Walleye and prespawn smallmouth heating up across Michigan waters

What's Biting

What's Next

With the Grand River holding at 4,560 cfs, expect elevated but gradually dropping flow conditions through the coming week. As spring runoff continues to taper, channel edges and current breaks adjacent to deeper water will remain the most productive walleye zones. Harness rigs worked at 16 to 22 feet — the depth range Michigan Sportsman Forum reports as productive this past weekend — should continue to hold fish as water clarity incrementally improves with declining flow.

The bluegill spawn cue flagged by Tactical Bassin is one of the most reliable triggers for big largemouth action in Michigan. With bluegill now actively spawning, the next 10 to 14 days represent a prime window for targeting largemouth on and around shallow flats and heavy cover. Frog presentations and weedless rigs over matted vegetation — exactly the approach Tactical Bassin highlights for this phase — make sense anywhere you locate concentrated bluegill activity. As largemouth transition fully off their own spawn, Tactical Bassin also notes a finesse bite (Karashi-style) and topwater patterns both remain productive, particularly during the low-light windows that a waning crescent moon reinforces.

Smallmouth bass appear to still be in prespawn mode in at least some Great Lakes tributaries, per Michigan Sportsman Forum reports of 19-inch fish holding in 9 feet of water as recently as May 10. Expect the smallmouth spawn to intensify over the next one to two weeks as water temperatures climb. Rocky points, gravel flats, and shallow hard-bottom structure adjacent to drop-offs are worth prioritizing before fish lock onto nests.

Jason Mitchell Outdoors (YT) flags that the shore walleye bite is currently on, meaning bank-accessible water is still productive before fish fully transition to summer deep-structure patterns. Fishing the Midwest recommends spinning gear paired with jigs or slip-sinker live-bait rigs for walleye in current — a versatile approach well-suited to the Grand River's present elevated flow and stained-water conditions.

Plan your outings around the early-morning window. The waning crescent moon provides minimal nighttime illumination, which tends to compress peak feeding into the hour before and after sunrise. Midday action typically softens as spring temperatures peak. Michigan Sportsman Forum anglers noted that wind made jigging tough over the Mother's Day weekend, so watch the forecast for calm windows — boat control is critical when presenting suspended harness rigs at depth.

Context

Mid-May is historically a high-activity transition window for Michigan's Great Lakes tributaries and inland rivers. Walleye typically complete their primary spawn run by late April to early May across most lower-peninsula systems, with fish staging on structural edges as they shift into post-spawn recovery and begin feeding aggressively again. The harness-rig action at 16 to 22 feet reported on Michigan Sportsman Forum fits squarely within that pattern: fish that have dispersed from spawning gravel and are repositioning in the water column ahead of summer deep-structure patterns.

The 2026 spring season was notably disrupted in its early stages. MI DNR Weekly Fishing Reports from April 15 warned of severe flooding statewide as snowmelt combined with rainfall caused widespread river bank overflow. Great Lakes Now reported historic rainfall in parts of northern Michigan, straining aging dam infrastructure and pushing waterways to exceptional levels. The Grand River's current 4,560 cfs reading reflects residual elevated flow, but conditions appear to have stabilized considerably compared to the April peak, which is typical of Michigan's spring hydrology by mid-May.

For smallmouth bass, prespawn fish showing in 9 feet of water on May 10 is broadly consistent with typical lower-peninsula timing, where most smallmouth spawn through late May depending on latitude and local water temperatures. The waning crescent moon in early-to-mid May tracks with classic prespawn staging behavior, as fish survey gravel structure before committing to nests.

The bluegill spawn being in full swing — per Tactical Bassin — is also on schedule for southern Michigan in mid-May. There is no direct comparative signal in this year's available data to indicate the season is running unusually early or late overall, though the April flooding likely delayed some tributary warming and fish movement. Anglers should continue to monitor the MI DNR Weekly Fishing Report for region-by-region detail as conditions across the state's diverse water systems continue to normalize.