DNR Fishing Report
Last updated: April 8, 2026
Anglers fishing Michigan’s rivers this spring may unexpectedly find themselves with a lake sturgeon on the line. While encountering one of these iconic fish can be memorable and exciting, special regulations exist for lake sturgeon, and fishing for lake sturgeon is prohibited except in a few locations in the state. Any lake sturgeon incidentally caught while targeting other species must be immediately released.
See page 15 of the Michigan Fishing Regulations for lake sturgeon regulations. Anglers can report incidental (unintentional) capture of lake sturgeon and report illegal harvesting or targeting of lake sturgeon at Michigan.gov/EyesInTheField or by calling the DNR’s Report All Poaching hotline: 800-292-7800.
All anglers 17 years of age and older are required to have a fishing license. Fishing licenses can be purchased at Michigan.gov/DNRLicenses or by downloading the Michigan DNR Hunt Fish app and purchasing your license on the app. Buy your license ►
Little Bay de Noc: Anglers reported slow fishing for yellow perch, and any fish they did mark were lethargic, barely going after their lures. Anglers reported the most success on wigglers, with some bites coming on minnows.
Munising: Anglers did well targeting coho salmon and smelt throughout the bay with cisco also being caught. The splake and whitefish bite was slow, while the perch bite was reported fair. Anglers reported luck at night when targeting burbot in the bay. Popular baits included eggs and minnows.
Keweenaw Bay: Anglers reported good numbers of coho salmon with a few cisco being caught. Anglers targeting splake and perch saw slow fishing, with many fish being undersized. Anglers also reported success targeting smelt at night. Successful baits included wax worms, minnows and spawn.
Marquette: This week was slow for fishing in all areas due to ice from the storms that hit the region. There were a few coho salmon caught out on the breakwall on days when the ice allowed anglers to cast into the lake. This occurred toward the end of the week when the sun came out and some of the ice melted. There were also a few brown trout and steelhead caught on the breakwall.
The Carp River was still too shallow and icy early in the week; if fishing around the mouth was not productive, anglers tried moving further upstream.
The Chocolay River was slow again this week since water levels had dropped. Boat anglers reported going upriver once the ice pushed out and the river mouth opened up.
Au Train: The Au Train River mouth opened back up and was fishable as of Sunday. The fish that were caught this month have all been caught out by the mouth of the river on the ice cliffs. Most were caught with either jigs with wax worms or floating spawn eggs.
Ontonagon River: Docks remain out of the water at the Ontonagon Marina Boat Launch. Angling efforts on the river were slow over the past week.
Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Docks remain out of the water at each of these locations. Access to Union Bay is restricted by remaining ice pack. The mouth of the Big Iron River in Silver City is still obstructed by ice drifts from upstream. The marina in Ontonagon is still frozen over with a thin layer of ice. The fish cleaning station at the Ontonagon Marina also remains closed for the winter season.
Black River Harbor: Amenities at the harbor remained closed from the winter season. The access to the lake from the harbor was restricted by significant ice pack. Fishing efforts were slow. The harbor breakwalls were still completely covered in ice and snow.
St. Ignace: The St. Ignace boat launch, Carp River, and Pine River sites were inaccessible, as all roads and parking lots were impassable due to snow accumulation.
Grand Marais: Fishing pressure was low this past week. The Sucker River was still iced in along with most of the fishing pier and bay.
Les Cheneaux Islands/Detour: The only fishing activity taking place in these areas was still ice fishing. Both launches in DeTour were highly inaccessible.
In Hessel, anglers ventured out on snowmobiles around Hessel Bay, catching some perch and smelt. There was very little fishing activity throughout the area due to ice, rain, spring break, and the holiday weekend. There were still a few anglers venturing out into Urie and Musky Bay, catching a few perch but having a hard time finding them.
Fishing tip: Early spring fishing
In April, anglers should focus on warming water and changing conditions, as fish like steelhead, coho salmon, and brown trout become more active after a few sunny days; target river mouths, shallow shorelines, and darker-bottom areas that warm up faster.
This report is intended to give you an idea of what is going on around the state. Updates come from Fisheries staff and conservation officers. With more than 11,000 inland lakes, the Great Lakes and thousands of miles of rivers and streams, not all locations can be listed. However, it is safe to say if a species is being caught in some waters in the area, they are likely being caught in all waters in that section of the state that have that species.