Great Lakes Fishing Report: Nov-Dec

A look back at 2020 and forward for 2021

Published: Saturday, November 7, 2020

2020 has been an interesting year, to say the least, but it has also been exciting for anglers! The Great Lakes’ state’s wildlife resource departments have been working diligently to ensure the future of our hatcheries and fisheries. Join me in celebrating their hard work! ~ Savannah, Editor

LAKES SUPERIOR, MICHIGAN, and HURON

Michigan is home to exceptional freshwater fishing, with opportunities from metro Detroit all the way to the western Upper Peninsula. With great opportunity comes great responsibility and caring for our aquatic habitats and fisheries is something the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Fisheries Division takes to heart.

Restoring the Saginaw Bay Reef
This past year brought the long-awaited completion of the Coreyon Reef Restoration Project in Saginaw Bay, about 11 miles northeast of the mouth of the Saginaw River. Aimed at restoring offshore spawning habitat for several fish species, the project—funded principally by a $980,000 grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency—saw more than 22,500 tons of rock carefully placed to create a 2-acre reef, which rises 5 feet off the bottom of the bay in about 18 feet of water. The Fisheries Division partnered with the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy to lead the effort, which is critical to supporting resilient and diverse fish populations like lake whitefish, lake trout, and walleye.

Instant Text Messages for Sturgeon Season
Technology continues to merge with our outdoor experiences, and that trend was front and center during the annual lake sturgeon season on Black Lake in Michigan’s northern Lower Peninsula. It is a flurry of activity as hundreds of anglers vie for the chance to harvest one of these iconic fish. The season may last for a few hours, or up to five days, so the DNR works hard to connect with people spread out across the 10,000-acre lake to make sure they are informed of the season’s closure so an overharvest does not occur. This past year, the Fisheries Division decided to leverage the speed and simplicity of text messaging to quickly and efficiently communicate with anglers registered for the Black Lake sturgeon season. When registering for the season, people provided their cell phone numbers if they wished to receive text updates on the season’s progression. They received instant texts when the season opened, as each fish was harvested, and when the season closed. On-ice angler response to the new communication method was positive, and the DNR expects to continue it in coming seasons.

Working Together to Support Muskellunge 
For nearly 20 years, the Michigan Musky Alliance (MMA) has been an active partner in managing Michigan’s muskellunge fishing opportunities. The group regularly provides financial support and participates on the warmwater and coolwater resources’ steering committees that recommend regulations for stronger Michigan fisheries. The alliance recently purchased 15 acoustic transmitters, a value of $4,500, for the Lake St. Clair/Detroit River muskellunge tracking study. Information collected from this study will help protect and manage arguably the greatest muskellunge fishery in the world. MMA also works closely with Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery each year, providing funding to buy food for young muskellunge that are stocked statewide. Partnerships like these are yielding real benefits that aid the DNR’s management efforts and the anglers who enjoy the resulting fishing opportunities.

Streamlining Fisheries Grant Application Processes
Applying for a grant takes time and preparation, and Fisheries Division staff wanted to do more to give prospective applicants the information they need and a clearer path toward the best funding match. The division, in response to suggestions from past applicants, combined three former habitat conservation grant programs (Aquatic Habitat, Dam Management, and Habitat Improvement Account) into the Fisheries Habitat Grant program. The new grant makes it easier to apply for multiple funding sources with one proposal and enables more effective review and funding decisions. One of the new grant’s key components is the division’s Priority Habitat Conservation Projects List, which helps applicants target projects that address important priority items including sustaining healthy habitats, fisheries, and aquatic communities.

Brought to you by the Michigan DNR. Buy your Michigan fishing license online by visiting www.Michigan.gov/DNRLicenses.

LAKE ERIE

Walleye Surveys Support Excitement for Future Fishing
Surveys in the western basin of Lake Erie indicate more great news for Ohio anglers with 2020 walleye and yellow perch hatches both above average. An almost unbeatable record of 2020 walleye yearling catches easily sets Ohio’s anglers up for success in the years ahead. Large walleye year classes have been common since 2014 and provide exceptional fishing opportunities over the next 10 to 15 years. Lake Erie walleye grow exceptionally fast and contribute to angler harvest early in life, but many walleye live well past 10 years. As early as 2022, walleye hatched in 2014 and 2015 will grow to be trophy and Fish Ohio size, 28 inches and larger. Strong contributions from numerous year classes will provide a diverse age and size structure for anglers to enjoy.

Additional Future Fishing Opportunites follow Yellow Perch Hatch
It is the sixth-best year on record since 1986 for yellow perch in the western basin, which will help bolster the population in 2022. A 2020 hatch index reported 536 fish per hectare*, well above Ohio’s western basin prior 20-year average of 326 per hectare.

Boaters have an advantage when angling for perch as they can troll along until one fish is caught, then anchor immediately and fish straight down. Adjusting your strategy is another way to reel in more perch; remember to be flexible and change locations and baits.

Brought to you by the Ohio DNR. Download your copy of the Ohio fishing regulations at wildohio.gov. The renovated Ohio Division of Wildlife website and the new HuntFish OH mobile app provide a variety of tools and resources for outdoor enthusiasts of all types.

LAKE ONTARIO

A Fishing Charters’ Perspective
With the entrance of the virus in 2020, the year started out with fishing being shut down in New York for six weeks. Anglers from the state missed the spring brown trout and walleye season, but the later steelheads and browns that were harvested were above average, with salmon being slightly below average.

So, what does this mean for 2021? Brown trout and walleye should be a bit bigger as there was less pressure on them in 2020. I expect the fishing for them to be excellent, in fact. Steelhead will become more of a target species in 2021 as the lack of 2-year-old salmon in 2020’s summer will rear its ugly head and likely compound reduced harvest opportunities, adding to three straight years of cutbacks from the New York DEC.

All and all, Lake Ontario will again produce monster catches of all species as it has done in the past. Paying attention to reports and details will pay off. Watch them carefully; if you see limits being caught, that’s the time to plan your next Lake Ontario getaway!

Brought to you by Cannonball Runner Fishing Charters, www.cannonballrunner.com.

This article first appeared in the Buyer's Guide 2021 (Nov/Dec 2020) of Great Lakes Scuttlebutt magazine.

tags: Dept of Natural Resources, Fishing, Great Lakes

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