Posted by Scout from firewall.wallace.com on December 07, 1998 at 17:36:08:
In Reply to: perch-lake michigan posted by MIKE on December 07, 1998 at 15:30:58:
Mike,
The perch can be caught in the harbours pretty much all year round. I fish Burnham through the ice for perch, that is when we have ice. There are times when the action is nonstop. Many times people forget about the lakefront harbours to ice fish their local ponds and lakes. The perch are definetely smaller when caught through the ice than they would be in the end of May. But none the less, they are there ice or no ice. In the winter I like to use smaller baits such as a ice jig and minnow to a small swedish pimple loaded with spikes. When the fish are aggresive, I like to use a small Jiggin' Rap with a couple spikes or a minnow head. I typically use lighter line in the winter as well. When looking for perch in the winter, look for weeds near or in deep water. When fishing the harbours in the winter watch out for steelhead and browns. One more thing I would like to mention...when we catch fish in the harbours of L. Michigan such as crappie, bass, or pike, we must not forget that there aren't many of these fish in Southern L. Michigan and should let them go if they are to ever populate the south end of the Lake. I saw a guy on Burnham with a dozen crappie in his bucket. It is sad to see that. We are finally catching some crappie on the lake and people will ruin it before it really begins.
Good Fishing and Catching
Scout