How to Fish Green Bay, Wisconsin: A First-Timer's Guide to Smallmouth, Walleye, and Musky

The Bay of Green Bay, the huge arm of Lake Michigan that Wisconsin's Door Peninsula wraps around, is one of the best multi-species fisheries in the country. In-Fisherman has rated it a top-10 spot on Earth for trophy smallmouth bass, it's a world-famous walleye factory, and in recent years its fall musky fishing has reached world-class status. Add whitefish through the ice, perch, pike, brown trout, and salmon, and you have a year-round destination with genuine bucket-list fish. For a first-timer, the bay is big, varied, and best learned a fishery at a time. This guide breaks it down.

For the bigger picture, the species, the seasons, and how the fishery fits together, read our complete Green Bay fishing guide.

First: The Wisconsin License and the Openers

Anyone 16 or older needs a Wisconsin fishing license, available online from the Wisconsin DNR; short-term options exist for visitors, and trout and salmon require an additional Great Lakes stamp. Wisconsin's gamefish open on set dates: the walleye and pike opener is the first Saturday in May (the Fox River walleye run is open earlier under special regs), bass opens the first Saturday in May too (with catch-and-release periods before), and musky opens late May. Bag and size limits matter, Green Bay walleye and smallmouth in particular have specific, sometimes-protected regulations that change, so check the current Wisconsin DNR rules and the Green Bay-specific regs before keeping fish.

Trophy Smallmouth Bass: A World-Class Fishery

This is what makes Green Bay famous among bass anglers. The bay's rock, gravel, and reef-lined shorelines, especially around the Door Peninsula and Sturgeon Bay, grow enormous smallmouth, with fish in the 4-to-6-pound range common and 8-pounders caught every year, on days when 25-plus fish are realistic. From roughly May through October, you catch them around rock, gravel flats, points, and reefs.

The go-to beginner approaches: a Z-Man Ned rig (a small soft plastic on a mushroom jighead) dragged and hopped along rock, a tube jig fished the same way, a Rapala X-Rap jerkbait twitched over the flats in spring, or a Roboworm drop-shot for finicky fish. A 7-foot medium spinning rod with a Shimano Stradic 3000 and 10- to 15-pound braid is the right tool. Spring (pre-spawn and spawn) brings the biggest fish shallow; summer fish hold on deeper rock and reefs. These are strong, jumping fish, keep steady pressure and enjoy the fight.

Sturgeon Bay Smallmouth Bass Techniques

Walleye: The Fox River Run and the Bay Reefs

Green Bay is a world-famous walleye fishery with two distinct seasons. In early spring (the Fox River run opens in mid-March under special regulations), millions of walleye swim up the Fox River to spawn, and anglers line the banks and fish from boats jigging a jig-and-minnow or a plastic in the current, it's some of the most accessible, productive walleye fishing anywhere. Out on the bay, walleye school on the offshore reefs in mid-spring and through summer, where the main method is trolling crankbaits (a Reef Runner or a Bandit) and crawler harnesses behind planer boards (Off Shore Tackle) at varied depths, using a line-counter reel (a Shimano Tekota) to repeat the productive depth. Low light, wind, and the reefs are the keys, a fish-finder is a big help on the open bay.

How to Troll and Rig for Walleye

Musky: The Fall Giants

Green Bay has become one of the premier musky fisheries on the planet, especially in the fall, producing genuine giants. Musky are the apex predator and the "fish of 10,000 casts," demanding heavy gear (a stout musky rod, 80-pound braid, a heavy leader) and big lures, a large Mepps Magnum bucktail, a Bull Dawg rubber bait, or a Suick jerkbait, worked with a figure-8 boatside at the end of every cast. Fall, as the water cools, is the trophy window. Musky fishing is overwhelmingly catch-and-release, and given the heavy tackle, the big water, and the careful handling these rare fish need, a first-timer chasing a Green Bay musky is wise to go out with an experienced captain the first time.

Whitefish and Ice Fishing

When the bay freezes (typically mid-winter), Green Bay turns into a premier ice fishery, famous especially for whitefish, a deep-water, schooling fish that's excellent eating and a blast to catch through the ice on a jigging spoon (a Northland Buck-Shot) tipped with a waxworm or a minnow head, or on small jigs. Walleye and perch also bite through the ice. Anglers fish out of portable shacks or rent heated houses, and a flasher (a Vexilar) to watch your jig and the fish is essential. Ice conditions on the big bay vary and can be dangerous, so always check thickness and local reports, and consider going out with someone who knows the safe areas your first time.

Perch, Pike, Trout, and Salmon

Beyond the headliners, the bay and the connected Lake Michigan waters offer yellow perch (great eating, fished on the bottom with minnows), northern pike (spoons and big baits along the weeds), and, on the Lake Michigan side and in the bay, brown trout, rainbow trout, and king and coho salmon caught by trolling spoons and crankbaits behind downriggers and dipsy divers. These add variety through the warmer months. Yellow perch in particular are an easy, fun, family-friendly target: anchor or drift over a school holding near the bottom, drop a minnow on a small hook or a perch spreader rig, and enjoy fast action and a great fish fry. When you want a relaxed day rather than a trophy hunt, perch are the answer.

Because the bay is big water, plenty of first-timers fish it with a charter captain, and it's worth knowing what that looks like. You'll typically launch early, run to the structure or the troll the captain has been on, and fish hard during the productive low-light hours, moving as needed to stay on active fish. The captain supplies the rods, electronics, lures, and net, ties your knots, and nets and handles your fish, your job is to cast or hold the rod, listen, and reel when it's time. It's a fast way to learn a complex fishery like Green Bay, and a good captain will teach you the why behind every spot and lure so you can do it yourself next time. Whether you go out with a captain or launch your own boat, dress in layers (the bay is cool and breezy even in summer), bring sun protection and a rain shell, and take motion-sickness medication ahead of time if you're prone, because the open bay can build a chop.

Reading the Bay for Smallmouth

Because the trophy smallmouth fishery is what draws most anglers, it's worth understanding where the fish live. Green Bay smallmouth relate almost entirely to hard bottom, rock, gravel, rubble, and reefs, so the first job is finding it. In spring, the fish push shallow onto rocky and gravel flats in the warming bays and around the Door Peninsula shorelines to spawn, and you can often sight-fish them in clear water; this is the window for the biggest fish, and it's why spring catch-and-release rules protect them. As summer comes on, they slide out to deeper rock, humps, reefs, points, and rock-to-sand transitions in 8 to 25 feet, where a fish-finder (and increasingly forward-facing sonar) earns its keep by showing you the rock and the fish on it. The pattern is simple once you internalize it: find the rock, fish it thoroughly with a Ned rig or tube on the bottom, and move until you contact fish, then slow down and work the area, because smallmouth school and where there's one there are usually more.

Wind and water clarity shape the day. A light chop on a rocky point or reef positions feeding fish and lets you get closer; dead-calm, bright, clear conditions push fish deeper and make them spookier (drop to lighter line and more natural baits). The bay is big and can get rough fast, so a small boat needs to respect the weather and stay near protected shoreline on windy days, another reason Sturgeon Bay and the more sheltered Door County water is the smart place for a first-timer to start.

The Fox River Walleye Run

The Fox River run deserves a closer look because it's one of the most accessible trophy fisheries in the Midwest. Each spring, beginning around mid-March, an astonishing number of walleye, including big pre-spawn females, move out of the bay and up the Fox River through downtown Green Bay and beyond to spawn. Because the fish are concentrated in the river, you don't need a big boat or deep knowledge to get in on it: anglers fish from boats and from shore at the public access points, casting or vertically jigging a jig tipped with a minnow or a plastic in the current seams, eddies, and along the bottom where walleye hold. Set the jig down to the bottom, lift and drop it slowly, and feel for the subtle "tick." The run is weather- and flow-dependent and the river can be crowded at the peak, but it's a genuine bucket-list walleye experience, and the special early-season regulations make it possible, so read the current Fox River rules (open dates, slot, and any catch-and-release requirements) before you go.

A Note on Conservation

Green Bay's world-class status is the direct result of careful management, and the trophy smallmouth fishery in particular depends on it. The spring catch-and-release periods and special regulations protect the big spawning females that make the bay famous, so handle smallmouth quickly, keep them wet, and release the giants. The same ethic applies to musky (overwhelmingly catch-and-release, these are rare, slow-growing apex fish) and to the trophy walleye of the Fox River run. Keep a reasonable meal of eater-sized walleye, perch, or whitefish within the limits, release the trophies, and follow the Green Bay-specific rules to the letter. This fishery became great because anglers protected it, and it stays great the same way.

Gear: What to Bring

If you go out with a captain, gear is provided. Fishing on your own:

• Smallmouth: a 7-foot medium spinning rod, a Shimano Stradic 3000, 10-15 lb braid, Ned rigs, tubes, jerkbaits, and drop-shot gear.
• Walleye: a jig-and-minnow setup for the Fox River; trolling gear (a Shimano Tekota, crankbaits, harnesses, planer boards) for the bay.
• Musky: heavy dedicated gear, a stout rod, 80-lb braid, heavy leaders, and big bucktails, rubber baits, and jerkbaits.
• Winter: an ice rod, auger, a flasher, jigging spoons, and warm gear for whitefish and walleye.

How to Tie a Palomar Knot

When to Go

• Mid-March–April: The famous Fox River walleye spawning run, accessible, productive jigging.
• May–June: Bass opener brings prime shallow trophy smallmouth; walleye move to the reefs.
• Summer (July–August): Excellent smallmouth on the rock, walleye trolling on the reefs, plus perch, pike, and Lake Michigan salmon/trout.
• September–October: World-class fall musky, plus continued smallmouth and walleye. The trophy window.
• Winter (Dec–Feb): Ice fishing for whitefish, walleye, and perch when the bay locks up.

A First-Timer's Plan

For your first trip, match the season to the fishery: a spring or summer smallmouth trip out of Sturgeon Bay is the surest path to a trophy bass, a spring Fox River walleye trip is accessible and action-packed, and a fall musky outing is the bucket-list option. No boat in spring? Fish the Fox River walleye run from the bank with a jig and minnow. In winter, try the ice for whitefish, and your first time out, go with someone who knows the safe areas. Buy your Wisconsin license online first, add the Great Lakes stamp if you'll target trout or salmon, and check the Green Bay-specific bass and walleye regulations.

For the full seasonal calendar and species breakdown, see our complete Green Bay fishing guide. Fishing more of the Wisconsin Great Lakes? We also have first-timer guides for Door County and Traverse City.