Wisconsin’s statewide early goose season opens Monday. Regulations can be found at https://widnr.widen.net/s/fjhxhtzq6t/2023-wisconsin-hunting-regulations. (Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources/Bob Haase photo)

IRON MOUNTAIN — Bear hunting season opens Wednesday in Wisconsin while the Upper Peninsula opener is Wednesday, Sept. 10.

In northern Wisconsin, hunting through Sept. 9 is only with the help of dogs. Then through Sept. 30, both dogs and bait are permitted. From Oct. 1 through Oct. 7, bear hunting is with the aid of bait only.

The use of dogs is always prohibited in Wisconsin’s southern bear management zones.

In the Upper Peninsula, dogs are prohibited during the first five days of the hunt, then allowed through Oct. 26. Like Wisconsin, Michigan allows bear baiting with regulated conditions.

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A Michigan Department of Natural Resources project will temporarily close access to Highrock Bay in Keweenaw County. There will be a road closure from Sept. 8-12 to install a large culvert on Union Creek, where it crosses Highrock Bay Road.

“No vehicular traffic will be able to access Highrock Bay or the north side of Schlatter Lake during this closure period,” said Brad Carlson, unit manager for the DNR’s Forest Resources Division in Baraga. “This construction period was chosen to avoid the tourist season and grouse hunting season, which starts on Sept. 15.”

The DNR’s snowmobile program is funding the culvert replacement.

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Wisconsin’s early goose season opens Monday and runs through Sept. 15. The early season has an increased daily bag limit of five Canada geese.

According to the DNR, the 2025 population estimate for Wisconsin-breeding Canada geese is 131,567 birds. This estimate is slightly lower than in 2024, but still over 20% higher than the long-term average.

More information can be found on the DNR’s Waterfowl Hunting webpage at https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/topic/hunt/waterfowl.

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Upper Peninsula Power Company is accepting proposals through Oct. 15 for the annual Bond Falls Mitigation and Enhancement Fund grant.

The goal is to create tangible, measurable improvements to aquatic and terrestrial environments within the Ontonagon River watershed. This watershed includes UPPCO’s Bond Falls and Victoria Hydroelectric Projects. UPPCO contributes annually to the MEF, which is managed by the Bond Falls Implementation Team.

For more information, go to www.uppco.com and click on Environmental Efforts.

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As temperatures drop, fish metabolism slows down significantly, so they become less aggressive and feed less frequently.

The Michigan DNR suggests using slower presentations like a jig tipped with live bait or soft plastics, and target deeper waters. Downsizing your bait and using lighter line can also make a difference when bites are subtle.

The DNR reported this U.P. activity:

Little Bay de Noc: Some anglers had success walleye fishing. Those who were trolling used crankbaits or crawler harnesses. Areas in the outer bay and south of the Ford River produced larger fish and better fishing reports. A few anglers reported catching walleye at Black Bottom during low-light hours. Anglers reported seeing coho salmon near the mouth of the Escanaba River; however, success was limited, as the coho salmon were tough to catch and the bite was generally slow. Yellow perch anglers reported good fishing success in deeper water, using minnows and worms. Some anglers also found perch in shallower depths near vegetation.

Big Bay de Noc: Windy conditions this past week resulted in slow angler activity. Anglers reported fair smallmouth bass fishing and a slower week with the drop in temperature.

Fairport: Anglers reported juvenile Chinook salmon and steelhead as the main catch. Anglers that did go out reported success on spoons.

Munising: The lake trout bite was slow for boat anglers trolling and jigging. However, anglers trolling the bay and around Grand Island reported small numbers of coho salmon and splake at shallower depths.

Marquette: Lake trout were caught consistently north of White Rocks in 120 to 200 feet of water. Anglers trolling from northwest of the White Rocks out toward north of Granite Island continued to do well in both deep and shallow water compared to the previous two weeks. It seemed like most of the fish were finally starting to move into shallower water. The Clay Banks continued to produce some salmon and lake trout this week in around 120 feet of water. Primarily lake trout were caught this week in Marquette, but the numbers of coho salmon, Chinook salmon, and brown trout were still increasing, a good sign for a potential September comeback in shallower waters around 60 to 80 feet. Few reports this week due to the number of windy days, but when conditions allowed, the fishing was good and worth the effort.

Au Train: Cooler temperatures and windy conditions brought fish into shallower depths, but anglers reported catching some nice ones out deep, around 10 miles from the boat launch. It paid off for those willing to make the trip out. They were either trolling for lake trout in 150 to 180 feet of water northeast between Au Train Island and the Wood Island Reef, or fishing in around 200 feet of water. With the cooler water temperatures, 80 to 150 feet was productive.

Grand Marais: The lake trout bite was steady for boat anglers trolling and jigging for them at deeper depths. Boating anglers targeting coho salmon had started to catch some while trolling east of the break wall at shallower depths.

Keweenaw Bay/ Huron Bay: Anglers reported that lake trout fishing was fair, with most catching multiple fish per trip. Salmon fishing was reported as poor to fair, with coho salmon and Chinook salmon reported caught.

Traverse Bay/Portage Entry: Anglers reported catching fair to good numbers of lake trout when trolling spoons and flasher/flies. These were caught in 50 to 100 feet of water, with most fish taken near the bottom and around structure. Salmon fishing was reported as poor, with only a few anglers having success.

Ontonagon River: The river saw relatively low angling effort over the past week. Walleye were reportedly caught in fair numbers by those trolling and jigging alike. River conditions and fishing activity were affected by recent rain showers.

Ontonagon/Silver City/Union Bay: Ontonagon saw a fair amount of fishing effort over the past week. Effort from Union Bay and Silver City continued to be lower in comparison. Inclement weather occasionally limited reasonable lake access. Recent reports included catches of lake trout in good numbers, along with the occasional coho salmon and Chinook salmon.

Black River Harbor: The harbor saw low angling effort over the past week, partly due to weather conditions occasionally limiting reasonable lake access. Reported catches were mixed bags consisting of lake trout, brown trout, coho salmon, and Chinook salmon. These fish were caught in fair numbers, with lake trout being the most prominent catch.