Ludington Fishing Report: Sunsets, Swifties & Slow Bites

10/3/20253 min read

Welp…drove home Monday night, right back to Ludington Wednesday night, just in time to catch one of those ridiculous October sunsets. And let me tell you, if you don’t already know: Ludington October sunsets are the best in the world. Not “pretty good.” Not “among the best.” THE best. Sun drops right behind the lighthouse like it’s staged. Perfection.

But I know, I know, this is supposed to be a fishing report. (Hi, Mark. Thanks for admitting you don’t read this part, just skim for fish, depth and lure info. But buddy, you’re missing the point. It’s not the lures. It’s the vibes. The mojo. The Taylor Swift album drops, the charity dinners, the sunsets…that’s what moves the salmon needle!)

Speaking of, Taylor Swift’s new album, Life of a Showgirl, came out today. I’m convinced salmon literally jump into the net when a Swifty soundtrack collides with Ludington mojo…well, maybe!

Instead of cranking through UWGB assignments, I cartooned all the people I’ve fished with this year and built a web page. Procrastination = creativity. You’re welcome!

Morning: trained for the Ludington Run Club 5k. Still hate running. Still slow. Still doing it anyway.

Evening: hosted a table at the Lakeshore Food Club fundraiser. Best. Table. Ever. Sorry, not sorry. Cast of characters: Me (duh), Surgeon Jenn (she’s on a freakin’ billboard, no big deal), Nick, Alison (she works at the Food Club, so extra cool points), Wayne & Gloria Brown (boat neighbor MVPs of 2025), Adam, THE Logan (because every party needs a fish whisperer). Venue: perfect. Food: fancy. Donations: flowing. Lesson learned: giving local is cooler than giving big.

Crew this morning: me, Nick, Charlie Daniels, Logan, and newbie Dwight (but I think he’s called “Dewey”). Plan: …we didn’t have one.

Mark Start Reading Here: Last night, Adam said “north bank.” Logan said “water’s too warm…or too cold…something.” We shrugged and let the fish gods decide. Logan got a tip: bathhouse to the point, 95–105 FOW. Off we went.

We set lines with machine-like precision—15 rods out, not a single bite. Screen lit up with marks…fish everywhere, eating everything except our stuff. I don’t think Logan was used to this – I am!

First bite took forever. Eventually scratched out 4 kings and 3 coho, so 7 fish on 13 bites. Not terrible, not jackpot.

Hot Bites:

Red Tail meat, high diver 150 back: 2 bites
Yeck Chubster, 3 color: 2 bites (welcome back, buddy)
Blue Slice meat, low diver 140 back: 2 bites
Mr. Chrome Mini Yeah Mon, 10 color
Rhinestone Cowboy, rigger 75 down
Black Slick Paddle + Pickled Sunshine fly, chute 106 down
DW SS Wonderbread RV, free slider 92 down
White Slick Paddle + Pickled Sunshine fly, chute 125 down
Mini Half Moon Orange/Green Flounder, 7 color
Silver Streak Michael Jackson, 400 copper

What I Learned:

Rumor mill says Brad is really 45 and just has flawless skincare. Man’s living like a 28 year old!
Logan has a freakin’ diver-setting superpower. He can glance at a rod and say “That’s at 3.5, not 3.0.” Witchcraft.
No donuts on board = no hot bite. Coincidence? Maybe not.
Ludington is full of good-hearted people who open their wallets for a cause. Good to be part of it.
Still undecided if Dwight/Dewey is the name…but his first job was hauling fish guts to grind from Thompson’s to Copyeon Park for a quarter a bucket. Yikes.
Logan witnessed his first two Chubster bites. For a second I thought he’d become a believer. Then he trash-talked Chubster. Bite shut down immediately. Mojo sabotage, people.

Tomorrow’s Plan: The forecast kinda sucks, winds kicking up mid-to-late morning. Crew: me, Jenn, Logan confirmed. Adam’s a maybe. If you’re local and want in, shoot me a text. Hoping to fish 6am to10-11am or so before the lake turns ugly. Then it’s time to hang up the rods for a week, focus on homework, and celebrate Helz properly.