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SFM Ice Fishing Report 03.02.2020

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The first week of March provides ample opportunities to get after fish on the hard water if cold temperatures are maintained. This first week of March we will be experiencing a warming trend throughout Northern Michigan. While the good ice has been sustained due to the previous week of cold temperatures, we are expecting to see some slush forming due to the tease of spring predicted to hit us this weekend.

We expect to see the edges of lakes losing some integrity as those are the first areas to become unstable during the warming trend. In addition, the frozen slush layer on many lakes will simultaneously become soft and unstable along with the shoreline ice. While the large majority of the lakes listed below are showing safe and very fishable measures of ice; we encourage everyone to utilize this information as they head out onto the hard water. When looking to utilize vehicles such as side-by-side, quads, and or snowmobiles, be sure to check ice conditions before venturing out on your next adventure.

Long Lake in Benzie
With its shallow depths and protected shoreline, Long Lake has managed to form 9-10” of good ice. Anglers are catching northern pike and smaller perch with the occasional bluegill mixed in.

Upper Herring Lake
Upper Herring is reported to have fishable ice off the state access, roughly 7-8”. The remainder of the lake has coverage, but we advise all anglers proceed with caution due to the still-forming inconsistent ice in other portions of the lake.

Platte Lake
Platte Lake conditions have 6-7” of ice and good fishing being reported for perch and pike. We recommend not attempting to use machines for transportation.

Green Lake
Green Lake in Interlochen is fishable, but we recommend extreme caution. With ice thickness varying from 4-5” in many locations. Anglers have been fishing off the academy with some good consistency in action.

Long Lake in Interlochen
Long Lake had fishable ice off the Crescent Shores Rd DNR Launch Site. The ice in this area was reported to be 7-9” Anglers have been fishing 6-9” of ice in Settlers Cove in the south corner. The northern end of the lake is currently holding 8” of ice. Anglers are encouraged to only travel on foot and recommended to not use any type of ATV to travel to and from fishing destinations. Walleye fishing has been good for most anglers in mid-depth ranges and some fishing being found shallower.

Skegmog
Skegmog has formed 8-10” of ice allowing anglers to access the perch grounds located off the DNR Launch Site. These anglers have been finding good size and quantity. It is still recommended that anglers use extreme caution when fishing any areas other than the southern shoreline.

Bear Lake in Manistee County
Bear Lake has formed 8-10” of ice. Anglers have been fishing off of all public access sites and catching panfish and perch with some regularity.

Portage Lake in Manistee County
Portage Lake has formed safe fishable ice off the main public downtown access site. Anglers have found 5-6” of ice with even better ice East of the lunch ramp. Anglers venturing any further west than the Onekama Village Park are encouraged to do so with caution. We encourage only foot traffic and no machines on the ice yet.

Lake Mitchell
Lake Mitchell has formed 9-11” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing Little and Big Coves as well as the DNR Launch Ramp to access the lake. The ice near the creek outlet is not stable and should be avoided.

Lake Cadillac
Lake Cadillac has 7-8” of ice. The shoreline ice is more stable than past weeks, but it is recommended to use caution when initially entering onto the ice due to some of the shoreline ice breaking apart in the coming week.

SFM Ice Fishing Report 02.23.2020

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It is hard to believe we are already nearing the end of February. With the consistently changing temperatures and snow accumulations this past month we have had a challenging job of trying to keep up with the changing lake conditions in the greater Traverse City Area. Most of the lakes in this report will be facing the inevitable challenge of slush and water weight over the course of the next few weeks. We ask that all anglers use this report as a simple reference and not a guarantee as to what the ice conditions truly are. The best report any angler can get on ice conditions is to truly check it themselves as frequently as possible in order ensure accuracy and safety. We wish everyone a safe and successful end to February!

Long Lake in Benzie
Long Lake currently has 9-11” of good ice. Anglers are catching northern pike and smaller perch with the occasional blue gill mixed in. The lake is currently holding 4-6” of slush and snow mix on its surface making it very challenging for anglers to walk and travel on at this time.

Upper Herring Lake
Upper Herring is reported to have fishable ice off the state access, roughly 8-9” of ice. The slush is starting to take is toll on this specific body of water making travel a bit of challenge. Anglers have reported catches of walleye on the northern shoreline drop off areas in depth ranges from 15-20ft.

Platte Lake
The east end of the lake has continued to remain in the 8-10” range of thickness. The western end of the lake is reported to remain around an average of 6-7”. The walleye fishing has been slower in most areas of the lake. Smaller perch and the occasional northern pike are being captured on the eastern end of the lake.

Green Lake
Green Lake in Interlochen is fishable but we recommend extreme caution. With Ice thickness varying from 7-10” in many locations. Anglers have been using machines on the entire lake as of last week. The snow accumulations and slush have been getting increasingly worse with the warming temperatures. The smelt fishing off Betsie River Road and the DNR state launch near the music camp has been best between 7 and 8 pm in 40-55ft of water.

Long Lake in Interlochen
Long Lake had fishable ice off the Crescent Shores Rd DNR Launch Site. The ice in this area was reported to be 8-9”. Anglers have been fishing 9” of ice in Settlers Cove in the south corner. The northern end of the lake is currently holding 8-9” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing snow machines, four-wheelers and side-by-sides throughout the lake as of last week. The snow accumulations and warmer temperatures have created some challenging slush conditions. With the ice quality on this specific body of water mostly being comprised of white ice. We warn that with the warmer temperatures this ice strength will weaken very quickly. Please use extreme caution in the weeks to come when fishing Long Lake.

North and South Lake Leelanau
The south lake currently has an average of 8-9” of ice throughout. The slush conditions on the south lake are starting to create challenging travel conditions for most anglers traveling on foot and ATV. The north lake is currently holding an average of 8-9” of ice and anglers are reporting a good walking surface with limited snow and slush.

Big Glen Lake
Big Glen is currently holding 5-6” of good ice. Anglers are reporting good catches of lake trout and perch on most of the lake. The snow and slush conditions are reported to be fair for both foot and ATV travel.

Skegmog
Skegmog has formed 8-9” of ice allowing anglers to access the perch grounds located off of the DNR Launch Site only. These anglers have been finding good size and quantity. It is still recommended that anglers use extreme caution when fishing any areas other than the southern shoreline. The lake surface remains in great shape as it has been very wind swept through the most recent snowfall. Slush conditions are reasonable to work with at this time.

Bear Lake in Manistee County
Bear Lake has formed 11-12” of ice. Anglers have been fishing off of all public acres sites and can catching panfish and perch with some regularity.

Portage Lake in Manistee County
Portage Lake has formed safe fishable ice off the main public downtown access site. Anglers have found 7-10” of ice with even better ice East of the lunch ramp. Anglers venturing any further west than the Onekama Village Park Access are encouraged you do so with caution. Anglers are running machines on most of the lake. Anglers are not running any machines west of Portage Point. It’s is recommended that everyone fish east of the point.

Lake Mitchell
Lake Mitchell has formed 12-14” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing Little and Big Coves as well as the DNR Launch Ramp to access the lake. The ice near the creek outlet is not stable and should be avoided with warming temperatures this coming week. Slush is building in most areas.

Lake Cadillac
Lake Cadillac has anywhere from 11-13” of ice. Most areas with access points are still in good shape even with this weekend’s warmer temperatures. As the forecast continues to bring warmer daytime temps, we predict heavy slush on this body of water both on the shoreline and on the lake itself.

SFM Ice Fishing Report 02.15.2020

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The conditions in the middle of February will be very similar to earlier in the month. Here at Sport Fish Michigan we continue to see larger inland lakes sustaining the ice they have due to the colder nights we have been having. This next week will be bringing some warmer temperatures during the day. The recent snow accumulations on some of the lakes in the area are ranging 2-6” of fresh snow. We do not see this causing any issues but as always, we encourage caution when on the ice. We can only give reports on day to day conditions, and we ask that anglers only use this report as a reference. While the large majority of these lakes listed below are showing safe and very fishable measures of ice, we encourage everyone to utilize this information as they head out onto the hard water. When looking to utilizing vehicles such as side-by-sides, quads, and or snowmobiles be sure to check ice conditions before venturing out on your next adventure.

Long Lake in Benzie
With its shallow depths and protected shoreline, Long Lake has managed to form 8-9” of good ice. Anglers are catching northern pike and smaller perch with the occasional blue gill mixed in.

Upper Herring Lake
Upper Herring is reported to have fishable ice off of the state access, roughly 6-7”. The remainder of the lake has coverage, but we advise all anglers proceed with caution due to the still forming inconsistent ice in other portions of the lake.

Platte Lake
Lake conditions have 5-6” of ice and good fishing being reported for perch and pike. We recommend not attempting to use machines for transportation.

Green Lake
Green Lake in Interlochen is fishable, but we recommend extreme caution. With Ice thickness varying from 2-4” in many locations. Some anglers have been fishing off of the academy. We do not encourage activities on Green Lake.

Long Lake in Interlochen
Long Lake had fishable ice off the Crescent Shores Rd DNR Launch Site. The ice in this area was reported to be 6-7” Anglers have been fishing 6-8” of ice in Settlers Cove in the south corner. The northern end of the lake is currently holding 7” of ice. Anglers are encouraged to only travel on foot and recommended to not use any type of ATV to travel to and from fishing destinations. Walleye fishing has been good for most anglers in mid depth ranges.

Skegmog
Skegmog has formed 6-7” of ice allowing anglers to access the perch grounds located off of the DNR Launch Site only. These anglers have been finding good size and quantity. It is still recommended that anglers use extreme caution when fishing any areas other than the southern shoreline.

Bear Lake in Manistee County
Bear Lake has formed 6-7” of ice. Anglers have been fishing off of all public access sites and can catching panfish and perch with some regularity.

Portage Lake in Manistee County
Portage Lake has formed safe fishable ice off of the main public downtown access site. Anglers have found 3-4” of ice with even better ice East of the lunch ramp. Anglers venturing any further west than the Onekama Village Park Access are encouraged you do so with caution. We encourage only foot traffic and no machines on the ice yet.

Lake Mitchell
Lake Mitchell has formed 8-10” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing Little and Big Coves as well as the DNR Launch Ramp to access the lake. The ice near the creek outlet is not stable and should be avoided.

Lake Cadillac
Lake Cadillac has 7-8” of ice. The shoreline ice is more stable than past weeks’, but it is recommended to use caution when initially entering onto the ice.

SFM Ice Fishing Report 02.04.2020

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Ice Fishing Report – Early February
As we approach the second weekend of February, we at Sport Fish Michigan continue to see larger inland lakes gain ice. The consistently cooler weather has been very helpful in sustaining and creating more fishable ice, which allows our guides and all other eager ice anglers to take advantage of a great early February bite. The snow accumulations which had been creating slushy conditions have melted and helped to form a solid and safe layer of ice. We can only give reports on the day to day conditions, and we ask that anglers only use this report as a reference. While the large majority of these lakes listed below are showing safe and very fishable measures of ice, we encourage everyone to use caution as they head out onto the hard water. When looking to utilize vehicles such as side by side, quads, and or snowmobiles, be sure to check ice conditions before venturing out on your next adventure.

Long Lake in Benzie
With its shallow depths and protected shoreline, Long Lake has managed to form 7-8” of good ice. Anglers are catching northern pike and smaller perch with the occasional bluegill mixed in.

Upper Herring Lake
Upper Herring is reported to have fishable ice off of the state access, roughly 5-6”. The remainder of the lake has coverage but we advise all anglers to proceed with caution due to the still-forming inconsistent ice in other portions of the lake.

Platte Lake
Lake conditions have 4-5” of ice and good fishing being reported for perch and pike. We recommend not attempting to use machines for transportation.

Green Lake
Green Lake in Interlochen is fishable, but we recommend extreme caution. With ice thickness varying from 2-4” in many locations. Some anglers have been fishing off of the academy. We do not encourage activities on Green Lake.

Long Lake in Interlochen
Long Lake had fishable ice off the Crescent Shores Rd DNR Launch Site. The ice in this area was reported to be 6-7”. Anglers have been fishing 6-8” of ice in Settlers Cove in the south corner. The northern end of the lake is currently holding 6” of ice. Anglers are encouraged to only travel on foot and recommended to not use any type of ATV to travel to and from fishing destinations. Walleye fishing has been good for most anglers in mid-depth ranges.

Skegmog
Skegmog has formed 6-7” of ice allowing anglers to access the perch grounds located off of the DNR Launch Site only. These anglers have been finding good size and quantity. It is still recommended that anglers use extreme caution when fishing any areas other than the southern shoreline.

Bear Lake in Manistee County
Bear Lake has formed 6-7” of ice. Anglers have been fishing off of all public access sites and catching panfish and perch with some regularity.

Portage Lake in Manistee County
Portage Lake has formed safe fishable ice off of the main public downtown access site. Anglers have found 3-4” of ice with even better ice east of the lunch ramp. Anglers venturing any further west than the Onekama Village Park Access are encouraged you to do so with caution. We encourage only foot traffic and no machines on the ice yet.

Lake Mitchell
Lake Mitchell has formed 8-10” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing Little and Big Coves as well as the DNR Launch Ramp to access the lake. The ice near the creek outlet is not stable and should be avoided.

Lake Cadillac
Lake Cadillac has 7-8” of ice. The shoreline ice is more stable than past weeks but it is recommended to use caution when initially entering on to the ice.

SFM Ice Fishing Report 01.13.2020

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We at Sport Fish Michigan are very excited to see some fishable ice in Northern Michigan. The fluctuation in the weather has been very frustrating for our guides as well as all eager ice anglers in the area. Looking at the long term forecast, it appears that we will be experiencing some consistently cooler temperatures that will help build good ice on most bodies of water. We can only give reports on the day to day conditions, and we ask that anglers only use this report as a reference. As ice conditions change daily, we encourage all anglers use their best judgment when venturing out on the ice.

Long Lake in Benzie County
With its shallow depths and protected shoreline, Long Lake has managed to form a consistent 5-6” of good ice. Anglers are catching northern pike and smaller perch with the occasional bluegill.

Lower and Upper Herring Lakes
Both of these Benzie County lakes were currently wide open as of 1/10/20. Anglers are encouraged to use extreme caution on both lakes over the next week or two.

Platte Lake
Platte Lake in Benzie County recently skimmed over. With the recent winds and snowfall, Platte has areas of skim ice and open water. It is currently unsafe and not safe for ice fishing.

Green Lake
Green Lake in Interlochen is currently open water and not safe for ice fishing.

Long Lake in Interlochen
As of 1/9/20, Long Lake had fishable ice off the Crescent Shores Rd DNR Launch Site. The ice in this area was reported to be 3-4”. Anglers have been fishing 4-5” of ice in Settlers Cove in the south corner. The northern end of the lake is currently holding 4” of ice. Anglers are encouraged to only travel on foot and recommended not to use any type of ATV to travel to and from fishing destinations. Walleye fishing has been good for most anglers.

Skegmog
Skegmog has formed 4-5” of ice allowing anglers to access the perch grounds located off of the DNR Launch Site only. It is recommended anglers use extreme caution when fishing any areas other than the southern shoreline.

Bear Lake in Manistee County
Bear Lake has formed 4-6” of ice. Anglers have been fishing off of all public acres sites.

Lake Mitchell
Lake Mitchell has formed 7-9” of ice. Anglers have been utilizing Little and Big Coves as well as the DNR Launch Ramp to access the lake. The ice near the creek outlet should be avoided entirely.

Lake Cadillac
As of 1/9/20, Lake Cadillac had 6-7” of ice. The shoreline ice as of last week was inconsistent, and it is recommended to use caution when initially entering on to the ice.

Michigan Ice Fishing Report 12.02.14

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After a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend spent relaxing, doing plenty of eating, and spending time reflecting on how appreciative and thankful we are here at Sport Fish Michigan, it’s back to reality with dropping temperatures following the weekend’s spring-like weather. In fact, several places experienced lows in the single digits Monday night.

Temperatures reaching into the low 40's here in northern Michigan melted most of the snow that had built up, and it felt positively nice out! This didn’t help the formation of ice on the area’s lakes, but it didn’t do too much to melt what ice had formed on many inland lakes to date. The current cold will freeze many of the smaller lakes. Temperatures expected in the low 30's for the next week or so should really help form ice at night, and keep it throughout the day. While the ice is still not thick enough to safely venture out onto, more and more lakes are beginning to freeze over. For the most part, it’s the smaller, shallower lakes that have ice.

In Glen Arbor, Little Glen Lake remains frozen, but its larger brother, Big Glen Lake, is completely open with only a little bit of slushy ice in the shallows. Spider Lake, east of Traverse City, has ice and slush on its shoreline, but the main lake is still wide open. Skim ice formed over the last couple of days in many of the shallow bays that Spider Lake is known for. Long Lake, just south of Traverse City, is completely open. There is slush floating in the shallow waters of Long Lake, and some of the shallow back bays are skimmed over. To the west of Traverse City, North Lake Leelanau and South Lake Leelanau are both open water lakes right now, and the narrows that separates them is skimmed over. Both Leelanau lakes also have slushy ice in the shallows.

Duck Lake, near Interlochen State Park, is completely open, but water temperatures are 33 degrees. The recent cold couple of nights created skim ice floating in the shallows. The same can be said for Duck Lake’s neighbor, Green Lake.

Near Frankfort and Beulah, Loon Lake, inside the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, is completely frozen over. Similarly, Little Platte Lake is also completely frozen over, and this shallow panfish lake has close to 3 inches covering it. It won’t be long before it’s safe to venture out onto the ice to fish. Crystal lake is also wide open. Betsie Bay, which is a fantastic pike fishery among other things, has slush and skim ice in parts, but being so close to the open waters of Lake Michigan, it’s still mostly open.

Further south and inland are lakes Cadillac and Mitchell. Both are frozen over, and this has ice anglers itching to get out. One report has close to 3 inches of ice on Lake Mitchell, however this has not been verified. The DNR has issued warnings that despite the ice coverage on these very popular ice-fishing lakes, venturing out onto the ice is very risky at present, and all activities on the ice should be avoided.

With the below-freezing night-time temperatures in the near forecast, it won’t be long before we have full ice and will be out ice fishing! Early ice should always be treated with extreme caution, and while the thrills of the rewards that early ice fishing can yield, no fish is worth risking one’s life over.