Fishing
The Great Lakes region is gifted with fishing for all skill levels -- and palates. It's a year-round pursuit with a vast array of quarry, whether you're a fan of trolling the big water for salmon and steelhead, battling powerful bass, sneaking into a trout honey hole that no one else knows, or pulling yellow perch through the ice.
 Bass fishing |
 Fly fishing |
 Ice fishing |
 More fishing |
Featured Articles
Prepare now to fish next spring -- and this winter
October 24, 2011 by Sky Opila
It's less than two weeks before the clocks fall backward. For many anglers, that is a sure sign that it's time to get the gear ready for winter storage -- and to break out the ice-fishing tackle.
Fall rains, cooling temps mean it's streamer season
September 27, 2011 by Steve Southard
Throughout the year well over 90 percent of a trout's feeding activity is done subsurface, whether on aquatic insects in their nymph or larval stage, baitfish or smaller trout or crayfish and the like. Combined with the rapidly dwindling insect hatches, the increased stream-flow brought on by fall rains is a trigger that causes trout to more actively pursue swimming prey. That means it's time to break out your streamers.
Trolling for 'gills is an anytime, anywhere game
August 19, 2011 by Bob Gwizdz
More anglers spend more time chasing bluegills than any other freshwater finster. There are plenty of reasons; not only are bluegills almost ubiquitous, they are plentiful in most waters, generally sport liberal creel limits, are typically open year-round and are generally free of size limits. But they have a couple more positive characteristics: They are usually willing to bite and they make it worth firing up the frying pan as well as any species.
Michigan ponders end to Lake Huron salmon stocking
June 27, 2011 by Dave Spratt
The Michigan DNR puts 1.4 million chinook salmon into Lake Huron each year and virtually none of them are caught by anglers. Most wind up as walleye food, so the department is re-evaluating the program with an eye toward ending or severely reducing it. At the same time, the division is working to identify other salmonid species that can not only survive on Lake Huron’s new food supply, but also thrive at a level that can restore Lake Huron as a destination for big-lake sport anglers. The contenders: steelhead, brown trout and Atlantic salmon.
Riprap is where the fish are
June 7, 2011 by Sky Opila
Riprap is one of those places where fish just congregate - all year round. Those rocks have everything a bass needs: cover, access to deeper water and food. As the weather starts to warm up a bit, I head straight for the riprap.
Fast flow needn't keep you indoors, but stay safe
June 7, 2011 by Eirik Vitso
Water levels can be a dangerous game and safety should always be the top priority, no matter how badly you want to go fishing. The most dangerous thing you can do is go wading in an unfamiliar river or stretch of river at high flow. But if you have access to a boat, fishing in high flows can be dynamite.
Try something new for steelhead: indicator fishing
March 25, 2011 by Eirik Vitso
Ice on the guides, cold feet, winter hats, rain gear and weather that would keep most people at home. These are all the reasons most of us love -- or hate -- steelhead fishing. With the warmer weather coming our way and the days growing longer, the steelhead run is fast approaching its peak. The fish are more active, the water is warming up and love is in the air.
Top 10 angler questions answered
March 4, 2011 by Sky Opila
Anglers ask questions all the time. What kind of bait are you using? How do you fish that? Where should I go? How do I get that? Ask.com, the popular online question-and-answer engine, recently sent me a list of the top 10 questions anglers ask most frequently on their site. I put those 10 questions to some of the world's best bass anglers.
Wisconsin sturgeon season draws a crowd
February 14, 2011 by Paul Cashman
The hundreds of cars fanning out across Lake Winnebago that cold February morning could only mean one thing: Wisconsin’s 2011 sturgeon spearing season was upon us.
Waiting for spring steel? You're missing out
February 14, 2011 by Bob Gwizdz
To many anglers, steelhead fishing doesn't really begin until spring, when the fish begin moving up on their redds to do their annual duty to Mother Nature. But for veteran steelhead fishermen like John Kolehouse, the rivers that spill into Lake Michigan are at their best when most other anglers are far away from them.
The right techniques put more fish on ice
January 21, 2011 by Sky Opila
In most Northern states, panfish are the most frequently caught fish through the ice. This is due in part to their sheer abundance. Panfish can be caught deep and shallow, with both horizontal and vertical presentation baits, with live bait and lures. In fact, it's pretty hard NOT to catch a panfish through the ice.
Not catching fish? Try these ice tips
January 12, 2011 by Sky Opila
Ice fishing is not a sport for everyone. Most of my bass-angling buddies trade all fishing activities for sweat pants and warm fires come winter. The more I talk to these guys, I realize that they hate ice fishing because they never catch anything. These quick tips and tricks will help increase anyone's chances of having a big day on the ice -- and maybe turn some opinions about the sport.
Give fly gear some TLC now for a worry-free spring
December 12, 2010 by Steve Southard
As the deer seasons wind down and the snow begins to pile up, it is time to put away the last few things still out in the yard and also to take care of a task that was set aside while you were getting ready for the deer hunt: Cleaning up and doing some routine preventative maintenance on the fly tackle before putting away most of it until spring.
Your favorite bass pond can still yield
November 29, 2010 by Sky Opila
For a lot of folks around the Midwest and Northern states, it doesn't feel like winter is upon us quite yet. We're still getting some warmer days interspersed with cold ones. And that same glimmer of warmth is what's extending this year's bassin' season.
Steelhead: The tug is the drug
November 12, 2010 by www.greatnorthernoutdoors.net
It is the worst kept secret among serious steelheaders that autumn is the best time to hook up with a hard-fighting chromer. The reasons are simple: Everyone else is in the woods chasing deer. That river that was packed with anglers in spring is now silent. And the fish are coming in from the Great Lakes to feed heavily in anticipation of winter. Kevin Morlock of Indigo Guide Service in Walhalla, Mich, offers the following fall and winter steelhead tips that will put more chrome in your net.
Spawning brookies: Fall color under the water
October 1, 2010 by Steve Southard
While surface-feeding dry-fly trout opportunities still exist this time of year, this is perhaps the best time to begin to experiment with or hone or your wet-fly and weighted-nymph fishing technique. That fact combined with the splendidly colored foliage and brook trout of the season should provide more than ample motivation to reach for your fly rod.
When autumn rains fall, grab your streamers
October 1, 2010 by Steve Southard
Throughout the year well over 90 percent of a trout's feeding activity is done subsurface, whether on aquatic insects in their nymph or larval stage, baitfish or smaller trout or crayfish and the like. In the fall that feeding pattern intensifies as insect hatches dwindle, which makes streamer fishing especially deadly.
Cooling temps can mean great near-shore bassin'
October 1, 2010 by Sky Opila
For many bass anglers, the cooler days of fall come as a welcome change. Not only have lakes cleared up of weekend speed boaters that mix up the water and infringe on your fishing space, but the big bass are coming up to feed in the shallows and getting ready for a long winter.
Fizzing: A fish-saving strategy
September 15, 2010 by Sky Opila
Fizzing is the practice of inserting a hypodermic needle through the skin of a bass to release air from the fish's swim bladder, a gas-filled sac in a bass that is used to regulate buoyancy in the fish. Sudden changes in pressure caused by dramatic depth changes can harm fish.
Ozarks are close, accessible and open to winter fly-fishing
January 2, 2010 by Steve Southard
When winter hits, the tropical climate and saltwater fishing of Florida, the Gulf Coast, the Caribbean and Mexico are great choices. But there are some lesser-known, more accessible and more affordable alternatives. Fly fishing the Ozarks of southern Missouri and northern Arkansas fits the bill in all three respects.
See All Videos Featured Videos
Carp on the fly: Mulberries
July 1, 2010 by Great Northern Outdoors
If you've been outside -- which of course you have -- you've noticed that the mulberries are getting darker. Which means it's time to catch carp. Eirik Vitso of Schultz Outfitters in Ann Arbor, Mich., describes how to catch Huron River carp on a fly designed to imitate a mulberry in this Great Northern Outdoors video.
See All Educational Outdoors 101
Flyfishing 101: Be versatile without spending a bundle
July 22, 2010 by Dave Spratt
If you fish, but don't fly fish, that whole world may seem like something of a high-priced mystery to you. It needn't be.
