IRON MOUNTAIN — The fire risk in the Dickinson County area is now medium thanks to recent showers, but officials continue to urge care with campfires, off-road vehicles and trailer chains or anything else that might cause a spark.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources firefighters Friday morning were handling 17 fires in the Upper Peninsula and eight to 10 in the northern Lower Peninsula. Additionally, the Summit Lake Fire in the Ottawa National Forest’s McCormick Wilderness area reached over 300 acres in size.

As of Friday, open debris burning was not permitted anywhere in Dickinson, Iron and Menominee counties. Drought in the region is severe to moderate, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.

Upper Peninsula Power Co. will begin an early drawdown of the Victoria Reservoir on the Ontonagon River in Bruce Crossing beginning Monday. The drawdown will support a powerhouse facility improvement project and will lower the reservoir level over several days.

UPPCO reminds the public to be safe whenever recreating near the company’s hydroelectric facilities and to obey all posted warning signs.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources will host meetings in November to present information and gather feedback on the management of smallmouth bass in Green Bay and northern Lake Michigan.

The first meeting will start at 6 p.m. Monday, Nov. 4, at the DNR Green Bay Service Center, 2984 Shawano Ave., Green Bay. The second meeting will start at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6, at the Crossroads at Big Creek, 2041 Michigan St., Sturgeon Bay. Members of the public can also attend virtually via Microsoft Teams.

DNR staff will present the latest smallmouth bass survey and research data and gather feedback on a proposed regulation change to expand the catch and release season. For more, go to https://dnr.wisconsin.gov/newsroom/release/99996.

The Michigan DNR reported this Upper Peninsula activity:

Little Bay de Noc: Walleye fishing noticeably picked up. Anglers reported a challenging bite, with the best action seen at first and last light of the day. Most anglers were either jigging or trolling during dawn and dusk, although some reported success trolling crank baits after dark. Anglers were fishing the reefs, in the narrows and in front of the Escanaba River. Perch fishing was good; most anglers were either drifting or jigging perch minnows. Anglers fishing out of Kipling reported good fishing.

Marquette: When conditions allowed, several boat anglers went out from the upper harbor for lake trout and almost all reported success. A few boat anglers were still making their way down to the mouth of the Chocolay River to try for coho salmon and saw mixed results. Coho salmon continued to be caught from the Chocolay River mouth all the way up to the M-28 fishing pier. Brown trout were also reported to have been consistent. There were many fish, including steelhead, in both the Chocolay and Carp Rivers, however anglers reported the bite as finicky. Overall, spawn seemed to work best, with a few anglers catching fish on green spinners and blue/silver spoons as well.

Manistique: Anglers that fished the river were seeing and catching Chinook salmon. Most anglers reported that some fish appeared to be fresher however, the majority were those that have been in the river for some time. Steelhead anglers reported slow fishing with little to no success. The pink salmon run was reported to be over, with only a few still around. Most anglers were drifting skein or beads.

Keweenaw Bay/Huron Bay: Anglers trolling in the bays were catching lake trout in good numbers when using artificial lures such as flies, spoons and stick baits. Anglers also had luck casting for lake trout in shallow near shore waters. Some anglers were jigging in the bays for splake with natural baits and reported a great amount of success.

Big Traverse Bay/South Portage Entry Canal: Anglers were trolling and jigging with some success for lake trout. Trolling anglers were using artificial baits such as spoons and flies, while jigging anglers were using natural baits like cut sucker.