock. Yellow perch in 15-30 feet of water are being reeled in around Red Island (Pointe Mouille) and the action is also good between Celeron and Grosse Ile in 6-9 feet of water and near the weed line, anglers are averaging 15-30 keepers, most in the 15-inch range. Point Mouille and the Huron River is giving up plenty of bass on Kelly worms, night crawlers and top water baits, while catfish are biting on shrimp and green crawlers.

In the Monroe area, walleye are hitting on chartreuse and purple baits straight out in front of Bolles Harbor, the Sputnik buoy remains a great hot spot The E-buoy is also a great location for perch as well as Luna Pier and the dumping grounds, two miles off of Bolles Harbor.

Belleville area anglers are catching plenty of channel cats near Sandy’s Marina and under the big bridge and near Rawsonville Road. Blue gill and crappie are active on Ford and Belleville lakes. Leeches and worms are the top choice.

Information providers: Bluewater Bait-Fair Haven; Bottom Line Bait & Tackle-Flat Rock; Erie Party Shoppe-Monroe; Mackie’s Bait & Tackle-Algonac, and South Street Tackle-Belleville.

East:

In the Bay City area, anglers are doing great on walleye, and perch are active between Oakhurst and AuGres in 5-25 feet of water. Best baits include crawler harnesses, small spoons with a mini disk and Hot-N-Tots.

In the Linwood area, Saginaw Bay is giving up consistent walleye in 20-22 feet of water. King salmon are just starting on Lake Huron and are active around Rogers City.

In the Bay Port area, windy conditions have slowed angling activity a bit, but walleye remain active and chartreuse crawler harnesses are doing the trick.

St. Clair anglers are pulling in some really large perch biting on crawlers and minnows, while good size bass are biting on just about everything. Walleye are hit or miss at this time.

Harbor Beach has great fishing conditions for walleye on night crawlers or crawler harnesses. Perch are active on minnows around Forestville and Wagner Park, and some big fish are off of Sanilac, large enough to bend a hook.

Information providers: Angler’s Rod & Sport-St. Clair; Frank’s Bait shop-Linwood; Frank’s Place Bait & Tackle-Harbor Beach; Michigan Sportsman-Bay City, and 1st & Main-Bay Port.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

This week the fishing activity has really started to ignite now that the weather is cooperating. Angling activity is booming on a majority of inland lakes and rivers, as well as the Great Lakes for a variety of fish. The long holiday weekend should provide some great fishing opportunities.

Walleye hotspots this week include the lower end of the Detroit River, out in front of the Fermi Plant in 18-20 feet of water, and near Estral Beach. Worms and crawler harnesses seem to work well. Anglers are doing well with perch in 14 feet of water around Banana Island, as well as near the shipping channels. Around the Lake Erie Metro Park, bass and catfish remain active. Near the Monroe area, hot spots for walleye include Luna Pier and the River Raisin in 27 feet of water. Pink spoons and crawler harnesses are working best.

Excellent fishing taking place on both Ford and Belleville lakes with a variety of fish being reeled in that include bass, walleye, crappie, blue gill and channel cats. Minnows are working well but mostly leeches are being used. The best locations are near Rawsonville Road and around Sandy’s Marina near Edison Lake Road.

Near the Fair Haven area the walleye action is poor in the river, but plenty of perch can be had in the south channel and near the B-buoy. Buoys 27 through 30 are also decent locations for pulling in perch on minnows. Bass action is good using casting tubes and fishing anywhere between the south shore and the 400 Club.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Big fish hunting on Lake St. Clair

Video by ERIC SHARP/DFP
Join Freep outdoor writer Eric Sharp for a look at the fishing that has made Lake St. Clair one of the top destinations for the elusive muskellunge.

Click here for the video:
http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080627/VIDEO02/80626077/1058/SPORTS10

Lake Erie is giving up good catches of walleye on purple and gold spoons in 18-20 feet of water. Yellow perch are active in the shipping channels, near the Detroit Light and farther south toward the Bessie Power Plant. Near Lake Erie Metro Park the bass and pan fish are active, and out in front of Pointe Mouille, anglers are using green crawlers for good catches of catfish. Off of the Monroe area, decent fishing taking place around Bolles Harbor and in and around the cuts and channels of Sterling State Park and the Detroit Beach Boat Club. The River Raisin is giving up some nice perch when trolling with spoons, also around Luna Pier is a good location.

Ford and Belleville lakes are giving up good catches of crappie, blue gill and walleye. Hot spots include near Edison Lake Road by the Dam and near Rawsonville Road and bridges in town. Anglers are using leeches and minnows with good results.

Anchor Bay near Fair Haven is giving up decent catches of bass and blue gill on minnows, worms and crawlers.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Perch are being caught in the Great Lakes. Inland, anglers are catching bass, pike, walleye and catfish. Lots of rock bass are also being caught.

Lake Erie - Walleye fishing has improved to fair. Fish have been found in 25 to 27 feet of water near the Fermi Plant and Stony Point. Pink, gold and purple baits were the ticket. A few yellow perch freshwater drum were also caught. Smallmouth bass were caught near Bolles Harbor.

Huron River - Good numbers of catfish have been caught on crawlers, shrimp and even chicken liver. Smallmouth bass are hitting on spinners, crank baits or crawlers.

Detroit River - Jigging or handlining is producing fair to good numbers of walleye. Try rapalas, worms or leeches.

Lake St. Clair - Yellow perch have been caught by those willing to put in the time. Locate a school of perch and fish until the bite stops. Try perch rigs with shiners.

Lexington - Trout and salmon are being caught in 45 to 65 feet of water. Those fishing inside the harbor have caught walleye, pike and a variety of panfish.

Click here for the entire DNR fishing report:
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364-34956--,00.html

In the Fair Haven area, perch are active in the shipping channels and around number 26 and 28 buoys. Anglers are using minnows for best results. Small mouth bass are active in 6-8 feet of water on green or brown tubes. Walleye anglers are trolling all parts of the river and using bottom bouncers, activity has slowed however. Blue gill catches are decent around Harsen’s Island on leaf worms and small crawlers.

Walleye fishing is great on both sides of Grosse Ile, the mouth of the Detroit River, and the Trenton Channel. Anglers are hand line trolling with Rapalas or bottom bouncers. Walleye action is also good in Lake Erie in 20-feet of water using blue, silver and clown pattern spoons, as well as reef runners. Off of the Flat Rock area the perch action is good on Lake Erie right around the Ohio/Michigan line and near the Sputnik Buoy. Off of Pointe Mouille and Lake Erie Metro Park, anglers will find easy access, and some great conditions for catching catfish, perch and blue gill. Bass season opens Saturday.

Near the Monroe area, Lake Erie is giving up good catches of walleye in 20-feet of water in front of the Fermi Plant, and also around Little Sister Island between Ohio and Monroe. Three miles off of Bolles Harbor the perch fishing is good. Anglers are trolling with purple, gold and silver spoons and mini divers.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

They are catching perch by the South Channel past the Fire Cracker on both the American and Canadian side of the lake. Perch are also are being caught in Anchor Bay.

Around the Fair Haven area, small mouth bass are plentiful on tube jigs and spinner bait however it is still catch and release at this point. The official bass season starts on June 21, 2008. Walleye action has slowed on the river this week. The shipping channels are producing good numbers of perch on minnows around buoys 26 and 28.

n the Port Huron area, the mouth of the Black River continues to give up decent catches of silver bass, smallmouth bass and pike.

St. Clair anglers have good action this week for walleye in the 14-21 inch range between St. Clair and Marine City. Crawler harnesses, Rapalas, and pencil plugs are doing the trick.

Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.autoclubgroup.com/michigan/fishing.asp?zip=48220

Michigan's Free Fishing Weekends are two special days when all fishing license fees will be waived for residents and outstate visitors alike on both inland and Great Lakes waters. All fishing regulations will still apply.

Free Fishing Weekend events are sponsored by many communities, businesses, and conservation and fishing clubs. Click here, for a list of Michigan Free Fishing Weekend events.

National Boating and Fishing Week is June 1-8, 2008. Look on the "Take Me Fishing" website at www.takemefishing.org for additional activities not only in Michigan, but other states as well.

This coming Saturday May 24th is the opening day of bass season on the Great Lakes and all the inland waters except Lake St. Clair, St. Clair River and the Detroit River which do not open until the 3rd Saturday in June. The early catch and release season has been very good so the opener this weekend should also be good especially if the weather warms up and stays that way.


Lake Erie - Fishing has been hit-or-miss. Walleye were caught in 10 to 15 feet of water in Brest Bay. Drifting produced the best catches but those trolling crank baits or plugs also caught fish. Most boats were taking an average of two fish per trip. White bass were still hitting this week and large numbers were caught in Brest Bay. Water temperatures were 55 degrees at the surface and the clarity was improving.

Huron River - A couple steelhead were caught on minnows near the rocks just down from the dam at Flat Rock. White bass have been caught on minnows or crayfish.

Detroit River - Walleye angling has slowed but most boats are still catching a few. The white bass fishing is on fire! Most of the fish are 11 to 13 inches long and are great fighters. Many are being taken by shore anglers, but boat anglers are also doing well when fishing about any place where the water is less than 32 feet deep. Jigs and plastic worms, real worms or minnows are all working well.

Lake St. Clair - Walleye fishing is still on the slow side off Metro Beach, but a few more fish were caught in the south end of the lake.

Click here for the entire DNR fishing report:
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364-34956--,00.html

Southeast Lower Peninsula

Lake Erie - Catch rates remain fair with the cooler temperatures. Anglers had mild success for walleye near the Fermi Power Plant and Stony Point when slow trolling with bottom bouncers. The Dumping Grounds near Bolles Harbor were also producing a few fish. Those fishing the lake side of the Banana Dike caught walleye in 10 feet of water. Large numbers of white bass are hitting on live bait. The catch and release bass action has been good near the shoreline and in the channel off Bolles Harbor.

Huron River - There are still light numbers of steelhead below the dam. Walleye fishing has picked up and the smallmouth bass bite has been good. The river has a lot of carp and suckers.

Detroit River - Has good walleye action along the entire river when using jigs with minnows or crank baits in the early morning or late at night. Perch have been caught around Stony Island but watch out for the rocks. Most are using perch rigs with shiners. The white bass are just starting to come in.

Lake St. Clair - Some walleye were caught when jigging or handlining but the action is slow. Better weather will bring better fishing.

Lexington - Boats trolling in 15 to 25 feet of water have caught coho, lake trout steelhead and brown trout with a few chinook and walleye mixed in. Bombers and rapalas were the ticket. Pier anglers have caught small perch.


Click here for the entire fishing report:
http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364_10848-34956--,00.html

From: Dan Keifer

Hello, Metro West members.

The status of the proposed water use legislation is that it is currently being debated in Lansing. Your legislators need to hear from steelhead/salmon fishermen and cottage owners right now.

This weekend and next week is VERY IMPORTANT timing to send your comments to your legislators. Indications are that the legislature will try to wrap up the deliberations and try to arrive at a consensus on the legislation in the next two weeks.

If you want steelhead and salmon out in the Great Lakes, it's time to speak up for the rivers and streams where they grow up as juveniles and return to spawn.

As you may know, the House and the Senate bills are very different in how they would implement the new set of rules and regulations over groundwater withdrawals in the state. The Senate version is very unfriendly to rivers and streams, and that includes the river stretches that support the spring and fall spawning runs of steelhead & salmon. Missing from these deliberations is the voice for "Water in its Place." That is, the importance of Michigan's water to stay where it is now...in its streams, lakes, and wetlands...for the multi-billion dollars of recreation, tourism and property values that make Michigan the unique state that it is.

The big water user pushing for the excessive limits of water use is the Farm Bureau. No, agricultural irrigation water does not all trickle back down to the aquifers. A significant amount of that water is taken up by crops. Whether it's in a pound of cherries, a sack of potatoes, or a gallon of ethanol, increased agricultural uses can mean lots of water leaving the state in finished agricultural products.

The critical period where groundwater withdrawals can most impact salmon/trout populations is in the warm, low flow summer months. The Senate version of this legislation would allow up to 25% of summer flows to be withdrawn...without any permitting process or any public input...and acknowledges that this would reduce trout populations. Making matters worse, this is mean monthly flow...meaning no restrictions on what might happen on any given day or days during the month. All current users/usages would be grandfathered...including all the lake-level control structures that affect streamflows in the Muskegon, the Platte, the Huron, the Clinton, and many more.

The "Groundwater Assessment Tool" is a great start at modern-day water management in Michigan. But, it's unproven science, and it is incomplete. It is based on an inventory of 11,000 stream segment types in the state. Yet, there are only 230 USGS streamflow gages operating in the state. If the summertime flow of water on a trout stream is signficantly reduced
by withdrawals in years to come, how will you or I or some other angler prove that it is excessive?

Have you fished a Michigan river in July, August, or September? If not, you have no idea how low these streams get...now, before any new rules. It is unimaginable to me that our state would enact water legislation that says it's ok to reduce stream flows by 25% in the summer months. Fish need habitat 100% of the time, not 99% of the time.

Will all of these dire things happen to the state's trout streams? We don't know. What we do know is that the Senate version of the legislation would provide no means for any member of the public (individuals, groups, property owners) to contest a proposed large-scale groundwater withdrawal. What we do know is that the package of laws being developed now will determine
how groundwater is used in Michigan for decades to come. All the circumstances argue to go slow and cautious as this gets implemented for the first time.

There are just too many unknowns to the consequences of such a far-reaching new set of regulations like this, to be comfortable with being so aggressive right out of the box. A lot of the good trout/salmon rivers will be unaffected...AuSable, Manistee, Pere Marquette. But, others could be really impacted because of where the are in the state and/or their unique
characteristics: The Muskegon and the smaller rivers in SW Michigan come to mind.

Below is my mid-March message on this issue. Its attachment is included on this message as well.

Let me know if you have any questions or need more information on this. If you need help figuring out who your legislators are (both Senate and House are important here), start with www.vote-smart.org and type in your zip code. Or, email me.

All you really have to say is that you are in favor of strong protection for Michigan's salmon/troutstreams, that you support the House version of the proposed legislation, and that you are opposed to the Senate version. Anything additional would just be icing on the cake.

Dan Keifer
Metro West Steelheaders Club
and Clinton River Watershed Council


Click here for the mid-March message

ERIC SHARP
Border protection policy is fishing for more work
March 30, 2008

You may have heard that U.S. Customs and Border Protection will require fishermen to carry passports or other approved identification and check in with immigration upon returning from Canadian waters on the Detroit and St. Clair rivers, Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie, even if they don't touch land in Canada.

It's what you'd expect from the government that gave us the recovery plan for Hurricane Katrina: impractical, unenforceable, inconvenient, infuriating and expensive.

But if you're one of tens of thousands of local anglers who would be affected by this latest window dressing to create the illusion of national security, there's hope that sanity will prevail.

Chief Ron Smith of the agency's Detroit office has told his Washington headquarters that the plan is unenforceable and would create a bureaucratic nightmare.

"If we're going to require fishermen to check in every time they run a boat across that invisible border (on the water), we're going to have a problem," said Smith, adding that he hopes to have "clarification" of the requirement next week.

"The water boundary is our weakest link, but we need to make sensible decisions about how we protect it," Smith said. "I've been out on the Detroit River during the walleye season and have seen five, six rafts of boats with more than 100 boats in each raft. They're not anchored, just drifting down the river. How do we track all of them?

"I hope we get a decision (from Washington) by next week, because the walleye season is almost here again."

This mess started a couple of weeks ago when border patrol officials in Cleveland told local charter captains that if they entered Canadian waters on Lake Erie, they would have to file the same kind of paperwork required of large commercial ships transiting the lakes.

Besides the skipper and crew filling out paperwork and learning new rules before the season, charter captains also would have to fax in daily lists of their customers, including personal information such as citizenship and birthdates.

All passengers would have to carry passports or other approved official identification, and everyone aboard would have to check in with immigration upon returning to Ohio (after the skipper calls the border patrol at least an hour before returning to port).

It's the kind of goofy rules you'd expect from cubicle denizens who know little about the situation for which they are making the rules, bureaucrats who probably have never seen a fishing boat, never mind gone fishing.

Needless to say, it has not made the Ohio charter captains happy, or people on other parts of the Great Lakes who routinely pass through Canadian waters and have heard about the plan.

Meanwhile, Smith has been meeting Detroit-area boating groups and telling them that if they don't tie up to the Canadian shore, or land in Canada, they don't have to check in upon returning to the United States. He said that technically, the boaters should check in if they anchored in Canadian waters, but even that regulation hasn't been enforced because it doesn't make a lot of sense if the boaters anchor in the middle of a lake or river.

Smith is right about creating a bureaucratic nightmare. The border patrol simply doesn't have the boats and agents it would take to make this law effective.

If anglers want to see these rules repealed, I suspect the easiest way would be to follow them. How many hundreds of calls a day is the border patrol equipped to handle?

After all, what good is this law going to serve? If a group of anglers merely leaves the United States, motors into Canadian waters and then comes back, what does checking in do to make us safer? And if the boaters are terrorists or people smugglers who make an illegal landing in Canada, do you think they will check in upon returning?

Unless the border patrol is prepared to track the movements of a significant percentage of the boats on our waters, this latest plan is simply another government boondoggle.

There's hope: Rebecca Humphries, director of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, has asked the Natural Resources Commission to rescind a rule that bans the shooting of all-white deer.

Contact ERIC SHARP at 313-222-2511 or esharp@freepress.com.