Fishing report 17 October 2026

Good morning from the Quiet Lakes. A few chilly mornings are in store for the Northwoods with a few overnight lows dipping into the 30s, but generally warm weather with highs in the 60s and very little if any rain in the forecast this week.  We did get somewhere between 1-1/2 to 2″ of rain Thursday, which is great news.  I’m not sure if it helped the lake levels, but it certainly didn’t hurt, and it should have helped bring water temps down.  Water temps are all over the place and are really on a rollercoaster on most lakes.  I am hearing the Spider Chain is still around 60-degree surface temps, while Lost Land and Teal Lake are down just below the mid-50s.  Fishing has been kind of hit or miss lately.

Musky–The musky bite has been okay, and while anglers are seeing a lot of fish, not all of them are hitting the bag.  Bucktails and glide baits are working the best as far as artificial baits go, and suckers are always a good choice this time of year.  Musky are still related to shallow weeds/weed beds, and anglers should look for weeds that are the greenest of the bunch.

Northern Pike–Pike action has been good, and anglers are catching them in numerous ways.  Smaller musky baits, walleye-sized baits, and live bait are all working to catch pike right now.  Work small jerk/crank baits through the weeds or drag walleye suckers under a bobber over weed beds, and you will most likely find pike.

Walleye-I still don’t have much to report on a walleye bite, but I have to believe most walleye are suspended or related to deeper water depending on the lake.  Trolling crank baits in anywhere from 10-18 FOW can be good right now and pull walleye off of deeper weed edges or structure.  Jigging with walleye suckers off of deep rocky points or shelves should be good too.

LMB–Really nothing to report on a largemouth bite.  They should still be in and around weeds, and throwing spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, or any kind of baits like a Rapala would be good choices to target largemouth right now.

SMB–I haven’t heard much about anglers chasing smallies right now either, but if they do, jigging walleye suckers or plastics off of deep rocky points or reefs would be a good start.  On most lakes I would start to look for fish down in that 12-20 FOW range, and work shallower as the day grows longer.

Crappie/Bluegill/Perch–Not many anglers are panfishing at this point in the year, so I have not gotten anything lately on where anglers are finding them.  Kind of like last weeks report ‘gills are most likely still in and around green weeds, while crappie and perch are pushed off of the edges of weeds, or out in the basins completely.  Perch and crappie will feed on bloodworms and other larvae near bottom as they start to settle into the mud for winter.  Crappie minnows and plastics are the best choices to catch panfish right now.

Have a great weekend and we will talk soon.

Greg