Wisconsin Fishing Report 8/27/09

[Woody]

NORTHERN REGION - Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and
inland Ashland and Iron counties) - Variable and almost constantly changing weather in the past
week has made for some erratic fishing success in the Northwoods. The most consistent action has
been with musky, with anglers having a lot of sightings and follows, as well as quite a few hook-ups
and catches of fish in the 34 to 42-inch size. The mid to late afternoon hours have produced the
best action, and the favorite lures have been plastic jerk or crank baits and top-water baits fished
near the deep weed edges. Bass fishing has been real inconsistent -- with some days producing
good action while other days find the bites hard to come by. Largemouth have been found in thick
lily pad beds and near mid-depth structure such logs/stumps, weed lines, and bog edges. Soft
plastics and frog imitations have been the lures of choice and the late afternoon period has
produced the best action. Smallmouth fishing has shown some consistency on the local rivers and
flowages, with the best success coming on finesse plastics fished near rock and woody cover along
deeper water areas. Walleye fishing continues to be fair, with many anglers using leeches and
crawlers along the weed edges and in weed pockets. Some anglers have also found walleye on the
deeper gravel and rock bars in 12 to 18 feet of water. Northern pike, an often overlooked fish in the
summer, has produced some good fishing in the last several weeks. Continued cool water
temperatures seem to have favored this species and action has been good around the near-shore
weed beds. Spinner baits and small crank baits have worked the best - but a wire leader should be
used to minimize the bite-offs. Panfish action continues to be fair, with some decent catches of
crappie, bluegill and rock bass being reported.

NORTHEAST REGION - Marinette County - Smallmouth bass are feeding in and around the
Peshtigo Harbor, crank baits and spinners are working well. Little River is seeing some success with
perch in 12 to 14 feet of water south of the landing, look for the weed beds. The Menominee River
smallmouth bite from the Light House pier to Stephenson Island has been good as of late, minnows
are working best. Some nice walleye are also being taken from the Menominee drifting crawlers in
the holes from the train bridge to the turn basin. Salmon anglers are congregating on both the Light
House and the Government piers before first light and are starting to catch salmon on spoons.

Oconto County - Fishing pressure remains moderate to heavy on the weekends with light pressure
during the week. Temperatures at the landings are running from the mid 60s to the low 70s with
good water clarity. Perch anglers have been reporting some success from Pensaukee to Oconto
Park II. They were finding fish in 8 to 14 feet of water adjacent to weed beds. Minnows and slip
bobbers or crappie rigs were working the best. The dam at Stiles was still producing some nice
bluegills on crawlers and leaf worms. Anglers at the Oconto Breakwater were reporting some brown
trout activity on the north side of the causeway in the pre dawn hours.

Brown County - The perch and walleye fishing have improved a bit over the last week at Bay Shore
Park. There was a few good catches of perch reported last week. The walleye were hitting crank
baits in 20 feet of water.

Manitowoc County - In the Manitowoc/Two Rivers area trout and salmon anglers had a slow to fair
week of fishing. Fishing early in the week was fair because of favorable weather conditions and
dropped to poor over the weekend because of windy weather conditions. In Manitowoc boat anglers
targeting trout and salmon had mixed success trolling on Lake Michigan. Most boat anglers were
trolling in 20 to 70 feet of water near the harbor mouth or along the shoreline south of Manitowoc.
Anglers used a variety of baits such as spoons, stick baits, or J-plugs to land fish this week. On the
piers, anglers had a slow week as well. Early in the week pier anglers fishing the early bite landed
some large chinook salmon and a couple nice brown trout. In Two Rivers, most boat anglers also
trolled in shallower water depths this past week. Catches this week were mixed with chinook salmon
and rainbow trout dominating the catch, although a couple of brown trout and lake trout were also
landed. On the piers anglers had a slow week as well. Catches were small this week and mixed
between chinook salmon and rainbow trout and couple brown early in the week.

Door County - Perch fishing has been fair over the last week at Sturgeon Bay with a few limit
catches reported. Anglers were having to sort through a lot of small perch, most anglers were
having the best luck on worms. Also the bass fishing has been very good over the last week with
some nice sized bass being reported. Also a few walleyes have been caught. Anglers at Little
Sturgeon Bay reported some nice sized perch being caught off Henderson Point. Also the walleye
fishing has picked up over the last week with anglers catching walleye and a few bonus brown trout
in 40 feet of water. The perch fishing continues to improve at Chaudoir’s Dock; there has been a
very good morning bite for perch over the last week with a lot of fish being caught. Most anglers
were running north in 12 to 40 feet of water.

Kewaunee County - Weather this past week was warm and humid to start the week and then it
became rainy and cooler as the week went on. Winds on most days were light out of the south, but
strong winds moved in for the weekend, which made for unfavorable conditions on the lake. Some
salmon have already begun to get darker as the fall spawning run gets closer, and there have even
been some fish spotted up the Kewaunee River. Anglers have been reporting some good success
casting spoons for trout and salmon off of the piers in Algoma and Kewaunee. Fish are starting to
be taken at all times of the day, but more were being caught at sunrise and sunset. Anglers that
have been going out on the lake had some good fishing to start the week, but fishing became
difficult as the week went on. Kings and steelhead still account for most of the catch with there being
more kings than steelhead being caught. Anglers were finding more salmon in close to shore this
week. Most fish were being caught in water depths between 30 and 70 feet with most anglers fishing
over water that is in the 50 to 100 feet range. Most anglers have been using a combination of
dipsies and flashers and flies, but spoons and J-plugs have also been having success as well. The
most common colors seem to be either a bright green or blue.

Oshkosh DNR Service Center area - There were 4,224 applications for the 2010 Upriver Lakes
sturgeon spearing license lottery, with 500 successful applicants authorized to purchase an Upriver
Lakes spearing license for the 2010 season. Letters were sent to successful applicants last week.
The number of applicants has seemed to level off just over 4,000 (4,224 this year and 4,031 in
2009). Successful applicants can only purchase an Upriver Lakes license. People who applied, but
did not get authorized to purchase an Upriver Lakes spearing license for 2010, earned a
preference point, and can still buy a license for the Lake Winnebago season. Whether buying an
Upriver Lakes or Lake Winnebago license, they must be purchased no later than Saturday, October
31. It appears there was a fairly decent shad hatch this year on the Lake Winnebago system, which
could have implications for sturgeon movement and behavior come February.

SOUTHEAST REGION - Lake Michigan fisheries team report: Sheboygan County - In Sheboygan
anglers fishing on the piers have been catching a few rainbow and brown trout. Both green & silver
spoons and alewives have been producing. Sheboygan trollers have been taking mostly chinooks
along with a few coho and rainbows, and the best catches have been 25 feet down in 40 to 60 feet
of water.

Ozaukee County - Pier anglers in Port Washington have been catching a few brown and rainbow
trout on alewives and spoons, and shore anglers near the power plant have been taking browns
and chinook salmon on spawn. Trollers out of Port have reported chinooks, coho, and browns taken
20 to 30 feet down in 40 to 70 feet of water. Green or orange spoons have produced fish, as well as
glow-in-the-dark J-plugs.

Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee McKinley pier has produced some late night chinook salmon taken
on glow-in-the-dark spoons or alewives. Brown trout and chinook have also been caught from shore
behind the Summerfest grounds, and a few chinook have been caught off the pier in Grant Park on
spoons. Trollers out of Milwaukee have been catching chinooks, coho, rainbows, and browns 20 to
30 feet down in 30 to 60 feet of water; and browns have also been taken by boaters in the harbor
and around the gaps.

Racine County - Shore anglers fishing off the Racine piers and in the harbor have been catching
chinook salmon and brown trout on silver spoons. Trollers out of Racine have been finding good
numbers of chinook in front of the harbor, as well as chinook, and rainbow and brown trout east of
the reef marker in 50 to 60 feet of water. Glow-in-the-dark or green spoons and pearl J-plugs have
been producing.

Kenosha County - In Kenosha anglers in Southport Marina are still finding a few perch, and live bait
fished slowly on the bottom has produced the best. Shore anglers in the Kenosha harbor have
been taking brown trout on silver spoons or white tube jigs, and chinook salmon have been taken
near the mouth of the Pike River and in upstream locations. Kenosha trollers have been catching
chinook near the mouth of the Pike and in 30 to 50 feet of water north towards Racine.

SOUTH CENTRAL REGION - No Report.

WEST CENTRAL REGION - Willow River State Park - Fishing reports have been spotty with some
crappies caught off the dam with a fly rod. Trout anglers have had scattered luck.

Perrot State Park - Water levels are normal and fishing is slow.

Crawford County - Last week the river began to slowly rise. As of August 27 the river was at 7.7
feet. The forecast for the Mississippi River is to remain steady. Boaters on the Mississippi River are
still urged to use caution, even though the river rose some what. Wing dams and closing dams
could cause damage outboard motors. Additionally sunken logs and rock piles outside of the main
channel pose a serious danger to lower units. Boaters unfamiliar with the area should stay in the
navigation channel or slow down and trim up their motors. The Wisconsin and Kickapoo Rivers have
settled down and are in good shape. The sand bars on the Wisconsin River are in great shape for
camping. All trout streams in the area are in good shape with normal flow and water clarity is fair.
The rise in water level on the Mississippi impacted the bluegill fishing a little. Action slowed
somewhat. Even so, some nice sized gills were being taken off the wing dams along the main
channel of the Mississippi River. Try fishing the shallower portions of the wing dams closest to the
main channel. The Ambro Slough, Black Slough, Fish Lake, the Upper and Lower Doubles and Big
Missouri and Gremore Lake might begin to produce better as the water rises. Try fishing the
“snags” on theses backwaters and sloughs or find weed edges. The most popular bait has been a
chunk of night crawler or garden worms. Fishing at Cold Spring continues to be slow. Cold Spring is
considered inland water, not boundary waters. Different fishing regulations are in effect there and
non-residents must possess a non-resident fishing license. Boaters should also be aware that Cold
Spring is a designated slow no wake area. Perch fishing was slow again this week. Try fishing a
chunk of night crawlers along deeper weed edges, or in 4 to 5 feet of water adjacent to the weeds.
Walleye and sauger action was fair. Generally the early morning hours and later in the day has
been the best for walleye action especially during the weekends when recreational boating traffic is
the heaviest. Trolling and casting crank baits or drifting with live bait is the primary method of taking
walleyes. Jump around on wing dams to find active walleyes. Night crawlers and leeches have
worked well too. Smallmouth and Largemouth bass have been very active. Smallmouth can be
found on closing dams and wing dams or rock shorelines on the Main Channel. Largemouth bass
can be found in a variety of habitats. Plastics, spinner baits, and crank baits have worked well. Bass
anglers report catching a lot of undersized fish. Catfish, both flathead and channel, activity was
spotty. A variety of live baits have produced cats. Move around until active fish are located.
Channel cats have been a bit more active than the flatheads. Sheepshead have been very active. A
piece of night crawler fished off the bottom has been the best tactic. White bass action was very
spotty. Watch for surface feeding fishing and work those areas in the Main Channel. Northern pike
action continued to be very good. Look for northerns where small feeder streams enter the river or
try fishing the weed edges. Many popular bass baits have worked well for northerns including
spinner baits and plastic top water baits. Trout fishing has been very good even though vegetation
and insects are staring to make fishing a bit more difficult. Many local streams produced some very
nice brown and brook trout.