20 Pound Chinook Salmon in Deep Water in Saugatuck

June 8 Fishing Report

This past week produced some very good fishing; however we had to go to deep water to get creel numbers of 10 to 15 fish. 170 to 220 foot of water produced Chinook salmon pushing 20 pounds, steelhead ranging from 5 to 12 pounds and an occasional Coho salmon. For example, on Saturday morning, we boxed 12 fish, including an 18 pound, a 14 pound, and a 12 pound Chinook salmon. The water has warmed into the low 60 degrees but is still very cold just below the surface (41 degrees 15 foot deep). As a result the fish are scattered from 10 foot down to the 50 foot down.

Once again we are using 2 and 3 color lead core, 30 foot, 75 foot, 150 foot and 200 foot of copper line with regular size stinger lures in both the silver and gold blanks. Green and orange crush, orange crush, smash mouth and NBK colors worked the best on these long lines. Down riggers were run at 25, 35 and 55 foot down with the same stinger combinations we used on the long lines. Slide divers with orange crush and Craig’s Christmas Stingray lures worked well with 125 foot of line out.

The bait still has not set up in the 80 to 100 foot depth as we would expect this time of the year, however we did mark some very good schools of suspended bait out in 220 to 240 foot of water.

The report on the perch fishing is not very good with boats fishing from 15 foot out to 80 foot of water with very little success. Fishermen on the piers and in boats drifting down the channel are taking some very nice smallmouth bass and an occasional walleye.

For more information or to book a fishing charter contact me at captron@chartermichigan.com.