Northern Wisconsin received some much needed rain in the last week, with some areas reporting nearly 3 inches. The rain has raised water levels on many smaller lakes that have been experiencing some record low water levels due to a prolonged drought, but water levels remain low on many of the major flowages in the north.
Much of northern Wisconsin is now reporting peak or very near peak fall colors on the Department of Tourism Fall Color Report (exit DNR). Central Wisconsin is about a week away from peak colors, and most of southern Wisconsin is now two to three weeks from peak, though some counties are already reporting peak colors this week.
The eighth annual Youth Gun Deer Hunt will take place this weekend on Oct. 10-11 and is aimed at giving youths more deer-hunting opportunity. Starting this year, Wisconsin’s new Mentored Hunting Law allows hunters as young as 10 years of age with or without hunter education certification, to participate in the youth gun deer hunt with a mentor. The hunt will be held in all deer management units statewide, except State Park units. And a reminder, during this period all hunters, except waterfowl hunters but including archery deer hunters, are required to wear blaze orange clothing, and recreational safety specialists recommend all people out in the woods and field this weekend wear blaze orange or other brightly colored clothing.
The cold and wet weather, combined with fall turnover, seems to have disrupted much of the fish activity on northern Wisconsin waters in the past week. Water temperatures have dropped into the mid to low-50s and the most consistent fishing has been for musky. Live suckers have become real productive in the last week, though large crank baits and stick baits have gotten some good action on the warmer days. Walleye fishing has shown some improvement but action has still been fairly erratic. Bass have been most affected by the drop in water temperatures, with largemouth very hard to find as both largemouth and smallmouth have retreated to deeper water.
The weather made for some miserable fishing conditions along Lake Michigan this week, with high winds, colder temperatures and rain keeping many trollers off the lake. The rain did trigger salmon runs on tributaries, and chinook were being reported on most of the northern tributaries. Southern Wisconsin did not receive as much rain, and southern tributaries remain low, but some fish were reported moving up the Root River, and the Root River Steelhead Facility will be up and running Oct. 13, with an open house on Saturday, Oct. 17. The Strawberry Creek egg collection facility in Door County has also operating and collected eggs from about 560 chinook this past Monday.
The Mississippi River began a steady climb late last week after the rain and was at 7.5 feet at Prairie du Chien as of Oct. 6. Floating weeds are starting to come down the river causing difficulties for anglers and at some boat ramps, and the rising water seemed to have slowed walleye and sauger fishing.
The rising water levels did help duck hunters navigate around marshes and rivers for the opening weekend of the southern duck zone season. Hunters reported seeing good numbers of ducks, with mostly wood ducks, teal and mallards in the bag. Canada goose hunters are having good success hunting picked cornfields. Archery deer hunting pressure is picking up now that cooler weather has set in. A few deer scrapes are beginning to appear.
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
Bois Brule River in fall.
Catherine Khalar Photo
Brule River State Forest - The color show is on in the northland with most of the area near or at peak color. Red, yellow, gold, rust, and orange colors are decorating the outdoors leaving a breathtaking view wherever you look. What a great time for hiking, fishing, hunting, canoeing, ATV riding, horseback riding, or just taking a drive to enjoy the most colorful time of the year. Keep in mind that the youth gun deer hunt will be going on this weekend (Oct. 10 and 11). The hunt is designed to give youth hunters ages 10-15 an opportunity to hunt deer and gain valuable hunting experience at a time when other hunters are not authorized to hunt deer with a firearm. Starting in 2009, hunters 10-15 years of age, with or without hunter education certification, are eligible to participate in the youth gun deer hunt with a mentor (see
http://dnr.wi.gov/org/land/wildlife/hunt/deer/youthhunt.htm for details). The 13th annual Hunters Expo at the Mission Covenant Church in Poplar will be held Oct. 24 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. There will be numerous wildlife mounts, hunting booths, great wild food, and of course...lots of hunting stories! For more information see
http://www.missioncovenantchurch.org/?110390Park Falls DNR Service Center area
Upper Chippewa Basin fisheries report (Price, Rusk, Sawyer Taylor and inland Ashland and Iron counties) - The cold and wet weather, combined with fall turnover, seems to have disrupted much of the fish activity on northern Wisconsin waters in the past week. Water temperatures have dropped into the mid to low-50s and the most consistent fishing has been for musky. Live suckers have become real productive in the last week, though large crank baits and stick baits have gotten some good action on the warmer days. Walleye fishing has shown some improvement but action has still been fairly erratic. The cooler water temperatures have more fish moving up into the shallows and in/around the dying weed beds. A jig and minnow or a minnow on a slip bobber fished on the deep edges have been the most successful. Most of the walleye have been in the 11- to 15-inch size and the best action has been in the hour before dark. Largemouth and smallmouth bass have been most affected by the drop in water temperatures. On many lakes, the largemouth bass have deserted the shallows and were very hard to find. A few stragglers were found near the mid-depth cover and around any 'green' weed beds that were available. Soft plastics and slow presentations were the key to entice these late season bites. Smallmouth bass have also retreated to deeper water with the colder water temps and were even harder to entice than the largemouth. Seems that only the diehard bass anglers can find and catch the smallies at this time of year. Panfish action has been fair to good, with some nice crappie still being found in shallow water near cover and any weed edges.
Woodruff DNR Service Center area
Area Conservation Wardens and guides report that musky fishing is picking up and walleye fishing stays steady. Musky anglers are employing the use of sucker rigs and reporting increased success. Anglers are reminded that dragging a sucker behind the boat while utilizing a any type of motor to propel the boat is a violation of the trolling restrictions and enforcement action will be taken. A few largemouth bass have been caught, although they will become less active as the lakes continue to cool. Smallmouth bass have moved into deeper waters – about 15-20 feet. Perch activity is reported as sporadic but they are being caught on weed edges or in flowages with submerged wood in about 6-12 feet of water. Bluegills are hanging about the weed edges and have been somewhat aggressive. Crappies are beginning to school in shallow weeds. Archery hunters are reporting that deer appear to have moved or are moving into their more normal fall patterns with some nice deer being taken. The opening weekend of duck season provided less than desirable conditions with little duck movement in the area. However the weather changes have brought in some new ducks with some positive reports now trickling in. Grouse hunters are reporting lower that normal numbers of birds but are beginning to find them on the higher ground as opposed to the lower edges at the beginning of the season. Woodcock are now reported to be migrating through the area. Fall colors are peaking in the area.
Northern Highlands American Legion State Forest - Fall has definitely arrived. Campers are enjoying the cool fall nights dropping into the 30s. Colors in the forest are just about at their peak and should be seen within the next couple weeks. There’s no better time to get out your bicycles and hiking shoes and enjoy the great outdoors...fewer people, no mosquitoes! Lots of sportspeople have been enjoying the forest. Muskie anglers have been out in force. Bow hunters have been reporting some nice bucks. The youth gun deer hunt is this weekend Oct. 10 -11. Crystal, Muskie, Firefly, Indian Mounds, Carroll, West Star and North Trout campgrounds are open until the ground is snow covered. Clear Lake Campground will be open all winter. From the Clear Lake Campground winter campers can ice fish on Clear Lake and cross-country ski on the beautiful raven ski trails. The campground shower facilities will be closing Oct. 13, along with the potable and rinse water at the dump stations. Campers will still be able to dump until snow prevents it. The Crystal Lake and Clear Lake Ranger Stations are open year-round. The Crystal Lake Nature Center is now closed for the season.
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NORTHEAST REGION
Green Bay DNR Service Center area
Manitowoc County - Despite less than favorable weather conditions, anglers had a fair week of fishing in the Manitowoc and Two Rivers area during the last week. Anglers fishing the lower Manitowoc River were able to land some nice chinook and coho salmon this week. Most anglers who were successful reported using spawn sacs fished 6 to 10 feet down. On Saturday, one angler fishing the north pier stub landed two small rainbow trout. Farther upstream on the Manitowoc River, fishing was a little slow with plenty of chinook salmon visible but very few successful catches. Anglers that had the most success were fly-fishing or drifting spawn sacs. On the East Twin River, anglers were concentrated around the Mishicot dam and Village Park area or at downstream road crossing such as Maplewood, Hillcrest or Stern Lane. Catches were dominated by chinook salmon ranging in weight from 14 to 18 pounds. Many anglers fished the West Twin River this week with most anglers near the dams in Shoto or just downstream at the public launch. Success at the dam was mixed with a number of anglers landing some large chinook salmon by fly-fishing, using spawn sacs or casting spinners. In the Two Rivers harbor, only a few salmon anglers were casting spoons near the Coast Guard station with very limited success. One angler fishing a little deeper inside the harbor mid-week landed a nice 13 pound brown trout casting a blue and white spoon.
Sturgeon Bay DNR Service Center area
Door County - The weather this week was a lot less than beautiful, cool and rainy days with strong winds made for miserable weather most days, especially for anglers wanting to go out on the big lake. The salmon action on Lake Michigan was just about non existent due to the weather. Action off the piers at the Coast Guard Station was slow due to waves. Anglers fishing from the shore along the canal reported limited success. A few anglers trolling in the canal reported some success with spoons and crank baits. Further north conditions were about the same due to the weather. Fishing for all the other species was about the same, with virtually no one being out on the water. Although this week was not the best, the weather is going to get better, and when it does we will begin to enjoy great fall fishing in beautiful Door County. Prior to the rain, perch fishing had been fair last week at Sturgeon Bay with some limit-catches reported. Most anglers were targeting them in Sawyer Harbor. Also many anglers were targeting pike with limited success. Perch fishing slowed a bit at Chaudoir’s Dock, but anglers still found decent numbers of fish in weeds in 20 feet of water. Perch anglers were finding success in the shallow weeds at Little Sturgeon Bay. Walleye fishing continued to be hit or miss on Larson’s reef. Anglers out of Bayshore Park were having luck finding walleye on crawler harnesses to the south of the park. There had been some musky anglers out over the last week but few fish were raised.
Strawberry Creek Egg Collection Facility - Crews harvested chinook salmon from the pond the morning of Oct. 5. The chinook run was a little lighter than anticipated and crews only harvested about 560 chinook from the pond on Monday morning. Fertilized eggs from this harvest were sent to Kettle Moraine Springs Fish Hatchery. Salmon carcasses were processed for human food by Door County Fish Farm and Game and fish not for human consumption were sent to a raptor rehabilitation facility near Antigo. A large group of students from Southern Door Grade School joined us at the pond for the harvest on Monday morning. The next two harvest days at Strawberry Creek will be Thursday, Oct. 8 and Monday, Oct. 12 As always, visitors are always welcome.
Kewaunee County - Weather this past week was fairly wild as rain and winds throughout the week made fishing difficult out on the lake. Winds were strong out of the south and the east for most of the week. The rains this week have helped to increase flow on the rivers and as such lots of salmon are up the Ahnapee and Kewaunee rivers. Anglers have been reporting some success casting spoons for trout and salmon off of the piers in Algoma and Kewaunee. Most of the fish are being caught at sunrise and sunset, but some are being taken during the day. Anglers that have been going out on the lake had limited success this week. Water temperatures are down into the 50s this week after all of the wind and rain. Most of the fish that are being caught are being found in water depths between 100 and 125 feet with most anglers fishing over water that is in the 125 to 200 feet range. Anglers were reporting that there is no set pattern right now as all of the fish have scattered out. Anglers have also been fishing in the near shore areas around the mouth of the harbors and in the harbors and have also been finding a few fish.
Oshkosh DNR Service Center area
Wind, cold and rain have made for rough fishing on Lake Winnebago this week. Fall colors are near or at peak this week around the big lake. The deadline to purchase a Winnebago System sturgeon spearing license is Oct. 31. Additional turkey permits for zone 3 are still available for purchase. October 10 and 11 the youth gun deer hunt will be occurring. Archery hunters should be advised to wear blaze orange while hunting this weekend.
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SOUTHEAST REGION
Kohler-Andrae State Park - Nature trails and hiking trails are open. Asters and goldenrod are blooming. Chipping sparrows and white-crowned sparrows have been visiting the bird feeders. All campsites are still open for the season. Showers, flush toilets, water fountains, and the trailer dump station will close Oct. 19. The Wisconsin Great Lakes Beach testing (
http://www.wibeaches.us) has concluded for the year. Sanderling Nature Center is open 12:30-4:30pm daily through Oct. 31.
Kettle Moraine State Park - Pike Lake Unit - Fall color is near peak. Now is a great time for a fall hike. All trails are open to hiking and in good condition. The campground is still open for the season and all campground facilities are up and running. Oct. 17 is the last night of camping for 2009. Swim area buoys have been removed for the year.
Lake Michigan fisheries team report
Sheboygan County - In Sheboygan shore anglers have been catching a few chinooks off the piers and in the marina. Water levels have come up somewhat on the Sheboygan and Pigeon rivers, but levels are still low overall. In the Sheboygan anglers have been catching chinooks, along with a few coho, browns, and steelhead. Fish have been taken from Kiwanis Park to the Kohler dam, with flies, spawn, and spoons all producing fish.
Ozaukee County - Shore anglers in Port Washington have been catching chinooks, and steelhead near the power plant, and chinooks and coho have been taken off the pier. In the north slip anglers have been catching a mixed bag of chinooks, coho, and steelhead. Spawn, skein, and spoons have all taken fish. Fishing on Sauk Creek has been slow, and water levels are low.
Milwaukee County - In Milwaukee trollers fishing in the harbor and around the gaps have been catching a few chinooks and browns. Shore anglers have been catching a few browns off McKinley pier, but fishing has been generally slow. The Menomonee River and Oak Creek have not had much fish movement, but some chinooks and steelhead have been caught in the Milwaukee in Kletzsch and Estabrook Parks.
Racine County - Shore anglers fishing off the Racine piers and shoreline have been catching a few mature chinooks on spawn and crankbaits. On the Root River good numbers of chinooks, along with a few steelhead and coho, can be found below the Root River Steelhead Facility. Small flies have been effective, and black has been the best color. In Colonial and Quarry Lake Parks, fish have been scattered and difficult to locate, but there is a concentration of chinooks below the Horlick dam. The Root River Steelhead Facility will be running after Tuesday, Oct. 13. Join us at the Facility on Saturday, Oct. 17, for an Open House from 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. DNR crews will be giving tours of the facility and spawning demonstrations, and volunteers from local fishing clubs will be teaching kid’s casting, knot tying, fly casting, fly tying and more.
Kenosha County - In Kenosha a few chinooks and browns have been taken in the harbor on skein under a slip bobber. Water levels remain relatively low on the Pike, and fishing has been slow.
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SOUTH CENTRAL REGION
Fitchburg DNR Service Center area
Jefferson County - Anglers are having fair success catching walleye and smallmouth bass below the dams in Watertown using jigs with minnows. Most of the fish are undersized though. Some 8 inch bluegill have been biting on Mud Lake south of Lake Mills on waxworms or small jigs with pieces of worm. Rising water levels due to the recent rains have helped duck hunters navigate around the marshes and rivers. Most wetlands now contain some water. Opening weekend of duck season saw limited number of birds being harvested. Hunters reported seeing good numbers however they weren’t able to get them into range. Most of the birds being harvested were wood ducks, teal and mallards. Canada goose hunters are having good success hunting picked cornfields. Numerous goose hunters reported getting limits on the opening weekend of the duck season. Archery deer hunting pressure is picking up now that cooler weather has set in. A few deer scrapes are beginning to appear.
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WEST CENTRAL REGION
Baldwin DNR Service Center area
St. Croix County
Willow River State Park - Fall color is a variable 30 percent. Color is generally best around the third weekend of October. Eastern bluebirds are still around. Parts of Willow River and all of Kinnickinnic State Park are open to gun hunting. The 2009 deer hunting handout is ready. Zone 60M is no longer Earn A Buck. The state park does not participate in any of the extended gun hunting seasons; only the nine day season from Nov. 21-29. Opening day sees the most activity and it drops off from there. Hunters are least active at mid day. Most regular visitors wear bright clothing and go about their activities. If having gun hunters active nearby in the park is a concern, plan something else for the gun hunting season; its only nine days. Troy Township has Glover Park. Homestead Parklands on Perch Lake is close by. There are several city parks and trails in Hudson, some with great views of the St. Croix valley. All flush toilets, showers, and the dump station water is turned off for the season. Pit toilets are open at the boat launch, near the beach, at the group camp, and in the family campground by site #63. Campers may load water at the Service building and unload into the dump station. All electric campsites in the main campground are reserved for the weekend as of Tuesday. There are some open on the parking lot by the beach. The 8th annual Trail Run Along the Willow steps off at 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 10 with registration starting at 8 a.m. Both the 5K and 10K are in hilly, challenging terrain. The 10 K group goes past Willow Falls where there will be a water station. This is a relatively low key but fun event. Proceeds support the Willow River OWLs, the park’s Friends group. The event will go, rain and snow or shine.
La Crosse DNR Service Center area
Tree leaves are really starting to fall, improving visibility in the woods. Hunters should keep in mind, however, improved visibility works both ways. Hunters have an easier time seeing game, but game animals have an easier time spotting hunters. Whether out turkey hunting, squirrel hunting, or bow deer hunting, proper camouflage techniques, patience, and stillness can help hunters to remain unseen by their quarry. Red-breasted nuthatches, golden-crowned kinglets, white-throated sparrows, swamp sparrows, song sparrows, and fox sparrows are some of the migratory songbirds currently passing through the local area. Double crested cormorants are still present in large numbers along the Mississippi River. White pelican and coot numbers are still increasing. The first sizable numbers of gadwalls have also arrived.
Crawford County - The Mississippi River began a steady climb late last week. The rise in water level is due to the rain that started falling late last week throughout the Upper Mississippi River’s watershed. A week or so ago the river stage was under the 7 foot mark. As of Oct. 6, the river stage was at 7.5 feet and is expected to climb even farther. Water clarity continues to be good. Floating weeds are starting to come down the river causing difficulties for anglers and at some boat ramps. Boaters are advised to use caution at some boat ramps. The Wisconsin and Kickapoo Rivers have risen only slightly. Each has good water clarity. The sand bars on the Wisconsin River are in great shape for camping. Cool and wet days have been the norm for the past couple days. Bluegill fishing was really good early last week, but once the rain and cool weather settled in action slowed. Some nice sized bluegills were being caught on wing dams, however increased flow and floating weeds are making fishing difficult. Downed timber or snags in back water sloughs are still giving up some bluegills. The most popular bait has been a small jig tipped with a wax worm. Fishing at Cold Spring slowed down by the end of the week. Early last week some nice catches of bluegill and a few crappie were taken. Perch fishing was slow again this week. Anglers were having to search around for active fish. Walleye and sauger action slowed a bit too. Generally the early morning hours and later in the day has been the best for walleye action. Trolling and casting crank baits or drifting with live bait is the primary method of taking walleyes. Night crawler harnesses have worked very well, but many anglers was switching over to minnows. Jump around on wing dams to find active walleyes. Smallmouth and largemouth bass action remained good. 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. Catfish, white bass and northern pike actions has been spotty. Some white bass have been taken at the Lynxville dam. The southern zone waterfowl season opened last weekend. Opening day saw some very good action. Duck hunters in the Wisconsin River bottoms reported very good wood duck action. There were also some mallard and teal taken. However, on Sunday action dropped off possibly due to the heavy hunting pressure. On the Mississippi River action was also very good opening day, but like the Wisconsin River, success dropped off on Sunday. Hunters in the lower bottoms and the Ambro Slough areas around Prairie du Chien reported good numbers of wood ducks and teal along with fair numbers of mallards. Further up river in the Lynxville/Ferryville area (Pool 9) duck hunters found a variety of species in the bags. Mallards, wood ducks, teal, widgeon, and gadwall were the primary species found up there. Canada goose hunting was pretty good also up in Pool 9. Archery deer hunters are reporting fairly good activity. As more and more leaves begin to fall and some corn being picked, sighting are up. Deer hunters aren’t finding many scrapes yet, but there has been some rubbing activity. With the wet, cool and breezy conditions some tree species are loosing their leaves. Squirrel hunters are finding ample quarry. Now that some of the leaves are falling it is easier to spot squirrels. Black walnut, sumac, and elm are all changing color and dropping their leaves. Fall colors are starting to show. Some bird species have started to flock up already. Large flocks of starlings and red-winged blackbirds are starting to show up. Its the time to start watching for raptor migration along the bluffs of the Mississippi River. The number of deer flies and wasps have declined because of the cooler temperatures. Mosquitoes, although fewer in numbers, are still active in the river bottoms. Stinging nettle and poison ivy still pose a problem.
Eau Claire DNR Service Center area
Brunet Island State Park - Fall colors appear to be about 50 percent in the. The maples are turning, the oaks are still mostly green, and the ashes are already dropping their leaves. Hikers have many great opportunities within the park. Whether it’s using the island’s trail system, exploring the wilder areas of the park, or a brisk walk on the park road, you’re sure to enjoy these beautiful woodlands. Species of birds seen or heard include: great blue herons, ravens, rose-breasted grosbeaks, a variety of wrens, phoebes, turkey vultures, northern juncos, pileated woodpeckers, great horned and barred owls, osprey, bald eagles, Canada geese and belted kingfishers. The hummingbird migration appears to be over in this area. The north campground is open with pit toilets and drinking water available. The south campground is open with electric sites, hand water pump, and a campground shower facility. The park dump station is open. We expect the annual shut down of the showers and dump station to occur in mid October.
Wisconsin Rapids DNR Service Center area
Buckhorn State 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. New maps are available at the park office that show the parkland that was acquired last fall which is now state park land and has the hunting rules on them . An accessible deer hunting blind and two accessible waterfowl blinds can be reserved by persons with disabilities. If not reserved, they are 1st come, 1st served. The accessible fishing pier is located by the north shelter. Canoes and kayaks are available for renting at the park and many visitors have been enjoying them. GPS units are available to check out as well as a binder of geocaches at Buckhorn and Roche-A-Cri. Sites 8,9, 16 and sites in the group camp, A1-A4, A6-A8 and B1-B3 are reservable through Oct 12th. All other sites are closed for the year. The statewide youth hunt is this weekend, Oct 10th and 11th. Bowhunters in the park MUST wear blaze orange on these two days. Youth participating in the youth hunt can only gun hunt in the Yellow River Wildlife area. The park is for bow hunting ONLY.
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. Hunting is not allowed in the park. There is a hunter parking lot on Cypress Ave, east of Highway 13 at that hunting area. The pumpkin walk is Saturday, Oct. 17 from 3-9 p.m.
Last Revised: Thursday October 08 2009
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