Best Times to Fish

Throughout the spring, summer, and fall, Bay Lake Charters offers the best in fishing experiences by following the best bites. We start out with the ever popular walleye fishing in spring, on the south end of the Bay of Green Bay. This is a great time to get out, wet a line, and enjoy some great walleye fishing.

As the water warms in the Bay and on Lake Michigan (usually by June 1st), we transition over to Algoma, Wisconsin. Located in Kewaunee County, Algoma ranks above the top fishing ports in Wisconsin based on fish harvesting per county.

Just a short, 30 minute drive east from Green Bay, Algoma is the ultimate location for access to great fishing. With the Bank Reef within a long run north and easy access to deep waters, quickly, we truly have the most options available to ensure the best fishing.

Season Dates Morning vs Afternoon

Season Dates

May 1st-June 1st: Walleye fishing on the Bay of Green Bay. With the walleyes coming off of the spawning season in the Fox River, you are sure to have a blast catching these feeding machines as they feed on bait fish.

June 1st-July 31st: Throughout this time frame, you will see great catches of both salmon and trout on Lake Michigan. Kings reaching up to 30 lbs are caught every year throughout this time and the next one could be yours. We also experience great catches of trout during this time. With Rainbow Trout and Lake Trout feeding near the surface, it is a great time to be surprised by a fish up to 20 lbs flying through the air with your bait in its mouth.

August 1st-October 1st: The Kings have grown to their largest size and are getting ready to stage in front of the Algoma Harbor, before going up-stream. This is your chance at a trophy! Salmon and trout are feeding throughout the day in the cooling waters and when the right conditions exist, a trip in front of the harbor can be extremely fun, and result in a cooler-full of mature 4 year old salmon. During these months, we also experience a great, mixed bag of catches off-shore.

Morning vs Afternoon

Many people often ask when the best time of the day is to fish. Throughout the season, we see this change quite a bit. Early in the season, as the lake is cooler, we experience good fishing throughout the whole day. The best chance at fast action on King Salmon still remains in the low light conditions but with cooler lake temperatures, we often catch King Salmon, Rainbow Trout, and Lake Trout throughout the whole day. As the lake warms up by the middle of July, we typically see a change in the feeding pattern of the King Salmon and the day bite starts to lag.

This is why we have designed the Two Morning Charter Packages. These packages are designed to be two-fold. One, to allow you to enjoy two morning bites on the lake, thus increasing your chances at a cooler-full of King Salmon; and two, to allow us to seek deeper water where the daytime King action may still be in full swing.

As the waters cool back down in September, you will once again see the salmon and trout feeding throughout the day and catch a great, mixed-bag of fish as the water temperature transitions.