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Lake St. Clair Fishing Report: Smallmouth Bonanza, Musky Madness, and Walleye Wonder
This is Artificial Lure and here’s today’s Lake St. Clair fishing report for Wednesday, October 8th, 2025.
Sunrise painted the lake at 7:29 a.m. this morning, and sunset will close things out around 7:02 p.m. We’re in full-on autumn mode—expect cool, crisp air, with a steady NW breeze and a high just touching 60 degrees. Lake St. Clair doesn’t have significant tides, but water clarity remains moderate after some recent wind. Surface temps are hanging near 62 degrees.
The bite has been fantastic with water temps falling; smallmouth bass are stacking up on the deep edges, and musky are chasing bait hard in the shallows. Tournament results from just this past weekend show it’s been a hot period for bronzebacks: according to Michiana Outdoors News, the Four Flags two-day Classic saw the top teams stacking up big weights. Dan Posey and Jeff Bostic boated 31.59 pounds of bass in two days, their best coming on Ned rigs, flat worms, minnow baits, and grubs fished in 8 to 12 feet over scattered rock and shoal edges. Tubes also accounted for several 5-pounders, with the big smallmouth tipping over 4.9 pounds.
Not just the pros are connecting. Recreational anglers are catching good numbers of perch on live minnows and small drop-shot rigs drifting through the grassy flats off Metro Beach and Grosse Pointe. Walleye action’s picking up on evening troll runs, especially from the mouth of the Detroit River northeast along the shipping channel. Body baits, especially clown and perch Rapalas, have been putting limits in the box.
Musky anglers are reporting active fish along the Canadian side and Anchor Bay—bulldawg-style rubber baits in dark and perch patterns are the ticket. Several boats from Reel Therapy Sportfishing reported multiple musky hookups yesterday, including three fish over 44 inches, with the minimum size limit at 46 inches on the lake enforced, so check your tape before releasing or keeping a trophy, per state regs.
For bait and lures right now, go with:
- Ned rigs and tubes in green pumpkin or smoke for smallmouth along rocky breaks.
- Drop-shotting natural-colored flat worms or minnows for both bass and bonus perch.
- Size 12-14 clown or chartreuse Rapalas and Husky Jerks trolled for walleye at dusk.
- Big black and orange bucktails or rubber swimmers for musky—twitch with pauses around weedlines.
Best hot spots to fish today:
- Mile Roads (9 and 10 Mile) near St. Clair Shores for bass and perch on the inside weed edges.
- The dumping grounds northeast of Belle Isle for mixed bags—bass, walleye, even the odd sheepshead.
- Anchor Bay’s shallow flats at first light for musky and post-spawn smallmouths.
- The shipping channel edges, especially in the evenings, for bigger walleye.
Conservation officers from the Michigan DNR have reminded everyone to double-check their license and know the daily possession limits; there have been a few recent violations with over-limits and undersized fish, so keep it legal and respect the resource.
This has been Artificial Lure with your October 8th Lake St. Clair update. Thanks for tuning in—don’t forget to subscribe for your daily bite.
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Published on 2 months, 1 week ago