Little Bay de Noc: Yellow perch anglers reported slow fishing. Some were able to locate schools of fish; however, success was limited, and the fish they did find were hard to catch. Walleye anglers reported tough fishing and had been targeting fish near Gladstone, the Minneapolis Shoals, and near drop-offs in the outer bay. Anglers reported good smallmouth fishing.

Big Bay de Noc: Some anglers launched out of Nahma, targeting walleye with some success. Anglers targeted walleye with snap-style jigs, as well as deep crank baits.

Fairport: Anglers targeted Chinook salmon using spoons, flasher-fly combos, and meat rigs with good success. Anglers reported catching fish near the thermocline, with steelhead being a common bycatch.

St. Ignace: At the Carp and Pine rivers, walleye fishing pressure continued to slow down, but those targeting them reported catches. Walleye anglers floated leeches, cast small spinner baits or trolled nightcrawler harnesses.

Ontonagon River: Fishing efforts were fair over the past week. Walleye were reported being caught in low numbers. Anglers had luck finding fish when jigging and trolling alike.

Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Ontonagon saw a fair amount of angling effort over the past week, while Union Bay and Silver City saw lower levels of activity. Bad weather occasionally limited lake access. Recently reported catches consisted of lake trout in low numbers, and coho salmon were also reportedly caught on occasion.

Black River Harbor: The harbor experienced somewhat low angling effort over the past week. Recent catches consisted primarily of lake trout in low numbers. Catches of coho salmon and Chinook salmon were also reported on occasion. Bad weather conditions limited lake access.

Keweenaw Bay/ Huron Bay: Anglers reported that lake trout fishing was fair. Anglers saw success when trolling and jigging both natural and artificial presentations in 100 to 200 feet of water.

Marquette: Anglers reported seeing bait balls on their graphs, and a good number of lake trout were caught. Anglers trolling from northwest of the White Rocks out toward north of Granite Island began to do well again. The clay banks still seemed slow. There were reports of coho salmon, Chinook salmon, steelhead, and several lake trout caught this week. The lake trout were caught throughout the water column, from 40 to 180 feet of water, depending on what they were feeding on.The salmon and steelhead were around 30 to 40 feet deep and closer to the shorelines.

Au Train: The dock was finally fixed and reinstalled at Au Train. Lake trout fishing picked up again this week, and several anglers did well both trolling and jigging. They trolled for lake trout in 150 to 180 feet of water northwest of Au Train Island, out in the Flats toward the Clay Banks, or over by Scott Falls up toward Five Mile Point in about 40 feet of water.

Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers reported catching fair to good amounts of lake trout when trolling spoons and flasher/flies around structure. Very few coho salmon and Chinook salmon were caught.

Les Cheneaux Islands/DeTour: Anglers in Hessel still struggled to catch good numbers of perch. A few were kept from the marina, but they were tough to come by. A few Chinook salmon were caught out of the west entrance while trolling.

In DeTour, the herring run had pretty much come to an end, although a few stray anglers were still out searching for them. The lake trout bite was good, as always, while trolling or jigging in the flats. A couple of Chinook salmon were also picked up in DeTour this past week while trolling between the ferry and the lighthouse.

Munising: The lake trout bite was very good at Big Reef and at deeper depths around Grand Island. Boating anglers trolling had the most success. Boat anglers trolling the bay have also reported picking up some splake.

UP counties: Salmon are still being caught in Lake Michigan out of Fairport and Manistique ports. Inland lakes are still decent for perch and walleye. Anglers had to work to catch few fish in the Munising Bay area. Walleye and bass were caught at the head of Little Bay de Noc. Salmon and steelhead were reported caught on Lake Michigan. Coho salmon were caught north of Brimley Bay. Whitefish and walleye were caught in good numbers on the north side of Drummond Island. Atlantic salmon and whitefish were caught in front of the Cloverland powerhouse in Sault Ste. Marie.

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Fishing tip: Late summer fishing

During July, aquatic vegetation grows thick in many Michigan lakes and bays, providing great cover for panfish and bass. Try fishing weed edges and pockets with weedless soft plastics, tubes, or jigs to avoid snags. Also, using a slow and steady retrieve can entice bites from bass and panfish that are holding tight to the vegetation. Don’t overlook shallow bays early and late in the day when fish move in to feed.