Lake Superior Fall Fishing Report: Salmon, Trout, and Perch Bite Strong in Duluth Area

This is Artificial Lure with your Duluth-area Lake Superior fishing report for Friday, September 26th, 2025.Sunrise hit at 6:58 AM this morning, and you can expect the sun to dip below the horizon at 7:03 PM. Weatherwise, according to WDIO meteorologist Justin Liles, cooler lake winds are back today with temps hovering in the mid-50s by midday. Skies are expected to stay mostly cloudy, with a chance of a light north breeze off the lake—classic fall fishing conditions in the Twin Ports area.Now, Lake Superior doesn’t see much real tidal movement, but these north winds will churn up nearshore water and help push baitfish into the shallows. That’s great news if you’re targeting salmon or lake trout. The fall run is picking up, and reports coming in from anglers out of McQuade and Knife River have been solid—coho and chinook are both making good showings right up to the shoreline. Trolling stickbaits or casting from shore with spoons at dawn and dusk has put fish in the box for more than a few local folks.A few brown trout and the odd steelhead have been mixed in as well—folks working the Lester and French river mouths with natural-color spawn sacs or drifting waxworms are getting bites. Perch are schooling in sheltered bays, and nice eater-size fish have come from the Park Point area and Minnesota Slip. A small jig tipped with a minnow or crawler, or a classic Hexy Minnow in silver-blue, is putting fish on the stringer—Colmants Tackle says that lure in particular works for everything from perch to trout, especially on a quick, erratic retrieve that mimics an injured baitfish.If you’re looking for hot spots, I’d put my money on the following:• McQuade Safe Harbor: Fish the breakwall early with long casts—smelt-pattern spoons or stickbaits will draw salmon up when they’re pushing close to shore.• Lester River mouth: The early stages of the fall salmon run are arriving. Try drifting with spawn sacs or a chartreuse jig head tipped with cut sucker near the bottom.• Park Point bayside: Perch and the occasional smallmouth are active; use a small jig under a float, or try that Hexy Minnow for bonus trout action.For best results, most folks are finding success on silver or blue-silver spoons, 1/4 to 3/8 oz. jigs with white or chartreuse plastics, or live fathead minnows. If you’re after browns and steelhead, natural baits like spawn sacs, waxworms, and nightcrawlers are hard to beat, especially after a rain.Boat anglers trolling just off the Lester and French rivers are reporting chinook up to 15 pounds on long-lined crankbaits and flasher-fly combos, especially in 20–40 feet of water at first light. Shore anglers casting Little Cleos or Krocodile spoons have landed solid cohos up to 5 pounds on the gravel beaches.Don’t forget—Bayfield and the Apostle Islands are seeing some bigger lake trout moving in shallow, especially near reefs and drop-offs. White tube jigs and heavy bucktails are producing, and the Hexy Minnow from Colmants is a new favorite for many (just twitch, reel, repeat to get that action the trout love).That’s your rundown, folks. Plenty of fall color and fall fish are ready for the taking—just layer up, mind those waves, and don’t forget to net your catch.Thanks for tuning in to Artificial Lure’s Lake Superior fishing report. Be sure to subscribe for your next bite of North Shore angling info.This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease dot ai.Great deals on fishing gear https://amzn.to/44gt1PnThis content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI