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Early Fall Fishing Report for Lake Michigan: Kings, Coho, Steelhead, and More
Published 7 months, 2 weeks ago
Description
Good morning, anglers—Artificial Lure with your Chicago Lake Michigan fishing report for Wednesday, September 17th, 2025. It’s shaping up to be a classic early fall day for fishing our great lake, so let’s get right into the details.
Weatherwise, the National Weather Service has us mostly sunny, with light north winds swinging around to the northeast later in the day, running 5 to 10 knots. Wave action is minimal at just about 1 foot, so the water’s going to be quite fishable pretty much anywhere near shore. Air temps are a pleasant 72 degrees, humidity around 62%, and virtually zero chance of rain according to the latest from watertemps.com. Some light fog might crop up early, but should burn off quickly.
Sunrise today clocks in at 6:35 a.m. with sunset at 6:57 p.m., giving you a good, full stretch to work the morning and evening bite windows. Watertemps.com notes peak fish activity with major feeding periods late morning from roughly 9:57 a.m. to 12:27 p.m. and another minor run in the early evening 5:10 to 6:40 p.m. Action rating is 3 out of 5—solid, but you’ll want to bring your A-game and a little patience.
As for what’s biting, it’s transition season. Kings and coho salmon are running, staging in closer to harbors and river mouths as the water cools and the urge to spawn kicks in. Solid numbers of steelhead are still popping up, especially between Wilmette Harbor and Burnham, with occasional brown trout mixed in according to the latest DNR reports. In the local rivers like the Root, steelhead have been bending rods for anyone working spawn sacs, beads, or smaller jigs under a float. Reports straight from the Root River say steelhead catches remain strong both above and below the fish ladder, though water clarity has improved since last week’s rain.
Perch bite has been on and off, but you can find decent numbers if you hunt around the harbor mouths and breakwalls using classic presentations—drop-shot rigs tipped with fathead minnows or perch talker rigs, a local favorite. Anglers working swimbaits and larger profile lures are still drawing in some bonus walleye and late-summer smallies, especially early and right at dusk. Jerkbaits and stickbaits trolled in 30-40 feet of water are producing both salmon and the occasional lake trout for boaters.
Hot lures right now: for salmon and steelhead, flashy spoons like Moonshine or Silver Streaks in blue/green or white/pearl; spawn sacs and beads work well under floats in river mouths. For perch, drop-shot rigs with chartreuse or orange plastics are key. If you’re gunning for bass, Robo Worms in Aaron’s Magic or similar finesse worms have been working early and late—tips borrowed from anglers up at Sylvan but lighting it up here too.
Top spots today:
- The stretch from Montrose Harbor to Belmont Harbor, working the outer wall and harbor mouth for trout and salmon moving in.
- Burnham Harbor and the mouth of the Chicago River for numbers of steelhead and perch, especially around dawn.
- Northerly Island’s rocky spurs in the evening for those on the hunt for coho and big smallmouth.
Remember, with the water still hanging in the upper 60s to low 70s, fish are feisty but can be skittish—downsize leader material and go with a stealthier approach, especially in clear conditions.
That’s your Lake Michigan report for September 17th. Thanks for tuning in—don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss what’s biting on your favorite big lake. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.
Weatherwise, the National Weather Service has us mostly sunny, with light north winds swinging around to the northeast later in the day, running 5 to 10 knots. Wave action is minimal at just about 1 foot, so the water’s going to be quite fishable pretty much anywhere near shore. Air temps are a pleasant 72 degrees, humidity around 62%, and virtually zero chance of rain according to the latest from watertemps.com. Some light fog might crop up early, but should burn off quickly.
Sunrise today clocks in at 6:35 a.m. with sunset at 6:57 p.m., giving you a good, full stretch to work the morning and evening bite windows. Watertemps.com notes peak fish activity with major feeding periods late morning from roughly 9:57 a.m. to 12:27 p.m. and another minor run in the early evening 5:10 to 6:40 p.m. Action rating is 3 out of 5—solid, but you’ll want to bring your A-game and a little patience.
As for what’s biting, it’s transition season. Kings and coho salmon are running, staging in closer to harbors and river mouths as the water cools and the urge to spawn kicks in. Solid numbers of steelhead are still popping up, especially between Wilmette Harbor and Burnham, with occasional brown trout mixed in according to the latest DNR reports. In the local rivers like the Root, steelhead have been bending rods for anyone working spawn sacs, beads, or smaller jigs under a float. Reports straight from the Root River say steelhead catches remain strong both above and below the fish ladder, though water clarity has improved since last week’s rain.
Perch bite has been on and off, but you can find decent numbers if you hunt around the harbor mouths and breakwalls using classic presentations—drop-shot rigs tipped with fathead minnows or perch talker rigs, a local favorite. Anglers working swimbaits and larger profile lures are still drawing in some bonus walleye and late-summer smallies, especially early and right at dusk. Jerkbaits and stickbaits trolled in 30-40 feet of water are producing both salmon and the occasional lake trout for boaters.
Hot lures right now: for salmon and steelhead, flashy spoons like Moonshine or Silver Streaks in blue/green or white/pearl; spawn sacs and beads work well under floats in river mouths. For perch, drop-shot rigs with chartreuse or orange plastics are key. If you’re gunning for bass, Robo Worms in Aaron’s Magic or similar finesse worms have been working early and late—tips borrowed from anglers up at Sylvan but lighting it up here too.
Top spots today:
- The stretch from Montrose Harbor to Belmont Harbor, working the outer wall and harbor mouth for trout and salmon moving in.
- Burnham Harbor and the mouth of the Chicago River for numbers of steelhead and perch, especially around dawn.
- Northerly Island’s rocky spurs in the evening for those on the hunt for coho and big smallmouth.
Remember, with the water still hanging in the upper 60s to low 70s, fish are feisty but can be skittish—downsize leader material and go with a stealthier approach, especially in clear conditions.
That’s your Lake Michigan report for September 17th. Thanks for tuning in—don’t forget to subscribe so you never miss what’s biting on your favorite big lake. This has been a quiet please production, for more check out quiet please dot ai.
Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1Pn
This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI
This episode includes AI-generated content.