Pure Angling - Charter Fishing on Grand Traverse Bay | Traverse City & Elk Rapids, Michigan

Welcome aboard to Pure Angling!

We are a Michigan fishing charter servicing the beautiful Traverse City and Elk Rapids area. Primarily, we will be on the East Bay of Grand Traverse Bay targeting lake trout, whitefish, cisco, coho salmon, and king salmon from the beginning of April to the end of October.

- All bait, fishing gear, and fish cleaning is included on every charter -

- We offer trolling & jigging/casting fishing trips -

* For 2025 * - We are launching just outside of Traverse City in Elk Rapids at the Edward C. Grace Memorial Harbor -

Check out our website for more information on booking a fishing trip with you and your family, friends, or even a work meeting/outing on the water! If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. Book a trip when you're ready for an adventure on the beautiful waters of Northern Michigan with Pure Angling.

Check out our new boat for 2025!

Available Fishing Trips

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Grand Traverse Bay

April - September

Trolling

Lake Trout - Cisco - Salmon

$500 for 1-2 Anglers

+ $50 for each additional angler up to 6

Departing the dock at 6 AM, 12 PM, or 5 PM

April - September 30th: Lake trout & cisco trolling (cisco: April - early June & October)

August 15th - September 20th: Salmon trolling in the bay

All bait, fishing gear, and fish cleaning is included on every trip

(bags provided for fillets)

Trolling is recommended for kids/families/big groups
Typically more action on trolling trips (we cover more water & can have 3 rods a person)
We only target salmon on morning or evening charters
On Noon fishing trips during salmon season we will be targeting lake trout (some rods will still be out for salmon)

Items to bring for your trip:

Sunglasses - Sunscreen - Drinks - Snacks - Cooler - Dress in layers - Rain Gear - MI Fishing License

You are welcome to take a cooler on the boat for food & drinks (we have a built-in cooler in the bow if you don't have one)
Kids 16 years and under do not need a fishing license)

$10 daily license for Michigan residents or $11 for out of state license

Click here to purchase MI DNR fishing license

What is trolling?

Trolling is a relaxed fishing trip where the boat moves at 2-2.5 mph. We set the lines, and you reel in the fish. It’s the most popular choice for families, offering an easy and fun experience. Trolling is a successful way for us get you fish in the boat as soon as we can make it out on the water to when the snow starts coming down at the end of our season. Here in Michigan, we can legally run 3 rods out a person and we can achieve that when we troll as compared to having one rod in your hand when casting/jigging.

We start out the season by offering fishing trips targeting cisco & lake trout in early April (weather permitting) on Grand Traverse Bay. Dressing appropriately for the weather is key to having an enjoyable experience in April. We always recommend dressing in layers as the temperature can vary quite drastically this time of year in a short amount of time. Don't let the colder temperatures turn you away, because the fishing is hot in the spring as the warming water triggers a feeding frenzy!

As we make our way into the months of May/June, we turn our focus to the shoreline as the warming water will draw in cisco and lake trout. This is a very fun time to be on the bay as it boast the most opportunity to catch a variety of fish trolling from lake trout, whitefish, cisco, steelhead, fresh water drum, and smallmouth bass. It's the only time of the year when all of those fish are swimming in the same depth of water due to water temperature. Once the water temperature gets past the mid 50's, the different types of fish will begin to separate into the temperature zones that they desire.

Approaching summer, the water will get too warm near the shoreline and will push lake trout out deeper into the bay in search of cooler water. At that point we will focus on deep water trolling for the remainder of the season. Lake Trout season in the bay will be closed on October 1st and we switch over to Cisco for the remainder of the season.

Salmon start to trickle their way into the bay in July, but we don't get good fishable numbers until August. These fishing trips are trolling only and peak season for Salmon is from the middle of August to the middle of September. These hard fighting fish test our equipment, break lines, and test your arm strength. The average weight of a salmon we catch here is between 15-25lbs! There have been fish caught in the bay that have reached over 30lbs in the last couple of years with a state record 47.86lbs king caught in 2021, just a few ports south of Grand Traverse Bay on Lake Michigan.

Book Fishing Trip

Grand Traverse Bay

April - September

Jigging & Casting

Target Species: Lake Trout & Cisco

$575 for 1-2 Anglers

+ $50 for each additional angler up to 4

Departing the dock at 6 AM, 12 PM, or 5 PM

April - middle of June: Casting near shore for lake trout & cisco

Late June - September 30th: Lake trout jigging

All bait, fishing gear, and fish cleaning is included on every trip

(bags provided for fillets)

Items to bring for your trip:

Sunglasses - Sunscreen - Drinks - Snacks - Cooler - Dress in layers - Rain Gear - MI Fishing License

You are welcome to take a cooler on the boat for food & drinks (we have a built-in cooler in the bow if you don't have one)
Kids 16 years and under do not need a fishing license)

$10 daily license for Michigan residents or $11 for out of state license

Click here to purchase MI DNR fishing license

What is jigging/casting?

Jigging and casting are more interactive. On a casting trip, we'll be near the shoreline casting and retrieving jigs/blade baits back to the boat, anticipating a bite at any moment. For vertical jigging, we drop a lure straight down into deeper waters (80-120') and move it up and down to attract fish. We may combine both methods depending on conditions. This trip is perfect for novice to experienced anglers (best for 1-2 people, will accommodate up to 4).

We start out the season by offering fishing trips in early April (weather permitting) on Grand Traverse Bay. Dressing appropriately for the weather is key to having an enjoyable experience in April. We always recommend dressing in layers as the temperature can vary quite drastically this time of year in a short amount of time.

As we make our way into the month of May, we turn our focus to the shoreline as the warming water will draw in Cisco and Lake Trout. This is a great time of year if you're looking for more of a hands-on charter fishing experience. On most days, we will be casting Heavy Hitters from Fish Bum Tackle and jigging them back to the boat with anticipating that tug on every cast. It's a lot of fun! We can offer this type of fishing trip starting in April and will last till the end of June.

Approaching summer, the water will get too warm near shore and will push fish out deeper into the bay in search of cooler water. When this happens we are able to offer our other hands-on charter fishing trip, which is vertical jigging for Lake Trout. Jigging is a fun way to target Lake Trout and is gaining popularity here in Northern Michigan. Some of these Lake Trout that we hook into are over 20lbs (average 6-12 pounds). As you drop your jig from the boat, you can watch it fall in detail on our Garmin fish finders to depths of over a 100'. We start offering Lake Trout jigging trips late June and will last to the end of September. Lake Trout season in the bay will be closed on October 1st and we switch over to Cisco for the remainder of the season.

Disclaimer: Typically, we catch more fish throughout the season trolling vs. jigging/casting as their is a learning curve and technique that we will have to teach you. Plus, we cover a lot more water trolling with more rods out compared to the one rod in your hand. We also recommend smaller groups if jigging is the preferred method, 1-2 people preferred, but will take up to 4 with one person in each corner of the boat.

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Grand Traverse Bay

October

Trolling

Target Species: Cisco (similar to a whitefish)

$500 for 1-2 Anglers

+ $50 for each additional angler up to 6

Departing the dock at 7:30 - 9 AM or 1:30 PM

All bait, fishing gear, and fish cleaning is included on every trip

(bags provided for fillets)

Trolling trips only in October for cisco
Dress in layers as the mornings tend to be cooler in October

Items to bring for your trip:

Sunglasses - Sunscreen - Drinks - Snacks - Cooler - Dress in layers - Rain Gear - MI Fishing License

You are welcome to take a cooler on the boat for food & drinks (we have a built-in cooler in the bow if you don't have one)
Kids 16 years and under do not need a fishing license)

$10 daily license for Michigan residents or $11 for out of state license

Click here to purchase Michigan DNR fishing license

Lake Trout season is closed for the remainder of the year starting on October 1st in Grand Traverse Bay, but the Cisco fishery is just heating up. Cisco school up in late fall and spawn in November and December once the lake cools down to their desired water temperature. Cisco are fun to catch and they are great on the smoker, deep fryer, and even baked in the oven. Part of the Whitefish family, they gotta be good, right?! October is a beautiful time of year to be out on the water taking in all the wonderful fall color that Northern Michigan has to offer. We strongly recommend dressing in layers as you never know what mother nature will throw at you this time of year. A heater will be available on the boat to warm up if needed. In fall we offer both trolling and jigging trips for cisco. Book us for your next fall adventure on the water.

You can contact us by filling out the form below or by calling/texting directly at

231-944-5144