Milwaukee Salmon Fishing Newbie

I am hoping for some help / advice fishing on Lake Michigan. My biggest concern is the weather. I fishing many bigger waters in Minnesota and South Dakota so I that is not the problem, I completely respect mother nature. My question is what wind speed and direction is a no go. I have to travel over 6 hours to get there and I am going to decide on August 6th if the trip is a go or no go for that Saturday to Monday. I just don’t want to travel and then not be able to fish. I have a Warrior 1890bt to let you know the size of the boat.

Thank you in advance for your help.

JMP1890

Consider just going regardless of the wind but keep a few nearby smaller lakes ready to run to in the event Michigan is roiled up and unfishable. I’ve been there on days where even our charter captain will not go out in a 28 foot boat and that wind was 17 knots steady. But we have never had 3 days straight of that kind of wind.

If I were spitballing with the wind and your boat, considering you would be on the wind swept side for worst case scenario, I might fish in 12-13mph wind depending on the height and type of waves. Your boat would be fine in taller rollers but alternatively, a fresh wind chop making 3 footers can be miserable.

Then for size, try steady winds from the North making 6-10 foot rollers on the south end (which you would be fine in) but then the west winds just start kicking in and add to those rollers a 1 foot easterly chop on top. Ugh…tough sledding in a small boat in that situation.

But each of us have our own comfort levels for big water. Sounds like you have a good idea as to what you are getting into though. Good luck and report back!

And by the by, Port Washington is the town just north of Milwaukee that we traditionally fish out of.

To add on to JD Winston…

If you drive 6 hours to find white caps on the lake, you can always fish the harbor. Salmon might be hard to come by in the harbor but there are the always present Brown. Better than turning around and going home.

Hey Joe….I keep my boat docked in Kenosha and fish L. Michigan every week. Even on calm days, it can get ugly quick when you’re offshore. Make sure you watch weather and have a quality marine radio. My boat is much larger than yours, and I will not go out if there’s a N or NE wind greater than 5mph. You can fish up to 10mph in a big boat, but its not fun. West winds are fine, while a stiff 15+mph from south or south east can make a rough day. Keep in mind that the waves on Michigan are not the same as on smaller inland lakes. The troughs can be long and very deep.

That being said, typically in the summer months the weather/wind is somewhat predictable. Have fun!!

Thanks guy. This is exactly what I was looking for.

I am either fishing on Michigan or heading out to the glacier lakes area in South Dakota and chase walleyes. If the weather does not cooperate, I will get to Michigan another weekend. Either way it is a win.

Thank again,

jmp1890