Wisconsin Fishing Report 10/9/09

[Woody]

NORTHERN REGION - Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and
inland Ashland and Iron counties) - The cold and wet weather, combined with fall turnover, seems to
have disrupted much of the fish activity on northern Wisconsin waters in the past week. Water
temperatures have dropped into the mid to low-50s and the most consistent fishing has been for
musky. Live suckers have become real productive in the last week, though large crank baits and
stick baits have gotten some good action on the warmer days. Walleye fishing has shown some
improvement but action has still been fairly erratic. The cooler water temperatures have more fish
moving up into the shallows and in/around the dying weed beds. A jig and minnow or a minnow on a
slip bobber fished on the deep edges have been the most successful. Most of the walleye have
been in the 11- to 15-inch size and the best action has been in the hour before dark. Largemouth
and smallmouth bass have been most affected by the drop in water temperatures. On many lakes,
the largemouth bass have deserted the shallows and were very hard to find. A few stragglers were
found near the mid-depth cover and around any 'green' weed beds that were available. Soft plastics
and slow presentations were the key to entice these late season bites. Smallmouth bass have also
retreated to deeper water with the colder water temps and were even harder to entice than the
largemouth. Seems that only the diehard bass anglers can find and catch the smallies at this time of
year. Panfish action has been fair to good, with some nice crappie still being found in shallow water
near cover and any weed edges.

Woodruff DNR Service Center area- Area Conservation Wardens and guides report that musky
fishing is picking up and walleye fishing stays steady. Musky anglers are employing the use of
sucker rigs and reporting increased success. Anglers are reminded that dragging a sucker behind
the boat while utilizing a any type of motor to propel the boat is a violation of the trolling restrictions
and enforcement action will be taken. A few largemouth bass have been caught, although they will
become less active as the lakes continue to cool. Smallmouth bass have moved into deeper waters
– about 15-20 feet. Perch activity is reported as sporadic but they are being caught on weed edges
or in flowages with submerged wood in about 6-12 feet of water. Bluegills are hanging about the
weed edges and have been somewhat aggressive. Crappies are beginning to school in shallow
weeds.

NORTHEAST REGION - Manitowoc County - Despite less than favorable weather conditions,
anglers had a fair week of fishing in the Manitowoc and Two Rivers area during the last week.
Anglers fishing the lower Manitowoc River were able to land some nice chinook and coho salmon
this week. Most anglers who were successful reported using spawn sacs fished 6 to 10 feet down.
On Saturday, one angler fishing the north pier stub landed two small rainbow trout. Farther
upstream on the Manitowoc River, fishing was a little slow with plenty of chinook salmon visible but
very few successful catches. Anglers that had the most success were fly-fishing or drifting spawn
sacs. On the East Twin River, anglers were concentrated around the Mishicot dam and Village Park
area or at downstream road crossing such as Maplewood, Hillcrest or Stern Lane. Catches were
dominated by chinook salmon ranging in weight from 14 to 18 pounds. Many anglers fished the
West Twin River this week with most anglers near the dams in Shoto or just downstream at the
public launch. Success at the dam was mixed with a number of anglers landing some large chinook
salmon by fly-fishing, using spawn sacs or casting spinners. In the Two Rivers harbor, only a few
salmon anglers were casting spoons near the Coast Guard station with very limited success. One
angler fishing a little deeper inside the harbor mid-week landed a nice 13 pound brown trout casting
a blue and white spoon.

Door County - The weather this week was a lot less than beautiful, cool and rainy days with strong
winds made for miserable weather most days, especially for anglers wanting to go out on the big
lake. The salmon action on Lake Michigan was just about non existent due to the weather. Action off
the piers at the Coast Guard Station was slow due to waves. Anglers fishing from the shore along
the canal reported limited success. A few anglers trolling in the canal reported some success with
spoons and crank baits. Further north conditions were about the same due to the weather. Fishing
for all the other species was about the same, with virtually no one being out on the water. Although
this week was not the best, the weather is going to get better, and when it does we will begin to
enjoy great fall fishing in beautiful Door County. Prior to the rain, perch fishing had been fair last
week at Sturgeon Bay with some limit-catches reported. Most anglers were targeting them in Sawyer
Harbor. Also many anglers were targeting pike with limited success. Perch fishing slowed a bit at
Chaudoir’s Dock, but anglers still found decent numbers of fish in weeds in 20 feet of water. Perch
anglers were finding success in the shallow weeds at Little Sturgeon Bay. Walleye fishing continued
to be hit or miss on Larson’s reef. Anglers out of Bayshore Park were having luck finding walleye on
crawler harnesses to the south of the park. There had been some musky anglers out over the last
week but few fish were raised.

Strawberry Creek Egg Collection Facility - Crews harvested chinook salmon from the pond the
morning of Oct. 5. The chinook run was a little lighter than anticipated and crews only harvested
about 560 chinook from the pond on Monday morning. Fertilized eggs from this harvest were sent to
Kettle Moraine Springs Fish Hatchery-Salmon carcasses were processed for human food by Door
County Fish Farm and Game and fish not for human consumption were sent to a raptor
rehabilitation facility near Antigo. A large group of students from Southern Door Grade School
joined us at the pond for the harvest on Monday morning. The next two harvest days at Strawberry
Creek will be Thursday, Oct. 8 and Monday, Oct. 12 As always, visitors are always welcome.

Kewaunee County - Weather this past week was fairly wild as rain and winds throughout the week
made fishing difficult out on the lake. Winds were strong out of the south and the east for most of
the week. The rains this week have helped to increase flow on the rivers and as such lots of salmon
are 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 are being
caught at sunrise and sunset, but some are being taken during the day. Anglers that have been
going out on the lake had limited success this week. Water temperatures are down into the 50s this
week after all of the wind and rain. Most of the fish that are being caught are being found in water
depths between 100 and 125 feet with most anglers fishing over water that is in the 125 to 200 feet
range. Anglers were reporting that there is no set pattern right now as all of the fish have scattered
out. Anglers have also been fishing in the near shore areas around the mouth of the harbors and in
the harbors and have also been finding a few fish.

Oshkosh DNR Service Center area- Wind, cold and rain have made for rough fishing on Lake
Winnebago this week.

SOUTHEAST REGION - Lake Michigan fisheries team report: Sheboygan County - In Sheboygan
shore anglers have been catching a few chinooks off the piers and in the marina. Water levels have
come up somewhat on the Sheboygan and Pigeon rivers, but levels are still low overall. In the
Sheboygan anglers have been catching chinooks, along with a few coho, browns, and steelhead.
Fish have been taken from Kiwanis Park to the Kohler dam, with flies, spawn, and spoons all
producing fish.

Ozaukee County - Shore anglers in Port Washington have been catching chinooks, and steelhead
near the power plant, and chinooks and coho have been taken off the pier. In the north slip anglers
have been catching a mixed bag of chinooks, coho, and steelhead. Spawn, skein, and spoons have
all taken fish. Fishing on Sauk Creek has been slow, and water levels are low.

Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee trollers fishing in the harbor and around the gaps have been
catching a few chinooks and browns. Shore anglers have been catching a few browns off McKinley
pier, but fishing has been generally slow. The Menomonee River and Oak Creek have not had
much fish movement, but some chinooks and steelhead have been caught in the Milwaukee in
Kletzsch and Estabrook Parks.

Racine County - Shore anglers fishing off the Racine piers and shoreline have been catching a few
mature chinooks on spawn and crankbaits. On the Root River good numbers of chinooks, along
with a few steelhead and coho, can be found below the Root River Steelhead Facility. Small flies
have been effective, and black has been the best color. In Colonial and Quarry Lake Parks, fish
have been scattered and difficult to locate, but there is a concentration of chinooks below the
Horlick dam. The Root River Steelhead Facility will be running after Tuesday, Oct. 13. Join us at the
Facility on Saturday, Oct. 17, for an Open House from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. DNR crews will be giving tours
of the facility and spawning demonstrations, and volunteers from local fishing clubs will be teaching
kid’s casting, knot tying, fly casting, fly tying and more.

Kenosha County - In Kenosha a few chinooks and browns have been taken in the harbor on skein
under a slip bobber. Water levels remain relatively low on the Pike, and fishing has been slow.

SOUTH CENTRAL REGION - Jefferson County - Anglers are having fair success catching walleye
and smallmouth bass below the dams in Watertown using jigs with minnows. Most of the fish are
undersized though. Some 8 inch bluegill have been biting on Mud Lake south of Lake Mills on
waxworms or small jigs with pieces of worm.

WEST CENTRAL REGION - Crawford County - The Mississippi River began a steady climb late last
week. The rise in water level is due to the rain that started falling late last week throughout the
Upper Mississippi River’s watershed. A week or so ago the river stage was under the 7 foot mark.
As of Oct. 6, the river stage was at 7.5 feet and is expected to climb even farther. Water clarity
continues to be good. Floating weeds are starting to come down the river causing difficulties for
anglers and at some boat ramps. Boaters are advised to use caution at some boat ramps. The
Wisconsin and Kickapoo Rivers have risen only slightly. Each has good water clarity. The sand bars
on the Wisconsin River are in great shape for camping. Cool and wet days have been the norm for
the past couple days. Bluegill fishing was really good early last week, but once the rain and cool
weather settled in action slowed. Some nice sized bluegills were being caught on wing dams,
however increased flow and floating weeds are making fishing difficult. Downed timber or snags in
back water sloughs are still giving up some bluegills. The most popular bait has been a small jig
tipped with a wax worm. Fishing at Cold Spring slowed down by the end of the week. Early last week
some nice catches of bluegill and a few crappie were taken. Perch fishing was slow again this week.
Anglers were having to search around for active fish. Walleye and sauger action slowed a bit too.
Generally the early morning hours and later in the day has been the best for walleye action. Trolling
and casting crank baits or drifting with live bait is the primary method of taking walleyes. Night
crawler harnesses have worked very well, but many anglers was switching over to minnows. Jump
around on wing dams to find active walleyes. Smallmouth and largemouth bass action remained
good. Smallmouth activity on local wing dams and rocky shore lines has been good. Largemouth
bass can be found in a variety of habitats to include the “slop”, weed edges, wing dams, and in the
timber. Plastics, spinner baits, and crank baits have worked well. Catfish, white bass and northern
pike actions has been spotty. Some white bass have been taken at the Lynxville dam.