Wellman's

10/09/2026

First off, we would like to thank all of you for allowing to continue to earn your business.

As many have noticed and reached out about, we were caught up in the rush of summer and got away from the reports and kitchen updates. The plan is to continue them again from here.

Overall update, Summer went by way to fast. It was great to see so many familiar faces and create more memories with you all!

We have in stock this years LIMITED RUN Boot camp 2026 salmon shorts and hoodies. If you are a fan of Big Boots, this is the one for you!

Also, we have sourced a new style of hat! It has been popular and we will continue with some of the patterns! The Cork backed ones and topo colors have been crazy popular!.

We have taken down our minnow tanks temporarily as we have decided it was time to rebuild them and have a self contained system. We are nearing completion and will have them installed and running as soon as possible.

We had some angler requests to make some sausage using our recipe for the whitefish sausage and it turned into quite the hit. We have begun offering this for those that want it. Usually we can have it done in about a week.

With Deer season here already, We have been steady cooking smoking with our delicious recipes. Of course, if you have left over deer from last season we can convert that into hunter sticks, sausage, etc. to make room for your fresh harvest.

Fishing reports

Right now we are going to limit this to what we can speak to accurately.

Tawas River - Has had a good number of Kings caught near the mouth already on spoons and spinners.

Tawas bay itself has been slow from traffic due to winds. There are walleye around for sure as well as occasional steelhead and salmon.

Oscoda Pier - with the exception of a few good days, the pier has been more of a consistent trickle. Orange K.O wobbler have been the most popular and have taken kings, Coho, Steelhead, Walleye. There overall lake temps are still in the 60s and the surface is just scratching 56-58. We would expect with colder weather, it will only get better before anything.

Ausable River - Anglers would be shocked to see the number of salmon that are in the river overall. With the river still in the low 60's it is keeping the bite from turning hot. However, the ones putting in the time are taking fish on a mix of baits. Smaller spoons and spinners are starting to turn on better when focusing on the holes. Spawn has taken some steelhead and Coho but again its early. There have been atlantics caught as well with streamers seeming the best way to get them going. We would venture to guess that with the even colder nights and more mild day time temps coming we will get a true gauge to what this fall has in store.

Harrisville Harbor - Has seen good numbers of Coho pushing into the harbor. Spoons have caught some, and spawn has caught some. Lethargic is often used to describe them by anglers

Not a whole lot of information from Alpena yet.

Again, we will work to get back to what you have all come to love with our reports.
Thank you to all our loyal small business supporters.

Tight Lines and Screaming Reels
- Wellmans

🎣

10/05/2026

07/05/2026

Thank you to Iron Sponsor, Wellman's Party and Bait! If you are in Oscoda and want to know where the fish are biting, Roger and his staff can answer all your fishing questions and help you purchase any necessary equipment. While you are there, make sure to grab some of the best fresh-cut steaks and fresh-caught fish in the Oscoda area. Make sure to stop at Wellman's Party & Bait, located at 910 S. State Street in Oscoda.

Remember to support the biz's that keep our boats afloat!!

05/20/2026

First off, We would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen side has a lot of great information for this weekend/season!

First, We have put together the Grilling bundle and we think you'll be happy!
5 of our famous Ribeye steaks, 5 hand cut bone in pork chops, 10lbs of ground chuck, 4 packages of 8 piece chicken cuts (2 wings, thighs, legs and breast), 1 package of Koegel Hotdogs. All for only $175!!! We will be taking orders for these through the weekend and trying to get a gauge on how much to keep on hand from there on! Please stop in or call (989)739-2869

Second, We are smoking a limited amount of brisket for this Holiday weekend as well! This round will be $20.99/lb. We will take orders until we sell out. Were anticipating about 25 to 30 pounds when complete.

We are making sure we have our smoked fish and sausage ready and available! Of course plenty of our whitefish dip, jerky and hunter sticks!

Fishing side!

Report 5/20
Saginaw - Wind has been everyone's enemy. When boats get out, were hearing good fishing around 20 feet of water still. Crankbaits are still producing well and it does sound like crawlers are starting to catch as well.

Tawas Bay area - The wind is playing the same factor here as everywhere else. The good reports have come in when anglers get out and troll. We are hearing of good numbers of Walleye with a pretty good mix of silvers as well. This seems to be more just outside the bay itself. Spoons have taken most silver.

Oscoda Trolling - Again limited boat traffic due to weather. However, when they get out boy is it fishy! Mixed bags have come through. We have seen more kings this year too! Many boaters have already seen Atlantics, fall back steelhead, kings, browns, and lake trout. Most boats are staying in 30 FOW or less. Spoons.

Oscoda Pier - There has been lots of surfacing atlantics for a couple weeks now. Anglers are having success fishing up high with Spoons, jigs, countdowns. Blue silver, fire tiger, gold/orange. There is a medium minnow shortage around here. We feel access to them would increase odds. There are still walleye around as well. Jigging and crawlers have begun to take more.

Ausable river - There are still plenty of steelhead in all stages from spawned out to just came in. Flies and beads seem to be the main bait, however, wax worms have made a slight comeback as well. Walleye seem to be throughout the system and crawlers have begun taking fish. Smallmouth, Pike, summer fish have begun to show up in good numbers too. Side note, some of the cuts have produced good sized bluegills that are still egged up.

Harrisville - A lot of lake trout have come through here and a few pinks. It is a year of them.

Tight lines and Screaming Reels
- Wellmans

05/14/2026

First off, we would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen Side

You have been keeping us busy and we thank you again! We have some good ideas planned coming soon!

First is going to be Grilling Meat Bundles. More details will follow soon however, it will include chicken, fresh ground chuck, and our FAMOUS steaks! Stay Tuned!

We will be bringing back our Brats for the summer. This includes the ever popular Cudighi flavored.

We have plenty of our Whitefish Sausage, Smoke fished, Jerky and hunter sticks ready to go!

Deviled egg Potato salad is back!, Popper and twice baked potatoes are also available for this weekends get togethers!

Fishing side

Saginaw Bay - Walleye are still being found in that 15 to 20 fow. Flicker shad, flicker minnow, crank bait trolling seems to be the best. However, we have cleaned many of walleye that were caught on Jiggin raps and other jigs.

Tawas Bay - The winds have kept traffic down. When boats get out, many are chasing walleye and doing well in and out of the bay. We may get in a little trouble for mentioning, however, there is a decent silver bite going on here too. Browns, steelhead, occasional atlantics and kings too!

Tawas Pier - We have not got a ton of feedback. However, Walleye, smallmouth, Few Steelhead, few Atlantics. Mostly from Minnows on the silvers with Jigs being popular on the Walleye.

Oscoda Trolling - The weekend traffic is giving us insight as to how the season may set up and we are definitely optimistic! There have been more spring kings caught than what we've seen in years!!! There have been a good number of Master Angler sized browns, Coho, atlantics and more! Body baits and spoons have all been active. Around 20 fow have been productive.

Ausable River - There are still a ton of steelhead in the system!!! Spawn may be winding down slightly, however, there are still fresh pushes coming in. It has been a crazy year for numbers and size. Flies and beads have taken the majority. Flies have been black, whites, browns, and reds. We haven't been able to stop tying blacks and whites so they are probably most productive. Beads have been Peaches, reds and occasionally Chartreuse.
Walleye are stacking better in the mid to lower. Jigging has been most productive with Natural colors. Crawlers are starting to take off slowly.

Oscoda Pier - The end of the pier has seen the walleye slow a little. More of the eater size males have been caught than the bigger ones of earlier. There is a great number of Atlantics in the river from the pier to as far down as gilberts. Minnows have been most popular and running lighter spoons 1/2oz. and less up high have also taken fish. Gold and orange and blue and silver have been most popular.

Harrisville - Boat guys are doing good on lakers when they get out. The harbor does not seem to have a ton going on right now.

Tight lines and screaming reels
-Wellmans

🎣

05/01/2026

First Off, we would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen Side - We have been working hard to keep caught up on all of our smoked Fish and meats! We do have it all ready and available!
On the Red meat side, the market continues to remain tough with low cattle numbers and high demand. We are continuously watching this and doing our best to buy when the price keeps us competitive. So far we have managed to do so for the products we carry. Thank you to all of you that have continued to support us on this.

Meat bundles are still available. Price is subject to change, however, right now we are still holding at $159.99

Fishing Side

Saginaw - Anglers are finding success near Whitestone Point as well as Whitney Drain. Jigging in around 20 fow is putting good size and numbers of walleyes in the boat.

Tawas - Hearing pier fishing hear is up and down like the waves. Walleye, Atlantics, as well as catfish have been caught. It seems they are following the bait and when it pushes into the shoreline, so do the bigger fish.

Gateway park is seeing its fair share of traffic, however, most anglers are tight lipped on their catches.

Ausable/Oscoda - Fishing really picked up here. Walleye have been abundant at the pier. Crankbaits in firetiger and firetiger like patterns, as well as clown have been the most popular lures. Jigging has taken its fair share as well. There have been good catches of large fresh steelhead, occasional atlantics, pike, bass and more taken as well. The steelhead seem to continue to like the gold/orange spoons.

Ausable river - is hitting peak steelhead run. Anglers have found fish throughout the system, Flies, beads, spawn have all worked. The fish are showing bigger this year overall. Suckers, Walleye, Atlantics have also been caught. The walleyes are on crawlers, flies, cranks and seem to be more random than the ones from the pier.

Harrisville - Anglers are reporting decent numbers of Steelhead with the murky water making it slightly slower overall.

As a general note, boat traffic is starting to pick up slightly with most targeting walleye here as the bites been so nice. There will be browns, coho, atlantics, steelhead around though. When the boats start targeting, we anticipate good overall fishing.

Tight lines and Screaming Reels
-Wellmans

🎣

04/23/2026

First off, we would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!!!

Kitchen Side
For the first time of MANY this year, we have FRESH LAKE HURON WHITEFISH!!! We will be up all night getting it ready for sale!

FRESH SMELT will be in this weekend! We will be picking it up Friday. Pricing will be updated as soon as we know!
*IF you want to ensure you'll get some smelt, call in and place an order for what you would like. We only get a little over what is ordered on these runs and want to make sure we can take care of you! (989)739-2869

Of course we have all of our delicious steaks ready to go as the weather continues to warm up!

The Meat Bundle is still an option if your looking for the highest quality meat at affordable pricing as well!

Fishing Side

Saginaw Bay area - Water has been muddy and it sounds like there was not a lot of activity on the river when the water levels began to drop. Inside the bay, Still hearing Whitney drain & Whitestone Point are good spots to check out.

Tawas Bay - Anglers are having success on the Main Pier for Walleye, Atlantics, and An occasional Brown. Minnows and Jigging sound like the best options

We saw an increase in fishing at Gateway Park. Have not heard of a lot of action though.

Oscoda Pier - The pier has been very productive for anglers with all sorts of normal and random catches.! Steelhead, Atlantics, Walleye, and more have been caught!
Crankbaits have had their take of walleye and a random huge carp!
Minnows up high with the Michigan city rig (Oscoda Bobber Dog) are taking multiple species.
Jigging has caught Walleye, atlantics, a Spring King, and more.
Good fishing overall mostly on the lake side!

Ausable River - Water levels continue to go back down and slowly but surely the water is cleaning up. It is still dirty and probably will be for a bit longer, however, it is not clear like we normally are. Bigger presentations and scent seem to be helping anglers. 12mm beads, bigger bags, tandem rigs, seem to hook up more often. Flies are starting to take more fish as well with the stonefly, and Springs Wiggler working best. Suckers have moved in as well and anglers targeting them for fun or food have had success.

Harrisville - reports of good steelhead and atlantics from the docks have come in.
Spoons and spawn under a float is the ticket.

Still no real report from Alpena.

As a note Boats are starting to troll out front, however, its few and far as winds have kept most off the water. There has been some good walleye, steelhead, and browns for those that got out its not crazy yet!

Tight Lines and Screaming Reels
-Wellmans

🎣

04/17/2026

First Off, We would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen Side - We are still hanging strong with our meat bundle at the current pricing. The market itself continues to be unpredictable, however, we have been able to stay where we have been for at least another week.
We have brought back in the popular Deviled egg Potato salad. This stuff is delicious and we have had many requests to get it back and we have now delivered.
Smoked fish, Whitefish Sausage, Whitefish dip, as well as all of our jerky and hunter sticks are stocked and ready.
Of course, as these temps creep up and the sunshine shines, our steaks will be cut and ready to hit your grills!

Fishing side,
Going to shrink the zone for this one as conditions are ever changing right now!

Tawas Gateway - Anglers have been hitting this area pretty consistently with catches of walleye seeming to be on the ok side.

Tawas Pier - Hearing of Walleye, Browns, and an occasional Steelhead. Minnows have been popular as well as jigging and some crankbaits. The only anomaly of a request we received from anglers here is the shallow Hit Stick from Berkley. We have a few in just in case.

Oscoda pier/Ausable River overview- Flows are high as seen all over. This has changed the river for the long run, however, it remains unknown how until waters level out. Access to the Foote dam parking lot ha been stopped. There are issues with the walkway and railing eroding and it sounds as if this closure will last into June. The river is dropping its level slowly at this time and there have been anglers out having success in some of the accessible spots.
The Pier is seeing some good numbers of multiple species. Walleye have been caught on crankbaits, minnows, spoons, and jigs. They seem to be liking the higher water column near dusk. Lakers have been taken on Spoons and Minnows. Steelhead on Spoons. There has also been the occasional Coho and Atlantic. Overall, given the conditions in both spots, there have been good quality fish in good numbers caught.
As for the river, as conditions improve, it will be full on for the steelhead. The water temp has risen and Spawn and large beads have been leading the way right now. We believe this is partially due to the conditions as Flies should also work well in natural colors when conditions return closer to normal.

Harrisville - Hearing off the docks, Spoons and Spawn have taken a few fish here too. Just not much total feed back at this time.

Tight Lines and Screaming Reels
-Wellmans

🎣

04/09/2026

First off, we would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen side
Meat bundles are still available! 10lbs fresh ground chuck, 5 pounds fresh ground breakfast sausage, 5lbs of bacon, 10lbs of chicken breast or thighs. All for only $159.99! Less than $5/lb

The beef market is still ever changing and for the last few weeks has been on the rise. We're still offering the best high quality cuts at the most affordable prices we can!

There's fresh fish coming in Thursday. Atlantic salmon, walleye, and whitefish have all been ordered. Unfortunately, we're being told perch is going to be hard to find for a bit. We'll do our best to get it back in.

Fishing side

Saginaw - boats have been out with mixed success. Muddy water is making it a little tough. Hearing flicker shads on and around 20fow is a good start.

Tawas - the main pier has been strong on Lakers. Walleye sounds to be picking up too. Minnows, tube jigs, for Lakers occasional browns and steelhead. Jigging walleye and some crankbaits.

Oscoda pier - winds and weather slowed down pier pressure. When anglers got our it did produce Lakers, steelhead, some Atlantic's, and walleye in evening/ night.
Minnows, spawn, spoons, jigs, it's sounding like standard gear overall.

Ausable River - was ramping up great and then the weekend saw it get blown out. It did not stop the anglers and those that put the time in were rewarded with steelhead.
It was still a spawn bite And that remains, however, the ice on foote is nearly gone and will most likely this weekend will be. That signals the fish heading to gravel and the fly bite turning on. Water is 38.7 and rising.
Side note the rising water brought in walleye and some Atlantic's. The walleye are closed from the old lighthouse Boulder up river.

Some of the photos show the first of 2 steelhead plants. It was approximately 70 thousand fish.

Harrisville - the harbor has seen a solid number of Steelhead, some coho, some Atlantic's. Spoons and spawn being primary.

Tight lines and screaming reels
- Wellmans

🎣

03/27/2026

First off, We would like to thank all of you for allowing us to continue to earn your business!

Kitchen Side!
The meat bundle is still going strong and this incredible deal is becoming more and more popular! The included chuck roast is getting some great feedback. Due to its popularity, it has made it into our cooler as an every day cut!

We have been able to get some Fresh walleye and whitefish in for the first time in a while! Of course, we still have the ever popular Atlantic salmon!

We have a chance to get King crab legs. It would be 49.99/lb. If we get enough interest, we will be more than happy to bring it in.

We are now taking pre orders for Smoked ham for Easter Sunday dinner! Please call and reserve yours before March 31st. Size will be around 10-12lb hams.

We anticipate smelt at any time. We do have a reserve list. Pricing will be updated when we know more.

Fishing side

Singing Bridge - Is seeing its share of anglers shore fishing with spawn. We've heard mostly that the bite is day to day.

Tawas Bay - The main pier is seeing some take consistent Lakers. Jigging the bottom is producing most fish.

Oscoda Pier - Lake trout have been the most taken. Casting spoons off the end. Anglers have seen increasing success for steelhead even along the whole walk way. Walleye fishing remains slow with the water temps fighting to rise above mid thirties.

Ausable river - Steelhead fishing continues to ramp up. While it is still early in the run, anglers are finding success throughout the system. The dam has seen its fair share of fish on small spawn bags and some with hair jigs. Those fishing the holes are doing much the same and the ones willing to move away from slow spots, are doing best. Smaller spawn bags in pink netting or floaters are most popular. Boat anglers are finding fish in the mid to lower holes with plugs and floats both putting fish in the net. The bigger fish seem to be in these spots as well.

Tight lines and screaming reels
-Wellmans

🎣