Fall color is now past peak across much of northern Wisconsin and leaf drop is progressing rapidly. Fall colors are still at peak across much of southern Wisconsin, according to the Department of Tourism Fall Color Report (exit DNR). Oaks are now providing the dominant colors along the Mississippi River bluffs, which are showing various shades of brown, copper maroon, and bronze. Tamarack trees are turning gold in the north as they prepare to drop their needles. Tamaracks are the only native conifer trees that shed needles in the winter. Wisconsin received some significant rainfall in the last week, with more than 2 inches reported in south central areas of the state and northern Wisconsin received its first substantial snowfall last weekend with 6 inches reported at Mercer in Iron County last Friday.
The cool and wet weather has limited fishing activity in the last week. Success for musky has been very inconsistent on northern lakes and most anglers reported active musky were hard to find. There was a surge in crappie action in 4 to 8 feet of water along and near the mid-depth cover, such as emergent weed lines and brush. Walleye success continues to be generally slow.
The salmon run is slowing down along Door County and northern Lake Michigan tributaries, but some fish were still being reported in the Peshtigo, Kewaunee, Manitowoc, and Twin rivers, but the numbers are dropping. Fair numbers of chinooks and a few browns and steelhead are still being reported in southeastern tributaries, including the Sheboygan, Milwaukee, Root and Pike rivers.
Walleyes and crappies are biting on minnows in the Wolf River. And a reminder that all Winnebago System sturgeon spearing licenses for Lake Winnebago and for those successful for the Upriver lakes drawing must be purchased by this Saturday, Oct 31.
The Mississippi and Wisconsin rivers have risen in the last week as a result of all the rain and the Kickapoo River crested late last week near the 10 foot stage, but is now dropping rapidly. The Mississippi had reached 8.3 feet at Prairie du Chien earlier this week and was expected to crest at about 8.7 feet later this week. Walleye and sauger action was good this week below dams.
Waterfowl hunting has been spotty with some hunters having moderate to good success and others having little to no success. There are substantial numbers of geese and puddle ducks holding in the state and increasing numbers of divers are coming into the larger lakes and ponds with some canvasback. Pheasant hunters are having a very tough time finding birds, even though the larger state properties are again being stocked. Most of the birds are heading straight to standing corn. Corn harvest is way behind as is the soybean harvest due to the abnormally cool and wet month of October.
The standing corn is also a problem for deer hunters. Archery hunters reported very good activity again this week with the preliminary stages of the rut in progress and white-tailed bucks becoming much more active statewide with scrapes showing up more often now.
Despite the cooler temperature that accompany fall, many spiders are still active. This is the time of year when many young spiders go ballooning. On warm, calms days they can be seen sailing through the air with wind currents carrying them on several threads they spin like silken parachutes, which they can control to a degree by climbing about on the threads and winding up or streaming out more filaments.
A three-minute audio version of this report can be heard by calling (608) 266 2277.
A new report is put on the line each week.
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NORTHERN REGION
Superior DNR Service Center area
Leaf drop is well along in the Brule River State Forest, with oaks and tamaracks providing the last of the fall color.
Cathy Khalar Photo
Brule River State Forest - Much of the leaves have fallen now, leaving the oak and tamarack to finish the color show with their golden colors.
Cumberland DNR Service Center area
White-tailed deer bucks are becoming much more active and moving around quite a bit in Washburn and Burnett counties.
Park Falls DNR Service Center area
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) - Cool and wet weather seemed to limit the fishing activity in the Northwoods in the last week. Water temperatures have been holding in the mid-40s and musky anglers have continued to provide most of the fishing pressure on our local lakes. Success for musky has been very inconsistent and most anglers have reported slow fishing conditions with active musky being tough to come by. Some anglers are still tossing artificials and their slow action is being echoed by many of the sucker anglers. But there have been a few positive reports with some upper 40-inch fish being sighted in the last few days. There has been a recent surge in crappie action with a couple reports of some decent catches. The crappie have been found along and near the mid-depth cover, such as emergent weed lines and brush in 4 to 8 feet of water. Walleye success continues to be generally slow with only a few reports of catches being made.
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NORTHEAST REGION
Peshtigo DNR Service Center area
Marinette County - Fishing the dam at Peshtigo has been slow with a few chinook being caught, mostly on flies. Walleye and brown trout were being caught on the Menominee River from the dam at Hattie Street down to Stephenson Island. Evenings were the most productive time, with stick baits topping the list of lures.
Oconto County - Rain winds and cold weather kept many anglers home, but with the change in weather the anglers have returned with a vengeance. Water temperatures at the landings are in the mid 40s with good water clarity despite the rain. Shore anglers were having success with perch at both Oconto Breakwater Harbor and Oconto Park II. Lots of small fish but angler who put the time found larger fish. Crawlers and minnows were both working fished with bobbers or crappie rigs. There has been an influx of trout (browns) anglers in the Oconto River fishing the shallow riffles using flies and small to medium sized stick baits. Suzie's Rapids North or South has been a place to start.
Green Bay DNR Service Center area
Brown County – Fox River anglers have been targeting walleyes and musky in the last few weeks. Fishing has been on the slower side for musky, but fishing pressure has been high. Most anglers were trolling for musky. Walleye fishing has been fair over the last week with most anglers jigging for them up by the dam. Walleye fishing has been fair over the last week at Bay Shore Park, with most anglers trolling for them. The wind and the bad weather over the last week has made it tough for most anglers to get out.
Manitowoc County - Anglers in the Two Rivers and Manitowoc area despite conditions that were not favorable for most of the period had a fair week of fishing. Although at times higher water, sediment, and floating debris made area rivers hard to fish, some nice trout and salmon were caught. On the West Twin River, chinook salmon anglers had success fishing near the larger Shoto dam. Friday afternoon was especially good for a handful of anglers fishing in the late afternoon. In the Manitowoc harbor, trout and salmon anglers had some success fishing in the unpleasant weather. Some chinook were still being caught inside the harbor near the Manitowoc River mouth. Sunday afternoon was productive for trout anglers with several Arlee rainbow trout landed. Another angler fishing near the car ferry dock at sundown on Sunday landed a large male spawning brown trout that weighed in at 13 pounds. Farther upstream on the Manitowoc River, chinook salmon anglers were picking up a few fish near Rapids (Highway R) and at Manitou Park but fishing was slow.
Sturgeon Bay DNR Service Center area
Door County - Again this week, cool temperatures and rainy days made for less than ideal weather. A few anglers reported taking some kings trolling spoons and crank baits in the canal. No report of salmon action on Lake Michigan this week. Action off the piers at the Coast Guard Station remained poor. A few chinook salmon can still be seen swimming in most of the northern Door harbors. A few smallmouth bass were being taken in the Ellison Bay and Gills Rock area. Little Sturgeon Bay angles have been trolling for walleye with some success over the last week, but the weather here to has also played a big role in how many boats are getting out. Anglers have also been fishing musky in Little Sturgeon with some success. Most anglers have been casting for them inside of the bay.
Potawatomi State Park – There is still some fall color in the park. The view from the top of the old ski hill has some bright yellow foliage visible to the west. With strong winds in the forecast, colors may vanish overnight. Anglers are catching some perch in Sawyer Harbor this week. Launching piers are scheduled to be pulled from the harbor during the week of November 8. The fish cleaning station, sanitary dump station, shower building, and most campground wells are closed for the season. Potable water is available near the campground shelter.
Kewaunee County - Weather over this last week has been cool, windy, and rainy throughout the week making for some foul fishing weather this past week. Some kings continue to move up the rivers this week, but the numbers have started to drop off. Fish were still being caught in the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers from the mouths all the way up to the fish refuges below the dams. Success this week has been sporadic. Anglers that have been fishing in the harbors have been able to pick up a few browns and rainbows and maybe a coho this week, but upstream it is all kings.
Oshkosh DNR Service Center area
All Winnebago System sturgeon spearing licenses must be purchased by Oct 31. Walleyes and crappies are biting on minnows in the Wolf River. Fall colors are beautiful where the leaves are still hanging on.
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SOUTHEAST REGION
Kettle Moraine State Park - Pike Lake Unit - Fall color is past its peak, but it's still a great time to enjoy a fall hike! All trails are open to hiking and in good condition. The accessible trail pier has been removed for the year. The campground is closed for the season.
Lake Michigan fisheries team report
Sheboygan County - In Sheboygan shore anglers have been catching rainbows, coho, and chinooks on both spawn and crank baits in the marina. In the Sheboygan River anglers have been catching fair numbers of chinooks and a few browns and steelhead between Taylor Avenue and the Kohler dam. Most fish have been taken on flies and spawn.
Ozaukee County - Shore anglers in Port Washington have been catching good numbers of browns, coho, rainbows, and chinooks near the power plant and in the north slip. Both skein and spawn sacs produced fish. Anglers fishing Sauk Creek have taken a few chinooks, browns, and steelhead on spawn near the mouth and steelhead and coho on flies further upstream.
Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee shore anglers have been catching browns on spawn in the lagoon at Lakeshore State Park and in McKinley Marina near the Sailing Center. Anglers fishing near the Milwaukee Yacht Club have been catching good numbers of chinooks. Fishing has been slow in the Menomonee River, but some chinooks and coho have been caught in the Milwaukee River in Estabrook Park. Black flies and spawn have both been productive. In Oak Creek, anglers have been catching a few chinooks and coho on yarn in orange, green, or red.
Racine County - Shore anglers fishing in the Racine launch basin near Pershing Park have been catching a few browns. Fire tiger colored crank baits have produced the most fish. Flows on the Root River came up over the weekend, but water levels are starting to drop back down. The Root is still holding good numbers of chinooks, along with increasing numbers of coho and a few steelhead and browns below the Root River Steelhead Facility. Large black or olive colored flies have been productive throughout the river, and spawn sacs have been effective in the bends in Island Park. Over 600 fish were processed at the Root River Steelhead Facility on Monday, Oct. 26. So far this season, a total of 1,655 chinooks, 584 coho, 31 steelhead, and 26 browns have been passed upstream. Fish were scheduled to be processed Wednesday, Oct. 28 and Monday, Nov. 2.
Kenosha County - In Kenosha a few browns have been taken in the harbor on skein under a slip bobber, but fishing has been slow overall. The Pike River is high, but as water levels drop chinooks and coho should be present in upstream stretches.
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SOUTH CENTRAL REGION
Dodgeville DNR Service Center area
Wyalusing State Park - Trails are in good hiking condition. With the rain and wind of the past week, many of the leaves have fallen. The oak trees, which retain their leaves through much of the winter, are still boasting various shades of brown, copper maroon, and bronze. The tamarack trees at the park entrance now wear their fall coat of pure gold, before losing their needles before the onset of winter. Many of the summer bird residents have left the area for warmer climates. Bluebirds and robins are still in the area. The two birdfeeders near the park office are receiving some attention from year around residents. Bird sightings at the feeder include chickadees, nuthatches and gold finches, blue jays, cardinals and woodpeckers. Wisconsin Ridge Campground remains open through the winter. Homestead Campground will close Nov. 1 until spring. Showers, flush bathrooms, all water faucets and the dumping station are closed for the season. A winterized water faucet is available to the east of the shower/flush building in the Wisconsin Ridge Campground. The dumping station is closed for the season, but campers can continue to dump if they have enough water in their tanks to flush. The concession stand is closed for the season. There should be plenty of sites available for this weekend on a first come, first served basis. Weather forecast as of Oct. 29, for the upcoming weekend includes a good chance of rain on Thursday, 30 percent chance of rain on Friday with gusty winds as high as 33 mph. Friday’s temperature should reach low 50s during the day with a low of 38 degrees on Friday night. Saturday and Sunday should be mostly sunny, with highs in the upper 40s to low 50s.
Fitchburg DNR Service Center area
Dane County - Some of the local pot holes are still holding some roosting puddle ducks although they are coming in well after legal shooting hours. A few divers are coming into the larger lakes and ponds with some canvasbacks among the divers. Large flocks of coots are using Lake Waubesa and Upper Mud Lake. Pheasant hunters are having a very tough time finding birds, even though the larger state properties are still being stocked once or twice a week. Most of the birds are heading straight to standing corn. Corn harvest is way behind as is the soybean harvest due to the abnormally cool and wet month of October. Bluebirds and blackbirds are still migrating through. Good numbers of migrating doves are also around, although no one is hunting them. Deer movement and activity has increased over the past week with more car deer accidents reported at dawn and dusk. Fisheries biologists report good numbers of large bluegills in shallow water along the Lake Waubesa shoreline from nightly electro-fishing surveys. Now would be a good time to fish for them, particularly on overcast days. The lakes turned over several weeks ago.
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WEST CENTRAL REGION
Baldwin DNR Service Center area
St. Croix County
Willow River State Park - White-tailed deer bucks are easier to see these days. Sightings include the average six pointers and one report of a larger buck. The best chance to see deer is during low light periods or on overcast days. There is still some good leaf color around for a while yet. Trails have been soft in grassy areas due to the persistent rain which is in progress Thursday morning. For those willing to be out in the rain, you won’t see many people. Brown trout fingerlings were stocked below the dam and on downstream recently. Nordic ski training sessions continue Tuesdays and Thursdays 5:30 p.m. at the Purple trail head. This is the last week to go without a headlamp. Bring the rain gear.
La Crosse DNR Service Center area
Waterfowl hunting action in the La Crosse Area has been rather spotty lately with some hunters having moderate to good success and others having little to no success. There are substantial numbers of geese and puddle and diver ducks holding in the area, but whether they fly on any given day has been sporadic. Fishers have been having success catching small saugers and walleyes below area dams on the Mississippi River. Archery hunters report observing bucks in rut and many report observing good numbers of both antlerless and antlered deer in the field. Fall leaf colors are generally past their peak in the La Crosse Area, however oak coloration is still impressive on the bluffs along the Mississippi River. Bald eagle numbers have been increasing around La Crosse. Many eagles gather each fall to scavenge dead or dying waterfowl that have succumbed to trematode infestations in their intestines. Significant numbers of tundra swans are arriving in increasing numbers, although the peak will not be until mid-November. There have been several sightings of peregrine falcons hunting the river bottoms recently. Despite the cooler temperature that accompany fall, many spiders are still active. This is the time of year when many young spiders go ballooning, and on almost any warm and calm day they can be seen sailing through the air. To go ballooning, sometimes referred to as mechanical kiting, they climb to the top of a shrub, blade of grass, or fence post, face the wind, extend their eight legs, and elevate their bodies at about a 45 degree angle, so they are raised above their takeoff perch. Then they spin several threads, which catch the air currents and carry the spider aloft. Ballooning spiders are not entirely at the wind's mercy, for they can exert a certain amount of control over their silken parachutes by climbing about on the threads, pulling in and winding up or streaming out more filaments. What an intriguing means of dispersal. Keep an eye open for these animal parachutists.
Crawford County - The Mississippi River rose steadily all week. It rained for almost two straight days last week. Last week, before the rain the river was holding around the 7.6 foot. The river is at 8.3 feet and on the rise as of Oct. 26. The river’s forecast is for an 8.7 foot crest later this week. Water clarity continues to be very good but floating weeds are continuing to come down the river causing some difficulties for anglers and congestion at some boat ramps. The Wisconsin River also rose this week also but not as rapidly as the Kickapoo River. The Kickapoo River crested late last week near the action stage level of 10 feet. The Kickapoo River is dropping rapidly. Water temperatures are starting to drop in area waterways. Bluegill activity was very spotty this week because of the increasing water and floating weeds. Some nice sized gills were being caught in back water sloughs that have little to no flow. Fishing at Cold Spring was spotty this week. There were some days of decent bluegill and crappie action. Perch fishing was slow again this week. Walleye and sauger action was decent, although a lot of little fish were being caught. Anglers using live bait have switched over to minnows. A few days last week the sauger really bit well at the Lynxville dam, below Deer Island (upstream from the Lynxville boat landing), and outside Prairie du Chien on the East Channel. Smallmouth and largemouth bass action was fair. Smallmouth activity on local wing dams and rocky shore lines has been good. Largemouth bass can be found in a variety of habitats to include the “slop”, weed edges, wing dams, and in the timber. Plastics, spinner baits, and crank baits have worked well. Duck hunting has been running hot and cold in the area. Duck hunters in the Wisconsin River bottoms are still finding a bit more water, but fewer ducks. Even so, a few wood ducks and teal are being taken. The Mississippi River’s water level rise at the end of the week allowed hunters access to back water areas. Hunters in the lower bottoms and the Ambro Slough areas around Prairie du Chien were still reporting slow action. A few wood ducks, some teal and mallards are still hanging around along with a few geese. Farther up river in the Lynxville/Ferryville area (Pool 9), duck hunters found a variety of species in the bags, but action varied day to day. Mallards, wood ducks, teal, widgeon, gadwall, and a few pintails were found in bags. Thousands of canvasback and other diver ducks have arrived however they are primarily using the closed area just above the Lynxville dam. Archery deer hunters are reporting very good activity again this week, even though it rained most of the week. Visibility in the woods is much better and the preliminary stages of the rut are in progress. Scrapes are starting to show up more often now. Standing corn might be problem for deer hunters. The corn is still too wet, for the most part, to pick and now the fields are too muddy to access. Archery deer hunters are targeting the field edges, logging roads, and ridge tops as scrape lines are starting to show up. Squirrel hunters are still having pretty good success because more and more leaves are falling. Edges of corn fields have been very productive.
Wildcat Mountain State Park - Recent rains have brought down many of the leaves. Also due to recent rains the horse trails are wet and muddy at this time. The shower building is now closed. Visitors can still get drinking water at the park office.
Wisconsin Rapids DNR Service Center area
Buckhorn State Park - There are still many leaves on the trees, colors of yellow, rust and brown. In the last week staff and hunters have been seeing more buck rubs and scrapes in the park. The park and wildlife areas are open for the early bow deer season and deer can be registered at the park office. Waterfowl, small game hunting and trapping are allowed in the Yellow River and Buckhorn Wildlife Areas only. Fall Turkey is allowed in the Yellow River Wildlife Area and is not allowed in the new park land for fall. Campsites 8,9, 16 and sites in the group camp, A1-A4, A6-A8 and B1-B3 are open to camping and are non-reservable. All other sites are closed for the year. The Buckhorn Youth Deer Hunt is coming up on Nov. 7-8. A timber sale is being done at this time in the Yellow River Wildlife Area along 18th Ave.
Roche-A-Cri State Park - The main gate and campground are closed for the season. Parking is allowed in the winter/prairie parking lot on Czech Ave. and park stickers are required for all vehicles in that lot. There are still nice fall colors to be seen in the park and prairie. Hunting is not allowed in the park. There is a hunter parking lot on Cypress Ave, east of Highway 13 at that hunting area.
Last Revised: Thursday October 29 2009
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