Fishing in July is always a fun time to be out on the water here in northern Michigan. Opportunities abound across our northern waters, and anglers can find great success on many of these waters most days.

For trout anglers, the magnum hexagenia mayflies are still hatching, and trout anglers know that these big bugs are like candy to trout – really big trout. Early in the morning, or fishing into the night produce the best results for trophy brown trout, but rainbows and brooks will eat these bugs with abandon as well. Later in the month, once the mayflies have stopped hatching, trout anglers may have to switch gears to fish smaller nymphs, but a well- stripped streamer can still draw vicious strikes.

On the inland lakes, everything it seems also eats the magnum mayflies. Smallmouth bass can be caught on topwater lures early in the day and again at dusk. Poppers and walking style baits seem to do the best when fishing for smallmouths that are looking for bugs up on the surface. Personally, I love using a feathered treble hook on the rear of all of my topwater baits. I think that the feathers more
closely resemble a mayfly just below the surface.

Platte Bay has great lake trout action in July; both
for boats that want to troll as well as those that prefer to 
vertically jig. With the summer water temperatures still
rising, lake trout are down deep, anywhere from 120 to
150 feet. Trolling covers lots of water, and the typical
cowbell and spin-n-glo combination is a tough one to beat.
 Spoons also produce extremely well when fished close to
the bottom where lakers tend to hang. Those preferring to
vertically jig for lake trout will likely need to spend some
time idling over the deep breaks, inside turns and points to
find schools of fish. And when the schools can be located,
action is often hot when using jigs over an ounce. Jonah Jigs have been a staple in my box the past few seasons, as well as large Elk Rapids jigs.

Grand Traverse Bays fish very well in July, and there are lots of places to fish on these big bodies of water. Lake trout action is outstanding, with lots of bites from the slot sized fish as well as larger fish over 34 inches, which must be released as per the new DNR regulations this season. Salmon have begun to show, and charter boats have reported a couple of bites per trip, and a few are being brought boat-side. Vertically jigging is another great option in July, and the lake trout have concentrated in deep waters. The deep break south of Marion Island is a community hole, but for good reason as it almost always produces well. 85 to 120 feet are prime places to start for Grand Traverse Bay lake trout. The standard jigging spoons used for Platte Bay work wonders here, too.

Grand Traverse Bays are so diverse in their fishery; it’s a treat to be able to fish it almost daily. Walleyes, smallmouth bass, pike, muskies, whitefish, yellow perch, rock bass, lake trout, ciscos, burbot, carp, suckers, steelhead, brown trout and salmon all make these waters home. Some months are better than others for certain species, but July is still a great time to fish for many of them.

June’s fishing may be some of the best spring fishing that we have here in northern Michigan. Seemingly almost every species that an angler would want to target can be caught somewhere, somehow. The cool, late spring has waters still chilly, which is actually a benefit to much of the area’s fishing.

Platte Bay anglers have great opportunities for lake trout, brown trout, and smallmouth bass and even off species like carp and gar! For those wanting to cast the shallows, there are wonderful opportunities in June, before the waters warm enough to push fish deeper. Smallmouths come into the reef systems to feed and to spawn, and can be caught by casting inline spinners, drop shot rigs, jerk baits and crankbaits. For those looking for brown trout, they will be in the rocky shallows feeding on baitfish. Try many of the same tactics used for bass—brownies love to chase a minnow imitation, and will readily pounce on jerk baits, spinners and curly tail grubs. Lake trout anglers can vertically jig the deep breaks, scoring well on these aggressive and tasty fish. Jigs anywhere from ¾ of an ounce all the way up to 2 ounces will work; often times fished right above the bottom. Zebra muscles are everywhere, so accidentally snagging a few of these off the bottom is common, but banging a jig on the bottom also tends to get more bites. When the jig doesn’t feel quite right, it’s very possible that hooks may have a zebra or quagga muscle or two attached.

Grand Traverse Bays are still cold, but the action is hot. Deep breaks, underwater humps and points are all likely spots to find a variety of fish, including lake trout, whitefish, bass and even burbot. The cool waters often have the deep-water fish like lakers and whitefish still relatively shallow, in 50-80 feet. Jigging spoons like Jonah Jigs or Swedish Pimples all will produce well when jigged off the bottom. Making bottom contact seems to be key most days. Suspending fish like ciscos can be caught using electronics when jigs are dropped down to whatever depth the ciscos are holding in. When the waters warm, lake trout and whitefish will slide down deeper, taking up residence in 100 + feet of water. Food is key for lake trout and whitefish, and they will follow bait schools wherever they go. Starting shallow is a good start, but don’t be afraid to keep trying deeper until schools of your target fish can be located.

River Anglers still have cool enough water to target bass and trout, and with June’s bug hatches as well as young-of-the-year minnows, fish will be looking for an easy meal. This lends itself well to fly anglers and conventional anglers alike. Small streamers or dry fly presentations will do well for the fly anglers. Anything minnow like should get attention as well as poppers fished in a stop and go retrieve will also score for the spinning rod crowd.

Big magnum mayflies will begin to hatch towards the end of the month, and this king of all hatches often times makes otherwise wary fish lose their inhibitions, ravenously gobbling anything resembling a mayfly. The first few hatches of the year can produce some awesome trout, bass, walleye and panfish action on not only northern Michigan’s rivers, but also the inland lakes. Late evenings and early first-light are the prime times to be on the water to take advantage of the mayfly hatches and the feeding frenzy that it brings.

With so many great options to fish for in June, sometimes it’s hard to pick what body of water and what species to go after. But whichever you decide, it’s a great time to be outdoors, enjoying some time on the water.

May’s warmer weather has life feeling much more in balance than when compared to April’s chill. Sunny days warm the waters from top to bottom, and this in turn, has fish more active. All of the fish seasons are now open, and anglers can enjoy the nicer weather to get out and target their favorite species.

There are, however, a few changes that anglers in the Frankfort, Traverse City, and Elk Rapids areas should know. The daily lake trout limit has been reduced from three fish down to two fish, with the slot size also changing. Anglers may keep lakers between 15″ and 27″, with one fish over 34″ allowed per angler.

Grand Traverse Bays have some very cold water, but the lake trout and whitefish are active and biting. The fish are still mostly deep, at this time, so anglers should begin looking for these tasty fish in 120-150 feet. Towards the end of the month, fish may roam much shallower, coming in towards 80 feet and sometimes even as shallow as 50. Jigging baits like the BBM Squirrel Jig, Jonah Jigs, or Elk Rapids jigs can all produce well. Play with different sizes and jigging actions to see what fish want on any given day-some days they want large heavy options, and other days, they want more of a finesse down-sized jig. It’s not uncommon to see small groups or single lake trout cruising the shallows on Grand Traverse Bays. Bass baits can tempt these cruisers into biters, and in shallow water, they are a hoot to catch.

Platte Bay is full of life right now, with lake trout, brown trout, smallmouth bass, and late steelhead all being caught on any given day. With water temperatures cooler than the normal because of the extreme cold and ice this past winter, fish that normally might have pulled back out to deeper waters are still relatively shallow. Casting minnow baits can be an excellent choice for both smallmouths and brown trout. The Platte River will still have some steelhead in it, with fish dropping back to Lake Michigan as the month progresses. The walleyes that were in the Platte River in April have now moved back out to the lake, but some may still be shallow around the reef separating West from East Platte Bay.

Inland lakes in May are phenomenal fisheries in their own right, and species like walleye, pike, panfish and, of course, the hard-fighting smallmouth bass are all viable targets this month. Jerkbaits, vibrating blade baits and spinnerbaits can be great options for pike and bass. Jigs tipped with minnows, and slowly-trolled crankbaits can land walleyes as well as bass and the occasional pike. Weedlines, deep drop-offs and points are all areas worth spending some time on.

May is one of the favorite times of year for most of the Sport Fish Michigan Captains and Guides. Waters are warming, but still be cautious and stay safe out on the water. And make sure that you remember to put the drain plug in when you launch!