Saginaw Bay – Bay City Area perch fishing picked up along the shipping channel at Buoys 18, 11 and 12, and the Spark Plug. Fish were caught off Linwood in 16 to 20 feet. Expect to do a lot of sorting but if you put in the time, you can get a mess of decent size perch. Walleye fishing has also picked up around Spoils Island for those casting spoons and rapalas. The east side of the Bay had mainly shore anglers catching small perch at Quanicassee, Sebewaing and Bay Port. Fishing was slow at Caseville.
- Saginaw River has walleye hitting in the lower river around the Coast Guard Station and near the Independence Bridge. Try jigs with minnows.
Saginaw Bay – Au Gres Area bass anglers continue to do well casting tube jigs. Perch fishing was spotty in 30 to 40 feet off the hotel but much better off the Saganing and Pinconning Bars in 10 to 15 feet. Those trolling for walleye got a few fish off Whitestone Point.
- Au Gres River was producing a few perch.
Outer Saginaw Bay:
Oscoda was producing a good number of walleye for pier anglers.
- Au Sable River boat anglers drifting spoons, body baits or crawlers have caught some walleye at night. Salmon are in the river but in low numbers. Those caught up river were in bad shape. Spawn and flies seem to work best. There are reports of steelhead and Atlantic salmon in the river, if so the number of fish should only increase as we move further into fall.
Port Austin pier anglers were getting some perch in the morning and a few walleye at night when casting spoons or crank baits off the north wall and the gas dock.
Tawas Area had a large number of shiners moving into the harbor. Some perch and walleye were following them. Perch fishing picked up but anglers are still sorting out the small ones. Perch anglers caught the odd walleye when casting at night or when using perch rigs during the day. A few pike were caught in the harbor.
- Tawas River still had some anglers fishing for salmon but success rates were not good. About the only thing caught was a few walleye.
Weekly Fishing Tip: Finding steelhead in the thick of fall
Although many folks have hunting on the brain, there are some anglers who are enjoying a few more trips to the streams this fall to find steelhead. Those that are having success are probably following a few basic tips:
• Target streams that are lesser known but may have been stocked by the DNR in the past few years.
• Don’t fish on the weekends – when everyone else is – rather, focus on mid-week if you can.
• Tough out the weather, some of the best fishing occurs when the weather is the crummiest.
• Focus on going in the early morning or at night.
Want even more information on targeting steelhead? Check out their page on the DNR’s Michigan Fish and How to Catch Them website.