With the holiday season behind us, it’s time to focus our thoughts on 2026 and the upcoming fishing season along the shores of Lake Michigan. The whims of Mother Nature will have a lot to say about what to expect this year.

We are now in the “winter doldrums” of fishing on the southern end of the “Big Lake.” Things started like gangbusters early with boats taking limits of lake trout and brown trout trolling in Milwaukee Harbor in Wisconsin.

An early-winter arctic cold snap, however, put a quick stop to that. However, temperatures around the zero-degree mark created ice-up conditions in the harbor. A few anglers who have been venturing out from shore have been drilling holes in the ice and having some success jigging spoons like Hopkins Spoon, Acme Kastmaster, Williams Ridgeback and Mepps Syclops, but so far, it’s been risky.

As quick as the arctic freeze had descended on the lake, the conditions did an abrupt change; a series of warm spells hit and everything changed. Predicting future weather on the Great Lakes is all but impossible!

I’ve seen past winters where pretty much the entire month of December was locked in sub-zero temperatures. Come January, the temperatures rose and didn’t go below zero for the rest of the winter.

In Racine, there has been some spotty fishing for rainbows and brown trout on the Root River’s lower reaches. The fish have been taking spawn sacs, skein spawn and small, Rooster Tail spinners.

Down the lake past the Illinois state line in the North Point Winthrop Harbor area, a few lake trout been have taken by boats able to get out. But the fishing will be impossible to predict until the weather makes up its mind on what it wants to do. Anglers planning to fish out of North Point Winthrop Harbor this spring will find the fate of this popular marina in question. Operations at this popular area for Illinois Boaters and Charter Boats is presently a big question mark.

The operator has recently indicated it is ending its contract with the IDNR. This has left anglers, boaters, charter boat captains and village officials in a quandary about what the next step will be.

The IDNR’s failure to issue a timely request for proposal is said to be what is being blamed for the problem. The concerned parties will have to come up with a solution pretty quick if the facility is expected to reopen in spring. More on this situation when information becomes available.

In downtown Chicago, good catches of perch are being taken at Navy Pier, including quite a few limits. Perch have been hitting waxworms and spikes on Bait Rigs Tackle Slo-Poke jigs in the 1/32- and 1/64-ounce sizes, set up with a drop sinker on the bottom. They are also hitting minnows—fatheads, rosy reds, and baby roaches—plus redworms, nightcrawler pieces and shrimp.

Some days, perch hit best on jig-and-drop method, while on other days dead sticking works best. Methods and best baits can change from day to day or even hour to hour, so it pays to have a good selection on hand.

Fishing Diversey, Montrose, Belmont and Burnham harbors can also put some limits in the cooler; the same baits that produce at Navy Pier will also take good fish here.

Fishing in the harbors, just like off Navy Pier, depends on the weather and wind conditions. A warm spell can produce smooth sailing with no ice, and you can fish any method you want. A cold snap, however, will bring in the ice off the lake if there is any out there.

If the ice is in, you will need heavy weight to bust a hole through the ice. Usually, a downrigger cannonball and a length of medium rope like nylon chalk line, commonly used on trolleys, will do the trick. You’ll also need a length of pipe or conduit to keep ice away from the spot you cleared out.

In harbors, the same method will work as well if the ice is thin enough to bust through; you can fish from the dock. If not, you will need an auger to drill some holes, along with a variety of ice fishing rods. Some anglers even set out tip-ups baited with golden roaches or chubs for a chance at the ever-increasing population of northerns, and now some walleyes are starting to appear.

When perch fishing during the winter months, bring along a good-quality landing net. You might figure, “Why do I need one for perch?” Well, you don’t… but you can never tell when a big brown trout, steelhead or lake trout (make sure you have your Lake Michigan trout and salmon stamp) or a whitefish, northern, walleye or burbot might decide to hit. Unless you have a landing net, you can kiss them goodbye.

The South-Side slips on the Calumet River and at 87th street are still producing big catches, but a word to the wise: Many anglers have been sorting their buckets, throwing the smaller ones on the ice or shore, and keeping the bigger ones until they reach their limit. This is illegal—and a waste of our resources. The game warden will be coming around and watching for this activity.

Littering is another problem. It’s just a matter of time until the data centers move in and take over. If we want to keep these areas open for fishing, clean up your mess! Take your garbage home with you. This shouldn’t be too much to ask. Don’t ruin it for everyone! We’ve already lost too many shore fishing spots.

If you’d rather wait for spring before fishing, there are still a few sports shows left to let you get out and shake the cabin fever:

• January 29-February 1—All-Canada Show at Kane County Fairgrounds, 525 Randall Road, St. Charles, Ill.

• February 13-15—Tinley Park Fishing, Travel and Outdoors Expo at Tinley Park Convention Center, Tinley Park, Ill., tinleyfishexpo.com.

• March 1-3—Northwest Indiana Fishing and Outdoors Expo, 2450 Lincoln St, Highland, Ind., 46322, nwioutdoorexpo.com.

• March 6-8, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Sports Show, State Fair Park, West Allis, Wis.

That about does it for now. It won’t be long until spring.