Fishing Reports For The Week Of July 18th, 2022

MANITOWOC COUNTY

• Fish and bait were still being marked by every boat (and, in some cases, seen surfacing). Orange spoons and green flasher flies successfully brought in fish in the first half of the week, with some fish favoring chrome. Trolling speeds varied between 1.5 and 3.5 mph; depths and locations fished varied just as widely. This past weekend saw a surge in Pier anglers– one group in Manitowoc targeted smallmouth bass with some success, while another group targeted northern pike in Two Rivers. Fire tiger bucktails produced some hits; and some good-sized fish (mid-upper 30 inches).

KEWAUNEE COUNTY

• Kewaunee: Kewaunee’s shoreline and pier saw anglers continue to fish for mainly trout and salmon, with a few people going for common carp. Bycatches of round goby were the only fish reported this week. Water clarity ranged from 1 to 6 feet. The Kewaunee ramp was busy again, with many trailers launching throughout the week. Most boaters brought in at least one trout or salmon, and the high catch count this week was tied between two groups with four chinook salmon. Two chinook salmon were weighed and measured at 3 and 9 pounds each, and 20.5 inches and 29 inches. Most boaters were heading south after launching from the ramp, with some going north. The depth of most bites occurred between 30 and 80 feet down. A group going for lake trout said the depth of bite was 90 feet deep. These boaters were also fishing in 90 to 170 feet of water. Trolling speed came out to around 2.5 mph. Spoons were used more often than flasher flies for boaters that caught fish. Specifically, green/blue spoons were used by multiple anglers. Water temperatures on the surface ranged from 60 to 67 degrees Fahrenheit, with a steady 64 degrees Fahrenheit being the average. Fish and bait balls were marked by most boaters, with some fish markings occurring at around 80 feet.
• Algoma: Algoma’s shoreline had anglers going for mainly yellow perch and northern pike. Neither species was reported caught, and bycatches of bowfin, freshwater drum, round goby and bullhead did occur. Water clarity was poor this week, only coming out to 1 foot. Olsen Park boaters were also going for yellow perch. These anglers caught species including bowfin, northern pike and catfish. Boating pressure was very high this week, with trailers lined up throughout the parking lot and into the streets. Most boaters were able to bring in at least one trout or salmon. The highest catch numbers include a group that brought in seven rainbow trout and three chinook salmon and another group that brought in seven chinook salmon. Many rainbow trout and chinook salmon were weighed and measured. The largest chinook salmon measured came out to 36.6 inches and 21 pounds. The largest rainbow trout measured came out to 29.5 inches and 11 pounds. Boaters seemed to head more north than south this week after launching. Trolling speed averaged about 2.2 mph. Depth of bites occurred at around 40 to 80 feet, with some bites going as far down as 120 feet. These boaters were fishing in an average of 100 to 220 pounds of water. Similar to Kewaunee, spoons and flasher flies were commonly used by anglers, with blue and green spoons being popular colors. Water temperatures on the surface ranged from 57 to 66 degrees Fahrenheit, with about 62 degrees Fahrenheit being the average. Fish and bait balls were commonly marked.

DOOR COUNTY

• Sturgeon Bay: The shoreline of Sturgeon Bay had anglers hooking on to yellow perch, smallmouth bass and round goby. Water clarity came out to around 5 feet deep. From the ramp, boaters mainly targeted trout and salmon, with a group going for yellow perch. This group brought in 10 total yellow perch and were using worms as bait. Bites for them occurred at a depth of around 12 feet deep. A bycatch of two freshwater drums was also reported. Trout and salmon anglers saw success throughout the week. The top group of the week brought in 8 chinook salmon. The largest chinook salmon of the week came out to around 35 inches and 20 pounds. Many other chinook salmon measured this week also had similar weights and lengths to this fish. Depth of bites hit most commonly between 40 and 120 feet deep. These boaters were also fishing in about 110 to 150 feet deep of water. Flasher flies were the most common lure used for the boaters with fish this week. Surface temperatures ranged from 54 to 64 degrees Fahrenheit, with 60-62 degrees Fahrenheit being most common. Many markings of bait balls appeared for boaters.
• Northern Door/Lake Michigan: Anglers have seen success using drop shots and black worms for smallmouth bass while fishing out of both Rowleys Bay and Gills Rock. Anglers fishing out of Rowleys Bay targeted 2-5 feet of water around Washington Island. The surface water temperature there was around 70 degrees Fahrenheit, and the anglers were catching an average of 1.5-pound bass. Anglers fishing out of Gills Rock targeted 10 feet of water while still using the black worms and drop shots. Bues Point has been a sought-out launch for salmon anglers, and it has produced fish. One group of anglers trolled in approximately 100 feet of water off Cana Island at about 2.8 mph, where water temperatures were about 65 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface. These anglers caught two king salmon around the 9-pound mark on green and orange spoons. Another angling group, which targeted 90-120 feet of water, caught both an 11 and 3.5-pound king salmon on blue/green flasher flies while trolling around 2.1-2.2 mph. Anglers have reported seeing large die-offs of alewives, as well as large balls of living alewives out where they are salmon fishing.
• Bay of Green Bay: Surface temperatures of the water on the Bay of Green Bay remain in the mid 60’s degrees Fahrenheit range, with 65 degrees Fahrenheit being a commonly seen average in 15-20 feet of water. Anglers fishing Anderson’s Dock in Ephraim caught a few smallmouth basses using nightcrawlers and a bobber, with the biggest caught being 19 inches and the average being around 15 inches. Anglers fishing Egg Harbor and Peninsula State Park pier in Nicolet Bay have also caught some smaller smallmouth in the 8-12 inch range on nightcrawlers and bobbers. Anglers are catching plenty of rock bass off the Egg Harbor pier as well.

FOX RIVER:

• Mouth: There was limited fishing activity observed this week. Most of the boats observed on the water were not fishing. Those boating anglers who were targeting walleye had limited success. A couple of anglers reported catching one walleye per boat. One angler was using crawler harnesses and fishing around 20 feet deep; the other was jigging live nightcrawlers fishing from 9 to 11 feet deep. Some of the boating anglers that were targeting walleye unintentionally caught drum/sheepsheads and white perch. The reported water temperature was around 72 degrees Fahrenheit this week.
• Fox River Shore anglers: There was moderate fishing activity observed this week. Shore anglers caught catfish, white perch, smallmouth bass and sheepshead/drum, mainly on live worms. One angler reported catching 80 white perch while jigging a twister tail.
• Fox River Boat anglers: There was limited fishing activity observed this week. Most boaters observed were recreational boaters. Boating anglers were targeting sheepshead/drum and catfish. Anglers successfully caught sheepshead using crankbaits, swimbaits and plastic jigs. The angler that was targeting the catfish stated they did not catch anything. There were no water temperatures reported this week.

EAST SHORELINE OF GREEN BAY:

BOWN COUNTY

• Bayshore Park: Boat anglers caught yellow perch, sheepshead, white bass and white perch. These species were all caught on a mix of nightcrawlers and minnows. The anglers reported catching fish in 15 to 20 feet of water. The yellow perch that was kept was about 8.5 inches. The water temperature was 70 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit.

DOOR COUNTY

• Chaudoir’s Dock: Boat anglers caught yellow perch, walleyes, catfish, white bass, white perch and sheepshead. The yellow perch, walleyes, white perch and sheepshead were caught on a variety of nightcrawlers/crawler harnesses, minnows and crankbaits. The walleyes and sheepshead were also caught using hair jigs. The white bass was caught on nightcrawlers, and the catfish were caught on both crankbaits and hair jigs. Anglers reported having the best luck in 18 to 25 feet of water. The water temperatures were reported to be between 69 and 73 degrees Fahrenheit. Shiver minnows and flicker shads were reported to be successful lures this week. The walleye that were caught averaged between 18 and 20 inches long, while the perch averaged around 10 to 12 inches long.
• Little Surgeon Bay: Shore anglers reported catching yellow perch, rock bass, sunfish and round gobies on nightcrawlers. Boat anglers reported catching walleyes, yellow perch, catfish, white bass, suckers, white perch, sheepshead, and round gobies. The anglers caught the walleyes, suckers, and white bass on nightcrawlers. The catfish were caught on crankbaits, and the white perch and sheepshead were caught on both crankbaits and nightcrawlers. The yellow perch and round gobies were caught on nightcrawlers and minnows. The yellow perch that were kept were between 7 and 9 inches long. The walleyes were caught in about 20 feet of water. The water temperatures were mostly between 71 and 73 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Sawyer Harbor: Boat anglers this week reported catching yellow perch, smallmouth bass, northern pike, catfish, sheepshead and round gobies. The yellow perch were caught on minnows, and the smallmouth bass, northern pike and sheepshead were caught on crankbaits, spinners, and minnows. The catfish were caught on crankbaits, and the round gobies were caught on nightcrawlers and minnows. The water temperatures were reported to be between 68 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Chartreuse and white were reported to be successful colors this week. The yellow perch were reported to average about 7 to 8 inches long, and the smallmouth bass was around 13 inches long. Flickershads and flicker minnows were reported to be the most commonly used crankbaits this week.

WEST SHORELINE OF GREEN BAY:

BROWN COUNTY

• Suamico River: There was limited fishing activity observed this week. A high number of recreational boaters launched out of the Suamico boat launch. Boating anglers that were targeting walleye had moderate success. The anglers that successfully caught walleye were using crawler harnesses fishing around 25 feet deep. The number of walleyes reportedly caught per boat ranged from one to six fish. Many anglers targeting walleye reported unintentionally catching drum/sheepshead and white perch. One boating angler targeting perch reported catching five perch using live nightcrawlers. The sizes of the perch kept ranged from 7.8 to 12 inches long. There was one shore angler who stated they did not catch anything. The reported water temperature was around 69 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Duck Creek: There was moderate fishing activity observed this week. Boating anglers were targeting perch using live nightcrawlers and minnows. The number of perch caught per boat ranged from 1 to 40 fish. There was one shore angler who stated they did not catch anything. There was no water temperature reported.

OCONTO COUNTY

• Geano Beach: There was moderate to heavy fishing activity observed this week. Boating anglers were targeting walleye and perch. The boating anglers that successfully caught walleye were using crawler harnesses fishing from 13 to 25 feet deep. The number of walleyes caught per boat ranged from one to five fish. The sizes of the walleye kept ranged from 17 to 27 inches long. The boating anglers targeting perch successfully used nightcrawlers fishing from around 10 feet deep. The number of reported catches per boat ranged from two to five perch. The reported water temperature was between 67 to 74 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Anglers reported better fishing this week, especially over the weekend. The walleye catch was trending upward, with more consistent numbers caught. Best catches came from Oconto south to Pensaukee in waters 25 feet and deeper. Trolling crawler harnesses and casting shiver minnows were popular. Perch fishing was also trending upward this week, with several good catches reported. Areas off Oconto Park II and the Oconto schoal were popular spots. Weedy areas around 10 feet were holding perch, and deeper spots around 20 to 30 feet out from Oconto were good. Both minnows and crawlers were working. Water temperatures were held in the low 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

MARINETTE COUNTY

• The fishing pressure was low this week. The few anglers that were out were catching mainly sheepshead. Both the Menominee and Peshtigo Rivers had high catches of sheepshead. The alewife die-off seemed to end by the end of the week. Water temperatures were mainly in the upper 60’s to 70 degrees Fahrenheit.

MILWAUKEE COUNTY

• The Salmon-A-Rama contest was on this weekend. Following a stormy Friday, good catches of Chinook, Coho, Steelhead, Lake Trout and Brown Trout were made by boaters fishing in Lake Michigan at depths of 90 to 150 feet. Boaters reported that trolling with flashers garnered the most success. The average Chinook caught was about 12 pounds, the average Coho was 5 pounds, and the average Laker was about 6 pounds. Anglers fishing for salmon off the piers and shores were unsuccessful as the Chinook and Coho are still offshore.

OZAUKEE COUNTY

• Port Washington harbor and piers: Some successful reports of Small Mouth Bass this week by the pier and harbor anglers near Rotary Park using live bait such as nightcrawlers. Water temperatures averaged around 64-65 degrees Fahrenheit with average wind speeds of 11mph. South Pier was closed Saturday for fireworks which led to a decline in pier and angler numbers in the area.
• Port Washington Ramp: Good catches of Chinook and Coho Salmon with some reports of Rainbow and Lake Trout this week by boat anglers. Those coming back with successful Chinook Salmon catches used mostly spoons in orange, black and green; flasher flies in green, blue and white or chrome, and meat rigs in depths of 75-250 feet north along the top 30-60 feet. The largest Chinook documented this week weighed 04.50kg and measured approximately 731mm. Successful Coho Salmon catches were caught using moonshine spoons in green, purple, black and ‘RV Sandburn,’ and green flasher flies. The largest Coho weighed 04.75kg and measured 710mm.

SHEBOYGAN COUNTY

• Sheboygan Harbor and Piers: Few catches were reported this week by anglers fishing from the south or north pier. Reports of Brown Trout were successful on Panther Martin spinners from the north pier. Due to Sheboygan south pier continuing to undergo construction, there was a noticeable decline in angler numbers fishing from the south pier throughout the week. Water temperatures this week averaged around 64 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Sheboygan Ramps: Good catches of Coho and Chinook Salmon earlier this week with some reports of Rainbow and Lake Trout from the Deland launch. Those coming back with successful Chinook Salmon catches used mostly blue and green colored spoons, and green or blue with chrome flasher flies in depths of 30-265 feet north along the top 25-70 feet. Successful Coho Salmon catches were caught in depths of 75-280 feet north along the top 50-65 feet on blue and green flashers, and spoons in the colors black, blue and chrome.