6/7/2018 Southeast Lower Peninsula Michigan Fishing Report

You can tell summer is almost here as fishing activity is heating up and most fish are following suite. Inland lakes are hot spots for panfish and bass right now while most rivers are offering walleye, northern pike and bass opportunities.

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SOUTHEAST LOWER PENINSULA FISHING REPORT

Overall: Inland lakes have been producing good bass fishing, but panfish opportunities have been hit-or-miss.

Lake Erie: Many limits of walleye were caught, and those not catching their limit still brought in a good number of fish. Trolling orange and white crawler harnesses on the bottom 22 feet of water around the Dumping Grounds produced a good number of fish. Walleye were also caught while trolling with green Hot 'N Tots 15 feet down in 20 feet of water or with pink rainbow spoons in 18 to 22 feet. While trolling from Stony Point to the Raisin River, walleye were caught in 20 to 24 feet of water on copper and green crawler harnesses. Anglers launching from Sterling State Park headed out to Brest Bay and beyond. Fish were marked in 20 to 30 feet of water and walleye were caught on crawler harnesses with bottom bouncers and spoons. Off Fermi, walleye were caught while trolling fire-tiger and hammered brass crawler harnesses in 26 feet of water. A large number of freshwater drum, white perch and white bass were also caught while targeting walleye. Yellow perch were caught off Fermi in 26 feet of water while using minnows. Channel catfish were caught in the Hot Ponds while still fishing with worms in 12 feet of water. Smallmouth bass were caught off Stony Point in 12 to 15 feet of water while casting goby colored tubes. Largemouth bass were caught in the canal at Sterling in four feet of water while casting spinnerbaits.

• If you're planning on fishing out of Sterling State Park or the Brest Bay area you can pick up fishing license, large and small minnows or just about any other fishing needs at Jeff's Bait & Tackle.

• If you're planning on fishing any of the canals near Lake Erie Metro Park or Point Mouillee State Game Area or if you're going to be fishing the southern half of the Detroit River you can get all of your bait & tackle needs met at  Bottom Line Bait & Tackle.

Detroit River: Some white bass were being caught with good numbers reported all along the river from the Wyandotte boat launch south to Pointe Mouillee.

• For a list of more public lakes in Wayne county please click here!

Nearby Bait Shops Include: 

Andy's Tacle Box (313) 388-3474

Big Moes Bait Shop  (313) 259-1176

Dip Net Live Bait & Tackle (313) 388-5811

Moe's Bait Shop  (313) 824-5222

Motor City Bait & Tackle (313) 551-0201

St. Clair River: Good walleye fishing was reported with vertical jigging with dark colored plastic tipped with minnows working best. Fish were biting both day and night.

• For a more accurate report on Lake St. Clair I suggest reaching out to the people at Sportsmen's Direct  as their weekly LSC fishing report is usually far more in depth.  Phone: (586-741-6052)

Clinton River: White bass limit catches were reported by the mouth.

Lexington to Port Sanilac: Anglers who were trolling in 55 to 60 feet had success with lake trout. A few steelhead and walleye were also taken.

Harbor Beach: A few steelhead were caught from the shore and lake trout were caught in 80 to 100 feet.

Saginaw Bay: A few boats caught walleye out just beyond the Spoils Island. Limit catches were common from the Slot from Oakhurst north to Sunset Bay Marina, from the Callahan Reef area, and from deeper water between the Bar and the Spark Plug (buoys 11 and 12). Crawler harnesses were best. Purple, pink, chartreuse and brass were the best colors for crawler harness spinners..

• For a more accurate report on Saginaw Bay I suggest taking a look at the weekly Saginaw Bay Fishing Report given to you by Saginawbay.com

Nearby Bait Shops Include: 

Franks Great Outdoors (989) 697-5341

GW's Fishing Lures (989) 684-6431

The Party Dock (989) 684-2150

West Marine (898) 667-2100

Michigan Sportsman Bait & Tackle (989) 893-6550

Live Bait (989) 992-7770

Saginaw River: Anglers reported catching catfish, sheepshead and walleye.

Tittabawassee River: This will be the last river report of the season. The fishery is now mostly for smallmouth bass; the walleye and white bass have tapered off for the summer. The river is high and muddy after recent heavy rains up the watershed.

• For a more accurate report on fishing the Saginaw & Tittabawassee Rivers I suggest joining the Michigan Fish Slayers group on facebook.  There are always quite a few people giving updates on Saginaw & Tittabawassee River fishing. 

With warm weather beginning to be come normal across the state there are ample opportunities to get out and fish.  With that in mind I suggest reaching out to the local bait shops in southeast Michigan to verify what your best options are.  Below are links to bait shop listings orgnized by county:

• Wayne County Click Here!
• Washtenaw County Click Here!
• Bay County Click Here!
• Monroe County Click Here!
• Livingston County Click Here!
• Ingham County Click Here!
• Genesee County Click Here!