Artificial Lure with your Lake Michigan, Chicago fishing report for Tuesday, October 28th, 2025, bringing you everything you need to know to plan the perfect day on the water.

We’ve woken to crisp autumn air—temperatures started near 40 and we’ll top out close to 57 under mostly sunny skies according to WSBT’s morning drive forecast. Winds were breezy through the night, mostly out of the east at 15 to 20 knots, stacking waves in the 3 to 6 foot range, according to the National Weather Service. Small Craft Advisories are in effect, so exercise caution if you’re venturing out past the breakwalls. For shoreline warriors, that wind’s just enough to keep things interesting and bring fresh fish in tight.

Sunrise hit at 7:19 AM this morning and sunset wraps us up at 5:54 PM. That gives you an early start and a long lunch bite if you’re chasing the fall run. No true tides on Lake Michigan, but that east wind is pushing some water up against the Chicago lakefront, especially near harbor mouths and river mouths—prime ground for big migratory fish.

Right now, the season belongs to the salmonids—chinook and coho salmon are pushing hard into the harbors like Montrose, Diversey, and Burnham at dawn and dusk. Locals have been scoring consistent limits tossing spoons and crankbaits along pier heads and inside the slips. When the bite gets picky, go old school with skein or spawn sacs under a float—action heats up right after a decent north or east wind lays baitfish against the rocks, as detailed in FishingReminder’s October update.

Steelhead are showing on the gray days, especially when you rip bright spoons through the channel mouths or soak waxies on jigs along warmwater discharges. These fish are cruising, so don’t be afraid to move until you connect. Lake trout are prowling the outer breakwalls and shipping channels—slow roll paddle-tail swimbaits or bounce a blade bait in 15 to 30 feet when conditions allow.

Bass anglers, don’t miss out—both smallmouth and largemouth are feeding hard on shad around current seams and marina corners. Ned rigs, jerkbaits, and undersized swim jigs are all putting up numbers. Grab your plastics and work slow, especially as the mornings get cooler.

Perch bite is still hit-or-miss, but best on calm, sunny mornings. Inside harbors and around pilings, a small minnow or a bit of shrimp on a drop shot is the ticket.

Local favorites for hot spots:
- Montrose Harbor pier—classic for salmon and steelhead this time of year
- 31st Street Beach in the morning for perch and roaming trout
- Burnham Harbor’s northern wall at daybreak for a shot at big kings
- Jackson Park Harbor for a mixed bag, including bonus largemouth

Bait and lure rundown:
- For salmon: bright spoons (silver/blue, orange), crankbaits with some flash, or skein on floats
- Steelhead: gold or chartreuse spoons, waxworms or live minnows on small jigs
- Bass: Ned rigs in green pumpkin, suspending jerkbaits, subtle swim jigs
- Perch: fathead minnows or shrimp on drop-shot rigs, small hair jigs when they want something different

If the water goes cloudy after a blow, switch to louder profiles or add chartreuse to your spread. Slightly stained water often outfishes gin-clear this time of year.

Recent catches: Limits of coho and solid-size chinooks out of Montrose and Burnham, steelhead up to 9 pounds reported along the harbor mouths last weekend, plus a few accidental lake trout along the outer walls. Bass and perch numbers up and down with the weather, but a half-dozen keepers an hour is doable if you find the bait.

That’s the word from the lakefront this Tuesday. Thanks for tuning in—make sure to subscribe so you never miss the bite updates.
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