Trolling wobbling plugs on large planer-board spreads is one of the most effective spring tactics. Even large chinook salmon—often considered bonus fish—love them. (Photo by Mark Romanack)
April 30, 2024
By Mark Romanack
The fertile waters of southern Lake Michigan provide fantastic mixed-bag trout and salmon fishing. Here’s an overview:
SALMONID SWEET SPOT Southern Lake Michigan has been a trout and salmon destination for decades and continues to produce world-class fishing opportunities. Runoff from numerous tributary streams in the region pours important nutrients into Lake Michigan, as well as warmer water that, in turn, supports critically important forage species. In fact, the population of the lake’s most noteworthy forage species, the alewife, has exploded in recent years. In response, fisheries biologists from the four different states bordering Lake Michigan have been ramping up trout and salmon stocking efforts.
The lake’s southernmost waters also feature several power-generation plants that discharge slightly warmer water back into the lake. While river runoff and discharge from power plants only increases ambient water temperatures a couple degrees, it’s enough to attract large concentrations of forage fish, trout and salmon.
Most of the salmonids found in Lake Michigan are stocked in cooperation with the respective state fish-and-game departments, but some wild fish produced from tributary streams in the northern part of the lake also contribute to the fishery. In addition, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) supplements things by stocking significant numbers of lake trout, Lake Michigan’s indigenous predatory species.
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The USFWS is also largely responsible for clipping the fins of stocked fish to help anglers discern hatchery fish from wild fish naturally reared in tributary streams. Collectively, the wild and hatchery fish found in southern Lake Michigan represent one of the richest trout-and-salmon fisheries in the Great Lakes.
Chunky coho salmon, like these caught by the author and his son, comprise much of the spring action. While smaller than kings, cohos are considered to be better tasting. (Photo by Mark Romanack) ACCESSIBLE ACTION The southern portion of the lake doesn’t just attract alewives, salmon and trout, though. It lures in thousands of anglers from Michigan, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and beyond. Lots of the lake’s common ports are a relatively easy drive from many major Midwest population hubs. Southern Lake Michigan port cities, including Holland, South Haven, Benton Harbor, St. Joseph and New Buffalo, Mich.; Michigan City, Gary and East Chicago, Ind.; Chicago, Ill.; and Kenosha and Racine, Wis., routinely cough up daily limits of coho salmon, with bonus chinook salmon, lake trout and brown trout in the mix.
The area’s many river mouths, warmwater discharge sites and a multitude of marina complexes and supporting break walls provide near-perfect habitat for baitfish and game fish alike. In addition, these break walls are places where small fishing boats can escape the waves offshore, offering protected fishing opportunities even on windy days.
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Many anglers who visit southern Lake Michigan opt to purchase fishing licenses from neighboring states. This increases the area an angler can fish and takes advantage of an annual migration that follows the lake’s clockwise current flow.
When salmon and trout show up in the Michigan waters of Lake Michigan, gradually these fish push south and west into Indiana, Illinois and, eventually, Wisconsin waters. While some salmon migrate north along the Michigan coastline, a significant percentage of the fish follow the prevailing current. This widely documented migration of fish sets up an opportunity to catch nearshore cohos, chinook salmon, lake trout and brown trout from late March throughout April and deep into the month of May.
SMALL-BOAT FISHERY Admittedly, Lake Michigan can get ugly when the winds come from the north or northwest. Thankfully, the prevailing winds in the spring are usually from the west, southwest and south. On most spring days, southern Lake Michigan is fishable, even for small, multi-species-style fishing boats.
Unlike other Great Lakes trout and salmon fisheries, the southern Lake Michigan fishery takes place very close to shore in water often as shallow as 10 to 15 feet deep. Because the warmest available water is generally the shallow water found near the shoreline, trout and salmon crowd into very predictable places this time of year.
HOW IT’S DONE During spring, coho salmon are typically caught by trolling wobbling crankbaits with the help of in-line planer boards to spread out lines and cover the maximum amount of water. Because fish are routinely found in water 20 feet deep or less, there is little need to incorporate traditional heavy-action salmon fishing gear.
“Spring cohos average from 2 to 4 pounds in size,” says Captain TJ Willacker of Bending Limits Sportfishing Charters. “Lake trout, browns and chinook salmon range in size from 5 to 15 pounds on average. As a result, the rods, line-counter-style reels, lines and planer boards commonly used for targeting Great Lakes walleye are also ideally suited for spring trout and salmon fishing.”
Visiting anglers are encouraged to set up their trolling reels with 10- to 14-pound-test monofilament line. Mono has the perfect amount of stretch, making it ideal for targeting the small but sporty cohos, as well as larger lake trout and chinook salmon. Monofilament lines also pair up nicely with the line releases used on most in-line planer boards.
Wobbling plugs do an excellent job of imitating alewives and are hands-down the most popular lure choice for Lake Michigan’s spring cohos. A few of the most productive plugs include the Storm Thin Fin, Brad’s ThinFish and the Yakima Bait Mag Lip in the 3.0 and 3.5 sizes. Each of these wobbling plugs has great action, even when trolled at slower speeds. They’re all available in a variety of popular trout and salmon color options.
On most days, baits with chrome or gold finishes that feature a splash of chartreuse, green or orange dominate the catch. When these baits are teamed up with in-line planer boards such as the popular Off Shore Tackle Side-Planer, it’s common for anglers to stack two, three or even four board lines on each side of the boat. All four of the states that border southern Lake Michigan allow anglers to fish up to three lines per person, making it possible to set up large and very productive trolling spreads.
Lake trout, brown trout and even chinook salmon will smash wobbling plugs presented on planer boards. However, many anglers opt to maximize their trolling spread by fishing mini- and standard-sized spoons presented on downriggers. Downriggers help get bonus lines in the water and do an excellent job of covering the water below and directly behind the boat.
Natural-scent products made from alewife, smelt and other common forage species are also in wide use among Lake Michigan trout and salmon trollers. Using scents, such as Pro Cure Super Gel, helps set up a natural scent stream in the water that encourages trout and salmon to strike plugs, spoons and other hard baits with more authority.
GET OUT THERE The southern Lake Michigan trout and salmon fishery is within an easy drive of millions of anglers. Because the spring fishing takes place close to shore, even modest boats routinely tap into world-class fishing success.
For many anglers, a trip to southern Lake Michigan represents their first open-water fishing adventure of the year. The minute public-access sites are ice-free, it’s game time for trout and salmon. If you’re searching for an early opportunity at exceptional open-water angling—and maybe even a few fillets for the freezer—trailer the boat and hit the launches.
IF YOU GO Things to consider when planning a spring trip to southern Lake Michigan. Photo by Mark Romanack Anglers interested in visiting the southern Lake Michigan region will find there is no shortage of critical services in the area. Port cities will have well-maintained public-access sites, marinas, motels, diners, bait shops, casinos and gas stations.
For anglers interested in booking a charter fishing trip, the Michigan Charter Boat Association maintains an active list of charter captains based out of many popular southern Lake Michigan ports. You can also access a handy charter captain directory at michigancharterboats.com.
For do-it-yourself anglers, essential fishing gear includes trolling rods, line-counter reels, premium monofilament line, in-line planer boards and a good assortment of both wobbling crankbaits and trolling spoons. Downriggers are a bonus, but not strictly necessary since the fish are routinely found in water less than 20 feet deep.
Limits on trout and salmon are generous in all four states that border southern Lake Michigan. Anglers can catch and keep up to five trout and salmon per day with no more than three fish being lake trout (except in Wisconsin waters, where all five can be lake trout, and in Illinois waters, where only two can be lake trout). Michigan offers an “all species” license that includes trout and salmon fishing. The other states require a fishing license and the purchase of a trout/salmon stamp to fish Lake Michigan waters.
In the spring, most of the catch centers on coho salmon, but enough chinook salmon, lake trout and brown trout are also caught to keep things interesting.
This article was featured in the April 2023 issue of Game & Fish magazine. Subscribe now .
