Wisconsin Fishing Report 9/17/09

[Woody]

NORTHERN REGION - Governor Tommy G. Thompson State Fish Hatchery - Staff have been
harvesting large walleye fingerlings from one of the facility's half-acre rearing ponds. Crews use a
100-foot nylon seine to collect the fish in one end of the pond, where they are removed from the
gathered seine and bucketed-up to a waiting fish distribution truck. The fish are then hauled to a
nearby water body for immediate stocking or to the hatchery building itself, where they are held
overnight for following day stocking. With half of the annual harvest completed as of Sept. 16, the
facility is on pace to meet its total production goal of slightly more than 36,000 (approximately 3,500
pounds), for this age group of walleye. The large walleye fingerlings produced by the Thompson
hatchery typically measure from 6.5 – 8 inches and weigh anywhere from 5 to 15 fish per pound. All
the larger walleyes scheduled to be produced by the work-unit this year are targeted for stocking in
the northwest part of the state. It's likely that some surplus fish will be available at the completion of
the harvest and may be used to stock other lakes in this part of the state (including Lake Superior),
as well as some in the southern part of the Wisconsin.

Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron
counties) - With the continued pleasant and mild weather of the past week, fishing success has
been generally good on most waters across the Northwoods. Water temperatures have remained in
the upper 60s to low 70s and this has maintained some consistent feeding activity for most species.
Musky fishing has been drawing quite a bit of attention and action has been generally good. Nearly
all musky anglers are seeing fish and having follows, and numerous catches of mid-size fish have
been made. The most successful baits continue to be artificials, with bucktails, top-water baits, and
soft-bodies lures being the favorites of late. A few anglers have been trying suckers, but the warmer
water makes it hard to keep the bait alive. However, look for the sucker bite to improve as water
temperatures cool down into the 50s. Sturgeon season is into its second week and many anglers
were having mediocre success catching these ancient fish. The local rivers have been most
popular, with quite a few small fish being caught and just a few 60-inch-plus legal-size fish being
reported. Cut bait and gobs of night crawlers, fished in the deep holes or river bends, have shown
the best success. Bass fishing has started to become erratic on local waters, but some excellent
action has been experienced on a couple of days. Largemouth have been a bit more consistent
than smallmouth, with the larger lakes and flowages providing some decent action around mid-
depth weeds and structure in 5 to 10 feet of water. Soft plastics such as 7-inch worms, craws and
tube baits have been the more successful lures, especially when fished slowly along the weeds tops
and weed lines. Smallmouth fishing has been an on-again, off-again experience - with some good
days of fishing mixed in with some poor days. The most consistent action for smallmouth has been
near mid-depth woody cover, near sharper drop-offs to deep water. Small finesse plastics have
been the best bait. Northern pike fishing has been fair and casting spinner baits in or near any
weeds has provided some good action. Walleye success continues to improve with some decent
catches reported from on and around mid-depth structure and gravel bars. Small jigs tipped with
leaches, crawlers or minnows have all provided some fair action. Panfish success has been
generally good, with some nice perch, crappie, and bluegill showing up along the deeper weed
edges.

Woodruff DNR Service Center area - Walleye reports are good with some very nice catches being
taken on minnows. Musky action is picking up as they begin the fall feed. Bluegills and crappies
continue to whip about in the water and are always nice catches, especially for the kids.

Pine Popple Wild Rivers – There has been no measurable precipitation for the month of September.
The last rain fell on August 29 and water levels are very low. Boating is challenging, fishing is
necessarily limited to areas with water deep enough to hold fish.

NORTHEAST REGION - Marinette County - Peshtigo Harbor smallmouth bass have been biting on
spinner baits and plastics, with fish found close to structure. Some perch and catfish were being
caught at the harbor on leaf worms and crawlers. The walleye bite in the Menominee River has
been consistent even with the warm temperatures. Early morning and evenings were best times to
fish; trolling and jigging have both been working well. The trout and salmon bite remains slow but
with the coming weather changes, things should pick up. No sturgeon have been registered during
the Hook and Line season on the Menominee River although quite a few have been caught and
released.

Oconto County - Water temperatures at the landings are in the low 70s with good water clarity. The
weather has been great which has kept the landings full and the fish for the most part have been
actively feeding. Perch are the main story on the bay this week. From the landing at Pensaukee to
Oconto Park II most anglers were reporting nice catches of fish in 7 to 14 feet of water using
minnows with crappie rigs or slip bobbering. Stiles Dam continues to produce nice catches of
bluegills free floating leaf worms or crawlers.

Manitowoc County - This past week anglers in the Two Rivers and Manitowoc area had a fair week
of fishing. The weather was sunny and warm with light winds that allowed for a large variety of boats
to troll the Lake Michigan shoreline. Some boaters targeting chinook salmon were trolling around
the piers and along the adjacent shoreline in 25 to 35 feet of water. Some good catches this past
week came near sunrise using glow in the dark spoons or brightly colored J-plugs. Other boaters
voyaged out to 200 to 300 feet of water targeting younger chinook salmon. These anglers had
some success, but fishing was slow. On the West Twin River, chinook anglers had fair success this
past week. By late in the week, a couple of anglers were able to land a few chinook salmon by
Shoto Dam but fish were scarce. In the Manitowoc harbor anglers were landing a few chinook
salmon this week. Anglers were fishing from the mouth of the Manitowoc River up to and around the
first bridge. Most anglers were casting spoons or crank baits while others were using spawn with a
bobber. On the piers, anglers had slow fishing. Although fishing was slow at times, the chinook
salmon that were harvested were large in size. Anglers that had the most success were casting
spoons. Smallmouth bass anglers had a good week fishing around the north pier and along the
break water of the marina. Bass anglers were using tube-jigs, spinners, crank baits, and worms on a
bobber.

Door County - Another beautiful week with warm temperatures during the day and cool temps at
night, combined with moderate breezes made it great to be outside. The salmon action on Lake
Michigan was only fair this week. The bank reef north of the Sturgeon Bay Ship Canal continued to
produce a few fish. Anglers trolling spoons and fly and dodger combinations in the top 75 feet over
150 to 250 feet of water were having some success. A few fish were taken off the piers at the Coast
Guard Station and in the canal. Farther north anglers reported taking a few fish out of Baileys
Harbor, Gills Rock and the waters around Washington Island. Smallmouth bass action was fair to
good on Green Bay from Little Sturgeon all the way up to Washington Island. The reefs and points
are all producing some smallies. Tube jigs, stick baits, grubs, Katelands fished in 15 to 25 feet of
water all were producing a few smallies. Top water lures fished in 2 to 10 feet of water were also
relatively productive. Look for structure to find the smallies. Walleye action continued to be fairly
good throughout the county. Anglers trolling over Henderson Reef and Monument Shoals as well as
around islands such as Chambers and the Strawberries reported some success, mostly on crank
baits and crawler harnesses fished in the top 25 feet of water. Perch action was good this week.
The usual areas off of Chaudoir’s dock, the weed beds in Sturgeon Bay and Little Sturgeon Bay,
the flats and the area between the bridges in Sturgeon Bay all were producing some perch,
minnows and night crawlers remain the baits of choice.

Kewaunee County - Weather this past week continued to have above average temperatures with
lots of sun and no rain. Winds were calm out of the south and the east for most of the week. Some
salmon have already begun to get darker as the fall spawning run gets closer, and there have even
been some fish being spotted up the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers. Anglers have been reporting
some success casting spoons for trout and salmon off of the piers in Algoma and Kewaunee. Most
of the fish were being caught at sunrise and sunset, as well as in the middle of the night. Anglers
that have been going out on the lake had a tough week of fishing this week. Kings accounted for
most of the catch this week, but a few steelheads were also caught as well. Anglers are finding more
salmon out farther this week due to warmer water. Water temperatures have risen on the surface
this week to the upper 60s and even 70 degrees by the end of the weekend. Most fish are being
caught in water depths between 75 and 125 feet with most anglers fishing over water that is in the
125 to 200 feet range. Some anglers have been going out to even deeper water up to 500 feet to
try to locate fish, but not many fish were caught this last week. Anglers have been using a
combination of J-plugs, spoons, dipsies, flashers, and flies in various color patterns.

SOUTHEAST REGION - Lake Michigan fisheries team report: Sheboygan County - In Sheboygan
anglers fishing on the piers have been catching a few chinooks and rainbows in the late night and
early morning hours. Blue or silver spoons have been producing the most. Sheboygan trollers have
been taking mostly chinooks along with a few coho and rainbows, and most fish have been found in
100 to 150 feet of water. Water levels are low on the Sheboygan and Pigeon rivers, and there has
been no sign of fish movement upriver.

Ozaukee County - Shore fishing in Port Washington has been slow, but trollers out of Port have
reported mostly chinooks and coho taken 100 feet down in 125 to 160 feet of water. Green or
orange spoons have produced fish, as well as glow-in-the-dark J-plugs.

Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee near-shore waters are warm, and shore fishing has been slow.
Trollers out of Milwaukee have been catching a few chinooks, coho, and lake trout 60 to 80 feet
down in 100 to 160 feet of water; and a few browns have also been taken by boaters in the harbor
and around the gaps. Fishing on the Milwaukee and Menomonee rivers and Oak Creek has been
slow, and water levels are low in all area tributaries.

Racine County - Shore anglers fishing off the Racine piers and shoreline have been catching a few
chinooks. Most fish have been taken before dawn on spoons. Trollers out of Racine have been
finding mature chinooks and a few coho in front of the harbor, and J-plugs and crank baits have
produced the most fish. Trollers working offshore have been taking chinooks and lake trout in 100
to 140 feet of water as well as chinooks and rainbows in 275 to 325 feet of water. Cracked ice
spoons or flasher & fly combinations have taken the most fish. Water levels on the Root River are
very low, and there have been no signs of fish in upstream stretches.

Kenosha County - In Kenosha shore fishing and trolling have both been generally slow. A few
browns and coho have been taken in the harbor on spawn sacs and white tube jigs. A few chinooks
have been caught on by trollers off the mouth of the Pike River.

SOUTH CENTRAL REGION - Jefferson County - Fishing success is slow due to decreasing water
levels on the upper Rock and Crawfish rivers.

WEST CENTRAL REGION - Willow River State Park - Trout anglers have only until Sept. 30 till trout
season closes. There is no angling of any kind allowed in designated trout waters after Sept. 30.
There are some anglers that fish the trout waters for other species and that ends with the closing of
trout season. Typically there is a stocking in the trout water the last week of the trout season with
sub-legal length fish.