Harbors, Bays & Tributaries

Nearshore & Reefs

Open Lake / Offshore

Inshore

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  Walleye — Peaks April-May and again in October as fish stage shallow; troll crawler harnesses and crankbaits over open water in summer, jig vertically through winter ice.GearCrawler harnessesDeep-diving crankbaitsJigging rod combo

  How to ID

  • Olive-gold flanks with brassy mottling
  • Glassy, light-reflecting eye (silvery tapetum)
  • Two separate dorsal fins, first spiny
  • White tip on the lower lobe of the tail
  • Large canine teeth in the jaws
  • Dark blotch at the rear base of the spiny dorsal

  Tell it apart: The milky light-reflecting eye, large canine teeth, and white-tipped lower tail lobe separate a walleye from a yellow perch, which has a normal dark eye and no canines.

  Easily confused with: Yellow Perch

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  Yellow Perch — Best September-November as schools fatten up; drop small jigs and minnow-tipped spreader rigs near bottom, then chase the same fish on ice in midwinter.GearPerch spreader rigsSmall jig headsLight spinning combo

  How to ID

  • Golden-yellow body with 6-8 dark vertical bars
  • Two separate dorsal fins, first spiny
  • Orange-tinted pelvic and anal fins (esp. spawning males)
  • Slightly humped back, blunt snout
  • No canine teeth, only small rasp-like teeth
  • Dark, non-reflective eye

  Tell it apart: Bold dark vertical bars over a yellow body, orange-tinted lower fins, a normal dark eye, and no canine teeth mark it as a perch, not a walleye.

  Easily confused with: Walleye

• 
  Smallmouth Bass — Prime June-August in warm water; work tubes and drop-shot rigs on rocky structure, switching to jerkbaits in cooler pre-spawn spring conditions.GearTube baitsDrop-shot hooksSuspending jerkbaits

  How to ID

  • Bronze-brown body with dark vertical bars
  • Red to red-orange eye
  • Upper jaw ends at or before the rear of the eye
  • Single dorsal, shallowly notched, not fully split
  • Dark radiating bars across the cheek and gill cover
  • Forked tail tricolored in young (orange/black/white)

  Tell it apart: A bronze body with vertical bars, a red eye, and an upper jaw ending no farther back than the rear of the eye confirms smallmouth (largemouth's jaw extends well past the eye and it shows a horizontal stripe, not bars).

• 
  Northern Pike — Strongest in April around weedy spawning bays; cast large spinnerbaits and spoons on wire leader, slowing presentations through cold-water periods.GearLarge spinnerbaitsWire leadersCasting spoons

  How to ID

  • Long torpedo body, green to olive
  • Light bean-shaped spots on a darker background
  • Single soft dorsal set far back near the tail
  • Duck-bill snout with large teeth
  • Cheek fully scaled, gill cover scaled on upper half only
  • 5 or fewer sensory pores per side of the lower jaw

  Tell it apart: Pike show LIGHT spots on a DARK background, a fully scaled cheek, and 5 or fewer jaw pores; muskie reverse it (dark marks on a light body, scaleless lower cheek) with 6-9 pores per side.

  Easily confused with: Muskie

• 
  Steelhead — Runs peak April-May and October-November; drift float rigs with spawn sacs and beads in tributary rivers, troll spoons in the open lake when fish are dispersed.GearFloat rigsSpawn sac meshSteelhead drift rod

  How to ID

  • Bright chrome-silver sides, white belly
  • Small black spots scattered over the back, dorsal, and entire tail (both lobes)
  • Squared tail; 8-12 anal fin rays (fewer than salmon)
  • Faint pink-red lateral band (bright on resident/mature fish)
  • White mouth and white gums inside
  • Small head relative to a same-size Chinook

  Tell it apart: A white mouth AND white gums with spots radiating across the whole tail separate a steelhead from coho (dark mouth, white gums, spots on the upper tail lobe only) and chinook (black mouth and black gums).

  Easily confused with: Brown Trout, Coho Salmon, Chinook Salmon

• 
  Brown Trout — Best October-November near shore as fish stage to spawn; troll stickbaits and spoons on planer boards, then cast hardware along piers and river mouths.GearTrolling stickbaitsPlaner boardsCasting spoons

  How to ID

  • Buttery-brown to golden body
  • Both black AND red/orange spots, many ringed with pale halos
  • Few or no spots on the squared tail
  • Adipose fin often tinged orange
  • Sparse spotting below the lateral line
  • Thick, blunt head

  Tell it apart: Red-orange spots with pale halos and a nearly spotless tail mark a brown trout; steelhead and the salmon carry black-only spots and a clearly spotted tail.

  Easily confused with: Steelhead, Coho Salmon, Chinook Salmon

Nearshore

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  Lake Trout — Catchable spring through fall, peaking April-May and October; troll spoons and flashers on downriggers or dipsy divers, jigging deep structure in summer heat.GearTrolling spoonsDipsy diversFlutter jigs

  How to ID

  • Dark gray to gray-green body covered in pale cream spots
  • Deeply forked tail (deepest fork of the region's salmonids)
  • Pale spots without halos extend onto the forked tail
  • White leading edge on the lower (pelvic, pectoral, anal) fins
  • No pink stripe and no dark or red spots
  • Spots may extend onto head, dorsal, and adipose

  Tell it apart: A deeply forked tail with pale haloless spots on a dark body identifies lake trout; browns and steelhead have squared tails, and brown trout add red/orange haloed spots. (Worm-like vermiculations belong to brook trout, NOT lake trout.)

  Easily confused with: Brown Trout, Steelhead

• 
  Coho Salmon — Prime June-September in warming water; troll small spoons and flashers behind downriggers and on planer boards, working surface temperature breaks.GearTrolling spoonsFlasher and flyDownrigger weights

  How to ID

  • Chrome silver with a metallic blue-green back
  • Black spots on the back and the UPPER lobe of the tail only
  • Dark/gray mouth interior but a WHITE gum line at the tooth bases
  • 12-15 anal fin rays
  • Broad, only slightly forked tail
  • Typically smaller and slimmer than a Chinook

  Tell it apart: Coho has a WHITE gum line (the legal tell) with tail spots on the upper lobe only; Chinook has a black mouth WITH black gums and spots on both tail lobes; steelhead has a fully white mouth and gums.

  Easily confused with: Chinook Salmon, Steelhead

• 
  Muskie — Best July-October as water warms; cast oversized bucktails and glide baits or troll big crankbaits over weed edges, finishing every cast with a figure-eight.GearBucktail spinnersHeavy fluoro leaderMuskie casting rod

  How to ID

  • Long body, light silver-green to olive with dark markings
  • Dark bars or spots on a LIGHT background (or nearly clear)
  • Pointed, sharply tapered tail lobes
  • Lower half of cheek and gill cover scaleless
  • 6-9 sensory pores per side of the lower jaw
  • Duck-bill snout with large teeth

  Tell it apart: Muskie show DARK markings on a LIGHT body, a scaleless lower cheek/gill cover, pointed tail tips, and 6-9 jaw pores per side, the reverse of pike (light spots on dark, scaled cheek, 5 or fewer pores, rounded tail tips).

  Easily confused with: Northern Pike

• 
  Whitefish — Best in cold months December-March, largely an ice fishery; jig small spoons and tipped jigs tight to bottom, also caught open-water in early spring.GearSmall jigging spoonsIce fishing jigsLight ice combo

  How to ID

  • Silvery body with an olive-brown back
  • Small head with a blunt, overhanging snout
  • Small, subterminal, nearly toothless mouth
  • Deeply forked tail with large, smooth (unspotted) scales
  • Adipose fin present (member of the trout/salmon family)
  • Double skin flap between each pair of nostrils

  Tell it apart: A small downward-set toothless mouth under a blunt overhanging snout, large unspotted silvery scales, a deeply forked tail, and an adipose fin identify lake whitefish; the lack of teeth and spots rules out the trout and salmon.

Offshore

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  Chinook Salmon — Peaks June-September in cold offshore water; troll meat rigs, spoons and flashers deep on downriggers, following thermoclines as summer heat pushes fish down.GearMagnum trolling spoonsFlasher meat rigsTrolling rod combo

  How to ID

  • Chrome silver with a blue-gray back
  • Black spots on the back, dorsal, and BOTH tail lobes
  • Black mouth AND a black gum line
  • Large, robust body (the region's largest salmon)
  • 15-17 anal fin rays
  • Silver tail bearing spots on both lobes

  Tell it apart: An entirely black mouth INCLUDING the gum line, plus spots on both tail lobes, separates Chinook (king) from the white-gummed coho and the fully white-mouthed steelhead.

  Easily confused with: Coho Salmon, Steelhead