Angers are hoping summer weather is a boon for fishing. (Star file photo)
BIG RAPIDS - Lots of water and high water levels have again caused havoc with fishing prospects.
Tom Vernon, of Frank's Sporting Goods in Morley, noted anglers are battling the high waters.
"Guys are doing well on the panfish, bluegills and crappies," he said. "There's a little bit of perch. We're waiting for the river to come back down so the guys can go after the walleyes. This weekend should be phenomenal for panfish."
A spokesperson at Chippewa Lake East Bay store said there's been a good number of anglers fishing
"I went out to Hillview Lake on Friday and Saturday and did well both days," Jeff Greene, of Rodney said. "A few of the bluegills had formed egg sacs inside which means that bedding activity is getting closer. On Saturday, I saw two bluegills rise to eat a hatching insect on the surface. Unfortunately the rain we receive on Sunday and Monday will set the bedding activity back again."
"Walleye fishing was really good before we got all that rain," conservation officer Angie Greenway said. "Now rivers are super high and dirty. The water needs to settle down a little bit. People are getting on the water a little bit, trying to enjoy this nice weather."
Bass fishing opens on Saturday.
In Manistee County, "they are getting some kings out straight out using spoons and flies in 30 to 60 feet of water," Bud Fitzgerald, of Tangled Tackle Co. in Manistee said. "There's still a lot of lake trout up at Onekama, I'm not hearing of any kings being caught up there. Portage Lake has bluegills on beds."
"They're getting a few bluegills in Lake Manistee and they're getting some kings and lake trout in Lake Michigan," Larry Scharich, of Shipwatch Marina, in Manistee said.
"With (Tippy Dam) being closed, there's not a lot of fishermen around right now," Julie Fraly of Hank's & Sons Bait Shop in Brethren said. "They are catching some down river."
"It's been pretty decent lately for kings and lake trout," Corey Houser, of Ludington, said. "They're in about 50 to 70 feet of water."
Brian Murphy, of the Frankfort Tackle Box, said anglers in his area are finding lake trout and salmon.
"We're getting good sized fish," Murphy said.
