Saginaw Bay had good walleye fishing on the right day. Fish were caught in 20 feet off Linwood, 22 feet east of the Spark Plug, and in 26 feet out near Buoy #1. From the Saginaw River mouth, some boats were fishing out on the Bar. Harnesses were best but some were also trolling spoons and crank baits. On the east side, the Slot continues to be the best spot for walleye in 16 to 18 feet. The Callahan Reef is also producing fish. At Bay Port, walleye were caught outside the islands in the Slot and in 7 to 10 feet in Wildfowl Bay. Crawler harnesses and slow trolling speeds were the ticket. Spinner colors were purple, pink, chartreuse, anti-freeze, brass and copper. Those trolling also caught lots of freshwater drum.
Saginaw River: Shore anglers in the lower river at Smith Park in Essexville were taking catfish, freshwater drum, rock bass and smallmouth bass with crawlers on the bottom.
Au Gres: Walleye fishing was good in 25 to 35 feet between Point Lookout and Pointe Au Gres. Those looking for bigger fish were out beyond the Charities and fishing in 60 to 70 feet. Crawler harnesses work best but a few were using spoons or crank baits. Some boats going south of Pointe Au Gres found walleye out near Buoys 1 & 2.
Au Gres River: Shore anglers were getting catfish and freshwater drum on crawlers.
Outer Saginaw Bay:
Oscoda: Pier fishing for walleye was slow but catfish were moving in during the late evening. Those still-fishing had good luck. Those trolling out in 80 to 120 feet caught lake trout on spoons, wobble glo’s and spin-glo’s. Steelhead are still in the area so anglers will want to look for colored lines and temperature breaks when trolling spoons in 50 to 100 feet. Blue and silver, orange and silver or solid orange were good colors.
Port Austin to Grindstone City: At Port Austin, those wading were still getting some smallmouth bass at Eagle Bay and the Willow River but bass fishing is tapering off. At Grindstone City, those trolling took lake trout on spin-glo’s in 60 feet and walleye on crawler harnesses in 25 to 30 feet.
Tawas: Those trolling for walleye did best around Buoy #2 but it was still slow as there was a pretty good mayfly hatch going on and that usually depresses the walleye bite. Boats going out to the Charity Islands and the Steeples caught fish.
Tawas River: Shore anglers were getting a few catfish, freshwater drum and the odd smallmouth bass on crawlers.
Enjoy your catch! Eat safe fish! Learn about eating safe, local and healthful fish from our Great Lakes State at: Michigan.gov/eatsafefish.