Through-ice spearing of pike and musky opens on December 1 and bass possession ends on December 31. Black Lake's sturgeon spearers go out on the first Saturday in February, the winter Free Fishing Weekend is February 13 and 14, and Lake St. Clair's shanties come off on February 21. Walleye and pike stay open into March inland and all year on the Lower Peninsula's Great Lakes waters.
What to fish for in early November
Michigan's cold months hold two fisheries at once: the ice on the inland lakes and the sheltered Great Lakes bays, and the west-side steelhead rivers, which stay open while the lakes around them freeze. Whitefish and lake trout come up under the ice of the northern bays, the piers give browns and steelhead on the days the big lake lets anyone out, and on Black Lake the sturgeon spearers get a short season in February.
These notes cover the whole winter, the ice included. In early November, Houghton Lake, Lake Gogebic and Lake St. Clair are usually still open water, at 45 to 52F.
Walleye
Gathers in the bays before the ice and feeds under it at first and last light, roaming the flats off the river mouths.
Where. Saginaw Bay off Bay City and the eastern shore, Little Bay de Noc off Escanaba and Gladstone, Lake St. Clair, and Houghton Lake inland.
The walleye waters we forecast Water Usual water now Forecast Saginaw Bay (inner bay) not modeled Best Mon, Nov 9, A+Today's forecast Little Bay de Noc not modeled Best Mon, Nov 9, A+Today's forecast Lake Gogebic about 45F Best Sun, Nov 8, AToday's forecast Yellow Perch
Schools over soft bottom and keeps feeding through the coldest weeks, the big bays' fish moving with the bait from one flat to the next.
Where. Little Bay de Noc, Anchor Bay on Lake St. Clair, Houghton and Higgins lakes, and the Saginaw Bay shallows.
The yellow perch waters we forecast Water Usual water now Forecast Lake St. Clair about 52F Best Fri, Nov 13, A+Today's forecast Steelhead
Holds in the deep, slow runs all winter, moving and feeding more on the milder days and running again on the first late-winter thaw.
Where. The lower reaches of the Manistee, the Pere Marquette, the Muskegon and the Grand, and the Au Sable and the Thunder Bay River below their dams on the Huron side.
The steelhead waters we forecast Water Usual water now Forecast Manistee River below Tippy Dam about 48F Best Sun, Nov 15, A+Today's forecast Au Sable River below Foote Dam about 49F Best Thu, Nov 5, A+Today's forecast Northern Pike
Patrols the weed edges of the inland lakes, where the tip-ups and, from December, the spearing shanties wait for it.
Where. The shallow, weedy bays of Houghton Lake, the inland lakes of the north and the Upper Peninsula, and Lake St. Clair.
The northern pike waters we forecast Water Usual water now Forecast Houghton Lake about 48F Today's forecast Lake Trout
Comes shallow under the ice to chase cisco and smelt, the deep inland lakes holding it all winter and the northern bays in the winters they freeze.
Where. Higgins Lake and the other deep, clear inland lakes, Grand Traverse Bay, and the bays of Lake Superior and northern Lake Michigan.
The lake trout waters we forecast Water Forecast West Grand Traverse Bay Best Sun, Nov 8, B+Today's forecast
Usual water now is that water's normal for this point in the season: a lake's modeled seasonal curve or a river gauge's long-run average, not this year's reading. The forecast link reads this week's.
What changes soon
The next six weeks of this report's calendar for Michigan.
- Tue December 1Michigan's through-ice spearing of northern pike and musky opens, and Lake St. Clair yellow perch may be speared.
Every date for Michigan from November to February (5)
- Tue December 1Michigan's through-ice spearing of northern pike and musky opens, and Lake St. Clair yellow perch may be speared.
- Thu December 31Michigan's bass possession season ends, though catch and release goes on, and musky possession ends on the St. Clair system.
- Sat February 6Black Lake's sturgeon spearing season opens under the standing rule, for registered spearers only, until Monday or until the year's quota is taken, which can happen in the first hour. The DNR posts this year's conditions by January 15.
- Sat February 13Michigan's winter Free Fishing Weekend is Saturday and Sunday, with every license fee waived.
- Sun February 21Shanties off Lake St. Clair before sundown.
This week's fishing reports
This report covers the season. For what was caught this week, read the people who report on this water.
Michigan has the agency report the other two states lack, but it sleeps through the first ten weeks of the quarter: last winter the DNR's weekly report stopped after November 5 and came back on January 14 for a handful of ice waters, Saginaw Bay and Little Bay de Noc among them. The steelhead rivers have shop and guide reports at intervals through the winter, from The Northern Angler, Hawkins Outfitters and Fly Fire Guides. Lake St. Clair's shop keeps its report on a phone line, and Houghton, Higgins and the rest of the Upper Peninsula had no dated written winter reporter that could be found.
Where to fish in Michigan, area by area
Each water links to its live forecast. The engine outlook in these areas was generated November 3, 2026, for the 14 days from that date; good hours are the hours at or above a B+.
Saginaw Bay
Saginaw Bay · Saginaw River · Tittabawassee River
The shallow bay at the base of the Thumb, with its rivers coming in at Bay City: walleye water all year, and an ice fishery off its eastern and southern shores in most winters.
Who reports here. The DNR's weekly report, written from creel clerks and staff, stopped after November 5 last year when the seasonal clerks finished, and came back on January 14 for the ice on Eastern and Lower Saginaw Bay and the Saginaw and Tittabawassee rivers. Nothing was published on the bay between those dates.
Engine outlook
- Best: Mon, Nov 9, A+12 good hours56F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 7h
Little Bay de Noc
Little Bay de Noc · Escanaba · Gladstone · Big Bay de Noc
The narrow arm of northern Green Bay that runs up to Escanaba and Gladstone in the Upper Peninsula, sheltered water with walleye, perch and whitefish under its ice.
Who reports here. The DNR's January reports covered the perch through the ice here on January 14 and 21, one of the few waters its winter report reaches.
Engine outlook
- Best: Mon, Nov 9, A+10 good hours55F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 6h
Lake St. Clair
Lake St. Clair · Anchor Bay · St. Clair River · Detroit River
The shallow, round lake between the St. Clair and Detroit rivers on the Ontario line, a short drive from Detroit, with Anchor Bay in its northern corner and perch, walleye and pike under the ice.
Who reports here. Lakeside Fishing Shop in St. Clair Shores keeps its report on a recorded phone line, (586) 777-7008, rather than in writing, and the lake was not among the waters the DNR's report covered last January. No dated written winter report could be found.
Engine outlook
- Best: Fri, Nov 13, A+9 good hours57F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 9h
The west-side steelhead rivers
Manistee River · Pere Marquette River · Muskegon River · Grand River · Little Manistee River
The big rivers of the western Lower Peninsula that run into Lake Michigan, the Manistee, the Pere Marquette, the Muskegon and the Grand, with steelhead in their lower reaches through the cold months.
Who reports here. The Northern Angler in Traverse City posts a dated report on the nearby rivers, last winter in early December and again from February 19. Hawkins Outfitters wrote a midwinter Manistee report on January 13, and Fly Fire Guides blogged its Muskegon trips about weekly into early January. The DNR's northwest reports cover them from spring to fall.
Engine outlook
- Best: Sun, Nov 15, A+9 good hours54F measured Nov 3 at MANISTEE RIVER NEAR WELLSTON, MIbest run 9h1530 cfsat MANISTEE RIVER NEAR WELLSTON, MIon this water
Houghton and Higgins lakes
Houghton Lake · Higgins Lake · Lake St. Helen
The two big lakes in the middle of the northern Lower Peninsula: Houghton, the largest inland lake in the state and a shallow one, with walleye, pike and panfish, and Higgins, deep and clear, with lake trout and perch.
Who reports here. The DNR's winter report did not cover either lake last January, and a search for shop and newspaper reports on them turned up only lake profiles and old research.
Engine outlook
- Its best day in this outlook has passed.
The Upper Peninsula
Lake Gogebic · Manistique Lakes · Lake Independence · Teal Lake · Munuscong Bay
The inland lakes and Great Lakes bays of the Upper Peninsula, from Lake Gogebic in the west to the St. Marys River bays in the east: long winters, deep snow and lakes fished on foot or by snowmobile.
Who reports here. Beyond Little Bay de Noc, the DNR's winter report did not reach the Upper Peninsula last January, and the Mining Journal in Marquette reprints that same report rather than writing its own; no other dated winter report could be found. The DNR's release on clearing winter access sites there came out on January 9 last winter.
Engine outlook
- Best: Sun, Nov 8, A11 good hours50F modeled from this lake's own seasonal curvebest run 6h
The Lake Michigan piers and harbors
St. Joseph · South Haven · Grand Haven · Muskegon · Ludington
The harbors and piers along the Lake Michigan shore from St. Joseph north through South Haven, Grand Haven, Muskegon and Ludington to Manistee, fished from the piers and from small boats for steelhead, brown trout and whitefish when the weather lets anyone out.
Who reports here. No dated winter report could be found: the DNR's weekly report, which carries the piers from its creel clerks, stopped on November 5 last year and came back for open water in March.
Engine outlook
- Best: Sun, Nov 8, A+12 good hours59F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 7h
Grand Traverse Bay
West Grand Traverse Bay · East Grand Traverse Bay · Torch Lake · Elk Lake
The two arms of Grand Traverse Bay off Traverse City, deep, cold water for lake trout, whitefish and cisco, fished through the ice in the winters the bays freeze, with the big inland lakes of the chain, Torch and Elk, beside them.
Who reports here. The Traverse City Record-Eagle prints a weekly fishing report through the open-water season, and the DNR's weekly report stopped on November 5; no dated report on the bays' ice could be found.
Engine outlook
- Best: Sun, Nov 8, B+12 good hours56F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 12h
The Lake Huron shore
Thunder Bay · Thunder Bay River · Au Sable River · Oscoda · Harrisville
The Lake Huron coast north of Saginaw Bay, Oscoda at the mouth of the Au Sable and Alpena on Thunder Bay, with steelhead in the rivers below the dams through the cold months and lake trout and whitefish off the ports.
Who reports here. Northern Michigan's 9&10 News runs a weekly report on where the fish are biting in spring and fall, and the DNR's weekly report stopped on November 5; nothing dated turned up for the winter itself.
Engine outlook
- Best: Thu, Nov 5, A+10 good hours55F measured Nov 3 at AU SABLE RIVER NEAR AU SABLE, MIbest run 10h1110 cfsat AU SABLE RIVER NEAR AU SABLE, MIon this water
The Detroit River and southeast lakes
Detroit River · Huron River · Kent Lake · Lake Fenton
The Detroit River between Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie, a big, fast walleye river in early spring, and the inland lakes west of the city, Kent Lake and the Huron River chain among them, fished through the ice in a cold winter.
Who reports here. Nothing dated turned up from December to February. A charter's reports from the river start with the spring run, in late March this year.
Lake Erie, the Michigan shore
Lake Erie off Monroe · River Raisin · Bolles Harbor · Sterling State Park
Michigan's short stretch of Lake Erie's western basin off Monroe, shallow water for walleye and yellow perch shared with Ohio and Ontario, iced over in a hard winter.
Who reports here. No dated winter report could be found for this shore, and the DNR's weekly report stopped on November 5.
Engine outlook
- Best: Mon, Nov 9, A+11 good hours60F read by satellite from this water's surfacebest run 7h
The rules from November to February
What changed this time
- Through-ice spearing runs under Fisheries Order 219, in effect since April 1, 2026. The fishing guide's table also leaves the Wisconsin border waters out of spearing, which the order does not, so check with the DNR before spearing those waters.
- New on Lake Independence and Teal Lake in Marquette County: walleye of at least 15 inches, every walleye from 18 to 23 inches goes back, and one may be over 23, under Fisheries Order 206, in effect since April 1, 2026.
Read on October 20, 2026, from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (its Fisheries Orders, its fishing guide, its weekly fishing report, its Black Lake sturgeon, license and ice safety pages and its news releases).
Licenses, and which state's rules apply
- A license runs through March 31, so last spring's license covers the whole ice season. One license covers every species: $26 a year for residents, $76 for nonresidents, $11 for residents 65 and older or legally blind, each plus a $1 surcharge, or $10 for 24 hours. Anglers under 17 fish free.
- The winter Free Fishing Weekend is the Saturday and Sunday of Presidents Day weekend, with every license fee waived for residents and visitors alike.
- A Michigan or a Wisconsin license is good on the waters the two states share, but the rules are those of the side being fished.
Bait, gear and fish you cannot keep
- No more than three lines per person, tip-ups included, and no more than six hooks or lures. Every tip-up must carry the owner's name and address, and every line must be under immediate control.
- Minnows you catch yourself may be used only on the water they came from. Bait goes on a hook and is never dumped into the water; put unused bait in the trash, and drain live wells and the bilge when a boat leaves any water.
Lakes, ponds and rivers
- Walleye and northern pike may be kept until March 15 on Lower Peninsula inland waters and on Upper Peninsula waters, and all year on the Lower Peninsula's Great Lakes, Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair and Detroit rivers. Bass may be kept only until December 31, though catch-and-release is open all year.
- Muskellunge may be kept until March 15 on the Great Lakes and inland waters (until December 31 on Lake St. Clair and its rivers), one per angler per license year, registered within 24 hours.
- Saginaw Bay and the lower Saginaw River allow eight walleye a day of at least 13 inches, all year. On Lake Erie, the Detroit River, Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair River the walleye limit is set each May 1 for the year that follows.
- Type A and Type D trout lakes are closed to fishing after October 31 until the last Saturday in April; Type B, C and E lakes are open all year.
- Lake trout and splake may be kept only from January 1 to September 30 on Lake Michigan from Green Bay south to Arcadia, Grand Traverse Bay included, and on Lake Huron from the Mackinac Bridge south to near Black River; farther south they may be kept all year. Fishing for trout and salmon on the Great Lakes is open all year, so through the quarter's first two months a lake trout in those waters goes back.
Through the ice
- A shanty must carry its owner's name and address, driver's license number or DNR sportcard number on every side, in letters at least 2 inches high on the shanty itself, not on a board attached to it. A tent taken off the ice every day needs none.
- Shanties come off Lake St. Clair before sundown on the first Sunday after February 20, the southern Lower Peninsula by midnight on March 1, the northern Lower Peninsula counties (Bay among them) and the Wisconsin border waters by midnight on March 15, and the Upper Peninsula by midnight on March 31, or sooner if the ice turns unsafe. After those dates a shanty may be used only if it comes off the ice every day.
- Northern pike and muskellunge may be speared through the ice from December 1 to March 15 with a hand-propelled spear only, except on designated trout lakes and streams and a list of closed lakes; musky may not be speared on Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair or the Detroit and St. Clair rivers. Lake St. Clair yellow perch may be speared over the same dates.
- Lake sturgeon may be speared only on Black Lake, and only after registering in advance. The season opens on the first Saturday in February, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. each day, and runs to the following Monday or until the year's quota is taken, which can happen within the first hour. The DNR posts each year's conditions by January 15 and can change them up to 48 hours before the opener.
- The DNR says no ice thickness can be trusted as safe, and that slush on top means half the strength of clear ice; test as you go with a spud, needle bar or auger.
Read on these agency pages: Michigan DNR news, March 2, 2026: 2026 Michigan fishing licenses now available, Michigan DNR: 2026 Michigan Fishing Regulations (PDF), Michigan DNR: Free Fishing Weekend, Michigan Fisheries Order 205: Michigan-Wisconsin Boundary Waters (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 245: Fish Disease Control (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 215: Statewide Warmwater Regulations (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 254: Inland trout lake types (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 253: Great Lakes trout and salmon (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 251: Ice Fishing Shanty Regulations (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 219: Bow, Spear, and Crossbow Fishing Regulations (PDF), Michigan Fisheries Order 240: Lake Sturgeon Fishing Regulations - Statewide (PDF), Michigan DNR news, February 9, 2026: Black Lake sturgeon season results, Michigan DNR: Ice safety.
The season at a glance
What these months usually do
Each lake's own seasonal curve, the one the engine scores the lake on: what these dates usually do, modeled rather than measured, and not a forecast for this year.
| Water | Nov 1 | Dec 1 | Jan 1 | Feb 1 | Feb 28 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houghton Lake | 49F | 40F | 35F | 34F | 34F |
| Lake Gogebic | 46F | 37F | 35F | 34F | 34F |
| Lake St. Clair | 53F | 44F | 36F | 35F | 35F |
Each river's own gauge: its average for these dates across the years it has recorded, measured, and not a forecast for this year.
| Water | Nov 1 | Dec 1 | Jan 1 | Feb 1 | Feb 28 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Au Sable River below Foote DamAU SABLE RIVER NEAR AU SABLE, MI, 1996 to 2026 | 51F | 39F | 34F | 33F | 33F |
| Manistee River below Tippy DamMANISTEE RIVER NEAR WELLSTON, MI, 1997 to 2026 | 49F | 39F | 35F | 34F | 35F |
The moon from November to February
| Month | New moon | Full moon |
|---|---|---|
| November 2026 | Mon, Nov 9 | Tue, Nov 24 |
| December 2026 | Tue, Dec 8 | Wed, Dec 23 |
| January 2027 | Thu, Jan 7 | Fri, Jan 22 |
| February 2027 | Sat, Feb 6 | Sat, Feb 20 |
The U.S. Naval Observatory's dates, on local time.
Daylight in each area from November to February
Worked out for one place in each area, on its own clock.
| Area | Shortest day | Earliest sunset | Latest sunrise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saginaw Bayat Saginaw Bay (inner bay) | 8h 54m, Dec 21 | 4:59pm, around Dec 10 | 8:11am, around Jan 3 |
| Little Bay de Nocat Little Bay de Noc | 8h 40m, Dec 21 | 5:05pm, around Dec 11 | 8:30am, around Jan 1 |
| Lake St. Clairat Lake St. Clair | 9h 3m, Dec 21 | 4:59pm, around Dec 9 | 8:02am, around Jan 3 |
| The west-side steelhead riversat Manistee River below Tippy Dam | 8h 51m, Dec 21 | 5:06pm, around Dec 10 | 8:21am, around Jan 2 |
| Houghton and Higgins lakesat Houghton Lake | 8h 51m, Dec 21 | 5:01pm, around Dec 10 | 8:16am, around Jan 2 |
| The Upper Peninsulaat Lake Gogebic, on Central time | 8h 34m, Dec 21 | 4:13pm, around Dec 11 | 7:43am, around Jan 1 |
| The Lake Michigan piers and harborsat Lake Michigan off Grand Haven | 9h 0m, Dec 21 | 5:12pm, around Dec 9 | 8:18am, around Jan 3 |
| Grand Traverse Bayat West Grand Traverse Bay | 8h 47m, Dec 21 | 5:03pm, around Dec 10 | 8:21am, around Jan 2 |
| The Lake Huron shoreat Au Sable River below Foote Dam | 8h 50m, Dec 21 | 4:56pm, around Dec 10 | 8:11am, around Jan 2 |
| The Detroit River and southeast lakesat Wyandotte, on the Detroit River | 9h 5m, Dec 21 | 5:02pm, around Dec 9 | 8:03am, around Jan 3 |
| Lake Erie, the Michigan shoreat Lake Erie off Monroe | 9h 7m, Dec 21 | 5:03pm, around Dec 9 | 8:02am, around Jan 3 |