Welcome to WCF, Hawkeye!
Lake Michigan sure is a great place to fish and a little knowledge can really go a long way. Just about anything can be caught along the lakefront at different times of the year. I assume you are talking about shore fishing so i'll go with that.
First of all, the closest place for you to get bait is Park Bait in Montrose harbor. The pphone number is listed in the bait shop directory of the main site (http://www.windycityfishing.com/bait.htm). Other than there, the next closest place would be in the suburbs or Henry's on 31st and Normal in the Bridgeport neighborhood.
As for shorefishing and what fish you'll find, the list is a good one: Rainbow Trout, Coho Salmon, King Salmon, Brown Trout, Yellow Perch, Jumbo Yellow Perch, Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Rock Bass, Bluegill, Carp. There are several other species of fish, but those are the main ones.
Montrose Harbor is probably closest to you and though the perch catch has slowed considerably, some are still being caught by shorefishermen early and late. Closer to Belmont harbor there are some nice weed beds that hold largemouth bass.
In September-October the salmon make their run along the shore and are a blast to catch. Most people fish at night with glow-in-the-dark spoons for them.
I'm sure some other WCF members will chime in with some good advice. JNapadano does real well for smallmouth bass from shore and charter boat captain Jim from Lucky Dog Charters should be able to offer some advice as well.
Good lulck, and again, welcome to the site!
Lake Michigan sure is a great place to fish and a little knowledge can really go a long way. Just about anything can be caught along the lakefront at different times of the year. I assume you are talking about shore fishing so i'll go with that.
First of all, the closest place for you to get bait is Park Bait in Montrose harbor. The pphone number is listed in the bait shop directory of the main site (http://www.windycityfishing.com/bait.htm). Other than there, the next closest place would be in the suburbs or Henry's on 31st and Normal in the Bridgeport neighborhood.
As for shorefishing and what fish you'll find, the list is a good one: Rainbow Trout, Coho Salmon, King Salmon, Brown Trout, Yellow Perch, Jumbo Yellow Perch, Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Rock Bass, Bluegill, Carp. There are several other species of fish, but those are the main ones.
Montrose Harbor is probably closest to you and though the perch catch has slowed considerably, some are still being caught by shorefishermen early and late. Closer to Belmont harbor there are some nice weed beds that hold largemouth bass.
In September-October the salmon make their run along the shore and are a blast to catch. Most people fish at night with glow-in-the-dark spoons for them.
I'm sure some other WCF members will chime in with some good advice. JNapadano does real well for smallmouth bass from shore and charter boat captain Jim from Lucky Dog Charters should be able to offer some advice as well.
Good lulck, and again, welcome to the site!
